Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
OVERLAND¨FROM¨RUSSIA
Kazakhtan's 6846km border with Russia has 18 'multilateral' road crossings (open to all
nationalities), and around 15 rail crossings.
Wetern¨Europe-Wetern¨China¨Highway
The new 'Wetern Europe-Wetern China' highway, a massive project to boot trans-Asia
commerce, will provide the bet driving option from European Russia into Kazakhtan
when it is completed. It runs from St Petersburg to Moscow, Kazan and Orenburg, then
across Kazakhtan via Aktobe, Kyzylorda, Shymkent, Taraz and Almaty, into China at
Khorgos then across China via Ürümqi to the seaport Lianyungang. Long sections of new
four- and two-lane highway are open across Kazakhtan, and the completion of the Kazan-
Orenburg-Aktobe section (due 2015) will make this the bet road approach to Kazakhtan.
Road¨Crossings
The main multilateral road crossings (lited from wet to eat):
¨
Kotyaevka (between Astrakhan and Atyrau) The westernmost entry point, but some
roads on the Kazakh side are very poor, notably the appalling 230km Makat-Bayganin
stretch between Atyrau and Aktobe.
¨
Taskala (between Saratov and Uralsk)
¨
Mashtakov (between Samara and Uralsk)
¨
Zhaysan (between Orenburg and Aktobe)
¨
Podgorodka (Kayrak; between Chelyabinsk and Kostanay)
¨
Kazantsevskoe (between Kurgan and Petropavlovsk)
¨
Roslavka (Karakoga; between Omsk and Petropavlovsk)
¨
Auyl (between Rubtsovsk and Semey)
¨
Shemonaikha (between Rubtsovsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk)
Bus¨&¨Shared¨Taxi
Bus services, and in some cases shared taxis, connect cities within triking ditance of the
border. Daily bus services include Atrakhan-Atyrau (2800T, eight hours), Samara-Uralsk
(2450T, six hours), Orenburg-Aktobe (2500T, six hours), Tyumen-Petropavlovsk (3700T,
10 hours), Barnaul-Semey (3600T, 11 hours) and Novosibirsk-Ut-Kamenogorsk (6000T,
17 hours).
By¨Train
The major rail routes:
¨
Moscow-Saratov-Uralsk-Aktobe-Kyzylorda-Almaty
¨
Moscow-Samara-Orenburg-Aktobe-Kyzylorda-Tashkent/Bishkek
¨
Moscow-Volgograd-Atyrau-Beyneu-Uzbekistan (Kungrad, Samarkand, Tashkent)
¨
Moscow-Chelyabinsk-Petropavlovsk/Kostanay-Astana
¨
Novosibirsk-Barnaul-Semey-Almaty: the 'Turksib'
¨
Vladivostok-Irkutsk-Novosibirsk-Omsk-Petropavlovsk: from the east
Atyrau¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨¨
АТЫРАУ
Atyrau (population 170,000), 30km up the Ural River from the Caspian Sea, traddles the
Europe/Asia boundary. The cheapet sleep is the
Komnaty¨Otdykha
(
%
7122-95 56 05;
dm 2000T, s/d 3400/6000T), entered from the train tation platform. It's basic and short
on security, but clean, and half-price for less than 12 hours. The central
Ak¨Zhaik¨Hotel
(
%
7122-32 78 81; www.akzhaikhotel.com; Abay 4; s/d incl breakfat 16,060/25,580T;
paiW
)
has comfy rooms and a slew of facilities including a British-tyle pub.
