Joanna James
Barely populated Kazakhstan is home to striking mountains and some of the most out-of-the-box sites in the world. The drought sea and the magnificent and vast steppe borders this country set in Asia but with a European vibe.
Any Atyrau travel guide worth their salt would say that the monsoon season is the best time to explore Kazakhstan. This is between July and August. And, Atyrau by the way is the gateway to the country’s biggest oil field. This period allows visitors to discover the best of the city and go hiking as the scenery puts on a lovely monsoon glow. Check with accommodation options like DiscoverASR for booking deals.
If you’re from the EU, USA, Canada, Australia, Japan, or South Korea, you get an on-arrival visa in Kazakhstan for 30 days. Travellers from most Latin American countries too enjoy this privilege. Extending a visa can be tricky, but if you exit and re-enter on the same day, they renew your visa. However, they won't extend the visa for over 90 days.
When you enter the country, they give you an immigration form which you’ll need to fill in, and they stamp it twice. The second time is for police registration. Guard this form during your stay or risk a fine when it’s time to leave.
Shop owners and other traders in Kazakhstan prefer cash trades. Whether you shop at a local store or ritzy restaurant, cash would come in handy. Depending on the places you wish to travel, draw up a budget and carry a little extra cash. In the main cities, however, you can opt for card payments. As for exchanging money, you can exchange American dollars, Euros and Russian Rubles at banks and exchange offices.
There are 3G data SIM cards available in the country along with Wi-Fi connections. You can get 20GB of data for about 5 USD. You could also buy an eSIM card. These work much like regular SIM cards but come in a digital format. The good thing is that you can get the connection before you set off to Kazakhstan.
And, get a good VPN to increase internet safety. That way, you’ll be able to access content that is generally censored in Kazakhstan.
If you’re a vegetarian, you might have difficulty finding all vegetarian food in Kazakhstan except in main cities. But, here are some dishes to try in this country bordering the legendary steppe region.
· Beshbarmak – A dish of pasta layers with vegetables and horse meat, served in a flat dish with a bit of flavourful broth
· Pelmeni – Dumpling soup
· Lagman – noodle soup with beef
· Kazy – Sausage-like delicacy
Take a multi-day train over the Kazakh steppe. This would be a memorable, incomparable experience. Train rides are a good option to explore other areas of the country as well. When you travel into further regions, where train services are not available, you’d have to rely on a shared taxi. Download the Yandex app to book city taxis. This is the Russian version of Uber. But, public transport including trains and buses are the best and least expensive modes of getting around in this vast, developed country.
Shopping malls and bazaars in Kazakhstan provide top-range goods. Schedule some time in your itinerary for shopping and going to malls. Try the below for your retail therapy sessions.
· Baizaar Mall
· Sine Tempore
· Dostyk Plaza
· Asia Park Mall
A true believer that the pen is a mighty weapon, ventures into reaching the minds of every reader with the earnest hope of leaving an indelible stream of thought.
A travel writer who has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world.
