The Chaya (Russian: Чая) is a river in Buryatia and Irkutsk Oblast, Russia.

[1] In the International scale of river difficulty the Chaya is a Class IV-V destination for rafting and kayaking.

Then it flows across the North Baikal Highlands within a narrow valley, with the Akitkan Range to the west, easing into the Prebaikal Depression in a roughly NNW direction, where its channel divides into branches.

[3] The main tributaries of the Chaya are the Magdana, Nalimda and Limpeya from the right, and the Olokit, Abchada and Kilyakta from the left.

Grayling, whitefish and lenok are among the fish species found in the waters of the river.