Planning a trip to Central Asia?! These are the 3 things, I WISH I KNEW before travelling Central Asia. Central Asia is a diverse region that is highly undervisited, and these are the basics to know!

1. The People.

In this part of the World there is an interesting melting pot of people and ethnicities! You may be in Tajikistan, but find yourself looking at someone with green eyes, light skin and a thin nose. Tajiks are actually descendents from the Aryan people, meaning they are closely related to Iranians/Persians. Regardless of whether the people look Asian, Persian, European or Arabic, everyone is extremely warm and welcoming here. Most people are very interested in foreigners, as they don’t see too many of us. So you will have 95% genuine interactions, which is pretty rare from what I’ve experienced around the World. Just make sure to learn a bit of Russian, or use a translate app, so you will be able to communicate a few key sentences with your new friends.

2. The Mountains

Central Asia is a hiker’s paradise. The towering mountains in the Central Asian region are some of the highest in the world. The Pamir Mountains are formed by the meeting of the Himalayas with the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun and the Hindu Kush ranges. These massive, snow-capped peaks are commonly referred to as “The Roof of The World”. Mountain ranges cover more than 90% of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, so if you like hiking, you’re at the right spot. Furthermore you can maybe spot some interesting wildlife on the way (like the Marco Polo Sheep, and if you’re very lucky, a snow leopard). Btw. the snow leopard is supposed to be the least aggressive to humans of all big cats, so don’t worry

Big Almaty Lake, Kazakhstan

3. The Perfect Time

Central Asia is slowly starting to become noticed by travellers. Kyrgyzstan has already eased visa restrictions and has set up homestay and adventure programs, making it fairly simple for you to visit and experience the country. There’s just enough tourism infrastructure in the region at the moment, yet it retains it’s authenticity and still feels like an epic place to travel. Currently there are only a handful of tourists travelling here, however, things are definitely picking up and in a few years (I predict) this part of the World will be swarming with backpackers and travellers all wanting a piece of The Stans. Now is the right time to go. Gustav