Almaty is the largest city and the financial and cultural capital of Kazakhstan. Though short on grand sights, Almaty is relentlessly pleasant, with upmarket shops, bars, and cafes tucked among lush, tree-lined streets and esplanades, while the snow-capped Trans-Ili Alatau mountains to the south give the city a beautifully dramatic backdrop.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons contributors.
Although the Silk Road touched the foothills upon which Almaty sits today, it left little of the grandeur found farther south in Central Asia’s great caravan cities. The few inhabitants were nomadic herdsmen, with no substantial towns until the Russians colonised and built a wooden fort in 1854. An industrial town, named Verny, grew around the fort, although it was twice flattened by earthquakes. The Soviets renamed it Alma-Ata ("Alma" may mean "apple" – modern apples originated in this region) and the city became the capital of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. A railway and highway connected it to Russia.
The city is laid out on a modern grid-pattern, and "up" usually means south, towards the mountains. However it's a gentle gradient, and in places the gradient east is also upward sloping. The Metro has a single line. The northern terminus is on Raiymbek Batyr east of Almaty-2 railway station. The line runs south to Abay, then turns west along Abay to Bauyrjan Momyshuly. The Metro is open from 06:00-00:00, and is safe and guarded by police at all times. You need to put your bags through a scanner upon entering the station before ticketing. A single trip costs 120 tenge (as of 2026), regardless of length of trip.
1 Ascension Cathedral (Zenkov Cathedral), Gogol 40 (Panfilov Park, Metro Zhibek Zholy). Daily 07:00-18:00. Completed in 1907 and renovated in the 2020s - new saints were painted in, though presumably they were known to the hagiographers. The iconostasis is spectacular. At 56 m this among the tallest wooden buildings in the world, which you wouldn't guess from the smoothly-painted exterior hues of custard, icing sugar and coloured marzipan - it's more like a trap for Hansel & Gretel. Free. (updated Dec 2024) 2 St Nicholas Cathedral, Baytursynov 56 (Metro Baykonur), ☏ +7 727 267 5910. Russian Orthodox church built in 1909.
Saunas or banyas are where folk relax and socialise during the miserable cold months. These have different styles eg Moroccan, Nordic or Russian (where half the fun is flagellating yourself with veniki leaves). A two hour session with various extras might be 5000 tenge in 2024. There's some 30 saunas across the city, not including private hotel facilities or seedy "gentlemen's clubs", and many are part of large leisure complexes. A good example is Arasan at Tulebaev 78 near Ascension Cathedral, open daily 07:00-22:30. Football: FC Kairat play soccer in the Premier League, Kazakhstan's top tier, which plays April-Nov.
Kazakh cheap places are plentiful, selling shashlik, soup, salad and so on. Burgers are popular fast food, typically with sliced kebab meat on a hamburger bun with pickles and garlic sauce. Bahandi is a burger chain with 8 city locations, the most central is at Baytursynova 61, two blocks south of Tole Bi. Alasha, Ostpanova 20, ☏ +7 707 7463 489. Daily 12:00-00:00. Uzbeki restaurant. Brace yourself for being sung at, danced at, and horse meat. (updated Dec 2024) Basilic, Shevchenko 127, ☏ +7 778 344 9000. 24 hours. Sit-down canteen with an English menu. Low prices and offers local specialties such as horsemeat.
Barmaglot Bar, Satpaev 3, ☏ +7 777 825 3030. Tu-Su 17:00-03:00. For evening drinks, gets lively after 23:00. A bit stuffy: there are strict age requirements (21+ for women, 25+ for men) and a dress code. (updated Dec 2024) WL13Bar (William Lawson), Bogenbai Batyr Street 102, ☏ +77088131313. 16:00-02:00. Irish pub (updated Mar 2025) Fuller's Pub Pheasant Feather, Dostyk Ave 116, ☏ +77719808181. English pub (updated Mar 2025) Yard House Pub, 2, Samal-1 Microdistrict (Dostyk avenue and Zholdasbekov Street intersection), ☏ +77475808868. Kazakh pub (updated Mar 2025) The Shakespeare Pub, 40 Dostyk avenue, ☏ +77717721900.
Beware of traffic, safeguard valuables and take care when drunk, same as anywhere else. Emergency numbers are 101 Fire, 102 Police and 103 Ambulance.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
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In Jul, Almaty typically sees ~33°C daytime highs and 2 rainy days.
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