Ala Kul News Today

Breathtaking hikes, yurt stays and opportunities for cultural immersion are attracting trekkers from around the world

The old trade routes of the silk road give travellers endless options to explore central Asia, from lake-scattered mountain plateaus to ornate mausoleum complexes and lively cities packed with soviet architecture.

In photos: the best of Central Asia Exploring one of our favourite regions with our Photographer of the Month, Cynthia Bil. Post author Cynthia Bil is a Belgian travel photographer and Panasonic Lumix Ambassador. She left her home country in 2011 to travel the world full-time. In 2015, she started a three-year overland hitchhiking journey that led her from Europe to Central Asia where she fell in love with the culture, landscapes and untouched nature. Here are some of her standout photo...

Forget Lapland, forget the North Pole. If Santa Claus really wants to visit every home in the world in one night, he should start his journey in Kyrgyzstan. We take a look at what this unlikely home of Father Christmas has to offer visitors. Some say that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, others that he lives in Lapland. However, according to the Swedish engineering consultancy company Sweco, if Father Christmas really were to reach every home in the world in a single night, the most effici...