Time difference Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan spans no less than four time zones (GMT+3 to GMT+6). However, since a decree issued in March 2024, the time is always the same throughout the country: GMT+5, i.e. 3 or 4 hours ahead of Paris, depending on whether France is on summer or winter time. Kazakhstan's time does not change with the seasons.
Opening hours Kazakhstan
To see / To do Kazakhstan
Shops and supermarkets are open 7 days a week, generally from 9am to 7 or 8pm. In case of emergency, there are many small outlets selling basic goods (water, cigarettes, alcohol, snacks...) that stay open late into the night. Bazaars open early in the morning. From 4pm onwards, activity drops off and some stalls begin to close. As a rule, all bazaars close on Mondays, the day of the big clean-up.
Public services (post office, banks, etc.) are open on weekdays (and on Saturdays for the post office) between 9am and 5.30pm, with a lunch break between 1pm and 2pm.
Museums and payingtourist sites are closed either on Sundays or Mondays. On other days, all museums and monuments are open from 9am to 5 or 6pm, depending on the season. Some take a lunch break between 1pm and 2pm.
Enjoying yourself Kazakhstan
In local restaurants, there aren't really any opening hours: establishments operate continuously throughout the day. With the exception of large hotels and touristy areas, they generally close their doors quite early, at 10 or 10:30 p.m. maximum.
Take a break Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan does not have the tradition of the small café or tea room where you can relax with friends. Chaikhanas, the traditional teahouses, are usually the haunts of aksakal, the "white beards", who play backgammon or watch the world go by around them; but apart from that, you generally sit down at mealtimes, eat and that's it. It's only in the cities that a few cafés (notably the Coffee Boom chain) have sprung up, where students and families gather for a bite to eat. But all these establishments generally also offer catering services. Numerous in Almaty and Astana, they are spreading to the country's medium-sized towns, but have yet to appear in provincial villages.
(To) please yourself Kazakhstan
Stores and shopping centers are generally open every day in urban centers and tourist areas. Small craftsmen also open the doors of their stores and workshops every day in the high tourist season, but may reduce their opening hours or days in winter. For shopping, the experience is often limited to Almaty and Astana, which have a few small craft stores. In the rest of the country, you'll have to go directly to the craftsmen, or buy local products at the bazaar. These always close on a weekly basis, usually on Mondays.
Get out Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan doesn't have a wild nightlife. In the big cities, Almaty and Astana, there is a plethora of bars and pubs catering mainly to Western expatriates. In the medium-sized towns, expats and the golden youth also have their addresses, but they are already fewer and less upscale. In the villages and in the rest of the country, while it's possible to find establishments that close a little later, the atmosphere is not necessarily there. And most of the time, after 10pm, the streets are quiet. While Almaty used to stand out for its many underground bars, the Covid pandemic has wiped out the nightlife scene, and most of the clubs and discotheques were either being converted or were waiting to be taken over at the time of writing.
