Where to Stay in Almaty: Areas Guide

Almaty sits on a slope at the foot of the Trans-Ili Alatau, and locals give directions accordingly: "up" means south, towards the peaks, and "down" means north. The right area depends less on the map than on the trip itself, be it mountain days, walks around the centre, business meetings or a long family holiday. Our apartments are in two parts of the city: the upper district around MEGA Alma-Ata and the centre near Arbat. We work in these two areas on purpose. Our housekeepers and laundry service work in these areas, and when a large group does not fit into one flat, we can place it in neighbouring apartments instead of spreading it across town. Many visitors also come for the large shopping centres, and both areas have one close by. Below is how the two areas compare for different kinds of trips.

The upper city around MEGA Alma-Ata, in Bostandyk district, is a residential area that works like a city within a city: mountains for a walk, shopping centres, restaurants, pharmacies and clinics are all close by, and in our experience the air is cleaner than lower down. Our apartments here are in complexes with closed, guarded courtyards: no cars inside, playgrounds and sports areas, and gazebos in some of them. From most of them MEGA is a five-minute walk and the First President's Park about ten, and the road to Medeu and Shymbulak starts in this part of the city. The area suits families, groups and anyone staying a week or longer.

The centre is for walking. Arbat is the pedestrian part of Zhibek Zholy Street, with TSUM on it and the Green Bazaar a block away; from our apartments it is seven minutes on foot. The Almaty-2 railway station is 10–15 minutes by transport. The centre suits a short city break, a couple or a first visit.

For a solo traveller on a two-night trip, a hotel room does the job. Once there are four or more of you, an apartment usually works better: separate bedrooms instead of several hotel rooms, a kitchen for family breakfasts, a washing machine on a longer trip. Check-in with a personal door code means a late flight is not a problem.

Summer, from June to August, is high season, when the apartments are in constant demand, so families should write early. The three trips we recommend most often are Medeu and Shymbulak with the cable car, the Kolsai lakes with Kaindy, and the Green Bazaar with Arbat. The lakes are a long day, around four to five hours each way, and the team can suggest a company that runs affordable trips there. For mountain days we can also recommend a trusted English-speaking driver who works as a guide; the car takes seven adults with luggage, and the ride is paid separately.