Getting around
High
Updated July 2026 · Sources cited: charlsiewanders.com, tasyatamasya.medium.com
Overall7.7/10Easier to get around than about 75% of cities
Good to know
Good to Know
- Use local navigation apps like 2GIS or Yandex Maps rather than Google Maps; both offer more detailed features and real-time public transport tracking.
- Rush hours between 7–9 AM and 5–7 PM are very crowded; heat inside vehicles can become oppressive in summer.
- As of August 3, 2024, a new fare of 120 tenge per ride is charged for public transport in Almaty. Cash payments are entirely discontinued for safety reasons—drivers get distracted when handling money.
- For night or solo travel, sit in the back seat rather than the front, and use the trip-sharing feature in Yandex Go to send your live route to a contact.
- The Almaty Metro has expansion plans; a western extension to Kalkaman has been announced for December 2026, though prior delays have occurred.
Walkability
- Getting Around Tier
- high
- Getting Around Tier Rationale
- Excellent walkable downtown core with pedestrian zones, combined with reliable metro and bus systems; rideshare (Yandex Go) widely available; coverage diminishes in outer areas but overall accessible without a car for central neighborhoods.
- Description
- Almaty is clean and park-filled, pedestrian-friendly and kid-friendly, peppered with murals and old Russian architecture. The city features lush parks and wide pavements that make strolling around the city a delightful experience. Key pedestrian-friendly areas include Zhybek Zholy (Arbat Street), a pedestrian shopping street spanning from Abylaikhan Avenue to Furmanov Street, and Panfilov Street Promenade, a long pedestrian street connecting the Kazakh National Theatre Opera and Ballet to the Arbat area.
Public Transit
Metro
- Fare
- KZT 120
- System Summary
- The Almaty Metro has 11 stations and 13.4 km of track, runs from 6:20 AM to midnight, and carries around 27 million passengers annually.
- Payment Methods
- The «Onai» pass is used for travel on any mode of transport, including the metro, buses, and trolleybuses. Single tickets cost 100 tenge for adults when paid via card, SMS, or QR code, and a monthly pass costs 7,200 tenge. Travelers can create a free virtual Onay card in the Onay app on their smartphone and link their payment card to it, then pay using a QR code or top up via any banking app.
Bus Trolleybus
- Fare
- KZT 120
- System Summary
- Almaty has 376 routes in the city, including 336 bus routes, 17 trolleybus routes, 1 metro line, and 22 railway routes. Bus networks are described as reliable in major cities, with services typically running from 6 AM to 10–11:30 PM.
- Notes
- Cash payment on board has been eliminated for security reasons in Almaty.
Vehicle Rentals
Bicycle
- Availability
- Electric bikes and Almaty Kazakhstan bike rental services are available for exploring the city, including tours to Big Almaty Lake in the Ile-Alatau National Park area.
Car Rental
- Sourcing Note
- Car rental pricing not found in the sources we checked; recommend searching directly with local rental agencies.
Motorcycle And Scooter
- Requirements
- A valid motorcycle license from your home country is required.
Scooter Rental
- Euro Pricing Note
- Scooter rental in Almaty starts from €5/day (approximately 2,700–2,800 KZT or $5.70–$6.00 USD based on current exchange rate)
Motorcycle Rental
- Euro Pricing Note
- A motorcycle such as a Suzuki XF 650 Freewind can be rented for around €90 per day.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this walkability & transport research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Almaty
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.