Kazakhstan Info
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 14
Home Country: kazakhstan
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 Posted: Wed May 09, 2007 6:26 am Post subject: GETTING AROUND IN KAZAKHSTAN / KAZAKHSTAN TRANSPORT GUIDE |
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GETTING AROUND IN KAZAKHSTAN
BY AIR
There are frequent flights from Almaty to Astana, Chimkent (four times a day), Dzhambul, Karaganda, Kzil-Orda, Pavlodar, Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk. Flights also leave Chimkent for Almaty, Karaganda and Semipalatinsk. Travellers should note that maintenance procedures for aircraft operating internally may not conform to internationally accepted standards.
Domestic airports
Chimkent has an airport offering mostly domestic flights. However, there are also services to Moscow (four times a week) and Novosibirsk (Russian Federation), and to Tashkent (Uzbekistan) (daily). Bus no. 12 runs from the city centre to the airport.
Semipalatinsk has a domestic airport with flights to Almaty, Chimkent, Dzhambul, Karaganda and Ust-Kamenogorsk. However, it also receives flights from Bishkek, Krasnoyarsk, Moscow (four times a week), Omsk, Tashkent and Tomsk.
The airport at Ust-Kamenogorsk receives flights from Almaty and a few other Kazakh cities, as well as from Moscow, Novosibirsk and a few other Siberian cities. Bus no. 12 runs to the Hotel Ust-Kamenogorsk in the city centre.
BY RIVER
River trips can be taken in Semipalatinsk on the River Irtysh.
BY RAIL
There are two TurkSib trains leaving Chimkent daily, one to Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and the other to Novosibirsk (Russian Federation), stopping at destinations in between. The cost of rail travel in Kazakhstan is minimal in comparison with Western Europe and there are regular connections between all the main centres. Queues at stations to buy a ticket can be long and passengers should bring their own food and drink for the journey. It may be advisable for foreign visitors to travel by bus between cities, owing to an increase in robberies on trains.
BY ROAD
Traffic drives on the right. There is a reasonable network of roads in Kazakhstan connecting all the towns and regional centres. Petrol supplies are reasonably reliable in comparison with other Central Asian republics.
Bus
There are regular bus connections between all the main cities of Kazakhstan.
Car rental
Available in Almaty and Astana and at the airports.
Documentation: An International Driving Permit is required.
URBAN TRANSPORTATION
Almaty is served by trolleybuses and buses. One big minus is that all of them never come on schedule and very crowded on peak time.Taxis are available in all Kazakh cities. A common way to get around is by unofficial taxis. Any time of day, just wave your hand and someone will stop. Locals do this all the time. Negotiate the price and destination before you agree to go. About US$2- US$4 is fair for a ride within the centre of Almaty. To be safe though, do not get into a car if more than one person is driving. Also, do not take these kind of taxis for long distances or anywhere that goes through remote areas, as there are frequent robberies- especially of foreigners. Official taxis cost 3-5 times more.
A fun and cheap way to get around is by taking a marshrutka. These are the dilapidated vans that cruise around town. They usually have a sign (in Russian) listing the destination, and the driver will usually call out where they are going. |
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