Are you travelling to Kazakhstan and wondering if you should visit Astana? Most travellers stay in the South of Kazakhstan and don’t venture up to it’s capital city but it is definitely worth a look. Especially if you are interested in modern architecture or if you just want to experience what it is like in such a bizarre, little visited city.
Why you should visit Astana – in 25 photos
Astana is a really strange place. It should never have been a capital city but Kazakhstan’s long-standing president Nursultan Nazarbayev decided he wanted to build a showcase city in the middle of the Kazakh steppe. He has a lot of oil money to spend and big ideas of how he wants to display the emerging nation’s wealth and modernity to the rest of the world. The result is a fascinating landscape of ultra-modern and futuristic building designs that capture the eye and boggle the mind. It’s modern art on a grand scale. For photographers, there are a plethora of fascinating images to capture around the city. For ordinary traveller’s it’s just a very weird and interesting city to explore.
Astana gets a bad rap as many people consider it a cold and heartless place. It certainly would be a tough place to live because of its harsh climate but it’s well worth a short visit. You can see the main sights of Astana in a couple of days if you try. We spent 4 days in Astana just wandering the streets in awe because we move slowly but we could have spent more. There are plenty of fascinating buildings to see although they may not be to everyone’s taste. It’s just the bizarre contrasts of building styles that intrigue the curious traveller. One of those strange world cities like Ashgabat, Brasilia or Pyongyang. So here’s the lowdown on what Astana has to offer the curious visitor in pictorial form…
Khan Shatyr
One of Astana’s iconic buildings is Khan Shatyr entertainment complex and shopping mall. Designed by the famous British architect Norman Foster. It resembles a giant circus tent with a lean and is a favourite place for locals to shop, hang out and have fun. On the upper floors there are a beach and giant swimming pool if you fancy a summer holiday on the steppe or amusement rides for the thrill seekers.
The Emerald Towers
The 45 storey Emerald Towers rise up and splay out like the opening pages of a couple of books but supposed to imitate prairie grass swaying in the wind. The sleek glass designs really contrast with the traditional buildings in the foreground which is a small complex of embassy’s. At night the edifice lights up with a futuristic display which looks like a giant screen.
The Lighter
This fine edifice is the Transport & Communications ministry building and it is affectionately referred to as ‘the lighter’ by locals. It puts on quite a light show by night.
Astana Opera
This more European style building differs from the rest of the modern structures nearby but is impressive in its own right. We loved the golden horses that seem to be galloping out of the building towards the surrounding steppe.
Nurzhol Bulvar
The Nurzhol boulevard is the 2 km long central boulevard of parks and plazas that run from Khan Shatyr in the West to the Bayterek monument and the Ak Korda presidential palace in the East. Along here you find a parade of some of the most interesting buildings in Astana and a long ever-changing display of modern sculptures, artwork and beautifully planted flower beds. It is a focal point for locals to come and hang out in the summer when days are warmer.
Bayterek Monument
The Bayterek tower is Astana’s impressive landmark monument that stands out from all that surround it. At 100 metres high it represents a golden egg laid in the branches of the tree of life which symbolises rebirth and growth. You can ride up to the egg in a lift for 360 degree views of the surrounding city ( 700 Tenge – $2 ). Unfortunately the glass is yellow so photography is difficult. The highlight of the experience is the opportunity to lay your hand in the golden hand print of president Nazarbayev. Locals seem to do it with reverence as guards look on. You make a wish which may or may not be granted. From this spot you look over at the president’s magnificent residence and wonder at the marvelous creation he has achieved. This is the highly recommended thing to do if you visit Astana.
The Beer Cans, Business Centre
The business centre that stands between the Bayterek monument and the government complex of the house of ministries are two golden cylinders that some locals call ‘the beer cans’
Ak Orda Presidential Palace
At the far Eastern end of Nurzhol Bulvar, on the left bank of the Ishim river, stands the impressive presidential palace. Looking like ‘The White House’ with a party hat on, it presides over the city and acts as an administration building. President Nazarbayev choses to live elsewhere.
Astana Concert Hall
Astana’s central concert hall was one of our favourite buildings in the city. Designed by Manfredo Nicolletti and completed in 2009, it is supposed to resemble opening flower petals. As with most huge public buildings in Astana there never seems to be anyone around. When you approach it from the front the design of the building causes an echo and amplifies your voice. It is quite remarkable.
The Nazarbayev Library
The Nazarbayev library is a uniquely designed building lying to the south of the concert hall. It looks like a golf ball chopped in half from some angles or a huge lop-sided lens from others. The park surrounding it is overgrown and neglected like many in Astana. They seem to create amazing spaces here and then just leave them without bothering to maintain them.
It is fenced off behind huge fences guarded by gun-toting soldiers but when we showed interest they let us in through some strict security screening. Once inside we were invited in to see the foyer and to visit the enormous museum of gifts given to the president from other nations. It was quite a surreal experience being proudly showed around by the soldiers. Once again there was not another tourist in sight and we had the place totally to ourselves. This is free and we recommend you take a look inside. It closes at 6pm.
Astana Arena
If you are a sports fan and are fortunate enough to be in town for a football match we highly recommend going to the very modern Astana Arena. Built in 2009 for $185 million, it is state of the art with a retractable roof, artificial pitch and an edifice that lights up in an impressive show at night. We saw Kazakhstan play Georgia in an international match there and the stadium was almost full with nearly 30,000 people. It cost 500 Tenge – $1.35 entrance!
City Park
City park or Astana City Park covers a huge open area on the south side of the Ishim river. Not far from the circus. It is a bit overgrown and it has the amusement rides usually found in Central Asian cities. There are large walkways with plenty of statues and artwork along them. These fellows were promoting all the participating nations of Expo 2017.
Astana Circus
The Astana circus, like in many Soviet built cities, looks like a flying saucer has just landed in the centre of town. Even more so here as the grey steel cladding resembles a space craft as opposed to the usual concrete ones. The statues surrounding it suggest an old style of circus using performing animals but I believe it has changed over the years. Unfortunately it closes over the summer months so check ahead for performance times here
Expo 2017
Expo 2017 was a global event hosted by Kazakhstan using the theme ‘future energy’. The exhibition facility is enormous and was designed to be self-sufficient using the latest in renewable energy technology. The centrepiece is the 100 meter, 7 storey glass ball, Nur Alem. This ultra modern structure now holds the future energy museum. We didn’t have time go in but I wish we had. See this article for more information.
Hazret Sultan Mosque
The Hazret Sultan mosque, found on the East side of the Ishim river is an enormous, beautiful building built in 2012. We visited on a Friday and it was incredible to see the thousands of faithful worshippers flooding out after prayers. The interior is breathtaking and in the basement there is an Askana (canteen) where you can eat very well in sumptuous settings for very little indeed!
The Shabyt
The Shybyt is a building for the university of arts. It’s actually a building within a building with a circular courtyard inside. It resembles the top of an egg cup.
The Palace of Peace and Accord
The Palace of Peace and Accord is yet another Astana nod to sci-fi style architecture. Again designed by Norman Foster, it’s function is to host the Congress of World and Traditional religions and promote global religious tolerance. You can normally enter but it was closed for restoration when we visited.
In this area you will also find the Palace of Independence and the Kazakhstan history museum. Two more very interesting buildings which could also be well worth a visit.
Astana really does have a lot to offer the traveller who is looking for the weird and the bizarre if you are into that sort of thing. You could spend days here wandering around, looking up and exclaiming WTF. We loved it.
The Frugal Travellers simple budget guide to visiting Astana
Kazakhstan is considered the most expensive Central Asian country because of its oil wealth and Astana is considered the most expensive City but if you are careful you can see the sights of Astana on a very reasonable budget. Our average daily spend for our journey around Kazakhstan was only US$14 or £10 a day. To visit Astana it may cost slightly more on average.
October 2018 – US$1 = 371 Tenge, £1 = 487 Tenge
Sightseeing and transport
The great thing about exploring Astana is that generally all it involves is wandering around admiring the bizarre and intriguing buildings. This costs nothing at all but time and effort so prepare to walk a lot. There are plenty of local buses zipping around the centre of town. Pay the conductors onboard 180 Tenge.
We travelled the length and breadth of Kazakhstan by train which is an excellent way to see the country. To learn about that click here
To get into the city from the railway station take bus 21 which costs 180 Tenge.
Accommodation
We stayed at the Nomad 4×4 hostel which was quite conveniently located in walking distance to the new city centre. A double room cost us 24000 Tenge or US $16.
Food
We really struggled on the food front. There seems to be a dearth of budget restaurants around the centre of Astana. We followed the guide book’s lead and went into the many food courts inside the shopping centres such as Khan Shatyr and snacked on fast food. There are the usual western options and some local ones too and a meal cost around 1500 Tenge ($4) each.
To eat healthily and cheaply we made use of the excellent supermarkets that can be found around town and bought the very good pre-prepared salads that they sell from the delicatessen counters.
Weather
Astana is smack bang in the middle of the Kazakhstan steppe which is a brutal landscape with a harsh climate and I certainly wouldn’t want to live there myself. We were told the city is the second coldest capital in the world after Ulaanbaatar, with winter temperatures dropping into the -30’s! A short visit is manageable though. We were there in August and it was pleasant in the day but still cold at night! So take warm clothes even in mid-summer. Good luck in the winter!
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