Kapriz Karakol

We recently vacationed for the first time at the Karakol ski resort, we decided to stay at the Caprice Hotel, because... it is the only one there right on the slope and not from Soviet times. I decided to write a detailed review for newcomers to the resort so that they understand where they are going and what to prepare for. We had never skied anywhere other than the Alps before, so it was a bit difficult for us to get our bearings. I hope it helps someone. From the main thing: of course, by global standards this is not 4 stars :-) In reality, average fatigue is a solid three. Well, in a 4* hotel there are no crooked tiles in the bathroom, pieces of wood sticking out of the ventilation, a non-working heating radiator and suddenly missing water. On the plus side: right on the slope (on the children’s slope), the hotel has its own rental car, though it’s 2 times more expensive than in Bishkek, but it’s there and works great. The room has a safe, hairdryer, kettle and glasses, TV with 4 Russian channels, not a single European one by the way, there are about 10 channels in total. We didn’t use wi-fi because... On the advice of the hotel staff, we took local SIM cards with unlimited internet from O!, it works perfectly there everywhere on the mountain. No regrets. The price includes a fairly normal breakfast. There are always 2 types of porridge, scrambled eggs and some kind of egg roll or omelet, something meat like meatballs, chicken, meatloaf, etc., fresh tomatoes/cucumbers, one half-smoked tasteless sausage and simple cheese. There were always pancakes, but they cut out the honey :-). They gave condensed milk, one day a group of regulars from Russia arrived, complained to the restaurant manager about the lack of honey, the next day it appeared for a couple of days and disappeared again. There were several sweet treats, but we didn’t eat them for breakfast. In turn there was yogurt and cottage cheese. There were no juices, only compote and tea. We ordered natural coffee at the bar for an additional fee, we also wanted to order fresh coffee, but it wasn’t available for a single day :-(. In general, you can have a hearty breakfast so that you have enough energy to skate until lunch. An excellent masseuse in the spa. A good hammam and sauna. There is billiards. Of the minuses: a little expensive for this level of service. It’s cold in the pool and billiard room. The food in both the restaurant and the cafe is mediocre. Especially non-local dishes. There is no set meal plan. If you dine in a restaurant, you lose a lot of time. The service on the pistes is completely out of whack . The lifts are terribly old, there are no cabins, only chairs, the seats on the lifts are not cleared of snow or ice. It’s cold to go up. There are no markings or signs on the slopes anywhere, there are also no mesh fences for dangerous areas. The eastern route is bald, there is no snow , stones and ice, the track is not closed. There are big questions about safety. Snow is not always thrown on and very limited. On Saturday there are very long queues at the children's lift. In fact, there is only one track for confident skiers. For 2-3 days it’s ok, longer it’s very boring. More details: We drove to Karakol by car from Bishkek for 6.5 hours with a stop to buy food in Cholpon-Ata along the northern road. She is tolerant, at least she doesn’t shake, she walks along the shore of Issyk-Kul. We were happy all the way