Turkistan Day Trips: Otrar, Arystan Bab, Ukasha Ata
Distances at a Glance
| Destination | Distance from Turkistan | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gauhar Ana mausoleum | about 4 to 6 km | edge of the city |
| Sauran | about 43 to 46 km north-west | open steppe, no shade |
| Ukasha Ata | about 47 to 55 km north | foot of the Karatau range |
| Otrar | about 50 km south | allow about an hour by road |
| Arystan Bab | about 55 to 60 km | beside Otrar |
| Shymkent | about 160 km south-east | about 2 hours by road |
Sauran
The reserve describes Sauran as a site of the 13th to 18th centuries, and its surviving feature is a ring of mudbrick walls. Ask taxi drivers for “Krepost Sauran” to avoid the village of the same name. A return taxi costs around 8,000 KZT. Plan a visit in the morning or late afternoon because the site has no shade.
Otrar and Arystan Bab, Together
These two make a natural pair. At Otrar, ask for Talapty village to reach the main ruins. The city sat on the Silk Road at the Arys and Syr Darya confluence and was besieged by the Mongols for five months in 1219, after a trade caravan was reported killed in 1218. Timur became ill and died here in February 1405. The museum-reserve opened in 1979, and excavations began in 1969.
Arystan Bab is a Sufi shrine where pilgrims traditionally pray before they visit the Yasawi Mausoleum. Its current building was finished in the early 1900s and keeps carved wooden columns. Wear modest clothing.
A hotel-booked return taxi to Otrar was about 15,000 KZT in 2023, and the last minibuses back may leave by mid-afternoon.
Neither Otrar nor Sauran is a World Heritage Site. Otrar is on Kazakhstan’s UNESCO tentative nomination track.
Ukasha Ata
A mausoleum and a well mark the site at the foot of the Karatau mountains. The distance depends on the route, so agree the route and price with the driver first.
Shymkent as a City Day
Trains cover the roughly 154 km by rail in about 3 hours 5 minutes to 4 hours 20 minutes, depending on the service. Minibuses and shared cars take about 2 hours from Shymkent bus stations, and fares are a few thousand tenge at most. Expect bazaars, museums and a citadel.
Not Day Trips
- Aksu-Zhabagly Nature Reserve: overnight, with a permit and a guide.
- Charyn Canyon: over 1,000 km east.
- Aydar Kul, Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara: in Uzbekistan.
- Aisha Bibi mausoleum: near Taraz.
Read more: attraction tours in Turkistan compares operator day tours.
Background reading on the sites is at Wikivoyage and the Astana Times . Search organised days on GetYourGuide .