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Your first flight
No experience, no equipment, no licence. About four hours door to door.
A certified pilot flies a two-seat wing and you sit in front. You take a few steps at launch and then nothing is under your feet. Above Ushkonyr you get the Zailiysky Alatau wall on one side and steppe to the horizon on the other, which is a combination you will not see anywhere else.
Why our price is not the cheapest, stated plainly
You can fly a tandem near Almaty for roughly a third of what we charge, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. The cheap flights are real flights with real pilots. What you get for the difference is specific and you should decide whether you want it:
- A private transfer from your hotel, not a shared minibus at a fixed hour. We go when the air is best, which is usually not when a bus fills up.
- 15–25 minutes airborne instead of 10. At the cheap end of this market a flight is a descent. Airtime is the only thing that actually distinguishes one flight from another.
- A senior pilot, not whoever is next on the rota.
- Full-flight video and stills the same day, included rather than sold at launch.
- One slot, unhurried. Nobody is waiting behind you on the hill.
If what you want is the experience of leaving the ground once, cheaply, book a cheap flight — it is a legitimate choice and you will enjoy it. If you have already done a ten-minute hop somewhere and felt short-changed, this is the page for you.
What can stop the flight
Wind. Ushkonyr blows out on a lot of summer afternoons, which is why morning slots have the better hit rate and why we cancel or move rather than push. A weather cancellation is refunded in full or rebooked on any other day of your stay, your choice.
Ushkonyr tandem flight
from $170 per passenger final price
The main Almaty flying plateau, an hour from the city. Launch at around 1,750 m with the Zailiysky Alatau wall on one side and the steppe running north to the horizon on the other. Booked as a half-day because we go at the hour the air is best, not at the hour the minibus is full.
| Duration | ~4 h door to door, 15–25 min airborne |
|---|---|
| Launch | Ushkonyr plateau, ~1,750 m |
Included
- Certified tandem pilot, senior on the roster
- Wing, harness, helmet, reserve
- Private transfer from your Almaty hotel and back
- Full-flight video and stills, delivered the same day
- Unhurried scheduling: your slot is not shared with three other flights
Not included
- Personal travel insurance
Limits and refunds
Passenger weight 45–100 kg, age 16+. Ushkonyr blows out on many summer afternoons; morning slots have the better hit rate. Weather cancellations are refunded in full or rebooked.
Long thermal tandem, 30–60 min
Price on request
For people who already did a short flight somewhere and want the real thing. We wait for the working part of the day, climb in thermals, and stay up long enough that the ground stops being the point. Two attempts inside your stay included.
| Duration | half day, 30–60 min airborne |
|---|---|
| Launch | Ushkonyr or Oi-Qaragai, chosen on the day |
Included
- Senior tandem pilot
- Full equipment
- Private transfer
- Full-flight video and stills
- Flight track (IGC/GPX) on request
- Second attempt if the air does not work on the first
Not included
- Personal travel insurance
Limits and refunds
Passenger weight 45–95 kg. Thermic air is bumpy. If you are prone to motion sickness, take the standard flight instead — this is the wrong product to be brave about.
Tandem flight plus zipline day
from $247 per passenger final price
A tandem flight combined with a zipline descent at the Sunkar complex above the city. The option for a group where not everyone actually wants to fly a paraglider — the zipline carries the ones who do not.
| Duration | ~4 h |
|---|---|
| Launch | Sunkar complex area |
Included
- Certified tandem pilot and full equipment
- Zipline session
- Transfer from central Almaty
- Photos and video
Not included
- Personal travel insurance
- Meals
Limits and refunds
Passenger weight 45–100 kg. If the flight is cancelled for weather, the zipline part still runs and the flight portion is refunded or rebooked.
Questions
How is this different from a 22,000-tenge flight?
Airtime, transfer, pilot seniority, media, and the fact that the slot is scheduled around the weather rather than around a minibus. Not safety — the certified local pilots flying the cheaper products are competent people and we are not going to imply otherwise to make a sale.
Is it safe?
Tandem flight under a certified pilot with a reserve is a low-incident activity but not a zero-risk one. The two things that decide it are the pilot's currency and the willingness to not fly. Almaty has the advantage here over the rest of the region: proper hospitals are 40 minutes away, not seven hours.
What should I wear?
Trousers, closed shoes with ankle support, one layer more than the city needs. Ushkonyr runs 8–10 °C cooler than Almaty and the air is cooler again.
Can I hold a camera or a selfie stick?
No. Anything handheld becomes a projectile or a snag near the lines. The pilot's camera covers the whole flight and you have the footage the same day.
Will I be sick?
In smooth morning air almost nobody is. In thermals some people are. Ask for an early slot if you are prone to it.
Do I need insurance?
Check whether your travel policy excludes "hang gliding and paragliding". Most do. For a passenger flight this matters less than for a pilot, but the exclusion applies to exactly the hour that carries the risk.
Can I fly if I am over 100 kg?
Not on the standard wing. Write to us with your weight before booking and we will tell you honestly whether it is possible rather than take the payment and sort it out at launch.
Related
- How much does paragliding in Almaty cost?
- Where do you paraglide near Almaty?
- When is the best time to paraglide in Almaty?
- Is paragliding in Almaty safe?
- Does travel insurance cover paragliding in Kazakhstan?
- What are the weight and age limits?
- How do I get to the launch from Almaty?
- What should I wear and bring?
Tell us your dates
Send the dates you are in the country and we will come back with the slots that have the best chance of usable air. A person reads it and answers within one working day.
Or just get the season report
One email at the end of each season with the flyable days we actually logged, and one more if the SIV course opens. Nothing else, ever.