Near Bishkek, 20 km away there is Manas International Airport. The airport is small, it was recently renovated, there are cafes and pharmacy kiosks with small shops. If you come with a reserve, then you will have nothing to do there. Coffee in the machine costs 0,34 RUB = 35. KGS baggage packing 3,5 RUB = 350 KGS
How to get there
You can get to it from the city itself on a comfortable and clean minibus number 380 for 38 RUB = 40. KGS Stop coordinates: 42.877647, 74.575208. The minibus is coming 40 minutes, as it stops in villages along the way. View prices and order a taxi and meeting at the airport conveniently in advance via the Internet using an international service
Airfare from Moscow
An Aeroflot Moscow-Bishkek air ticket will cost you approximately 13,000 rubles. for the cheapest round trip fare. All flight options from your city can be viewed on Aviasales
Bishkek city transport
In Bishkek, public transport includes buses, trolleybuses and minibuses. The fare is 8 RUB = 8 KGS for a trolleybus and bus, and 10 RUB = 10 KGS for a minibus. Minibuses run more frequently and the city's coverage area is much wider. Traffic jams are not uncommon on main streets. Travel is paid at the entrance.
Intercity shuttle buses of Kyrgyzstan
The main way to travel around the country is by minibus. The quality and cleanliness of the minibuses varies; passengers can also carry cargo in the cabin; there is no air conditioning. One thing that’s great about them is that there are a lot of them in the main areas, and if you don’t like one, you can wait for the next one.
- The price is fixed and can be easily found out from the driver; Kyrgyz soms are accepted for payment.
- The cost of travel from Karakol to Kadzhi-Sai was 57 RUB = 60 KGS for an hour and a half
- From Kadzhi-Sai to Bishkek 2,9 RUB = 250 KGS for 6 hours.
- A direct minibus from Karakol to Bishkek (400 km) costs 287 RUB = 300 KGS and takes less time according to good northern road via Cholpon-Ata.
Long-distance buses from Bishkek
Long-distance minibuses make stops for snacks. The cost of visiting the toilet on the road is 10 RUB = 10. KGS buns in a cafe next to 19 RUB = 20 KGS per shortbread From Bishkek, a good asphalt road leads towards Almaty, to the northern side of Lake Issyk-Kul through tourist city Cholpon-Ata to Karakol, towards Osh. All other roads are compacted gravel, very dusty in places.
Rail transport in Kyrgyzstan
International trains
By railway you can get to Bishkek from Moscow. The station is located within the city. Coordinates: 42.863869, 74.605706.
Local trains
From the local service there are short branches from Bishkek towards Issyk-Kul to the city of Balykchy (but it only operates in summer time and in time it takes 7 hours versus 4 hours by minibus for the same distance), to the north with the border of Kazakhstan - Tokmok, Merke.
Passing cars
Hiking is sometimes the only means of transportation in remote parts of the country. Both soms and rubles are accepted for payment.
The initial fare is unrealistically high for the country; you must bargain. The remoteness of the nearest settlement and the lack of transport on this section of the road are taken into account. For a 2-hour drive on gravel from the border with Kazakhstan near the city of Kegen to Karakol, after trading, 1,000 rubles were paid for two (1,500 rubles were originally requested). Absolutely without amenities (there may be other passengers in the car), but quickly and with transportation to the place.
The cost of gasoline in Kyrgyzstan
- 95th 0,37 RUB = 39 KGS
- 92nd 0,34 RUB = 36 KGS
- diesel 0,31 USD = 32 KGS
Perhaps this is still the most popular for Bishkek residents mobile application- Bus.kg allows a person to find out how to get from point A to point B on a Bishkek minibus, as well as a bus or trolleybus.
In just over two weeks, it was installed on more than 5,000 smartphones, according to statistics from the Google Play online store, and it seems that these are unprecedented figures for an application from Kyrgyzstan.
The creators hit the nail on the head - Bishkek residents and especially guests of the capital needed a tool like air that would help them understand the chaos of the intricacies of transport routes.
In order to understand how to get from point A to point B in Bishkek using public transport, you need to live here for a considerable amount of time.
There are a number of reasons for this: descriptions of stops on minibuses, buses and trolleybuses are written in very small font; no barkers announce the route and, moreover, you can count on one hand the stops at which their name would be written.
To make life even more difficult for passengers, minibus drivers often stop outside stops.
Bus.kg solves many of these problems - in the application or on their official website you can indicate two points on the map of Bishkek and you will be offered all the most suitable public transport routes indicating the nearest stops.
This application was developed by a small team of programmers from the Incubazia company.
“It wasn’t my main job.”
We met with a representative of the company, a young girl Nargiza Akunbek kyzy, who holds the position of marketing specialist, in one of the coffee shops in Bishkek.
“We have had this idea for quite a long time. We wanted to try our hand - [what if] we created a mobile application that would be useful for society, for citizens?” - says Akunbek kyzy.
According to her, the idea was discussed for a long time and a lot, but the team began to really work on the project in February 2013.
Nargiza Akunbek kyzy “We did not devote all our time to this project. He was given only part of the working time,” she says.
The Incubazia company is primarily engaged in the creation of websites and has never made mobile applications before.
However, its debut product in this segment was generally liked by users.
Creation process
First, according to Nargiza, an algorithm for the application was written - this took about three to four months with about two to three hours of work per day.
“It helped the engineers that we have a small team. Someone is working on the iOS version, someone is working on the Android version, someone is working on the algorithm. And they were constantly in contact with each other, and the size of the team made it easier to solve problems,” she said.
After the algorithm was created, the developers went to the Bishkek mayor's office, namely the City Transport Department (UGT), to obtain diagrams of all routes.
“We probably came to the right person at the mayor’s office,” recalls Akunbek kyzy.
“There was a person who is responsible for planning these route schemes. We contacted him and asked for directions. First they explained why we needed it, and they gave us diagrams for one day. We made copies that same day and returned [the card] the next day,” she says.
Bishkek authorities helped the application developers with route maps. According to Nargiza, the Bishkek mayor's office really helped the developers. But, before taking the route map, the company had to write a letter to the head of UGT with a promise to return all materials the next day.
After the release of the application, I immediately noticed the fact that among the routes there were no recently introduced ones.
According to a representative of Inkubasia, the problem with the frequency of updating routes in Bus.kg is already being resolved.
“Recently, the mayor’s office remembered us again. In the future, we will receive all information and all updates from them,” says Akunbek kyzy.
According to her, the company wants to agree with the municipality so that, in case of changes in public transport in Bishkek, the mayor’s office will inform the Incubazia team, and they, in turn, will make these changes to their database.
Immediate plans
For now, the application is available only to Internet users on personal computers, as well as to owners of phones running Android OS.
But already in September, a version for the iOS operating system will be available for free download, which is installed on iPhones, iPads and iPods.
The project is still available for free download and use, but the company is thinking about ways to commercialize the application - advertising may soon appear there.
But Incubazia promises that it will not be intrusive, as is usually the case with smartphone applications.
The development team is also thinking about creating a promotional video that will be distributed on the Internet.
“Since our audience is those people who use the Internet, of course, the Internet is the main place where we will promote. As for television and billboards, it’s unlikely,” says the marketing specialist.
The creators of the application also hope for the support of local authorities in promoting Bus.kg.
Application rating from the site
Ulugbek Akishev:
The application is very useful. I’ll say right away that I used it several times when I didn’t know how to get to a particular place and didn’t get lost. Among the advantages, I would like to especially highlight the following:
By entering a route into Bus.kg on your smartphone, you will receive in response five possible routes to the desired location (if there are that many, of course). The following information is attached to each route: distance to the nearest stop, distance by public transport and the distance to the end point.
There are all existing public transport routes in Bishkek - minibuses, buses, trolleybuses.
Possibility to use the application offline.
Bektur Iskender:
Okay, Ulugbek exclusively praises this application, and then I will point out the shortcomings. The biggest inconvenience for me is that the application does not display the travel option with a transfer if there is no direct route.
For example, I often travel between the 12th microdistrict and Zhilgorodok of the Council of Ministers. These two areas are not connected by any route. I always travel between them with a transfer, changing transport at the South Gate.
Unfortunately, the application does not give me this option. As a rule, they offer me to get, for example, from the 12th microdistrict to the Southern Gate, and from there walk a few kilometers to the Zhilgorodok of the Council of Ministers. Or vice versa.
It seems to me that displaying just such options would be of particular value, because even residents of the small town of Bishkek may not realize how sometimes there are more convenient ways to travel between points of the city than they are used to using.
Of course, such an application was needed. Considering that I have lived in Bishkek all my life, I have already used it several times and - most importantly! - I learned about previously unknown routes through alternative streets that I had never used.
The only thing I’m worried about is that someday, I’m sure, Bishkek transport routes will be laid out in Google maps. And then the creators of Bus.kg will have to either come up with something fundamentally new, or fight with a global corporation.
Leave your impression of the application and service using the comment form below the material.
Manas Airport
International airport city of Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. Located 23 km from the center of Bishkek. This is a two-story building, small and convenient for its purpose. It cooperates with 16 airlines and serves approximately 40 flights per day. We ordered our tickets for our vacation. The airport has only one terminal, but it copes with the needs of passengers. As soon as we arrived, we were able to immediately exchange Russian rubles for local currency at the airport; there are already four exchange offices there!
We received our luggage in comfortable conditions, in a well-equipped block, with almost no queues, the only thing that is not clear is why it was checked after arrival. It’s difficult to get lost at the airport, there are signs everywhere, it’s better to trust them and not contact the help desk; they didn’t answer our questions.
Everyone who flies international flight, must go up to the second floor, and those who move within the country remain on the first floor. The security service at the airport entrance checks very carefully, even children are examined! Pre-flight control is even stricter than at the entrance; everyone is seen as a threat to society. The employees work with stone faces, we never got a smile.) They are demanding about the weight of luggage, it should not be more than 20 kg, hand luggage up to 5 kg. We were overweight by 200 grams, so we had to put on a couple of sweaters. The departure hall is large and comfortable. In the center there is a Duty-Free, although with a small selection, but the prices are a little cheaper than ours. There are also a couple of shops with gifts in the hall, but the prices there are clearly higher than in Bishkek itself. We also liked the huge windows in the waiting room, from which you can see planes landing and taking off. This is an amazing sight! With more detailed information you can find it on the official website.
How to get from the airport to Bishkek by bus
Bus stop is located one hundred meters from the arrival area. The buses are small and have no luggage compartment. If you have a lot of things with you, you will feel uncomfortable traveling in it.
The day before, Deputy of the Bishkek City Council Saidakhmat Ismailov proposed annually increasing fares for public transport. Otherwise, in his opinion, we risk ending up without it altogether - prices for fuel and lubricants and spare parts are rising, but tariffs remain unchanged.
IA "24.kg» figured out whether we really have the most low prices for travel and how much money is spent on updating municipal transport.
How tariffs were increased
Conversations that there is an urgent need to increase public transport fares in Bishkek arise every year. Every year, officials propose to increase the price of travel on municipal transport by 50 percent - from 8 to 12 soms. And the reasons are always the same - expensive fuel and high costs.
In 2014, bus drivers went on strike. They demanded an increase in fares and the abolition of a fine of three thousand soms for standing passengers. On the eve of Orozo Ait, minibuses throughout the city simply did not go online.
Drivers were confident that fares would increase as of August 1, 2014. However, the deputies of the Bishkek City Council were on vacation at that time and were not going to consider the issue. That's how it remains. Well, except that the traffic cops stopped paying attention to the overcrowded buses.
In 2012, for the same reason, private cab drivers demanded an increase in fares. And the methods were identical. Then the townspeople were promised that comfortable transport would be waiting for them for 10 soms. The situation has not changed until now.
The last time fares for public transport in Bishkek were increased was in May 2012. Then the price for travel on a minibus increased from 8 to 10 soms during the day and from 10 to 12 soms after 21.00. The price for travel on trolleybuses has increased from 5 to 8 soms, and on buses - from 6 to 8 soms.
Where are buses and trolleybuses more expensive?
The authorities of the capital have repeatedly stated that the cost of travel on public transport in Bishkek is several times lower than in neighboring countries. Hence, they say, all the problems. Municipal transport simply cannot live on the money it earns. The Bishkek City Hall annually subsidizes municipal transport by approximately 230 million soms.
Now let’s compare transport costs with the average nominal salary in these cities. To make it easier to navigate, we have converted all prices into Kyrgyz soms. The average salary in Bishkek is 18.5 thousand soms, in Almaty - 38.4 thousand soms, Tashkent - 22.8 thousand soms, Moscow - 75.3 thousand soms and Dushanbe - 12.3 thousand soms.
Every month, Bishkek residents spend, on average, 2.5 percent of their salary on public transport.
Traveling on buses and minibuses in Dushanbe costs a little more—0.48 percent of the salary. In other cities, costs are much higher. In Tashkent you will have to pay 2.1 percent for travel, in Almaty - 4 percent and Moscow - 4.2 percent.
How Bishkek's transport was updated
This year the government expects to receive 356 new buses for Bishkek. The funds will be credit - 3.5 billion soms. It is expected that the cost of one bus will be $143 thousand. For this purpose, the country's authorities planned to issue government securities.
Last year it was launched in the capital new route- No. 35. Its difference is that private buses operate on it. An investor from China purchased 12 cars. The mayor's office provided the carrier with benefits so that the route would not be closed.
In 2016, Urumqi donated ten new buses to Bishkek as part of a program of cooperation and development of friendly ties. Buses run on gas and run on route No. 42.
In 2013, about 80 new trolleybuses were purchased using the first tranche of the EBRD loan. In 2015, deputies received the second tranche of a soft loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in the amount of 7.9 million. According to the mayor's office, this will allow the purchase of up to 50 new trolleybuses.
The biggest scandal was the purchase of 200 buses in 2008. Then the mayor was Nariman Tyuleev. As a result, he and the former director of the Bishkek passenger motor transport enterprise Medet Kozhebergenov, former vice-mayor Valery Kornienko, head of the municipal property department Ruslan Beishenbaev and acting. Director of the Tazalyk MP Bakyt Sydykov was accused of corruption. The Prosecutor General's Office considered that Nariman Tyuleev bought the buses at an inflated price.
