History of the Formation and Development of the City

History of the formation of Petropavlovsk goes back to the middle of XVIII: at that time there was active colonization of the Kazakh Khanate of the Russian Empire, went the accession of territories of present Kazakhstan to Russia, as well as the construction of military fortifications to protect the Russian Empire from the raids of various nomadic peoples.

In order to protect and strengthen the southern borders of the Russian Empire began construction of Ishim's line of military fortifications. One of these fortresses, located in the tract Kyzyl-Zhar, was a military fortress of St. Peter. Soon the future Petropavlovsk transformed from a military fortress into one of the major centers of trade: prominent merchants from Russia and Central Asia came here, the fortress expanded and was settled by settlers and the local population. In 1807 the fortress acquired the out-of-town status, which was named Petropavlovsk.

During the Great Patriotic War, many heavy engineering enterprises were evacuated to Petropavlovsk, including the Kirov, Lenin, and Kuibyshev plants.

The city of Petropavlovsk became the regional center of the North Kazakhstan region in 1936 (during the KazSSR) and in 1991 (with the independence of Kazakhstan).

Moscow — Petropavlovsk: how to get there

The two cities are separated by 2,100 kilometers (1304 mi). There are three ways to get from Moscow to Petropavlovsk:
1.  By train without changing trains from Kazansky station. Travel time is 38 hours.
2.  By car. The approximate travel time is 32 hours.
3.  By plane, with a minimum of one connection from Sheremetyevo or Vnukovo airports. The fastest flight with a connection in Nur-Sultan (Astana) takes 10 hours 40 minutes. Despite the presence of an airport in Petropavlovsk, there are no direct connections between Moscow and Petropavlovsk airports.

Practical Information for Tourists

Climate

The climate in Petropavlovsk is sharply continental. Like other northern cities of Kazakhstan, it is characterized by frosty and long winters (5-5.5 months). The so-called “rainy season” here is August-September, spring is characterized by numerous sunny days and dry weather. Summers are quite hot, with an alternating number of clear and rainy days.

Transportation

Petropavlovsk has a railway station and an airport to accommodate foreign and domestic passengers.

Petropavlovsk Railway Station is located on the Trans-Siberian Railway, which is the longest railroad in the world (~ 10000 km/~6214 mi), which is why many national and international railroads pass through Petropavlovsk.

Petropavlovsk International Airport is 11 kilometers from the city and serves flights to the cities of Kazakhstan: Almaty, Nur-Sultan (Astana), and Shymkent. There are seasonal flights to Moscow and charter flights to Sharm el-Sheikh.

Public transport in the city runs regularly, throughout Petropavlovsk. To travel on buses in the city you need to buy a transport card AlemPay. The AlemPay card costs 290 tenge (50₽ or $0.70) and is sold at various merchants in the city. For convenience, you can download the AlemPay app on Google Play or AppStore and use it to recharge the card, track the balance, etc. The fare on public transport in the city with AlemPay transport card will cost 80 tenge (13.5₽ or $0.18), you can also pay cash, but then the price will be higher, 150 tenge (25.5₽ or $0.35).

Taxi

Within the city, you can also travel freely by cab. You can call for a cab by phone or by using a special app for your mobile device.

The following cab services are available to call by phone:

Imperial Taxi - tel.: +7 7152 502 205, +7 7152 502 206, +7 777 5 502 205, +7 701 2 502 205, +7 (708) 4 502 502,

Cab “Troichka” - tel.: +7 7152 33 33 33, +7 778 503 33 33,

Cab “Pyaterochka” - tel.: +7 7152 500 500, +7 7152 505 505, +7 777 750 55 00

For those who like to use taxi-calling applications, there is an opportunity to install mobile applications Yandex.taxi, InDriver, taxi Maxim. All applications are available for download in Google Play and AppStore.