Astana Modern Business Financial Hub Central Asia
Explore Astana as Central Asia's emerging business and financial center — the city that Kazakhstan has positioned as the regional hub for finance, technology, and international business, the Astana International Financial Centre operating under English law, the multinational companies establishing regional headquarters in the purpose-built capital of the world's ninth-largest country by territory.
Astana Steppe Silk Road Ancient Trade History
Explore the ancient history of the Astana region — the Ishim River valley that was a corridor of movement for the steppe nomads of the Eurasian grasslands, the trade routes connecting China to the west that passed through this region, and the Bronze Age and Iron Age archaeological sites that document the human history of the steppe long before the modern capital was built.
Astana Extreme Winter Climate Life Cold Capital
Experience Astana as one of the world's coldest capital cities — the city where winter temperatures regularly reach minus 40°C and the wind chill of the open steppe makes outdoor life genuinely dangerous for months, the underground passages, heated indoor malls, and the architectural adaptation to extreme cold that shape daily life in the Kazakh capital.
Astana Religious Architecture Diversity Mosques Cathedral
Explore the religious architecture of Astana — the capital deliberately designed to showcase Kazakhstan's multi-religious character, the Hazrat Sultan Mosque (Central Asia's largest), the Russian Orthodox Cathedral, the Roman Catholic church, and the synagogue all visible from each other in the new city, the religious plurality a stated principle of Kazakhstan's national identity.
Astana EXPO 2017 Future Energy Innovation Hub
Visit the EXPO 2017 site in Astana — the international exposition on the theme of Future Energy that brought 115 countries to the Kazakh capital in 2017, the exhibition site now converted into a technology park and innovation hub with the Nur-Alem sphere as its centerpiece, the EXPO representing Kazakhstan's ambition to position itself as a global player in sustainable energy.
Astana Ishim River Waterfront Embankment
Explore the Ishim River waterfront that divides old and new Astana — the embankment promenade connecting the Soviet-era right bank with the futuristic left bank development, the river that provided the original rationale for the city's location and now serves as the green spine of the capital, the waterfront parks and recreation areas that make the city livable in its extreme continental climate.
Astana Kazakh Nomadic Culture Steppe Heritage
Discover Kazakh nomadic culture in Astana — the museums and cultural centers preserving the heritage of the Kazakh people whose nomadic pastoral lifestyle on the vast Eurasian steppe shaped their language, art, music, and social structure over two millennia, the culture now celebrated in the purpose-built capital that stands as evidence of Kazakhstan's transformation from Soviet republic to independent nation.
Astana Futuristic Capital Architecture Showcase
Explore Astana — Kazakhstan's purpose-built capital city relocated from Almaty in 1997, the steppe metropolis that has grown from a small Soviet-era town into a showcase of 21st-century architecture, with buildings by Norman Foster, Kisho Kurokawa, and other world-renowned architects rising from the flat grasslands, the city renamed Nur-Sultan in 2019 and back to Astana in 2022.