Green Bazaar, Almaty (must see)

The Green Bazaar has been one of Almaty’s most important trading hubs since it opened in 1875. Today, visitors can browse an impressive variety of goods, including spices, prepared foods, fresh produce, textiles, furniture, antiques, and regional specialties. Long before it became the city’s principal market, this site served as a guest yard for traveling merchants and caravans arriving from across Central Asia.

The original guest yard consisted of two pavilions along Torgovaya Street. It welcomed traders from throughout Central Asia and neighboring countries, becoming both a symbol of the city’s commercial prosperity and an important example of early urban planning. After the devastating earthquake of 1887, the complex was rebuilt and renamed the Central Farm Market before eventually becoming known as the Green Bazaar.

If all the details sound inviting, feel free to enter through the main southern gate, and you will find yourself inside the vast central trading hall, an example of Soviet-era Brutalist architecture. Pause for a moment in the main covered aisle and look upward to appreciate the towering concrete ceiling grid and skylights that flood the market with natural light. Around you, hundreds of stalls create the lively atmosphere for which the bazaar is famous, with vendors calling out to customers and colorful displays filling every corner.

From the central aisle, continue toward the northern side of the ground floor to reach one of the market’s most vibrant sections: the dried fruits, nuts, and spices area. Wooden counters overflow with pyramids of golden raisins, dried apricots, walnuts, almonds, and fragrant spices, many reflecting the centuries-old trade routes that linked Kazakhstan with neighboring Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and the rest of Central Asia.

Before leaving, take the central staircase down to the lower level, where you’ll find traditional Kazakh delicacies. Here, local vendors sell specialties such as kazy horse-meat sausage, kurt dried sour-milk balls, fresh camel’s milk, and fermented mare’s milk.