The Toyota Hiace Minibus in Detail

What you see in the photos

We drive our guests in a Toyota Hiace — a high-roof minibus with 13 passenger seats. The outside shots show the real vehicle with Kazakhstani license plates: this is the one the driver brings to your door. There are no specially polished advertising shots and no other people’s interiors here.

Inside are soft reclining seats with a seat belt at every seat, air conditioning for cooling and heating, multimedia and a power door. The aisle between the rows lets you get to your seat without disturbing anyone, and the high roof gives you headroom: on a long drive to Lake Alakol or Lake Balkhash, you feel it most.

Luggage

Behind the last row is a separate luggage compartment. It takes suitcases, a stroller, skis and snowboards, backpacks and gear, food and a barbecue grill for a day out in nature; if everyone has a large suitcase, we take up to 9 people, with skis — 9–10. Nothing has to sit on your lap, and that is the main practical difference from an ordinary taxi, which a group with luggage simply does not fit into.

How many people fit

Thirteen passenger seats plus the driver’s seat. The cost is for the whole minibus, not for each passenger, so for a group it is cheaper than several cars — guide prices by route are on the prices page, and the routes themselves are listed under destinations. If fewer people are going, the free seats usually go to bags and backpacks — handy on a trip out of town.

Getting on board

We bring the minibus to your door, your hotel or right to the terminal exit — the photos show that the step is low and the sliding door is power-operated: getting in is easy with a suitcase, with a child in your arms, and for elderly parents. A continuous aisle runs from the door to the last row, so people can take their seats in any order without climbing over each other. The driver gets out, helps load your things into the rear compartment and closes the door himself. For an airport pickup he waits with a name sign, and for a wedding he brings the vehicle at the set time and stays with the group for the whole booked time.

Where we go in these photos

The second half of the gallery is not the vehicle but the routes people most often book it for: sunset over Lake Balkhash, the turquoise water of Alakol, the slopes of Shymbulak, the Uyghur District in winter, home to the Chundzha hot springs, and the Medeu skating rink in the mountains above the city. These are the same trips as on our destinations page. We did not take the photos of the places ourselves — they are landscape shots to illustrate the routes, and the sources and licenses of the destination photos are listed separately. Our own photos are of the Hiace itself: the body, the cabin and the luggage compartment.

If there are more than thirteen of you

We have one vehicle, and we are upfront about it. Up to thirteen passengers — one minibus and one price for the whole vehicle. If there are more people, there are two options: two runs back to back if time allows, or a partner minibus for your date so everyone leaves at the same time. Tell us the number of people right away, and we will base the quote on it.

Want to see the minibus in person?

That is a perfectly normal request, especially if you are organizing a wedding or transporting children. Call us or message us on WhatsApp — we will agree on a time and show you the vehicle before you book.