Mumbai06 Nov 22 1 Traveller Economy
Showing International Flight from Almaty
About Almaty
Kazakhstan's largest metropolis, Almaty, is the capital of the country. The gorgeous city is nestled on the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains. It is considered to be one of the perfect places for skiing, snowboarding and other winter sports. It is located in Central Asia and holds tremendous historical and cultural significance. Not to mention, it is soon rising to be one of the best tourist destinations in the world for winter.
Best time to visit Almaty
Almaty's geographical features make it a cold city that is best visited during their summers. The average temperature in Almaty ranges from 22 degree Celsius to 27 degree Celsius. The city is known to see extreme winters that often see a negative temperature too. Hence, winters would be quite risky and unfavourable for a trip to Almaty. In contrast, the summers get rather hot with temperatures that could reach a high of 30 degree Celsius too. November to January see a massive drop in the city's temperatures and are not favourable for a trip. You might have to deal with the consequences of excess cold such as frostbites, difficulty in breathing and other such health hazards. Hence, these months need to be avoided. The city's tourism continues to see action as many folks who wish to indulge in winter activities do flock over to the city. You will find many tourists opting for skiing and other winter-related activities, head to the city. The city is not completely shut during winters as there is scope for tourism-related activities.
However, there are fewer hotels open for business. The hospitality industry doesn't see a tremendous dip as such because tourists who want to indulge in adventure sports do arrive in the city. The winters often stretch to April too. You should know though that April is the onset of monsoons in the city. April to May sees rainfall in the city. These two are the wettest months in the year and receive quite heavy rainfall. The summer months are very pleasant with temperatures often reaching 30 degree Celsius. Since a majority of the crowd visit Almaty for their winter sports, the summer sees less tourism. But it does open avenues for more adventure activities as many take to the trekking trails or indulge in the food and cultural heritages of Almaty. The summers do get very hot as it is humid as well. However, June to September is considered the best time to visit Almaty. The weather is pleasant, and you can explore more of the rocky terrains and other lovely locales of the city. It is ideal for sightseeing and other tourist activities.
Places to visit in Almaty
One of the biggest highlights of Almaty is the Big Almaty Lake. The exquisitely blue water is a natural reservoir and surrounded by the Trans-Ili Alatau. The place is too beautiful for words. Kok Tobe is one of the most famous attractions in Almaty. The recreation area is perched atop a mountain and makes way for several outdoor activities. YOU should also visit the Park 28 Panfilovtsev. The place has been reserved to honour some soldiers from the Almaty infantry who perished during the German invasion in Moscow. The place has historical significance and should definitely be explored. Another lovely place to check out would be the Zenkov Cathedral. It is constructed in the complex of Panfilov Park. The cathedral has been constructed by wood but without the use of nails. You should definitely visit the First President Park. The gigantic complex is beautifully constructed and has been opened for the public recently. It is an open space that is aesthetically gifted with exquisite fountains, bushes, green grasses and more.
Things to do in Almaty
To indulge in some of the fun ice skating and skiing, you should visit the Medeo. The place is perfect for those who wish to get their adrenaline-charged by taking up winter sports. Medeo is actually on the outskirts of Almaty and located about 1,691 meters above sea level. The place is always freezing with snow and hence, is ideal for winter sports activities. Shymbulak is another such place where you can have some winter sports fun. The ski resort organises some ski trips and is easily one of the largest ski resorts across Central Asia. The resort is located close to the Medeu Valley and is in the Zailinsky Alatau range of icy mountains. One of the fun things that you can do is explore more of Kazakhstan history and cultural significance. The Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan is your place to check out. The museum brings life to some of the stories and cultural references that make up Central Asia's history. Do not miss the Ile-Alatau National Park, which is massive and has the sparkling blue Chemolgan River flowing.
Food and Restaurants in Almaty
Almaty is the commercial and cultural centre of Kazakhstan and hence, sees a thriving food culture. There are charming, quaint cafes and restaurants that will blow your mind. Much of the architecture boasts Soviet influence and the eclectic spread of cuisines is definitely worth checking out. From small food establishments to a sophisticated setting, the city has room for all kinds of tourist audience. Interestingly, much of Almaty has heavy Russian-inspired dishes. So you will find some interesting meals from the Russian kitchen with a twist of Almaty. You can start your food rendezvous in the city by checking out Gosti. It is the perfect restaurant which boasts Russian culture in its interiors and dishes. The black tea here is a speciality that you simply cannot miss. Kishlak is another cosy food establishment in Almaty that you would fancy. The decor is inspired by Central Asian designs with motifs on the walls. It has a very basic house-style cafe with an interesting spread of Central Asian cuisine ranging from Kazakh, Uygur and Uzbek cuisine.
Kishlak has exquisite dishes such as manti and shorpa, all made from lamb meat. El Mirador is one of the few international restaurants where food is served with a Kazakh-twist. The place specialises in seafood and has an array of dishes that would get you excited. They also have grilled meats with Argentinean style delicacies. If you do not wish to indulge in their style of meat and non-vegetarian dishes, then you should visit Alasha. The restaurant is on the outskirts of the city and has been constructed in the classic Timurid style, which comes from Turkmenistan. They have some exquisite dishes and fresh salads. Meat is also prevalent, and you will find them accompanied by fun Uzbek music. For a low-key restaurant and coffeehouse, you should go to Chukotka, a quaint establishment which is known to attract the hip crowd. The place has Russian, Central Asian and even European cuisine with a bar and an area dedicated to dancing. It is the perfect pub/coffeehouse you can ask for. You can further expand your culinary list by visiting Cafeteria, Traktir Medved and Gakku.
How to reach Almaty (Transportation)
As the capital of Kazakhstan, Almaty manages to receive good flight connectivity with international cities. Although there are no direct flights to Almaty from Indian cities, there is some good connectivity that can be found in other international cities. The most popular route to Almaty from India is via Dubai. Airlines such as Emirates, flydubai, Turkish Airlines, EgyptAir, Asiana Airlines, Lufthansa, to name a few, have dedicated flights to Almaty. However, to reach the city, it is essential to find the right international route to Almaty to avoid spending too much time in transit. There are many few flight options that have less time duration to reach Almaty. Often many airlines take a roundabout international route to reach Almaty, which could be very time-consuming. Hence, it is essential to pick the right airlines and route that would reduce the travel time and other concerns in terms of flight connectivity to Almaty. Emirates has the best flight connectivity to Almaty with a slew of flights that fly to the city.
The flight duration to Almaty ranges from 7 hours to 12 hours. However, depending on the airlines and layovers, this time could be extended. If you opt for cheap flights, you might end up spending over 22 hours in transit. However, to avoid the extensive travel duration, opt for airlines that has a less layover duration. The flight tickets to Almaty are quite reasonable. They range from INR 28,000 to INR 35,000. Depending on the airlines and the flight duration, the ticket prices to Almaty could change. You can further make amends in the prices of the tickets to Almaty by opting for some online deals. Various airlines have great online flight deals to Almaty that would come in handy. If you make prior bookings to Almaty, you will be able to avail these offers. You can also combine your flight and hotel bookings in Almaty to get more discounts. There are a plethora of platforms that have miles services that you can choose. These would enable you to earn miles and further spend it on a bigger and more expensive trip.
About Uzbekistan Airways
JSC Uzbekistan Airways which primarily works as Uzbekistan Airways, is the national flag carrier of Uzbekistan. The airline's headquarters is in Tashkent while its hub is at Islam Karimov Tashkent International Airport. The airline caters to a plethora of domestic routes and destinations with a handful of international routes across Europe, Asia and North America. Following the disbandment of the Soviet Union in 1992, the then president of Uzbekistan Islan Karimov authorised to create its own national carrier, Uzbekistan Airways. The same year, the airline was established, and operations of the Uzbekistan division of Aeroflot were conducted. In 1993, the airline acquired its first two Airbus A310-300s as part of its fleet. Along with the two Airbus aircraft, Uzbekistan Airways' fleet also comprised Russian-manufactured aircraft such as Yakovlev Yak-40s, Ilyushin II-62 and Antonov An-24/26s, to name a few. In the same year, the airline also ordered for its first Boeing aircraft, two Boeing 767-300ERs and a single Boeing 757. They also played as the launch customers for the Russian aircraft Ilyushin II-114.
The national flag carrier is recognised worldwide as the best operator of Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. As of 2016-17, Uzbekistan Airways also showcased that they have the best figure with no-accident exploitation of aircraft Boeing 787 Dreamliner among other airline operators of the same aircraft in the world. With this, they became one of the only airlines in the world to provide 100 percent safety with respect to aircrafts such as Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Following the same, Uzbekistan Airways also received an award by the Boeing Company for following the safety protocols to function the said type of aircraft. The airline's Dreamliners have flight operations to international routes such as Dubai, Delhi, Istanbul, Seoul, Moscow, Singapore, New York via Latvia, Kuala Lumpur, Amritsar and more. The airline also introduced a direct flight route Tashkent - New York - Tashkent with their Dreamliner aircraft. In 2000, Uzbekistan Airways employed 16,296 staff and further worked on its expansions and airport upgradation.
As of 2014, the airline carried about 2.625 million passengers, which was a 1.9 per cent dip from the previous year's cumulative figure. Instead, the cargo transport saw an increase of 4.6 per cent. Uzbekistan Airways made quite a few changes with its hub airport too, in order to accommodate better facilities for the flights. In fact, it is recognised to have one of the largest high-technological air cargo complexes in the Central Asia region. Along with this, the airline has also introduced better passenger terminals with comfortable facilities for the passengers. It has been reported that there are many aviation services that have expressed interest in cooperating and working with Uzbekistan Airways. The airline, with its repair and maintenance provisions for aircraft, has snagged the attention of several airline companies and aircraft manufacturers. Much recently, the airline also proposed a project to construct Uzbekistan Airways's Air company that would cater to a self base with provisions of a training school to enable teaching and schooling the crew and airline staff.
Fleet size of Uzbekistan Airways
As of 2020, the fleet size of Uzbekistan Airways stands at 32 with variants of Airbus and Boeing aircraft. In 2007, the airline ordered six Airbus A320s to be part of the fleet. During the time of the order, the airline had a strong fleet of 55 aircraft. Ten of the aircraft were of different models and included Russian-crafted planes such as Yakovlev Yak-40, among them. The same year, Uzbekistan Airways ordered two Boeing 787-8s to join its fleet. Later in 2008, the airline further added four more orders of Boeing 767-300ERs for a whopping cost of USD 597 million as part of the deal. They also boosted their order of Airbus A320 to ten aircraft. The airline received the first batch of its Airbus A320 delivery in 2010 which kickstarted its Tashkent-Baku route. The four Boeing 767-300ERs that were ordered in 2008 were also delivered to the airline in 2012. In the same year, Uzbekistan Airlines returned the An-24 aircraft from active operations. Following year, Islamic Development Bank signed a deal of USD 270 million with the Uzbekistan government to utilise part of the finances to acquire two Boeing aircraft for Uzbekistan Airways. Airbus A310 also retired from active operations in 2013. Further, the airline converted two of its oldest Boeing 767-300ER aircraft into freight carriers.
Baggage allowance
Baggage allowance on Uzbekistan Airways is the same as what is followed globally by a majority of airlines. The free baggage that is part of the passenger ticket includes the weight of not more than 30 kg for business class and 20 kg for economy class respectively. The domestic routes of Uzbekistan Airways enable more baggage allowance which comprises 32 kg and 23 kg for business class and economy class respectively. However, for a majority of international routes, the same baggage allowance does not apply. Passengers should ensure that their baggage weight does not exceed the stated weight. As for hand baggage, the airline cannot exceed the dimensions of more than 115 cm for the bag. The hand baggage must fall within the dimensions of 56 x 45 x 25 cm. These bags need to fit perfectly in the overhead bin and enable swift accommodation for other passenger baggage too. All the passengers flying from Uzbekistan Airways are allowed to carry only one hand baggage with an additional small bag that could be a crutch, a handbag, a laptop bag or a briefcase. These bags should be small enough to fit under the front seat.
In-flight services
In-flight services that can be experienced on Uzbekistan Airways' aircraft is quite decent. The airline has worked to bring forth facilities and amenities on board that would help cater to the comfort of the passengers. They have introduced reclining seats that are of leather. The ones in the business class even turn into flat beds, giving the passengers the luxury they seek. The airline has installed personal entertainment systems for individual seats with the latest entertainment content such as movies, TV shows and music. The in-flight meal services are also present and complimentary for passengers who are travelling on medium-haul or long haul flights. The hospitality of the in-flight crew is also extremely good.
Popular routes and top cities for Uzbekistan Airways
Uzbekistan Airways offers extremely strong domestic route connections as well as international route connections. Much of the international operations of Uzbekistan Airways take place from Tashkent. However, the airline does offer services to domestic cities that enable passengers to fly to other countries. The airline hasn't become part of any airline alliance as of 2020. A majority of flight services of the airline cater to East European and Central Asian cities. It is also a big player in the Russian aviation industry. It offers services to a slew of Russian cities such as Kazan, Moscow, Sochi, Saint Petersburg, Ufa, Volgograd, Moscow, Irkutsk, Khabarovsk and Voronezh. As for international routes that the airline caters to, some of the cities are Baku, Minsk, Beijing, Paris, Frankfurt, Munich, Delhi, Amritsar, Mumbai, Jakarta, Tel Aviv, Milan, Rome, Tokyo-Narita, Almaty, Riga, Kuala Lumpur, Lahore, Jeddah, Phuket, Istanbul, Dubai and London-Heathrow. Flight services for its domestic routes cater to cities such as Andijan, Fergana, Navoi, Nukus, Samarkand, Tashkent, Urgench, Termez, Qarshi, Bukhara and Namangan, in Uzbekistan.
Why travel from Uzbekistan Airways?
Uzbekistan Airways, in its 28 years, has managed to gain quite a lot of momentum in the aviation industry of the country. In fact, it has raked in a lot of attention from neighbouring countries, including Russia. Over the years, the airline has included a slew of domestic route cities in its list of destinations, enabling excellent connectivity across the country. Further, the airline has also introduced various international route connectivity such as the one from Tashkent to New York City with Riga as its one-stop. These have further enabled the airline to receive a good name among frequent passengers. Uzbekistan Airways has allowed regional cities to cross borders and reach various European, Russian and North American cities. However, the perks of travelling by Uzbekistan Airways doesn't end there. Their fleet also has the latest aircraft that function on high-technological engines and parts. This has helped with the airline's efficiency and lack of accidents or technical concerns.
While these reasons do stand out as it offers safety to the passengers onboard, Uzbekistan Airways' in-flight services are also worth mentioning. They have the best seats, extremely friendly crew and also have intriguing baggage allowance deals for passengers. The airline recently introduced their mobile app that would enable travellers to know more about Uzbekistan Airways' flight schedules, do web check-ins to save time and get a heads up on the flight status. Passengers can book an Uzbekistan Airways flight and save the ticket details on the app. The same can be presented at the airline's check-in counter with barely any discrepancy. The airline does have frequent flyer programmes that can be quite beneficial for the passengers who choose their airline or travel to the routes offered by Uzbekistan Airways.
