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PAID CONTENT FOR AIR ASTANA


ESSENTIAL INFO


WHY NOW? In September 2024, competitors from all over the Eurasian Steppe will converge in Astana for the fifth World Nomad Games. Athletes participate in events like mounted archery, falconry, goat pulling and horseback wrestling.


WHERE TO STAY Base your travels in either Aktau or Almaty, both of which are accessible via direct flights from Heathrow with Air Astana up to four times a week. These cosmopolitan hubs serve as gateways to the country’s best natural and cultural experiences. To catch the World Nomad Games, take a domestic flight to the country’s capital, Astana.


WHEN TO TRAVEL Seasons are an intense affair in Kazakhstan as temperatures can range from 40C to -20C. The best time to visit is during the spring or autumn, when the climate is more moderate. In winter, head to Almaty, where ski areas are accessed via cable-car.


conserved under Soviet rule, making it an ideal stop for those curious about the history of the Turkic Steppe and a great base for further exploration of the Turkistan Region. When in the west, the port city of


Aktau and its Caspian shores off er easy access to the otherworldly plateaus that characterise the Mangystau Region. Laced with lines of ochre rock and amber streaks, here colourful geology enshrouds labyrinthine desert trails and dramatic gorges. Sharp jutting ridges and undulating rock formations shadow clear traces of 50 million years of life existing in its canyons — palaeontologists regularly unearth new evidence of animal life in the Ustyurt Nature


Reserve. From large Tyrannosaurus rex and mammoths to giant fi sh fossilised within the Paleozoic seas, the fauna of the region has been millennia in the making. All these landscapes have been navigated


for centuries by the nomadic people of the steppe, whose ancient traditions you can witness today. Observe displays of horse riding or falconers fl ying their hunting eagles before settling down to try beshbarmak, a platter of boiled meat and innards served with a glass of fermented milk to settle the stomach. Alternatively, order qurt, a cheese made from goat’s or camel’s milk that’s stored in saddlebags and churned by the galloping motion of the nomads’ horses.


Clockwise from left: Lake Kaindy; the mountains of Altyn-Emel National Park; wrestlers at the World Nomad Games


PLAN YOUR TRIP


Kazakhstan’s award-winning flagship carrier Air Astana operates direct routes from London to Aktau and Almaty up to four times per week. For more information, visit airastana.com


THIS IS PAID CONTENT. IT DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER (UK) OR ITS EDITORIAL STAFF.


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