Shymkent is Kazakhstan’s oldest city, you can see the layers of that history as you explore the area. In our three days here we found ourselves moving between an 11th-century Silk Road past, a 19th-century fortress, and one of the darkest chapters of the Soviet 1930s. And it’s all within walking distance of each other. It’s also a lived-in Kazakh city, rather than just a tourist hub. There are busy bazaars and food worth planning meals around, and, it is, of course, the natural springboard for getting to Turkestan, one of the most important religious sites in the Turkic world. Here’s our travel guide to Shymkent.
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If you’re putting together a Shymkent travel guide of your own, here’s what this one covers: how to get here from Almaty or Astana, where to base yourself, how long to spend, the top things to do (from the old citadel to the Museum of Victims of Political Repression), and a map to show you how to get between the locations. I’ll also cover why Turkestan is worth the day trip from Shymkent, where to eat and drink, and answers to the questions we get asked most about visiting.
How to Get to Shymkent
Shymkent has its own international airport, with daily flights taking round 1.5 hours from Almaty and roughly 3.5 hours from Astana on SCAT, FlyArystan and Air Astana. Overland, the Almaty-Shymkent route runs either as an overnight train (13-16 hours) or a long-haul bus from Sayran Bus Station, see our guide on going from Almaty to Shymkent for the full breakdown. Read my comprehensive guide to trains in Kazakhstan here.
From Astana, the train takes around 20-25 hours, (read about this journey here) so while flying might be the more time friendly option, it’s a great option for an overnight Kazakhstan train, and I wrote about those here.
Where to Stay to Explore Shymkent
The center of Shymkent, around Ordabasy Square, is the easiest location to stay if you want everything to be easily walkable. Independence Park, the bazaars, and most of the restaurants below are all a short walk or a cheap Yandex ride away. Stay further out and you’ll pay a little less, but you’ll be relying on taxis for almost everything, which in a city this affordable barely saves you money anyway.
We stayed at the Express City Hotel, right in the center. It was an easy walk to the sights below and a short taxi to the bus and train stations, with simple, comfortable rooms for the price.
How Long to Visit Shymkent for
We spent three days in Shymkent, which was enough to see the city properly and fit in a full day trip to Turkestan without feeling rushed, and as we were leaving the country (going from Shymkent to Tashkent) afterwards we didn’t want to skimp on our last place in Kazakhstan. If you’re skipping Turkestan, two days gets you around Shymkent’s sights easily. Either way, Shymkent is worth a stop in it’s own right, rather than just a flying visit or a base fo Turkestan.
We built Shymkent into our 10 day Kazakhstan Itinerary – you can see what that looks like here.
The Top Things to Do in Shymkent
From an ancient citadel to one of the country’s most sobering museums, here’s what’s worth allocating time for in Shymkent.
The Shymqala Citadel
In the 1800s, Shymkent’s fortress, the Qala, was built on a hill, and that’s exactly where you’ll find a reconstruction of it today, built around the excavations of the original. It’s an impressive site, with reconstructed ramparts, watchtowers and multimedia exhibits, and it’s the place to get a feel for Shymkent’s much older Silk Road history. The settlement itself dates back roughly 2,200 years, long before this particular fortress was built.
Shymkent is the only city in Kazakhstan that has preserved its historical core. Historians attribute the city of Shymkent to the 2nd or 3rd centuries BC. And the history of the fortress began in the 5th century.
It’s a vast reconstruction and inside you’ll find galleries of Bronze Age ceramics and medieval artefacts, yurt displays, an amphitheatre, and demonstrations of traditional crafts and ceremonies. Climb the walls for panoramic views over the Koshkar-Ata River, and try to time your visit for sunset, when the light on the ramparts is worth the wait.
- How to get to Shymqala Citadel: walking distance from Shymkent’s train station along Qabanbay Batyr Avenue, or a short taxi ride from the center. We easily walked from our room at the Express City Hotel.
- How long to spend at Shymqala Citadel: 2-3 hours.
- Entry Fees for Shymqala Citadel: 1000 KZT for foreign adults.
Shymkent’s Independence Park
Independence Park (Tauelsizdik Sayabagy) opened in 2011 for the 20th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s independence, and it’s a pleasant place to walk. It’s car-free and a massive area connected to Ordabasy Square by a footbridge.
There are granite panels throughout the park detailing the country’s history from 1991 to 2011, and the park’s most impressive feature is the the Shanyrak Monument, its design representing Kazakhstan’s 137 different nationalities, through the 137 different metal elements within it.
- How to get to Independence Park: a short walk from Ordabasy Square in the centre, or a cheap taxi from anywhere else in the city.
- How long to spend at Independence Park: 1 hour.
The Mother Earth Monument
The Mother Earth Monument (also known as the Zher-Ana Stele) is found in Ordabasy Square – a 34-metre sculpture of a female figure representing the unity of Kazakhstan’s ethnic groups. It’s kind of hard to get to, being at the center of a road system.
At its base, a three-sided stele carries inscriptions from three historic Kazakh leaders, Aiteke bi, Kazybek bi and Tole bi, worth reading even if, like us, you need a translation app to do it.
- How to get to the Mother Earth Monument: central Ordabasy Square, walkable from most of the center.
- How long to spend at the Mother Earth Monument: 20-30 minutes.
Qyrgy Bazaar
Qyrgy Bazaar has been trading for more than 300 years, making it one of the oldest working bazaars in Shymkent, and it’s still very much real, rather than a tourist market.
Go for dried fruit, nuts, fresh bread, honey and handicrafts, and go in the morning if you want the best of the produce and the atmosphere before it gets busy.
It’s also the place for a quick snack, fresh bread , freshly squeezed pomegranate juice, and the salty fried cheese balls that turn up everywhere in Central Asia.
- How to get to Qyrgy Bazaar: on Tashenov Street, a short taxi ride from the centre.
- How long to spend at Qyrgy Bazaar: 1-2 hours.
Monument to the Leaders of Alash
In Central Park, the Alash Arystary sculpture commemorates the leaders of the Alash Orda – the political party that pushed for Kazakh autonomy and independence after the fall of the Russian Empire, before being crushed by the Bolsheviks in the 1920s.
This small, easy-to-miss monument ties directly into the history at the Museum of Victims of Political Repression in the city, which is where you’ll find more background on the Alash Movement. (or you can read about it here)
- How to get to the Monument to the Leaders of Alash: Central Park, Shymkent.
- How long to spend at the Monument to the Leaders of Alash: 5 minutes.
Abay Park and Eternal Flame
Abay Park is Shymkent’s big central green space, and it’s home to the city’s Memorial of Glory – a Soviet-era war memorial with an eternal flame honouring the more than 140,000 people from the Shymkent region who died in the Second World War.
Fighter jets and soldier sculptures are arranged along the pathways, and it is a fascinating display or Soviet style strength with the displays of old machinery on high plinths.
- How to get to Abay Park and the Eternal Flame: central Shymkent, at the Jeltoksan and Baurjan Momyshuly intersection – walkable from the center.
- How long to spend at Abay Park and the Eternal Flame: 45 minutes to an hour.
Museum of Victims of Political Repression
Shymkent is also home to the Museum of Victims of Political Repression, documenting one of the darkest periods in Kazakhstan’s history. Political repression in Kazakhstan peaked in the late 1930s. Following the fall of the Tsarist regime in 1917 – and the execution of the Russian royal family – the political party Alash Orda formed a provisional government, but it never really had the power to govern. The Red Army defeated the Bolsheviks’ rivals in 1920 and occupied Kazakhstan, which then became known as the Kazakh ASSR.
What followed was a “vigorous” Soviet campaign to settle the traditionally nomadic Kazakhs and colonise the region with Russians and Uzbeks. Collectivisation came next, and it was brutal – the population fell by around 20% between 1926 and 1939. Some fled to China, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan; more than 1.5 million people died. During this period of “Red Terror,” intellectuals, scientists and political rivals – along with their families – were forcibly removed to remote parts of the country. More than 25,000 people were sentenced to death, and 40 miles north of Astana there was a specific gulag for the “Wives of Traitors to the Motherland.” There’s more about Astana in my guide here.
The museum itself is relatively new, and more information comes to light each year. If you’ve been to the genocide museums in Phnom Penh, the type of story here will feel familiar. Everything is labelled in Kazakh and Russian only, but there’s an excellent English-speaking staff member who can walk you through what you’re seeing, plus a short video showing how neighbours were set against neighbours and entire families were wiped out. It’s a sobering place to end a visit to Shymkent.
- How to get to the Museum of Victims of Political Repression: central Shymkent, near N. Torequlov and Ryskulov streets, opposite the Alley of Glory.
- How long to spend at the Museum of Victims of Political Repression: 1-2 hours.
- Entry Fees for the Museum of Victims of Political Repression: 1000 KZT for foreign visitors.
There are other museums in Shymkent, but we’ve learned over the years that there’s little point visiting a museum “just because it’s there.” We tend to make an exception for national museums, but here in Shymkent, this was the only one we visited, simply because it’s what interested us.
Map of Things to Do in Shymkent
Here’s everything in this guide plotted on one map, so you can see how it all fits together and plan your own route around the city. You can also access the map here.
Going to Turkestan from Shymkent
For most visitors, Turkestan is the whole reason to come through Shymkent. It’s the home to the Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most significant pilgrimage destinations in the Turkic world. It’s an easy day trip by shared taxi, marshrutka or train, and genuinely worth building a full day around. Read our complete Turkestan Travel Guide, and see our guide to getting from Shymkent to Turkestan for the full transport breakdown.
Where to Eat in Shymkent
Shymkent’s food scene ranges from serious Kazakh cooking to a genuinely good craft beer scene, which is unusual for this part of the world. Here are our picks, from a casual local favourite to a proper Kazakh chain.
Yalla Chaikhana
Yalla was our favourite meal in Shymkent, hands down. It’s about as local as it gets – we didn’t see another foreign tourist the whole time we were there – with a fabulous caravanserai-style interior, great service, and excellent food. Almost nobody speaks English, but between pointing, photos on the menu and a translation app, we managed just fine.
- Address of Yalla Chaikhana: Ganı Iláev kóshesi, 4, Shymkent.
- Website: Yalla Chaikhana on Yandex Maps
- Hours: 10:00 – 01:00 daily.
Sandyq Restaurant
Sandyq is a Kazakh restaurant chain worth going to at least once – we’d already tried their branch in Astana before catching this one in Shymkent. Expect traditional dishes built around horse, lamb and beef, cooked the way they’ve been cooked in this region for generations.
- Address of Sandyq Restaurant: Baydibek Bi Avenue, 126, Shymkent
- Website: sandyq.kz
Sigma Bräu
Craft beer is a big deal in Shymkent, and Sigma Bräu is the place for it – a proper brewery and bar doing beer in German, Czech, English and American styles. Order a pint alongside sulguni cheese or the salty fried cheese balls that turn up everywhere in Central Asia, and it’s a fabulous combo.
- Address of Sigma Bräu: Zheltoksan Street 20, Shymkent.
- Website: sigmabrau.kz
- Hours: 4:00pm – 2:00am daily.
FAQs on Visiting Shymkent
A few quick answers to the questions we get asked most about visiting Shymkent.
How many days do you need in Shymkent?
Two days covers the main sights comfortably; three works well if you’re also doing a day trip to Turkestan, which is what we’d recommend if your schedule allows it.
Is Shymkent walkable?
The center is easy to walk, Independence Park, Ordabasy Square and most of the bazaars and restaurants above are all within a short walk of each other.
What’s the best area to stay in?
Stick to the center, around Ordabasy Square, it puts you within walking distance of the main sights and most of the restaurants, and Yandex taxis are cheap enough that anywhere further out barely saves you money.
Is Shymkent expensive?
No – Shymkent is one of the more affordable stops in Kazakhstan. Taxis, food and our hotel were all noticeably cheaper than Almaty. Read my guide to Almaty here.
Do I need a car to explore Shymkent itself?
No. Yandex taxis are cheap and plentiful, and the center is walkable enough that you’ll only need a car or taxi for a handful of the further-out sights.
Is Shymkent worth visiting on its own, or just as a stop on the way to Turkestan?
Shymkent is worth two or three days for its own sights and history, but even if you’re only passing through en route to Turkestan, it’s an easy, and I think, worthwhile stopover rather than a place to skip.
Is Shymkent a good base for exploring southern Kazakhstan?
Yes. It’s got its own airport, train connections and proximity to Turkestan and the Uzbek border, Shymkent works well as a base for the southern part of the country.
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Final Words on Visiting Shymkent
Shymkent doesn’t get the attention Almaty and Astana do, but it earned its place on our Kazakhstan itinerary in its own right. We came for the history mainly, the 11th-century Silk Road and a reconstructed 19th-century fortress, and you can’t forget one of the country’s most sobering Soviet-era museums. It’s also simply practical. We used it as a base for visiting Turkestan and for making our way across the border into Uzbekistan.
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