Almaty Mountain Cluster: Construction of new cable cars and trails to begin in 2026

According to Smagulov, a key focus of the project will be expansion of the cableway and ski slope network before 2028, allowing to connect major resorts Oi-Qaragay and Shymbulak. The project is set to be implemented in three phases, the speaker announced on Wednesday.

Set to start in 2026, phase one of its plans includes expansion of the Shymbulak mountain resort and construction of new cable cars in the Kimasar Gorge. The Shymbulak resort will have two new lifts and add 16 km of new skiing and snowboarding space; while the Kimasar Gorge will welcome four lifts and up to 18 km of trails.

Phase two envisages area development in the Butakovsky gorge (adding five lifts and 22 km of trails) and Oi-Qaragai mountain resort (4 lifts and 12 km of trails). Its realization is slated for 2027/28.

Phase three provides for the development of the Pioner area, unveiling four lifts and up to 20 km of new trails.

It’s expected that once the project is realized, the number of cable cars will increase from 16 to 42, while the trail network will expand from 41 km to 112-162 km, thus raising its daily traffic from 6,000 to 24,000 people.

We believe that the number of foreign tourists will reach 1 million people per year by 2029, and the estimated economic impact will be around 300 billion tenge, said Smagulov.

As reported earlier, Kazakhstan enters the top five travel destinations for Chinese tourists.