Karlag Museum & Karaganda City Day Tour

Starting/ending point: Astana city

Driving distance: 500 km from Astana and back

Tour duration: 10-11 hours

Start time: 08:00 am Almaty time

Availability season: all year round

Tour language: English | Russian

Tour activities: Historic sightseeing | City sightseeing

Tour options: PRIVATE

Description

Explore a significant chapter of Kazakhstan’s 20th-century history on a full-day trip to Karaganda and the Karlag Museum.

Visit the former administrative center of Karlag (Karaganda Corrective Labor Camp) in the village of Dolinka, now a museum dedicated to the history of Soviet repression. Through preserved interiors and exhibitions, learn about the Gulag system and the lives of people who passed through it.

Continue to Karaganda to discover the city’s Soviet-era architecture, monuments, and industrial heritage. Your guide will share insights into how the region developed into one of Kazakhstan’s major coal and industrial centers.

This tour offers a meaningful combination of history, culture, and regional heritage — all in one well-paced day.

ITINERARY

08:00 Departure from Astana to the village of Dolinka, where the museum is located (3 hours)
Tour of Karlag (2 hours)
Departure to Karaganda (1 hour)
Lunch
Sightseeing tour of Karaganda (1 hour)
Way back to Astana (2-2.5 hours)
18:00 Hotel drop-off

⚠️ [Visits to any of the tour sites may be canceled and their order changed due to the change of seasons, weather conditions and other circumstances beyond our control]

OPTIONS & PRICES

PRIVATE tour	✅ Your address in Astana pick-up/drop-off ✅ Comfortable transport ✅ English-speaking tour guide ✅ Museum entrance fee and excursion ✅ Lunch in a restaurant of Russian national cuisine ✅ All toll roads and parking fees ❌ Special food & soft drinks
Number of people	2	3	4	5	6+
TOTAL PRICE	$350	$430	$520	$640	$130 per person
Vehicle type	Sedan/Crossover		SUV/minivan		Minibus

⚠️ [If you are more people, contact us and we will make an individual calculation for you]

PRIVATE TOUR BOOKING

[Here you can submit a request to book a private tour. We will try to respond to you within 24 hours]

BOOKING TERMS

PAYMENT TERMS

A deposit of $50-$100 is required to confirm a private tour booking. The exact deposit amount depends on the selected tour/option and group size. No deposit is required for group tour bookings, however a deposit may be requested in certain cases. The remaining balance is paid at the start of the tour.

CANCELLATION POLICY

PRIVATE TOURS

Customers may change or cancel their booking up to 72 hours before the tour start time. After this time, no changes or cancellations are possible.
Change or cancellation of a Comfort Option booking may incur additional fees.
The deposit is non-refundable as it covers booking administration, reservation costs, and the time reserved exclusively for your tour.

GROUP TOURS

Customers may change or cancel their booking up to 24 hours before the tour start time and receive a deposit refund. After this time, no changes, cancellations, or refunds are possible.
Late arrival or no-show by the customer may result in cancellation of the booking without a refund.
Group tours require a minimum number of participants and suitable weather conditions. If these requirements are not met, the tour may be canceled no later than 48 hours before the start, and customers will be offered an alternative date/tour or a deposit refund.

FORCE MAJEURE

Any tour or booking may be canceled due to force majeure circumstances (extreme weather, road closures, natural disasters, government restrictions, flight cancellations, etc.). In such cases, customers will receive a deposit refund or the option to reschedule the tour.