Trip Report: Air Astana, Astana to Bishkek via Almaty (September 2024)

  Trip Report: Air Astana, Astana to Bishkek
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When traveling in Kazakhstan, there are generally three airlines to choose from when flying Kazakhstan - AirAstana, FlyArstan, and SCAT Airlines.  AirAstana is the more well-off and defined airline of Kazakhstan, with FlyArstan being their LCC arm.  SCAT Airlines has less of a defined reputation and is generally known for poor service, poor planes, poor on-time departures, and generally not as put together.  I wanted to fly from Astana to Bishkek and both Air Astana and SCAT Airlines offered service; however, given SCAT airlines reputation for delayed and cancelled flights I choose to book with Air Astana.  I did end up booking SCAT airlines for a domestic trip and that report can be found here.   

Air Astana is regarded as the national carrier of Kazakhstan and provides services to cities domestically, within the Central Asia region, as well as international destinations such as London, Frankfurt, and Istanbul.  They also have partnerships with many airlines and constantly win awards for their service and onboard product.  They are a full-service airline and as a result their fares are a bit higher than SCAT and FlyArstan, but they also provide more onboard services and have a better ontime and cancellation percentage.  Even though they are named Air Astana, their base is primarily in Almaty so the travel that I booked had me flying domestically from Astana to Almaty and then transferring to the international sector for Almaty to Bishkek.  Everything was booked on one ticket so I could check-in in Astana and receive both boarding passes and have my bags checked through to Bishkek.

The flight that I booked was scheduled to depart Astana at 10:30a, arrive into Almaty at 12:10p, and then depart Almaty at 16:35 and arrive Bishkek at 18:25.  The ticket that I booked came with a 23kg checked baggage allowance, 10kg hand luggage allowance as well as seat selection.  24hrs prior to the flight I was able to check-in online and receive a mobile boarding pass, and I went to the airport well in advance to check in my luggage and confirm my check-in.  Since Astana is still relatively small, and their base is primarily Almaty, checkin was smooth and quick as there was not a lot of rush.  Air Astana seems to have hourly or frequent flights between Astana and Almaty so I could have taken an earlier flight, but since I had to wait in Almaty it did not make much sense.  Once it was time to board, boarding was done in groups and was much more orderly and organized versus SCAT.  

Both sectors were operated by the same type of aircraft which was an Airbus A320 with a 3-3 seat configuration.  Both planes looked relatively new and modern and seat had a PTV screen, a magazine holder, a tray table, as well as a seatback pocket.  Once in the seat, the seats were relatively comfortable and felt newish, and had adjustable headrests, but the seat pitch was tight and thus there was a not a lot of legroom.  Once boarded, a safety video was shown on the TV screens and mood lighting was enabled for takeoff and landing.  The first flight segment from Astana to Almaty was 1hr45min and the second sector, from Almaty to Bishkek, was 50min.  Due to the difference in flight times, there was a difference in service onboard.

For the first segment, since it was a longer flight time, onboard service was conducted.  Complimentary water, juice, or coffee/tea were distributed along with complimentary sandwich and apple chips.  Later on, complimentary Kazakhstan chocolate were also distributed.  While these complimentary items were nice, these were the only items available as there were no additional items for purchase or request and no modifications.  There was no soft drinks available and there was no request for special meals/sandwiches.  Once the inflight service finished, most people went to watch something on the TV screens.  There were a variety of movies and TV shows and it was a decent selection; I am not sure the selection would cover their longer flights to London or Frankfurt.  We started the descent into Almaty, deplaned, and made our way over to the international section.

There are two sections at Almaty airport - one for domestic flights and one for international flights andit seems there are not many connecting passengers as staff and workers were somewhat confused when we would ask for directions or how to transfer; there were no real signs or markers.  Once we got to the international side, we were 3hrs early for our departure and the airport looked deserted and the staff unhappy that we arrived 'early'.  Since we already had our boarding pass, and looked like transits, we were allowed to proceed through immigration and security and wait for the connecting flight.

The connecting flight was also operated by the same type of aircraft with the same layout and features.  The only difference is that given the short flight time a bottle of water was already at each seat, but that was the only service item offered during this flight.  Due to the short flight time, once we reached cruising altitude it was already time for descent and landing into Bishkek.  Overall, it was an interesting experience with Air Astana.  You can tell they are a full service airline and their interior, their attitude, and their overall presence reminded me of Delta.  For Air Astana, their onboard product was nice and they offered more amenities but there was also some hiccups.  The seat pitch was tight and even the domestic sector towards the end felt like a struggle to seat in the seats.  The transfer process was not smooth and definitely needs some work.  Finally, there should be an option to provide dietary and/or religious restrictions to the complimentary items so that everyone is able to enjoy.

Trip Report: AirArabia, Sharjah to Almaty; Bishkek to Sharjah (September 2024)

 Trip Report: Air Arabia, Sharjah to Almaty; Bishkek to Sharjah
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I wanted to travel from Pakistan to Central Asia on a visit to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.  In looking for options, online searches came back with FlyDubai but there was a really long layover in Dubai which did not seem appealing so I continued to look and that is when I looked into FlyJinnah and AirArabia.  I have reviewed the FlyJinnah portion in a separate review (found here) as for this review I will forcus on the AirArabia portion.  AirArabia is a low-cost carrier based out of Sharjah in the UAE (Sharjah is the Emirate located next to Dubai).  They had a big network covering AirArabia Middle East, AirArabia Marob, and now FlyJinnah covering Pakistan.  Because they are all part of the AirArabia family, you can book multiple sectors and connecting flights on one ticket.  Even though I was flying FlyJinnah + AirArabia, I could and did book my travel on AirArabia's website and selected the flight in which the Pakistan to Sharjah and Sharjah to Pakistan flights were to be operated by FlyJinnah and the Sharjah to Central Asia flights operated by AirArabia.  

 

AirArabia is a low-cost carrier meaning the base ticket includes a personal pack plus a carry-on, everything else needs to be charged for.  I choose to pay for my seats as I prefer certain seats on the plane and I paid for luggage.  The seat costs were not bad and I was able to get an aisle seat near the front of the plane for not a high cost; the luggage charge was also not that high and included a checked bag of 30kg which is a generous portion.  Once I booked my ticket, I could use the same confirmation code on either site to manage my booking.  This review will be a compilation of my two flights on AirArabia - from Sharjan to Central Asia and from Central Asia to Sharjah - as both were operated by the same aircraft and both had a similar experience.  For the check-in experience, I only experienced AirArabia check-in on the outbound.  I arrived at the airport 3-hours in advance to ensure check-in went ok; the process was chaotic with little organization but I received both boarding passes and my luggage was tagged to my final destination.  I had talked about some of the security and other issues that I had experienced on my flights with FlyJinnah, and some of the issues continued with my flight on AirArabia.   

AirArabia's policy is that boarding is supposed to be in groups, starting with the rear of the aircraft.  As was my experience with FlyJinnah, on AirArabia for both sectors this was only mildly adhered to as once the plane got halfway full everyone was allowed to board to ensure an on-time departure.  Both operating aircraft was an Airbus A320 which had a cabin laid in a 3-3 seat layout.  Both flights were not completely full so the chaotic boarding ended, manual safety demonstrations commenced, and we pushed back for an on-time departure.  The seats itself were basic and decent for a low-cost carrier, not padded seats but there was decent amount of legroom.  For both sectors I luckily had the entire row to myself but if there was another passenger next to me, that could be uncomfortable as the seat width was narrow.  For both sectors, the flight time was a bit over 3hours and after the second/third hour you got to feel the uncomfortableness of the seat.  On both sectors, most of the announcements were done by prerecorded statements which were done in Arabic and English.  On both sectors, the attendants seemed not interested nor caring in neither their job.  For my low-cost carriers, paying for a seat is big business so many are strict as to ensure passengers do not sit in a sit they did not pay for; this was not the case with AirArabia.  On both sectors, many passengers who had not paid for seats and thus were allocated seats in the back moved up in the middle of the flight to the front of the plane where seat selection came at a costs.  

As detailed earlier, AirArabia is a low-cost company which means there is no inflight complimentary service.  You can preorder meals and drinks, and certain upgraded tickets come with meals, but generally everything is buy on-board.  As soon as we reached cruising altitude, the FA's came down the aisle for you to purchase snacks or drinks.  My first flight departed at 9pm so coming by within the first hour of the flight made sense; the return flight left at 3am so most of the passengers were sleeping.  Instead of waiting until the end to conduct the service, thus ensuring more revenue, the FA's came around at the beginning when most passengers were sleeping.  Also, service was only conducted once and within the first hour even though both sectors were 3hr+; other low cost carriers would've come back towards the end of the flight to increase revenue and purchase of items.  Despite it being a low-cost airline, complimentary entertainment was provided through streaming to your device.  Once you connected to the internet, you can stream movies, TV shows, and other programs for free.  Other airlines also showed a flight map, the inflight menu, or other items when you are connected to the entertainment but AirArabia only had the entertainment. 

Overall, how was my experience on AirArabia?  Similar to FlyJinnah, it was not very good.  Positives were that you are able to book multi-country journeys on one ticket and there was no issue with that.  Another positive was the consistent product with similar planes, similar seats, and similar service.  Last positive was that complimentary entertainment was provided which is a nice gesture for a low-cost carrier.  Negatives were the lack of support/padding on the seats, the lack of attention from the FA's, and generally the chaotic boarding and nature of how the airline operated.  Did we depart ontime, yes; did I and my baggage make it to my destination, yes.  Was it comfortable, definitely not.  For this route, I had a choice between AirArabia or FlyDubai; AirArabia was less expensive and had less overflight time but if I had to choose again, I would probably choose FlyDubai as they seem less chaotic and better overall product.

Trip Report: SCAT Airlines, Almaty to Astana (September 2024)

 Trip Report: SCAT Airlines, Almaty to Astana
comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

I was traveling domestically in Kazakhstan and needed to fly from Almaty to Astana.  There are generally three airlines to choose from when flying Kazakhstan - AirAstana, FlyArstan, and SCAT Airlines.  AirAstana is the more well-off and defined airline of Kazakhstan, with FlyArstan being their LCC arm.  SCAT Airlines has less of a defined reputation and is generally known for poor service, poor planes, poor on-time departures, and generally not as put together.  I was going to fly AirAstana from Astana to Bishkek via Almaty (check out the review here), and FlyArstan did not operate a flight on the day I wanted to travel so I decided to book a flight with SCAT Airlines.                                                                                                            SCAT Airlines is an airline which operates domestic as well as regional flights from Kazakhstan, but their operations and flight timings are limited meaning they may only operate one or two times a day or week for that sector.  For the sector and date I was flying, there was either a morning flight or an evening flight between Almaty and Astana so I decided to book the evening flight.  I booked my flight directly through the SCAT website for a couple of reasons: 1) I wanted to ensure the flight option I selected came with a checked bag, and 2) sometimes when I have booked on third-party sites the ticket does not always translate and that can be an issue especially if there are cancellations and/or delays.

The flight that I booked was scheduled to depart Almaty at 5:25pm and arrive Astana at 7:05pm with a scheduled flight time of 1hr40min.  The ticket that I booked came with a 23kg checked baggage allowance, 10kg hand luggage allowance as well as seat selection.  The operating aircraft was scheduled to be a Boeing 737 with a 3-3 seat configuration.  24hrs prior to the flight I was able to check-in online and receive a mobile boarding pass, and I went to the airport well in advance to check in my luggage and to confirm the flight was going to be operating that day (I had heard of SCAT canceling a lot of flights).  There were a lot of people at the check-in desk and it was very chaotic but everything was checked in and I went to security and the gate.  Even though the gate was assigned, we were not allowed to go near the gate until the flight was ready for boarding; so it was a lot of waiting in cramped and uncomfortable seating until the boarding time.  Once the boarding announcement was made, it was a 'come one, come all' boarding with no clear instructions nor order.

The operating aircraft was a Boeing 737 with a 3-3 seat configuration.  The plane looked like an outdated Southwest plane and there had been little to no updates to the plane.  The seats were changed but they were not updated and the seats were old, uncomfortable, offered little to no legroom, and some were broken so the back had some recline while others it was hard to recline.  Scheduled departure time was 5:25pm and to my surprise the aircraft was boarded and we pushed back on time; I say to my surprise because literally every other SCAT flight that day from Almaty was delayed by a minimum of 3-4 hours.  Manual safety demonstrations were done and then we taxied and took off for Astana.

Once airborne, the inflight service commenced.  SCAT is a low-cost airline which includes buy-onboard so first the flight attendants came through offering items for purchases.  Once that was concluded, they came back and offered complimentary bottles of water; it was a nice touch and that was the only thing complimentary offered.  After that, it was up to the passenger to bide the time as there was no wifi nor no inflight entertainment.  Many passengers reclined their seat to nap, but since the legroom was already tight having them reclined basically put the front passenger in the rear passengers lap.  Flight time was 1hr and 25min and after a bit we started our descent into Astana and concluded the journey.                                                                                                                        Overall, it was an interesting experience with SCAT.  I am glad the flight took off and landed on time and they got me and my luggage safely to Astana.  Was it the best airport or onboard experience I have had, definitely not and I can see where the criticisms come from.  Also, have experienced Air Astana on the return and seeing what a difference both on the ground and in the air they can be; I can see more of the criticism and difference.  However, there sometimes can be a significant price difference so if you know what you are getting into then you can deal with it for a short domestic flight.  I would definitely not recommend it for anything international nor longer flights though.  

Stay Report: Holiday Inn Express Almaty, an IHG Hotel (Almaty, Kazakhstan - September 2024

Stay Report: Holiday Inn Express Almaty
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I was traveling to Almaty and was looking for a decent but inexpensive place to stay.  I also was arriving early in the morning so needed to book an extra day to ensure the room was available, so keeping all this in mind I found the Holiday Inn Express Almaty.  I generally do not stay in Holiday Inn Express in the States because their quality is generally an issue, but overseas their quality seems to be better and I recently stayed at one in Warsaw which was very nice (review here).  I was able to book the reservation through the IHG website and was able to manage the reservation through the app.  I was able to communicate with the hotel via email, but the communication was a challenge and I will expand on that a bit later.

I arrived early in the morning so I wanted to prebook a car pickup but unfortunately due tocommunication issues this was not possible.  Communication continued to be a challenge at check-in and throughout my stay with the front desk as English was not their language of communication.  The hotel itself is located on the outskirts of the city, approximately 45mins away from the airport, but within walking distance to many sights and shops including about a 5-7mins walk to the Forum and a 20min walk to Kok Tobe.  From the outside, the hotel is a very tall building and looks like a converted Soviet-esque building that was remodeled into the Holiday Inn Express.  Inside, the hotel looks recently updated and newish.  As you enter the building, straight ahead are the check-in desks and a small waiting area.  The elevators are the to left and as walk through you pass more seating area, the bar area, the 'business center' and next to the elevators is the dining area where the breakfast is served.  Due to the communication issue, check-in took some time but I finally got my key and went to the room.

As I opened the door, the room looked updated and resembled the modern layout of the HI Express room.  As you entered the room, on the left was the entrance to the bathroom and straight ahead was the main room.  The bathroom was a bit tiny and was more along the European size of the bathroom and contained a toilet, a sink, and a shower.  The sink had Dove hand wash and Dove products were also in the shower.  The bathroom was decent but tiny and compact.  The room itself though was not compact and had enough room to maneuver around and for the luggage.  Just next to the door to the bathroom was an open closet and next to the that was a luggage stand with a safe underneath.  There was a small nook across from the closet on the other side of the room that contained the iron and ironing board.  Further into the room, along the left side of the wall was a table/desk plus chair and the along the wall was the bed with a nightstand on either side.  The bed was a decent size and comfortable enough for a good nights sleep.  The table/desk was small but big enough to get some work done and there were charging ports and plugs near the desk which were convenient.  Across from the bed, along the other side of the wall, was a TV mounted on the wall and underneath was a stand for additional storage, the coffee maker, and complimentary bottles of water.  The complimentary bottles of water was a nice touch and each day the bottles were replenished.  Overall it was a decent if not compact room; the bed was comfortable and provided a good nights sleep and there were enough charging ports that were easily accessible.

Holiday Inn Express hotels are not full service hotels but they do provide some amenities.  This hotelincluded complimentary wifi, complimentary breakfast, a business center which contained two computers in the lobby, plenty of seating area in the lobby, and a bar area.  The wifi was decent and you could connect as many devices as you wanted.  The breakfast was complimentary and included complimentary tea and coffee, but the selection was a bit limited and not as plentiful or varied as the one in Warsaw.

Overall, it was an average and comfortable stay at the Holiday Inn Express.  The room was a decent size and provided a good nights sleep; the wifi was decent and could connect many devices; and the hotel was within walking distance to sights and shops.  Negatives included limited variation for the breakfast and communication issues with the front desk.