Travel and transport agencies Aralsk Et L’ouest

This association helps fishermen who are gradually returning to work on the Aral Sea. It also has a network of young English-speaking people who act as guides in the region in summer. The organization is efficient, even at a moment's notice, and offers 4x4 vehicles with drivers for venturing into the territory of the former Aral Sea, right up to the most remote corners, and even as far as the Zhamanshin crater. The drivers are reliable, but a quick inspection of the vehicle won't go amiss.

Located close to the city center, the railway station offers trains to Kyzyl-Orda (then Turkestan and Almaty, with a change at Kyzyl-Orda) to the east, and to towns on the Caspian Sea and in the north-west of the country. To save time, you can also fly to Kyzyl-Orda before taking an overnight train. It's best to buy your tickets in advance.

The bus station is just opposite the railway station. Regular buses to Turkestan (15h drive).

From Aktau, ferries run daily to Atyrau on the northern Caspian Sea, as well as Baku in Azerbaijan and Turkmenbashi in Turkmenistan. For these last two routes, you'll need to ask locally for departure dates, which are highly irregular and often depend on load factors. It takes around twenty hours to cross the Caspian to Baku, and the plane is clearly preferable in terms of price, comfort and speed.

The railway station is located 12 km east of the city center, in Mangyshlak. The best way to get there quickly is by cab from the city center. Aktau can be reached by train from Beyneu, a railway junction where the tracks divide towards Atyrau to the north or Nukus and Uzbekistan to the south. This station is often crowded, and you'll have to elbow your way to buy tickets if you haven't had the foresight to do so in advance. It takes almost two days to reach Almaty.

Aktau airport is modern and well connected to the rest of the country. Many flights are operated by Kazakh airlines such as Air Astana and Qazaq Air. Daily flights to Astana, Atyrau, Shymkent and Almaty. Several flights a week to Aralsk, Kyzyl-Orda, Turkestan and Uralsk.

International flights serve Moscow and Rostov in Russia, Baku on the other side of the Caspian (Azerbaijan), Tbilisi (Georgia) and Istanbul. Allow yourself plenty of time to pass through the various airport entry and boarding controls.

Unlike the well-regulated transport system in the rest of the country, the towns of Aktau and Atyrau are served in a slightly more anarchic way. Don't hesitate to arrive early to find seats on the buses, even if it means waiting for them to fill up. Even if the bus fleet has been renewed, the best solution is still to take a shared cab or minibus, which are faster, more comfortable and more frequent. Cabs to Fort Chevchenko also depart from the bus station.

5 km northeast of town center. Trains leave Atyrau daily for Aktobe, from where you can continue on to Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana). Allow 35 hours to reach the Kazakh capital. Trains also run to Beyneu, where you can connect with the south of the country: Aralsk, Turkestan, Chymkent and Almaty. It takes around 48 hours to reach the former Kazakh capital by train. As for international trains, the only cross-border connection is to Moscow, which is served from Atyrau every two or three days.

The airport is located 8 km from Atyrau town center. You'll find roughly the same flights and frequencies as at Aktau International Airport. In other words, daily rotations with Almaty and Astana, several weekly flights to Chymkent, Aktobe or Turkestan and at least one flight a day between Atyrau and Aktau. International connections include shuttles to Istanbul, Amsterdam, Sharm-el-Sheikh and Moscow.

Most connections are with Uralsk, north of Atyrau, or Beyneu, to the east. From Beyneu, you can travel to Astana, in the north of the country (40h min.), or Almaty (48h). Given the distances involved, you'll need to consider spending a night in the bus if you choose this mode of transport. Shared txis or minibuses are a good, albeit more expensive, option if you want to save a little time and travel more comfortably. Like buses, they leave throughout the day as soon as they've filled up with passengers.