Kazakhstan itinerary: 14 days in Almaty, Astana, Shymkent and Turkistan

14 days · 13 nights · 6 stays · sample itinerary

Two weeks, four cities: a week based in Almaty, two nights in the capital, Astana, and then the south — Shymkent, with a night in Turkistan. It starts from Bangalore via Delhi.

It is a sample itinerary — a starting point, not a timetable. The hotels and flights are real; the taxi times to and from Turkistan are approximate and marked so. Open it in the planner and it becomes a trip of your own, starting a month from today.

Day by day

Day 1
- Bangalore → Delhi
  Flight · Air India AI 2810 · 06:30–09:15
- Delhi → Almaty
  Flight · Air Astana KC 908 · 15:00–18:05
- Stay: Apartment (Airbnb), Almaty
  7 nights
Day 8
- Almaty → Astana
  Flight · Air Astana KC 853 · 11:50–13:35
- Stay: Park Inn by Radisson, Astana
  2 nights
Day 10
- Astana → Shymkent
  Flight · Air Astana KC 852 + KC 969 · 10:30–16:45
  Two flights with a change at Almaty: land at 12:10, leave again at 15:20.
- Stay: MirOtel, Shymkent
  1 night
Day 11
- Shymkent → Turkistan
  By road · 09:00–11:30
  Local taxi. Times approximate.
- Stay: Karavansaray Hotel, Turkistan
  1 night
Day 12
- Turkistan → Shymkent
  By road · 09:00–11:30
  Local taxi back. Times approximate.
- Stay: DoubleTree by Hilton, Shymkent
  1 night
Day 13
- Shymkent → Almaty
  Flight · Air Astana KC 972 · 09:00–10:15
- Stay: Novotel Living Almaty Jetisu, Almaty
  1 night
Day 14
- Almaty → Delhi
  Flight · Air Astana KC 907 · 06:40–10:35
- Delhi → Bangalore
  Flight · Air India AI 2819 · 14:15–17:05

How the route fits together

Almaty is the base for the first week: it is where the flights from Delhi land, and a week there leaves room for day trips out of the city. Astana, the capital, is a short flight north. The south takes the most planning — Shymkent is the gateway, and Turkistan, home to the mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, is a couple of hours from it by road.

The last night is back in Almaty, because the flight to Delhi leaves at 06:40.

Astana to Shymkent, with a change at Almaty

Two Air Astana flights: out of Astana at 10:30, into Almaty at 12:10, out again at 15:20 and into Shymkent at 16:45 — a comfortable connection. In the plan it is one journey carrying both flight numbers.

Turkistan by taxi

Local taxis between Shymkent and Turkistan, out one morning and back the next. The times in the plan are approximate; allow a couple of hours each way.

Before you book

The times in this plan are indicative. Timetables change and flights are renumbered, so check the current ones before you book.

Check the entry requirements for your own passport with an official source before you go. They are deliberately not written here: they change, and a wrong one would be worse than none.

What the planner does with it

Open the plan and the planner reads the whole trip. Every night has a bed and every move has a journey, so it has nothing to flag. Change a date and it will tell you what breaks — a night with nowhere to sleep, or two cities with nothing booked to carry you between them.