ای‌سیم قزاقستان

AlmatyAlmaty

The old capital, backed by the Trans-Ili Alatau range, with the wooden Zenkov Cathedral built without nails in Panfilov Park, the Green Bazaar, and a leafy grid of streets that make it the most liveable city in Central Asia.

two days

Medeu and Shymbulakabove Almaty

A high-altitude speed skating rink in a mountain gorge twenty minutes from the city, and a cable car continuing up to the Shymbulak ski area above it. Snow in winter, walking in summer.

a day

Big Almaty Lakenear Almaty

A turquoise reservoir in a bowl of mountains above the city, reached by a steep road. The area beyond it toward the Kyrgyz border is a controlled zone — do not continue past the signs without the right permit.

half a day

Charyn CanyonAlmaty region

A red sandstone gorge cut into the steppe, with the Valley of Castles section walked from rim to river in about an hour each way. Comparisons to the American southwest are lazy but not wrong.

a day

Kolsai and Kaindy lakesAlmaty region

Three linked mountain lakes in spruce forest, and nearby Kaindy, where an earthquake drowned a forest and the bare trunks still stand upright out of the water.

two days

Altyn-Emel National ParkAlmaty region

A vast desert park holding the Singing Dune, which hums when the sand slides, and the striped Aktau mountains. Entry requires a permit and the tracks inside need a proper vehicle.

two days · رزرو از قبل

AstanaAstana

A capital built from nothing on the steppe in thirty years, arranged along a ceremonial axis with the Bayterek tower, the Khan Shatyr tented mall and a great deal of ambitious architecture. Bitterly cold in winter.

two days

Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed YasawiTurkistan

A Timurid mausoleum, UNESCO-listed and never finished, the most important pilgrimage site in the country. The surrounding town has been heavily rebuilt to receive visitors.

a day

Mangystaunear Aktau

Chalk and limestone desert on the Caspian, with the Bozzhyra escarpment, the spherical concretions at Torysh, and underground mosques cut into rock. Reached only by 4x4 with a driver who knows the tracks.

three days · رزرو از قبل

BurabayAkmola region

Pine forest, granite outcrops and lakes in the northern steppe, a few hours from Astana and the country's traditional summer escape.

two days

Domestic flights

Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country on earth and flying is often the only sensible way to cross it. Air Astana and its low-cost arm FlyArystan link Almaty, Astana, Shymkent, Aktau and the regional centres.

moderate

Train

KTZ operates an enormous network of long-distance sleepers. The Talgo services between Almaty and Astana run overnight in reasonable comfort; the ordinary trains are slow, sociable and very cheap.

low

Almaty metro and buses

A single clean metro line under the city, plus a dense bus network. Both use the Onay card, bought and topped up at kiosks and machines rather than paid in cash.

very low

Shared taxi and intercity bus

Buses connect the towns, and shared cars leaving when full fill in the gaps at the bus stations. Agree the price before you get in, and expect the driver to want a full car.

low

Hired 4x4 with driver

The only realistic way to reach Altyn-Emel, the Mangystau desert or the tracks beyond Kaindy. Arranged through agencies in Almaty or Aktau, usually as a multi-day rate including fuel.

high by local standards

تاکسی اینترنتی

Yandex Go, inDrive

Both are used constantly and are inexpensive. inDrive works on an offer-and-counteroffer model rather than a fixed fare, which foreigners find odd at first. Unofficial taxis — anyone who stops when you raise a hand — remain common but the apps are safer and settle the price in advance.

پرداخت در محل

• Standard in Almaty, Astana and Shymkent, and Kazakhstan is unusually advanced in mobile banking — QR payment through local bank apps is everywhere, though it needs a Kazakh account.
• Supported by the major Kazakh banks and accepted at most contactless terminals in the cities.
• پول نقد هنوز لازم است برای: bazaars, shared taxis, village shops and guesthouses, national park entry posts, anywhere in the Mangystau desert

اطلاعات پایه

• شماره اضطراری: 112, or the direct lines 101 fire, 102 police, 103 ambulance
• پریز: Type C, Type F · 220V
• آب لوله‌کشی: no — bottled or boiled water is the norm, including in Almaty
• Around 10% in city restaurants, though many in Almaty and Astana add a service charge to the bill. Not expected at bazaars or in shared taxis.