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Tempted to sample the beauty of Kazakhstan natural areas for yourself?
Wanting to escape the stresses of the city but dont know where to start?
Interested in visiting Central Asia but concerned about entry requirements?
Travelling Requirements
There are effectively three stages of the process of entering Kazakhstan as a tourist; invitation letter, visa and registration.
Do I require a visa?
A tourist visa is required by all except….To obtain a copy of a tourist visa you should apply to the relevant Kazakhstan embassy.
THE LIST OF THE COUNTRIES CONCERNING CITIZENS WHO ARE ACCEPTED EASYLY VISA PROCEDURES:
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The United Arab Emirates
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Kingdoms Saudi Arabias
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Poland
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The Hungarian Republic
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Slovak Republic
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The Australian Union
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The Austrian Republic
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Kingdoms Belgium
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The United Kingdom
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The Greek Republic
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Kingdoms Denmarks
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The Irish Republic
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The Icelandic Republic
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Kingdoms Spain
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Italian Republics
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Canada
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Republics Koreas
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Princedom Liechtenstein
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Great Duchy Luxembourg
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Malaysia
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Monaco
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Kingdom of the Netherlands
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New Zealand
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Kingdoms Norway
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The Portuguese Republic
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Republics Singapore
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THE USA
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The finnish Republic
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The French Republic
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Federal Republic Germany
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The Swiss Confederation
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Kingdoms Sweden
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Japan
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Israel
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Croatia
Do I require an invitation letter for my visa?
As of February 2004, citizens of the following countries can obtain a standard tourist visa (single entry, 1 month) without the need for an invitation letter:
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Gt. Britain, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, USA.
NB: The websites of some Kazakhstan embassies (see Useful websites and books section) are out of date regarding visa requirements - it is advisable to phone to check the latest information
However, if you plan to stay longer than a month or will be re-entering the country (e.g. after a visit to neighbouring Uzbekistan or Kyrgyzstan) and will be applying for a different type of visa (e.g. double-entry) you will need to obtain an invitation letter. The easiest method is to contact a tour company in Kazakhstan (a list is available at http://expat.nursat.kz - although note that their Oops! I am Going To Kazakhstan section is now out of date).
What is registration?
Within 72 hours of arriving in Kazakhstan your passport/visa must be registered by OVIR (Office of Visas and Registration). Attempting to do this yourself is not advised. Either pay a tour company (a list is available at http://expat.nursat.kz or the hotel you are staying in (some in Almaty offer this service) to take care of it for you. Note that it may not be possible to be registered during the weekend, and that it is not possible to buy a train ticket without registration (although you can buy internal flights).
 Flights
The recently improved Almaty International Airport
provides the main gateway to Kazakhstan - international flights are operated by Air Astana (Bangkok, Beijing, Dubai, London Heathrow, Moscow, Istanbul, Amsterdam, Seoul), Asiana Airlines (Seoul), British Airways (London Heathrow, Baku), Iran Air (Tehran), KLM (Amsterdam), Lufthansa (Frankfurt), Pakistan International Airlines (Karachi), Tajikistan Air (Dushanbe), Transaero (Moscow), Turkish Airlines (Istanbul), Uzbekistan Airways (Tashkent), UM Air (Kiev), China Southern Airlines (Urumqi). For the latest information on flights and the airport go to http://en.alaport.com/main.html (english) or www.alaport.com/main.html (russian).
A small number of international flights serve Astana (Hanover, Moscow).
Travelling Within Kazakhstan
AIRLINES
Air Astana www.air-astana.kz
The main provider of internal flights. It is anticipated that Air Astana will take over many of the routes previously offered by Air Kazakhstan.
TRAINS
www.railways.kz
Website of Kazakhstans train company, which includes a timetable of all trains passing through Astana
References
GENERAL TRAVEL
Lonely Planet - Central Asia (3rd Edition)
The third edition of this popular guidebook has recently been published and provides a much needed update of the key information required by the independent traveller in Kazakhstan. However, with information rapidly changing, and coverage limited, the Thorn Tree section of Lonely Planets website provides a useful place to post questions and check out the views of experienced travellers. See www.lonelyplanet.com
INTRODUCTION TO KAZAKHSTAN
www.kazakh.ru
An excellent (mostly Russian) introduction to Kazakhstan - through facts and figures, news, photos and much more.
BIRDWATCHING
http://birding.topcities.com
An excellent free resource designed for independent birdwatchers spending time in Kazakhstan, but equally valuable for the general independent traveller wishing to visit Kazakhstans ecotourism destinations. In addition to comprehensive information on what you can see where, the website provides detailed information about accommodation and travel.
WEATHER
www.wunderground.com
The fast forecast provides five-day forecasts for over 60 locations around Kazakhstan, and current conditions and seasonal averages for seven cities. Closest locations to the destinations are:
Zhabagly - Taraz or Shymkent
Lepsinsk - Almaty
Ridder - Leninogorsk
Korgalzhyn - Astana
NB: With the exception of Korgalzhyn, it should be remembered that the ecotourism destinations are at a higher altitude than the nearest cities. Conditions may be several degrees cooler and with a greater chance of precipitation. Particular caution should be given to relating Almaty forecasts to Lepsinsk given the large distance.
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