Where to go
Every place comes with photos, my tips and a route from the apartment door.
Medeu
A high-altitude skating rink in a mountain gorge, the starting point for walks into the hills.
Shymbulak
A ski resort with viewpoints at more than three kilometres above sea level.
Kok-Tobe
A hill above the city with a TV tower and the best sunset view of Almaty.
Big Almaty Lake
A turquoise mountain lake at 2,500 metres, an hour’s drive from the city.
Panfilov Park and Ascension Cathedral
A shady park in the centre and a wooden cathedral said to be built without a single nail.
Green Bazaar
The city’s main market: dried fruit, spices, horse-meat kazy and the famous Aport apples.
Arbat
Zhibek Zholy pedestrian street with buskers, artists and cafés.
Central State Museum
The history of Kazakhstan from the Saka and the Golden Man to the present day.
Almaty Museum of Arts
A new museum of contemporary art: Kusama, Kiefer, Viola and Plensa’s 12-metre head at the entrance.
Botanical Garden
A huge shady garden inside the city, with trees and plants from all over the world.
Charyn Canyon
The Valley of Castles: red cliffs often compared to the Grand Canyon.
Tamgaly-Tas
Rocks on the bank of the Ili with carved images of Buddhas and Buddhist inscriptions.
Kolsai Lakes
Three lakes among Tien Shan spruces, close to the sunken forest of Lake Kaindy.