Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
generally you'll require a passport, driver's
licence and security deposit in cash (typically
between US$300 and US$1000 according to
the vehicle). Insurance is supposedly included
but, as ever, you'll need to check the small print
carefully.
Kyrgyz Rent-Car
(
%
077-750 9253; www.
carforrent.kg; Elebesova 100) Most cars cost
US$80 to US$100 per day but there are a cou-
ple at US$40 as well as a minibus at US$100.
Ten litres of petrol included. Some English
spoken. Drivers must be 21, with two years'
driving experience. No mileage limit.
Avtoprokat.kg
(
%
055-010 8739, 89 99 11;
avtoprokat.kg; Chernyshekogo 65, Alamedin)
A small selection of mostly 1990s cars start
from 1500som per day with discounts of up
to 25% for longer rentals. The website shows
photos and descriptions of each (in Russian).
Maximum mileage 300km per day, within
Kyrgyzstan only. You must have a minimum of
18 months' driving experience.
TRAIN
International
A handful of Russia-bound trains from
Bishkek
II (main) station
(
%
30 02 09) all pass through
Kazakhstan so transit visas are required.
¨
through the barrier out of the carpark you'll
likely ind cheaper cars that don't want to drive
back empty, but there can be safety issues with
using such random drivers. From town to the
airport it can be hard to ind a ride for under
600som, especially at the ungodly pre-dawn
times that many planes depart.
BICYCLE
Velopro
(Map p240;
%
055-599 1137; www.
velopro.net; Akhunbayev 128; per day/week
US$15/70;
h
9am-7pm) Bicycle sales, rental
and tour possibilities.
Elite Sport
(Map p234;
%
31 29 71; www.
giant-bicycles.in.kg; Toktogul 170/1;
h
10am-
7pm Mon-Sat, 10am-4pm Sun) Sells and repairs
giant mountain bikes
Velo Leader
(Map p234;
%
89 64 04; Moskva
226;
h
10am-6pm Mon-Fri) Repairs many (but
not all) models of bicycle. New bikes available
for rental for 300som to 400som per day with
a one-week minimum.
BUS, TROLLEYBUS & MARSHRUTKA
Municipal trolleybuses (8som) run a fair network
of routes but stops can be a little far apart.
Marshrutkas (10som, or 12som after 9pm,
pay on entry) are faster and somewhat more
frequent but they can be uncomfortably over-
full, with claustrophobically low ceilings, and
it can be hard to see where you are. There are
hundreds of routes. The superb
www.bus.kg
allows you to ind the most appropriate service
based on your start and end points, and shows
each route on a map. However, it's still worth
learning major routes and the major signboard
shorthand.
Key city centre junctions:
¨
Moscow
Trains 17 and 27 run each weekday
(
platskartny/kupeyny
9490/14,690som).
¨
¨
Yekaterinburg
Train 305 (
platskartny/
kupeyny
5930/8950som) via Astana
(3400/4860som).
¨
¨
Novosibirsk
Train 358 (
platskartny
/
kupeyny
5520/8300som) every four days via Almaty.
Domestic
¨
¨
Balykchy
(79som, five hours) This snail-
paced, summer-only curiosity departs from
Bishkek II (Main) Station at 6.42am, daily in
August, weekends only in July. Returns the
same afternoon.
¨
ploshad
Ala-Too Square (usually on Kiev)
¨
¨
¨
f-nya
philharmonia, ie Manas-Chuy junction
¨
¨
tserkov
Jibek Jolu-Togolok Moldo junction
¨
¨
goin
Soviet-Jibek Jolu juction
¨
¨
mossovet
Soviet-Moskva junction
¨
8
Getting¨Around
TO/FROM THE AIRPORT
Manas airport (p246) is 30km northwest
of Bishkek's centre.
Marshrutka 380
(Map
p234; Molodaya (Jash) gvardiya, at 271 Chuy
prospektesi; 40som;
h
every 10-20 min) picks
up and drops of passengers on Molodaya gvar-
diya just 20m north of Chuy. From the airport,
the irst departure is at 6.30am, the last is at
7.30pm; to the airport, the irst departure leaves
at 6.40am, with the last at 8pm. At the airport
the marshrutka parks just to the right as you exit
Arrivals.
Manas Taxi is the only oicial taxi outit from
the terminal carpark. The fee (450som) should
be per car but some drivers will try to wait for
extra passengers to double up fares. If you walk
¨
osh r/k
Osh Bazaar
¨
¨
yug2 [OR] Vefa
Soviet-gorky junction
Areas generally indicating out-of-centre direc-
tions (working anticlockwise from north):
¨
¨
Dordoi
R/k
Far north usually via Soviet
¨
¨
Maekva
Northwest
¨
¨
Pishpek
West, just south of rail tracks at
west end of Tolstoy
¨
¨
Jal
Inner southwest suburb at west end of
Akhunbaev
¨
¨
8, 9, 10 M/R
Far south often via Soviet
¨
¨
Asanbai [or] M/R12
Southeast via Soviet or
Karl Marx
¨
¨
Kok Jar
Southeast; could go south via Almat-
inskaya or east via Akhunbaev
¨
¨
Vostok 5
East via Chuy
