Archive for December 7th, 2009

Kazakhstan Casinos

[ English ]

Landlocked Kazakhstan has lasted as a mystery to the western traveler for ages, unknown from the pages of Marco Polo or Kipling. A couple of outsiders have experienced the appeal of this central Asian country, apart from the vendors who plied the Silk Road. Yet, considering that Kazakhstan obtained its independence in 1991 and notably under the clever and accommodating presidency of Nursultan Nazarbayev, the country has flourished. As the nation flourishes, so do Kazakhstan casinos. Flushed with oil dollars, it’s boom time in the games companies of this previous soviet republic. There are seven cities that have among them legal casino faculties of which there are actually twenty eight such hangouts. Certainly if you are aspiring for a wager, the tables are the only game in town, as Kazakhstan casinos are the only gambling operations allowed there.

Most crucial to the dedicated casino player will have to be the previous capital and of course grandest city in the country, Almaty, that veritable Las Vegas of central Asia, exhibiting not less than 18 casinos and counting. With a soaring nine per cent upsurge every year, the Kazakh economy has extended hugely in the last 10 years and with it the Kazakh appetite for the casino tables. The cosmopolitan, multi-ethnic, multinational city of Almaty is hidden from its preceding status as the chief city of a grey Soviet satellite state. New wealth has brought elegance and also exhilaration to the place, a fact best embodied by the city’s grandest casino, Casino Viva. One of a chain, this fantastic Kazakhstan casino hotel can hold twenty-six games tables and ninety-three slot machine games.

What’s more, the frenzy for Internet poker hasn’t gone unseen in Kazakhstan casinos with the breakthrough of video poker fast becoming a preferred choice. Outside of Almaty, the adventurous gambler is also served; e.g., the capital Astana has five casinos, the key one amongst them being one of the Casino Zodiak chain that maintains not less than 20 card tables. If that is not enough for gamers, casinos are also found further afield in the cities of Aktobe, Kokshetau, Pavlodar, Shimkent, and also Ust-kamenogorsk. It is distinct, regardless, that the Kazakh dedication for the green baize and clink of chips is not stated, seeing as the vice-foreign minister not long ago visited Macao as well as Hong Kong. The visit was considered to be a "short but fruitful" trip created to study the betting industries of these towns and impel favor in Kazakhstan’s nascent casino business. Actually, a plausible direct air link has been established between Almaty and Hong Kong or Macao, which should raise appetite for this once attractive region soon set to become the choice of the cream of society.