ASTANA – Kazakhstan welcomed 597,000 foreign tourists within the first two weeks of September, with 68,000 arriving via the international airports in Astana and Almaty. According to the National Company Kazakh Tourism, the rest traveled by rail and road.
Photo credit: Akimat of Almaty
The surge in tourism was driven by the fifth World Nomad Games (WNG) and a concert by renowned Kazakh performer Dimash Qudaibergen. These events attracted visitors from 89 countries, leading to a notable rise in foreign arrivals.
“Besides neighboring states, key countries of origin included China, India, Türkiye, Germany, and the United States (US). Over 33,000 tourists came from China, more than 6,000 from India, over 4,000 from Germany, and about 2,000 from the U.S.,” said Yerzhan Yerkinbaev, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Sports.
The eQonaq information system, responsible for tracking and analyzing tourist movements and migration control in Kazakhstan, recorded around 12,400 foreign tourists registered in Astana alone for the week. Their total spending on accommodation, transportation, food, and entertainment reached $15.5 million. The average expenditure for tourists from distant countries was $1,500. Participants in the World Nomad Games contributed an estimated $625,000 to the national economy.
From Sept. 7 to 13, tourist attendance at Astana tourist sites increased. The National Museum of Kazakhstan welcomed over 14,000 visitors, the Astana-Baiterek monument attracted around 15,000, and the Nur-Alem pavilion saw around 10,000 visitors. The Ethno Village and the WNG drew more than 250,000 people.
