Kazakhstan

Article by: John Noble, February 2007

Enormous, oil-rich Kazakhstan looks down at the tiny 'Stans to its south and pities their backwardness. However, it's on the fringe of the main Central Asian tourist trail, and still attracts more foreign oilmen than tourists. So much the better for those in on its secret. Kazakhstan has most of what the other 'Stans can offer plus plenty more - and it's all still under wraps.

The snow leopards will probably avoid you but the bears, wolves, ibex and maral deer are less elusive.

Fancy some trekking? You can wander for weeks on foot or horseback among the deep valleys, snowy peaks, lakes and glaciers of the Tian Shan, Zhungar Alatau and Altay ranges. The snow leopards will probably avoid you but the bears, wolves, ibex and maral deer are less elusive. Mountaineering? Mt Khan Tengri is one of the most challenging and beautiful peaks in all Central Asia.

Landscapes? From deserts, marshes and grasslands to lakes, canyons and jagged snowy peaks, Kazakhstan has just about everything - even sandy beaches on the salty Caspian Sea. And with a population density of just six people per sq km, it also has more empty space than a claustrophobe's daydream.

Archaeology? The thousands of mysterious mounds that used to be Silk Road cities or nomad burial sites are only beginning to be excavated. Some have already yielded suits of golden armour and horses buried with their chariots. Out in the Mangistau deserts near the Caspian Sea, underground mosques and ancient necropolises attract vanloads of pilgrims, who lurch their way across the wilderness to commune with the souls of long-dead ascetic sages.

Back in the 21st century, Kazakhstan's biggest city, Almaty, is Central Asia's most charming and sophisticated metropolis. Here you can sip cappuccino in smart coffee houses on leafy streets, dine on fine food from Thailand, the Middle East, China or Europe, then line up for hip nightclubs with DJs flown in from Europe - all reviewed in Almaty's edition of Time Out. Doesn't sound very Central Asian? Almaty is proof that Central Asia doesn't have to remain the backwater its old Soviet masters wanted it to be.

In the north, Astana is the planet's latest exercise in artificial capital-city creation, with a world-beating collection of wacky architecture. The Bayterek monument resembles a 97m-high soccer World Cup trophy, while the giant, tent-like Khan Shatyr pleasure dome is being constructed of a heat-absorbing material that will produce summer temperatures inside even when it's -30°C outside. One day you'll be able to swim outdoors and play beach volleyball on the bitter Kazakh steppe in February.

But what makes me love this country most of all is that travelling around it is still a genuine journey of exploration. And the warmth, generosity and hospitality shown by locals makes every traveller not just a tourist, but a guest.