What To Do In Aktau, Kazakhstan
Aktau: Where The Desert Meets The Sea
Kazakhstan is no longer that obscure country used as the butt of all jokes when referring to something foreign. The country has seen a massive facelift, opening its borders to foreign tourism and revamping its cities with futuristic skyscrapers. While they once were living under the shadow of Moscow and the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan has now embraced the international community and is ready to take the stage as one of the world’s fastest up and coming nations.
Although Kazakhstan is expanding its airports and is getting ready to ride the wave of tourists that have been flocking to neighboring Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, it doesn’t change the fact that the country has massive stretches of barren land offering nothing other than your occasional camel and a rolling tumbleweed. Nur-Sultan, Almaty, and Turkistan offer a bit of culture and history, but these cities will only have travelers visiting one fraction of this massive landlocked country. Another up and coming city that will soon rival the likes of the metropolises in Kazakhstan is the once lively beach resort town of Aktau.
Thinking about traveling to Nur-Sultan? You can read my full review of the city here!
Why Travel To Aktau?
For many backpackers and adventurers, Aktau is a hub on the newly trodded on Silk Road connecting East and West. For travelers planning on taking the ferry to cross the Caspian Sea, they will embark from Baku in Azerbaijan and land in Aktau, Kazakhstan. From Aktau you can then take a strenuous train ride across the country to either Almaty or Nur-Sultan (Astana) or ride the rails south to Uzbekistan. As travelers continue to push the limits and explore the far off reaches of Kazakhstan, one can only imagine that the tourist traffic in Aktau will only continue to grow.
Other than getting from one place to the next, what is there to do in Aktau? After days cramped in on a ferry crossing the Caspian Sea, you may just want to simply spend a few days laying out on the beach, getting your bearings back on dry land again. But what is there to say about this half a century old town that was originally no more than a camp for uranium prospectors? Is there more to this sea-side city than the grey Soviet blocks that transform the terrain into a massive grid?
After taking the train from Aktau to Nukus, you will want to head to Khiva. Read more about exploring Khiva here!
Out of the Ashes of the Soviet Union
Ever since the fall of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan has slowly drifted away from its former comrades like a sheet of ice breaks away from the coast. Overall, the country has continued to distance itself by replacing any remnants of its Soviet past with a revival of traditional Kazakh culture. Despite these efforts, there is still a massive Russian population who calls Kazakhstan home. No to mention that much of the technological advances and infrastructure in the country is all thanks to Soviet influence.
That being said, no matter where you go in Kazakhstan you will still see a fresh Soviet imprint left on the country. Aktau is no exception. Some of the crowning jewels of Aktau are the MiG-21 Jet monument, the museum of history, and the many other dramatic monuments sprinkled throughout the city. You may get a bit of culture at the Mosque Beket-Ata and the orthodox church, but many of the famous sites around the city are made out of the very same concrete as the drab apartment buildings.
A great day trip from Almaty is to Big Almaty Lake. Read about how to get there on a budget here!
Day Trips From Aktau
After you have had your fill of strolling up and down the rugged coast of Aktau with small patches of beaches that you can manage to lay your towel out on, you may wonder what is next? Some of the most breathtaking places in Aktau are actually found well outside the city limits. Leaving the soothing shores of Aktau behind, you will return to the Mars-like deserts of Kazakhstan. Out in these wastelands, you will actually find some of the most obscure and breathtaking sites on the planet.
Away from its capital of Aktau, the Mangyshlak has some of the most martian like landscapes on the planet. The one place that will have you truly feel as if you are stepping out onto an alien world is the Sherkala Mountain. But this is only one of the formations that will leave you bewildered, with the massive depression of Zhygylgan, the chalk canyon of Kapamsay, the Torysh valley of balls, and the Shakpak-ata Mosque carved into a canyon’s rock, you will find that there are tons to explore around Aktau. The only drawback of these day trips from Aktau is the fact that it is difficult to get from point A to point B in Kazakhstan without spending an arm and a leg. After heading out on a journey to any one of these places, you will be wanting to rest-up on the beach for a few days before returning to the backcountry.
Are you really wanting to get off the beaten path in Central Asia? Read about how to travel to Turkmenistan here!
The Best Beaches in Kazakhstan
With many of the alien mountains and gorges of the Mangyshlak Region being hours away from Aktau and visiting the most popular monuments in the city seems like nothing more than just checking boxes off of a list, the best thing to do in Aktau is to hit the beach. Being a popular resort town for Russians, Kazakhs, and other Central Asian nationalities, you will find your fair share of high-rise hotels emerging from the sands along the coast. Sadly, many of these once glistening resorts have not been renovated since the Soviet Union. Thus leaving the waterparks and hotels to slowly crumble away with the rest of the remnants of the USSR.
The rusted metal parasols and grimy pools do not represent all of Aktau however. You can still find plenty of beautiful beaches and rocks to lay out on while listening to the Caspian Sea lull you to sleep. As a backpacker, you may find it difficult to sit too long in the same place. When walking along the coast in Aktau you will see the landscape drastically change from bustling promenades, jagged rocks, crowded yellow sand beaches, secluded fishing holes, and abandoned amusement parks.
If you are looking for a good day trip from Almaty, be sure to check out Charyn Canyon!
Is Aktau Worth Visitng?
Being at the crossroads of both the ferry from Aktau and the trains from Uzbekistan, Aktau is the perfect place to catch your breath for a few days before heading back out on the road. If you are satisfied with a stretch of beach as well as loads of bars and restaurants, then you should be more than satisfied with your trip to Aktau.
Also, if you have plenty of time on your hands and you consider yourself a patient traveler, you should be able to explore many of the mountains, gorges, and historic mosques built into the caves surrounding Aktau. Being so far away and with limited transportation, many backpackers may give up on this journey after one quick google search.
More than anything else, Aktau is still seen as an off the beaten path destination in the eyes of international travelers. There is much left to be discovered and new trails to be blazed. What may seem like an impossible task is just a mere challenge waiting to be overcome. After blazing some new trails in Aktau, you will open the door for more travelers to follow in your footsteps.
