Dana is a reporter and Travel Tomorrow’s Associate Editor She graduated in Political Science and International Relations She moved to Brussels from Romania for her studies and Mont des Arts made her fall in love with the city and remain here Many people have crossed Kazakhstan’s land over time, each bringing their culture. Their heritage is still present in the country today, where diverse cultures and religions coexist in harmony, respect and tolerance. Religious buildings, from mosques to cathedrals and temples, are among the reasons many tourists choose to visit Kazakhstan. In the Kent Mountains of the Karkaraly National Park lies the Kizhel Kensh Palace – the ruins of a Buddhist temple form the 17th century. It is located in a small valley, almost completely surrounded by rocky mountains, and its name means red ore or red city. The monastery was built by the Dzungars and it was inhabited for almost 50 years, although whether the people left the area voluntarily or not is still a mystery for historians. The temple can only be reached by car and a prior special permission is needed to visit it. The Kunanbaev Mosque is a wooden mosque built in Karkaraly in 1851 by the father of the poet Abai Kunanbayuly, Kunanbay Uskenbayev, who served as the area’s governor from 1849 to 1853. It is one of the oldest mosques Kazakhstan and has a somewhat tumultuous history. Its minaret was destroyed in 1920, it was left to decay, then the building was used as a school and warehouse until it was finally restored in 1980 and rebecame a place of worship. A complex of underground mosques dating back to the 18th century can be found in the region of Mangystau. The largest of the mosques is the Shopan Ata, carved out of rock, about 60 km from the town of Jana-Ozen. Other impressive underground mosques in Mangystau are Sultan Epe, Shakpak Ata, Beket Ata and Masat Ata. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Travel Tomorrow (@traveltomorrow.eu) The Cathedral of the Temple of Holy Ascension (1904-1907) in Almaty, also known as Zenkov’s Cathedral (in honour its architect Andrei Zenkov), is located in the Park of 28 Panfilov Guardsmen. It is the main Russian Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan and is included in the list of historical and cultural monuments of the country. The church brings together local and Russian architecture as both Kazakh and Russian people participated in its construction. The cathedral is one of the tallest wooden buildings in the world and the tallest Orthodox wooden church. The highest point at the upper end of the cross on the main dome is 39.64 metres above ground, while the top of the bell tower is 46 metres above ground. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Irina Kulaeva (@irina_kulaeva) designed the Chinese architect Hon Piquet and displaying an incredibly vivid blend of Chinese and Central Asian style A legend says that this is the most beautiful work the architect ever did and The mosque is one of the few buildings of Hon Piquet that passed the test of time and is under state protection since 1982 as a monument of architecture and history of republican significance The Astana Grand Mosque is the largest mosque in Central Asia Inaugurated in August by President Nursultan Nazarbayev at the 24th anniversary of the Kazakh capital foundation the mosque’s main dome is also the largest of its kind in the world Essential cookies enable basic functions and are necessary for the proper function of the website Statistics cookies collect information anonymously This information helps us to understand how our visitors use our website The protected areas in Kazakhstan are well known the world over for their natural beauty and ecological significance. Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world and it borders China The country is almost entirely flat except for mountains in its eastern and southern borders and it has coastlines along the Aral and the Caspian Sea The Altyn-Emel National Park occupies an area of 1,776 square miles The Park was established in 1996 in the valley of the Ili River from mountains to sand-desert and it has a rocky terrain The park's archaeology significance is represented by the Terekty petroglyphs where rock paintings and stone carvings have been preserved The Besshatyr is a complex of burial mounds from ancient civilizations Also notable are the Atkau and Katutau Mountains Mammals in the park include the rare snow leopard The Ili River and Kapchagai human-made lake are home to abundant fish species such as catfish There are 19 cordons stationed in and around the park and they facilitate regular control by the park inspectors and monitoring of tourism activities The park remains well protected from poaching and logging Bayanaul National Park stretches for 264 Square miles The park is characterized by many mountains and four freshwater lakes Bayanaul National Park consists of four types of vegetation including forest and aspen along with shrubs such as currants and raspberries Fauna species include the endangered argali roe deer and birds such as cranes and swans The Park has a continental climate with yearly precipitation is recorded at 340 mm and average annual temperatures of 3.2 degrees Celsius Burabay National Park occupies an area of 322 square miles in the Burabay District of Kazakhstan The park is characterized by mountain peaks rising over Lake Burabay Average annual rainfall is recorded at 300 mm and snow cover is about 25-35 thick during the winter The average temperature in July is +19 degrees Celsius and -16 degrees Celsius in January The park is a legally protected nature reserve and it is under the direct jurisdiction of the country's President is situated near Almaty City and covers 772 square miles The park covers landscapes such as forests About 300 bird and animal species have been recorded and include snow leopard with the high mountainous zone receiving the highest annual rainfall of more than 600 mm The Karkaraly National Park is situated in Karaganda region The park consists of the Karkaraly and Kent Mountains The climate is continental and is characterized by harsh winters and cool summers and abrupt changes in temperatures Flora of the park includes bluegrass Karkaraly The park's 46 mammal species include red deer Bird species include the protected imperial eagle and tourism and economic activities are strictly monitored Kazakhstan is a top destination in Central Asia for nature-based tourism the country pride in flora and fauna diversity and spectacular landscapes and scenery and water sports are popular tourist activities in the country photos and original descriptions © 2025 worldatlas.com