Almaty Welcomes 2.5M Visitors With Mountains and Modern Art

Picture stepping out of a modern art museum filled with works by Yayoi Kusama and Richard Serra, then taking a six-minute cable car ride to panoramic mountain views. That's an ordinary afternoon in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The Central Asian city welcomed nearly 2.5 million visitors in 2025, including more than 754,000 international tourists. That's a 6.3% jump from the year before, and locals say the secret is simple: Almaty doesn't make you choose between nature and culture.

The Zailiysky Alatau mountains rise dramatically at the city's edge, putting snow-capped peaks within half an hour of downtown. Medeo valley hosts one of the world's highest ice rinks, surrounded by those same peaks that dominate the skyline.

Visitors tackle the "Health Stairs," an 842-step climb that locals treat as a ritual. The challenge isn't easy, but the views at the top have become legendary among travelers.

Kok Tobe, meaning "Green Hill" in Kazakh, sits just 200 meters above the city. A cable car whisks visitors from the center to panoramic viewpoints in six minutes, where walking paths wind through greenery and birdsong replaces traffic noise.

The mountain access drew Julia Wottschal back to her homeland decades after leaving in 1991. "We have mountains in Germany too, but they're nothing like the ones here," she says.

Last September, Almaty Museum of Arts opened its doors and immediately became one of the city's most visited spots. The museum showcases over 700 works from Kazakhstan and Central Asia alongside international stars like Kusama, Bill Viola, and Richard Serra.

Exhibition manager Dayana Vafina noticed something unexpected about Serra's massive steel installation "Junction." "I was surprised to learn how popular it is among men," she said. "They're really interested in how such a massive structure was installed inside the museum."

Local photographer Alen Shayakhmetov started documenting the city's architecture and street art after the pandemic. Murals now dot the cityscape, including "A Girl with Petroglyphs" celebrating ancient cultural heritage and "Father of Apples," a pop-art piece referencing the city's name (alma means apple in Kazakh).

The architectural mix tells Almaty's story in buildings: 19th-century mansions stand near Soviet-era monuments and modern glass towers. Shayakhmetov believes the street art scene has become part of what makes the city special.

The Ripple Effect

Almaty's tourism boom is creating momentum across Central Asia. As more travelers discover the region, they're finding destinations that combine authentic cultural experiences with modern amenities and natural beauty that rivals more crowded mountain destinations.

The city's eight-month tourism season, thanks to mild climate and year-round mountain access, means local guides, artists, and hospitality workers enjoy steady employment. International recognition is growing as visitors share their discoveries on social media, putting Kazakhstan on travel wish lists worldwide.

With tourism numbers climbing and new cultural venues opening, Almaty is showing the world that Central Asia deserves a spot on the global travel map.