She Travels Abroad

Kazakhstan

Is it a good travel destination?

The capital, Astana, is worth a visit from the whole family!

If you’re interested in traveling somewhere that’s relatively comfortable and safe, but that is totally off the beaten track for most western travellers, you should definitely consider Kazakhstan as a travel destination. It’s great for tourists and travellers, with plenty of incredibly beautiful sights. Immense and sparsely populated, with lots of steppe, this country reminds me of Australia, though Kazakhstan also has really big mountains!

It is different in other ways too. It’s undergone a rapid increase in the size of its economy, and it has some spectacular cities which have grown on the back of this. Astana, the new capital as of 1998, has some stunning buildings, and is worth a visit. However, my heart belongs to Almaty, the former capital and largest city, with its more established cultural centre. I also am keen to visit Shymkent, the country’s 3rd largest city, with its gorgeous old architecture. Every one of these cities should be on your travel destination list when you visit Kazakhstan!

What language do they speak in Kazakhstan?

The most common languages you’ll find here are Russian and Kazakh. Russian is probably the most widely spoken, but there is a growing number of folks who speak mainly Kazakh. Kazakh comes from the Turkic language group and shares some similar words and structure to Turkish and Uzbek. English is spoken by some, mostly in the big cities, but it is well worth it to learn a few words of the local languages.

Just to make it a little more fun, Kazakhstan also uses the Cyrillic alphabet. Some of the characters in this alphabet are a little crazy (they reversed the ‘R’s and the ‘N’s!), but it is cool once you learn a few of them and can start reading street signs. I began learning the alphabet before arriving, and I can tell you it made things much easier! There is talk of the latin alphabet replacing the Cyrillic alphabet. However, as of 2024, most signs are still in Cyrillic.

What currency do they use in Kazakhstan?

Kazakhstan uses the Tenge, and for 1 USD you’ll get around 500 KZT. The Tenge is not as stable as some other currencies in bigger economies, so this is approximate. You might have to pay in cash, at small market vendors for example, but in general, you’ll get away with a credit or debit card in the bigger cities. Also Apple Pay is relatively common. I regularly go shopping and to the supermarket with just my phone. A lot of folks living here have an account with a bank alternative, called Kaspi, allowing them to electronically transfer even small amounts fee-free amongst friends, at market stalls and also bigger shops and supermarkets. However, you need to get an official government identification number (what is called an IIN) to apply for one of these accounts. Therefore if you’re here as a tourist, stick with cash and your cards.

Is Kazakhstan a good travel destination?

Kazakhstan is paying attention to its tourism industry and you’ll find a lot of investment in the mountain resorts where you can ski in the winter, and hike in the summer. Actually you can hike all year round; plenty of people here do!

The cities are very welcoming and relatively easy to navigate for tourists too. There’s a lot of development here and it’s easy and cheap enough to get around in by bus or taxi. There are links between many of the cities by air, rail or road.

So if you find yourself asking yourself, is Kazakhstan a good travel destination? The answer is yes!

What do I know about Kazakhstan?

I’ve been living here since mid 2021 with my family. Visit my About Me page to understand more about my perspective.

Check out my posts on Kazakhstan: