Please read and post reports on the Chernayevka/Gisht-Kuprik/Zhibek-Joly border crossing between Shymkent (Kazakhstan) and Tashkent (Uzbekistan) below.
We summarize all info on the Kazakhstan border crossings and Uzbekistan border crossings pages.
Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing Q&A
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Before asking a border crossing question, make sure you have read the relevant article about the country. Overview page: http://caravanistan.com/border-crossings/
Before submitting a crossing report or question, have a look first to see if a topic already exists. Existing forum topics are linked to from the border crossing pages on the site.
Thank you!
Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing Q&A
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trevor warman
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Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing Q&A
Tashkent to Shymkent via Chernyaevka border crossing..
from TSUM department store, green bus #97 1000 UZSom to near Yunusobod Bazaar.. then mini marshrutka to the border,walk the last 400m. Other options possible too.
On entering immigration hall, fill in another immigration form, like you already have, ticking box for departure and list the cash you are leaving with. This MUST be less than what you entered Uzbekistan with. No problems here.
Proceed to Immigration booth. No problems encountered, not even with the hotel registration slips, we were missing 2 nights. Infact, they did not even ask for any registargion slips.
Walk to Kazakhstan, fill in the small immigration card. Registration not done here. You must register with OVIR within 5 days. Almaty best place for that. but the 2 stamps we asked for, counted as registartion after visiting OVIR for confirmation.
Marshrutkas available to Shymkent. 400Tenge.
On the Uzbek side, can change Som to Dollars or Tenge and also Dollars to Tenge
On Kazakh side, Dollars to Tenge.
June 21. 2015. British and Korean travellers. Absolute no problems at all.
from TSUM department store, green bus #97 1000 UZSom to near Yunusobod Bazaar.. then mini marshrutka to the border,walk the last 400m. Other options possible too.
On entering immigration hall, fill in another immigration form, like you already have, ticking box for departure and list the cash you are leaving with. This MUST be less than what you entered Uzbekistan with. No problems here.
Proceed to Immigration booth. No problems encountered, not even with the hotel registration slips, we were missing 2 nights. Infact, they did not even ask for any registargion slips.
Walk to Kazakhstan, fill in the small immigration card. Registration not done here. You must register with OVIR within 5 days. Almaty best place for that. but the 2 stamps we asked for, counted as registartion after visiting OVIR for confirmation.
Marshrutkas available to Shymkent. 400Tenge.
On the Uzbek side, can change Som to Dollars or Tenge and also Dollars to Tenge
On Kazakh side, Dollars to Tenge.
June 21. 2015. British and Korean travellers. Absolute no problems at all.
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
Nice!! Can confirm, crossed here in May, also had an uncrowded, easy-going crossing.
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Chernaevka border crossing
We crossed from Shymkent - Tashkent at Chernaevka.
1. Shymkent - Chernaevka.
When trains arrive there are plenty of taxi drivers looking for Chernaevka. You can either go with them or go to the Staryi Avtovoksal which is very close to the train station (a taxi should not cost more than 200 tenge - maybe 300 depending on language skills). From there you can get a marshrutka to Chernaevka, for 400-500 tenge.
2. Border crossing
Lots of passport checks and bad queuing
but the guards were not unfriendly. They even helped with filling in the declaration form. After the declaration form they formed two queues, one for men and one for women (not sure why, as there is no separation afterwards). Some elderly ladies and people with babies managed to skip the queue. When the guard realized we were tourists, he asked us to come forward, checked our passports and let us skip the queue (presumably so we wouldn't have a bad experience?) to the official passport checks. Then a separate customs control, where they scanned the bags but didn't ask us to open anything, and no further hassle. It took us about 2 hours to cross or so in all.
3. Border - Tashkent
We met another traveller and since we didn't have any uzbek soms, we managed to get a taxi from the border to Gulnara B+B (highly recommended) for 2000 tenge (about 27000 soms).
4. Money changers
There are many money changers on the Kazakh side, and a few afterwards, but we weren't sure of the current rate. We asked at the hostel, and it seems the current rate is about 4400 som to the dollar.
Simone
1. Shymkent - Chernaevka.
When trains arrive there are plenty of taxi drivers looking for Chernaevka. You can either go with them or go to the Staryi Avtovoksal which is very close to the train station (a taxi should not cost more than 200 tenge - maybe 300 depending on language skills). From there you can get a marshrutka to Chernaevka, for 400-500 tenge.
2. Border crossing
Lots of passport checks and bad queuing
but the guards were not unfriendly. They even helped with filling in the declaration form. After the declaration form they formed two queues, one for men and one for women (not sure why, as there is no separation afterwards). Some elderly ladies and people with babies managed to skip the queue. When the guard realized we were tourists, he asked us to come forward, checked our passports and let us skip the queue (presumably so we wouldn't have a bad experience?) to the official passport checks. Then a separate customs control, where they scanned the bags but didn't ask us to open anything, and no further hassle. It took us about 2 hours to cross or so in all. 3. Border - Tashkent
We met another traveller and since we didn't have any uzbek soms, we managed to get a taxi from the border to Gulnara B+B (highly recommended) for 2000 tenge (about 27000 soms).
4. Money changers
There are many money changers on the Kazakh side, and a few afterwards, but we weren't sure of the current rate. We asked at the hostel, and it seems the current rate is about 4400 som to the dollar.
Simone
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
Crossed Shymkent - Tashkent at Chernaevka as well around 2pm on a Tuesday. No lines whatsoever.
Some things to note: We took the shared taxi (600 som) from Kolos (??) instead of the train station to the border on the Kazakh side.
We didn't find any English copies of the customs declaration on the border, just Russian. Since I was traveling with a Kazakh, it wasn't a problem, but it could potentially be for some. Outside the border on the Kazakh side, with money changers (definitely don't settle for the first one, we saw the rate improve over 20% by the time we got to the third place we asked) there are people offering you customs declaration forms, presumably against a fee. We ignored them, though now I'm guessing they help you fill them out if you don't speak Russian? Don't seem worth it to me as you can just ask the Uzbek officials/other tourists for help or an English form.
On the Tashkent side, we paid 30000 som for a taxi to Gulnara. I think we got ripped off, we were too tired to bargain properly.
Rate was 4500 as of this week.
Some things to note: We took the shared taxi (600 som) from Kolos (??) instead of the train station to the border on the Kazakh side.
We didn't find any English copies of the customs declaration on the border, just Russian. Since I was traveling with a Kazakh, it wasn't a problem, but it could potentially be for some. Outside the border on the Kazakh side, with money changers (definitely don't settle for the first one, we saw the rate improve over 20% by the time we got to the third place we asked) there are people offering you customs declaration forms, presumably against a fee. We ignored them, though now I'm guessing they help you fill them out if you don't speak Russian? Don't seem worth it to me as you can just ask the Uzbek officials/other tourists for help or an English form.
On the Tashkent side, we paid 30000 som for a taxi to Gulnara. I think we got ripped off, we were too tired to bargain properly.
Rate was 4500 as of this week.
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
We were turned around on the Uzbekistan side at the Chernayevka/Gisht-Kuprik crossing yesterday - the guard was helpful despite our basic Russian and we managed to understand that we couldn't get over in our own car and should go to Yalama. Managed to make the 100km trip back past Tashkent on the tank we had left, and filled up once back in Kazakhstan, land of cheap and plentiful diesel!
We noticed a sentence in LP Central Asia afterwards which says that this crossing is not open to private vehicles - so the diversion was clearly down to our overly-relaxed research into this border, rather than a new rule.
Think it is worth mentioning that Chernayevka is only for foot traffic/public transport on the border page.
Also, on the border page it is mentioned that your own vehicle is required to cross at Yalama, where we ended up. This doesn't seem to be the case anymore - we saw plenty of foot traffic there yesterday passing much quicker than us in the car!
We noticed a sentence in LP Central Asia afterwards which says that this crossing is not open to private vehicles - so the diversion was clearly down to our overly-relaxed research into this border, rather than a new rule.
Think it is worth mentioning that Chernayevka is only for foot traffic/public transport on the border page.
Also, on the border page it is mentioned that your own vehicle is required to cross at Yalama, where we ended up. This doesn't seem to be the case anymore - we saw plenty of foot traffic there yesterday passing much quicker than us in the car!
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
Did not know that! Will add it immediately!ExitMusic wrote:We were turned around on the Uzbekistan side at the Chernayevka/Gisht-Kuprik crossing yesterday - the guard was helpful despite our basic Russian and we managed to understand that we couldn't get over in our own car and should go to Yalama. Managed to make the 100km trip back past Tashkent on the tank we had left, and filled up once back in Kazakhstan, land of cheap and plentiful diesel!
We noticed a sentence in LP Central Asia afterwards which says that this crossing is not open to private vehicles - so the diversion was clearly down to our overly-relaxed research into this border, rather than a new rule.
By this I meant that there is no way to get there by public transport, but maybe this is no longer true either. How do you think those people got there? By bus or by shared taxi?ExitMusic wrote: Also, on the border page it is mentioned that your own vehicle is required to cross at Yalama, where we ended up. This doesn't seem to be the case anymore - we saw plenty of foot traffic there yesterday passing much quicker than us in the car!
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
Ah yes, makes sense. The main Tashkent - Shymkent crossing is unquestionably more convenient than the diversion to Yallama too.
In terms of options for Yallama though, saw shared taxis on the road to the border area, didn't notice buses. Almost certain we saw buses near Chinaz though - at a guess the simplest route there might be to get to Chinaz and jump in a car to Yallama. There were shared taxis waiting on the Kazakhstan side for locals.
In terms of options for Yallama though, saw shared taxis on the road to the border area, didn't notice buses. Almost certain we saw buses near Chinaz though - at a guess the simplest route there might be to get to Chinaz and jump in a car to Yallama. There were shared taxis waiting on the Kazakhstan side for locals.
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
We went from Tashkent centre (Hotel Uzbekistan) to Shymkent as of March 2016.
A taxi from Hotel Uzbekistan costs 20,000 som and takes about 20 minutes. The border crossing was quick; about 45 minutes, and we had no problems. The border guards try and ask questions, but a confused look on your face, and they let you straight through. Women and old people are allowed to push the queue.
From the border at Shymkent you can get a marshutka to Shymkent for 500-700 tenge, and it takes 2 hours. A private taxi in a nice car costs $10, and takes an hour and a half.
Once again, no problems; just some sketchy driving on the wrong side of the road!
A taxi from Hotel Uzbekistan costs 20,000 som and takes about 20 minutes. The border crossing was quick; about 45 minutes, and we had no problems. The border guards try and ask questions, but a confused look on your face, and they let you straight through. Women and old people are allowed to push the queue.
From the border at Shymkent you can get a marshutka to Shymkent for 500-700 tenge, and it takes 2 hours. A private taxi in a nice car costs $10, and takes an hour and a half.
Once again, no problems; just some sketchy driving on the wrong side of the road!
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Re: Tashkent to Shymkent border crossing
Do they X-ray scan your luggage in the border? I'm thinking of taking some rolls of film but I'm a bit nervous about the x-rays and about this part in the Caravanistan guide:
Don’t have pictures that could be deemed controversial on your camera, mobile phone, usb stick, memory card or laptop. Government buildings, bearded guys, military stuff, naked girls ... go through your medicine box pill by pill and look up the names online, or ask questions about every Uzbek on your picture
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