Kazakhstan, Kazakstan, Kazachstan, Kazahstan - these are the many names of one peaceful and lovely country in the Central Asia. Have you ever been to Kazakhstan? Do you like seeing different places off the beaten track? Are you interested in the cultural traditions or do you enjoy the close relation to nature? Do you want to discover vast endless deserts or you would rather hike in the mountains? Kazakhstan has it all!
There two words that can perfectly describe Kazakhstan. They are DIVERCITY and CONTRAST. These words are applicable to everything: starting from the several types of the landscape within the borders of one country and ending by the contrast between developed urbanized cities and virgin nature adjoining each other.

In this small introduction to Kazakhstan you will find the useful information about Location, visa regime, local currency, language, religion, relief, climate and transportation.

Location:
The Republic of Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country of the world; it occupies over 2,7 million square kilometers. Kazakhstan is located in the very center of the Eurasian continent. Kazakhstan borders with Russia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan, Turkmenistan and China. The capital is Astana city.

Entrance:
Entry to Kazakhstan is permitted only with valid visas. Visas can only be obtained on arrival if this has been arranged in advance. All visitors to Kazakhstan should register with OVIR (the Office of Visas and Registration) within three working days of arrival. The hotel you are staying in or Alma Travel Agency can handle this for you. Failure to do so can encounter problems at you your departure.

Currency.
The local currency is the Kazakh tenge (KZT). Cash is the preferred method of payment although credit cards are becoming more widely accepted in hotels and large international restaurants.

Language
The official language is Kazakh. It belongs to the Turk language group. Russian remains the language of interethnic communication. English is also spoken here but not widely used. So you may need to use the services of an interpreter.

Religion:
Diversity of religions; most prevalent religions are Islam and Christianity.

Relief:
Kazakhstan is a unique country with respect to its topography: the scenery changes from high snowy mountains to steppes, semi deserts, and deserts. He lower place is Karagie lowland (-132) and the highest point is Kan-Tengri Peak (+7010 m).

Climate:
Sharp continental climate: cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid

Transportation
The internal airline and railway infrastructure is developed enough to get to almost every city of Kazakhstan. Car rental service is not widely available in Kazakhstan. So you can rent a car with us or if you are the British Airways customer refer to Almaty office of AVIS.


Related links
www.president.kz
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/kz.html
http://www.kazakinfo.com
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/country_profiles/1298071.stm