Scenic Kazakhstan

📅   Day 1 Arrival Astana transfer to the hotel.

• Astana Arrival to Nur-Sultan (former Astana). You will be met by an English-speaking guide, who will accompany you during the whole tour in Kazakhstan. Transfer to the hotel, and check-in.

📅   Day 2 Astana

• Astana Morning is free for relaxation and breakfast. Meet with your English-speaking guide at the hotel lobby at 11:00. Depart for full-day touring. Capital of Kazakhstan only since 1997, Astana has undergone a massive transformation from a sparsely populated steppe to an ultramodern metropolis dotted with shimmering gold towers, technicolor lights, and iconic white-and-blue high-rises. This focused pre-tour surveys a selection of Astana’s best-known highlights and spectacular structures, offering a fascinating glimpse into the country’s ever-changing political and economic future. Admire monuments such as Baiterek Tower, commemorating a Kazakh folk tale; the soaring steel-and-glass Pyramid of Peace, designed by renowned British architect Norman Foster; and the impressive Khan Shatyr Complex, dubbed the “World’s Biggest Tent”. The mammoth white Khazret Sultan Mosque was opened in 2012 on the right bank of the Yesil River near the Pyramid of Peace. With the largest central dome in Kazakhstan and eight smaller ones, the mosque is named for a 12th-century Sufi sheikh, Khoja Akhmed Yasavi. The interior of each dome is fitted with Barrisol polymer sheets printed with Kazakh patterns.

• Delve deeper into the history of Kazakhstan at the National Museum of Kazakhstan, across the street from the city’s Independence Square. The museum’s contemporary cubic architecture completes the Kazakh Eli (Kazakh Land) ensemble, along with the modern rounded glass ellipses of the National Library, the monumental Palace of Independence, the pyramidal Palace of Peace, and the traditionally styled Hazret Sultan Mosque. Opened in 2014, the National Museum encompasses distinct halls focusing on various Kazakh highlights, such as the Hall of Gold, the Ethnographic Hall, and the Hall of History. Interactive touch-screen displays in Kazakh, English, and Russian make the modern museum easy to navigate. Continuing to the soaring Pyramid of Peace; with its transparent peak, the building was designed as a meeting place for leading representatives of the world’s religions and a global center of acceptance and understanding. Completed in 2006, the structure includes a circular chamber for periodic meetings of faith leaders, a 1,500-seat Opera Hall, a library, and a museum. At night the pyramid is bathed in the colors of the Kazakh flag.

• Assumption Cathedral is a striking Russian Orthodox Church whose interior is decorated with skillful frescoes, gold leaf, and an imposing iconostasis. If you get the chance, visit a service to see Russian Orthodoxy in action. EXPO-2017. The most significant tourist object of the EXPO2017 after-exhibition heritage is the Nur Alem pavilionmuseum. The Nur Alem pavilion is an 8-floored building having a unique spherical shape. The concept is represented as the Future Energy Museum. The Future Energy Museum became the same symbolic sign of Kazakhstan as the Eiffel Tower for Paris and the Crystal Castle for London, etc. Presently, the Nur Alem is the most visited tourist’s object. The residents and guests of Astana get the possibility both to have fun and to enrich themselves with unique knowledge concerning the energy, its sources, and the ways it is used.

📅   Day 3 Astana

• Astana Meeting with your English-speaking guide at the hotel lobby at 09:00. Depart for full-day touring. Head for one of the city’s most iconic monuments. Representing a tree with a golden egg laid by a magic bird from Kazakh folk tales, the 344-foot Baiterek Tower has a viewing platform with a plate imprinted with President Nazarbaev’s hand. Touch the Hand a song written by Nazarbaev plays. Map of Kazakhstan Atameken. Is it possible to explore the country in an hour? It is quite realistic if you visit the unique ethno-memorial complex “Atameken”. The complex was built by order of the president of the country, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and opened in Astana on September 8, 2001. Map of Kazakhstan “Atameken” covers an area of 1.7 hectares, this is comparable with the area of two football fields. There is a markup of 14 regions of the republic, and the location of the two main cities - Astana and Almaty is noted. The map reflects nature and landscape, architecture, and transport networks. By the way, the number of exhibits in the complex is already more than 200 copies, and it is constantly increasing. Continue with the Khan Shatyr Complex. The Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center lays claim to the title, “World's Biggest Tent.” Designed by Norman Foster, the 500-foot-high tensile structure is suspended on cables radiating from a central spire. With an interior as big as two football fields, the center has indoor gardens and plenty of natural daylight.

📅   Day 4 Astana

• Breakfast. Transfer to the airport.

** End of Trip**