Kazakhstan Tourist Traps

Lake Burabay -- Kazakhstan's Switzerland" -- NOT!!

by Over60

Lonely Planet says iit's sometimes described as Kazakhstan's Switzerland, but it might be better described as Kazakhstan's Cherokee--a tacky lakeside resort in my home state with nothing to offer except modestly attractive scenery and a lot of cheap shops and overweight tourists. (You can fill in the locale for your home region; these places exist everywhere.) You should go here only if you speak Kazakh or Russian and really enjoy sitting on overcrowded lakeside beaches with a lot of overweight people in skimpy swimsuits smoking cigarettes or strolling past a long row of hotels, improvised stand/restaurants and computerized shooting galleries in recycled steel containers. While it's easy to see that the place could appeal to people who live on the parched plains or the summer firebox that is Kazakhstan's capital, for outsiders there is just nothing interesting to see or do here except...

ART GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS...

by Pennyrama

ART GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan Founded in early '30s in Almaty, the Central State Museum of RK presents four exhibition halls, displaying the age-long history of the country: the paleontology and archeology exhibition hall features findings of paleontologists at the ancient Kazakh settlements; second exposition hall displays historical and cultural exhibits from the XV to early XX century. There is a rich collection of articles of every-day life and applied folk arts, as well as a wide range of materials (photographic documents, pictures, etc.) of the pre-Revolutionary period. The third exhibition hall tells about the history and cultural heritage of the ethnic groups currently inhabiting Kazakhstan (the number of which exceeds 100 nationalities). The contemporary history of the independent country (Kazakhstan gained independence in 1991) is...

rythm_divine's Tourist Trap Tip

by rythm_divine

Taxis...as always. Better to...

by ianrmillard

Taxis...as always. Better to stick out your hand and get a 'wild' taxi...cheaper, safer, more polite. did it hundreds of times and only had one serious problem over my year in Almaty.

Lyalka's Tourist Trap Tip

by Lyalka