This is the Kazakhstan chapter from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

The world’s ninth-biggest country is the most economically advanced of the ’stans’, thanks to abundant reserves of oil and other valuable minerals. The capital, Astana, on the windswept northern steppe, has been transformed into a 21st-century showpiece with a profusion of bold futuristic architecture.

• dine out in leafy, sophisticated Almaty and hike in the spectacular mountains on its door-step
• maps
• stay in hospitable homestays and trek amid gorgeous alpine scenery in the Kolsai Lakes
• transport
• be awed by Turkestan’s beautiful Timurid architecture at Kazakhstan’s holiest site
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Almaty & Around, Medeo & Chimbulak, Ozero Bol-shoe Almatinskoe Area, Southeast Kazakhstan, Charyn Canyon, Kolsai Lakes, Altyn-Emel Na-tional Park, Karkara Valley, Central Tian Shan, Southern Kazakhstan, Taraz, Shymkent & Around, Turkestan, Otrar, Kyzylorda, Aral, Western Kazakhstan, Aktau & Around, Uralsk, North-ern Kazakhstan, Astana & Around, Lake Burabay, Karaganda, Eastern Kazakhstan, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Altay Mountains, Semey & Around, Understand Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan To-day, History, People, Arts, Environment, Survival Guide, When to Go, Visas & Permits, Itineraries, Fast Facts, Exchange Rates, Resources.

This is the Kyrgyzstan chapter from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

Kyrgyzstan is a nation defined by its natural beauty. Joyously unspoilt mountainscapes, stark craggy ridges and rolling summer pastures are brought to life by seminomadic, yurt-dwelling shepherds. It’s easy to see why Kyrgyzstan is the gateway of choice for many travellers in Central Asia.

• stargaze and experience life in a summer herder’s yurt at high-altitude Lake Son-Köl
• maps
• trek amid the Alay Valley’s snowy peaks en route to China or Tajikistan, or scale 7134m Peak Lenin
• transport
• explore surrounding mountains by foot, bike or horseback, from right outside your guest-house door in Jyrgalan
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Bishkek, Chuy Oblast, Ala-Archa Canyon, Chunkurchak Valley, Alamedin Valley, Kegeti Valley, Issyk-Ata Valley, Tokmok, Suusamyr Val-ley, Talas Oblast, Northern Kyrgyzstan: Issyk-Köl Oblast, Issyk-Köl Northern Shore, Karakol, Ak-Suu Region, Issyk-Köl Southern Shore, Naryn Oblast, Kochkor, Son-Köl, Jumgal, Naryn, Eki-Naryn, Tash Rabat, Jalal-Abad Oblast, Sary-Chelek, Jalal-Abad, Arslanbob, Kazarman, Osh Oblast, Osh, Uzgen, Alay Valley, Understand Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Today, History, People & Culture, Religion, Arts, Environment, Food & Drink, Survival Guide, When to Go, Visas & Permits, Itineraries, Fast Facts, Exchange Rates, Resources.

This chapter contains the Welcome to Central Asia, Central Asia’s Top 15, Need to Know, First Time Central Asia, If You Like..., Month by Month, Itineraries, Visas & Permits, Border Crossings, Activities, Community-Based Tourism, and Countries at a Glance chapters from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

Your journey to Central Asia starts here. You’ll find the tools to plan your adventure: where to go and when, how much to budget, plus in-depth info on visas, permits and border cross-ings.

• tailor-made itineraries, arranged by region, themes and events
• list of highlights and best experiences
• everything you need to know about outdoor activities
• user-friendly country overview ensures you won’t miss a thing

Coverage includes: Welcome to Central Asia, Central Asia’s Top 15, Need to Know, First Time Central Asia If You Like: Sile Road Architecture, Hiking, Nomadic Life, Com-munity-Based Tourism, Archaeological Sites, Off the Beaten Track, The Weird & the Downright Odd, Cultural Immersion, Month by Month, Itineraries, Visas & Permits, Border Crossings, Activi-ties, Community-Based Tourism, and Countries at a Glance.

This is the Tajikistan chapter from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

The term ‘predominantly mountainous’ doesn’t do justice to a country where over 90% of the land is upland. This fact of nature has given Tajikistan a precious advantage over its neighbours, namely some of the most inspiring, high-altitude landscape in the world.

• travel along one of the world’s most famous roads, the Pamir Highway, offering high-altitude vistas and fine community-based homestays
• maps
• observe rural life along the narrow Pyanj River corridor in the Wakhan Valley, bordering Afghanistan, with Silk Road forts and spectacular views of the snowbound Hindu Kush
• transport
• bounce over angry waters on a suspension bridge as a prelude to hiking to the carless Pamir valley of Jizeu
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Dushanbe, Fergana Valley, Isfara, Khojand, Istaravshan, Zerafshan Valley, Penjikent, Fan Mountains, Sarvoda, Margeb, Upper Zerafshan Valley, The Pamirs, Western Pamir Highway, Khorog, Tajik Wakhan Valley, Eastern Pamir High-way, Understand Tajikistan, Tajikistan Today, History, People, Arts, Environment, Food & Drink, Survival Guide, When to Go, Visas & Permits, Itineraries, Fast Facts, Exchange Rates, Re-sources.

This is the Turkmenistan chapter from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guide-book.

Although many of the late-ruler Turkmenbashi’s grandiose monuments have been disman-tled, plenty of visitors still think of Turkmenistan as a sort of totalitarian theme park. But Turkmeni-stan is far more than this – it’s an ancient land of great spirituality, tradition and natural beau-ty.

• explore the extraordinary, ever-changing Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, laden with marble palaces and more fountains than Las Vegas
• maps
• discover the ancient minarets and turquoise-tiled mausoleums of Konye-Urgench, a tes-tament to the former glories of the Khorezmshah empire
• transport
• witness the bizarre combination of human accident and natural phenomenon at the Dar-vaza Gas Craters; a vision of hell amid the lunar landscapes of the Karakum desert
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Ashgabat, Eastern Turkmenistan, Mary, Merv, Turk-menabat, Karakum Desert, Northern Turkmenistan, Dashoguz, Konye-Urgench, Western Turk-menistan, Turkmenbashi, Understand Turkmenistan, Turkmenistan Today, History, People, Reli-gion, Arts, Environment, Survival Guide, When to Go, Best Places to Shop, Visas & Permits, Itin-eraries, Fast Facts, Exchange Rates, Resources.

This chapter contains the Central Asia Today, History, The Silk Road, People, Islam in Central Asia, The Arts, Architecture, Environment, Directory A–Z, Transport, Health, and Language chapters from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

All the info you need on everything from the history of the Silk Road to flights, public transport, climate, money, the internet... you name it. Get tips for women travellers, gay and les-bian travellers, travellers with disabilities, and travellers with kids. And get the most out of your conversations with a handy language guide and glossary.

• a rundown on the arts and architecture of the region
• info on Central Asia’s environment, from now-capped peaks to burning deserts
• full coverage of the people and cultures you will encounter
• details on Islam in Central Asia

Coverage includes: Central Asia Today, History, The Silk Road, People, Islam in Central Asia, The Arts, Architecture, Environment, Directory A–Z, Transport, Health, and Language.

This is the Uzbekistan chapter from Lonely Planet’s Central Asia guidebook.

The region’s cradle of culture for more than two millennia, Uzbekistan is the proud home to a spellbinding arsenal of architecture and ancient cities. In terms of sights alone, Uzbekistan is Central Asia’s biggest draw and most impressive showstopper.

• marvel at Central Asia’s most stunning ensemble of larger-than-life Timurid architectural gems, in Samarkand’s Registan
• maps
• wander the exquisitely preserved holy city of Bukhara, boasting stunning 15th-century me-dressas, stylish B&Bs and fascinating history
• transport
• look for the ghosts of the last independent Central Asian khanate in Khiva, frozen in time behind mud walls in the middle of the Kyzylkum desert
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Tashkent & Around, Chimgan Ugam-Chatkal National Park, Fergana Valley, Kokand, Fergana & Around, Andijon, Central Uzbekistan, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz, Termiz, Nurata, Bukhara, Khorezm, Urgench & Around, Khiva, Karakalpakstan, Nukus, Moynaq, Understand Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan Today, History, People, Religion, Arts, En-vironment, Food & Drink, Survival Guide, When to Go, Visas & Permits, Itineraries, Fast Facts, Exchange Rates, Resources.