International Railroad Discussion > Kazakhstan, Part 12. Caspian Sea Ferry: Aktau to Baku

Caspian Sea Ferry

The TransSiberian train has always been known as the standard way to go from Europe to Asia overland.

There have always been other railroads across Europe and Asia, but there have been two gaps -- Turkey to Georgia, and Kazakhstan to China.

The first rail link from KZ to China opened a while ago, maybe 20 years? And another one appears to have opened last summer.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2017xivisitskazakhstan/2017-06/08/content_29675275.htm

The rail gap between Turkey and Georgia is now complete, but they won't run commercial trains on it for at least a few more months.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baku%E2%80%93Tbilisi%E2%80%93Kars_railway
https://www.rferl.org/a/baku-tbilisi-kars-railway-line-officially-launched-azerbaijan-georgia-turkey/28824764.html

But, what this all adds up to is that you will soon be able to go by rail from Istanbul to Baku, Azerbaijan. And you can already go from Aktau,
KZ to Shanghai, China. This just leaves the gap of the Caspian Sea. And, if you like traveling by slow train, you'll probably also enjoy the Caspian Sea ferry.

I added a map at the bottom of this thread.

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My trip on the Caspian Sea ferry

US Citizens can't get a tourist visa to visit Iran, and it's a pain to get a tourist visa for Russia. So the ferry to Azerbaijan is the logical choice for the lazy surface traveler.

Caspian Sea ferries are used mainly for long haul trucks. With a smattering of hitchhikers, bicycle tourists, private car drivers, etc.

Ferries run about twice a week, don't run on a schedule, and are notoriously difficult to get tickets for. In particular, eastbound, there are two different port cities in Azerbaijan (Baku and Alat), and sometimes you need to buy a ticket in one city, then take a taxi 70 kilometers to the other city. (These things I learned from eastbound travelers in KZ)

Going east to west is relatively straightforward. You just go to the ferry office in Aktau (open M-F, business hours) and ask them if there are any ferries. You'll probably get a vague answer. Then go to the ferry office at the port (open 24-7) and get another vague answer. Repeat this once a day or so, and pretty soon you'll be on a ferry. Caravanistan recommended allowing a week for the process, and that's about what it took -- five days of waiting, two days of sailing.
https://caravanistan.com/transport/caspian-sea-ferry/

Caravanistan lists the different ferries in service, and you can follow them on the MarineTraffic app on your phone. So you can see if any are headed to your port even if the ticket offices aren't open.
http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:40.9/centery:34.7/zoom:6

Price was about US $125 if I recall correctly. Shared a 4-bunk stateroom with 3 other travelers. Pasha and ___ from St. Petersburg, and one Kazakh guy. All about age 30. Meals included. Meals were pretty small, usually borscht, rice, meat, veggies and bread.

1) Boarding the ferry

2) Departing the harbor

3) Aktau off the stern on the horizon, headed due south to Baku, Azerbaijan.



Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/20 22:26 by gobbl3gook.

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We were sailing on the Fikret Amirov. Built in 1986, to haul army tanks.
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/423013100
The ship hadn't been modernized much. There were no showers. The toilet was pretty basic. It had a small common room/dining room. But, a major perk was that the entire ship was available to the passengers, including the deck above the bridge, and some upper decks in back. Passenger manifest was about 40 truckers (of many ethnicities -- a microcosm of silk road peoples all in one dining room), about 20 crew, and 4 of us tourists.

I don't like to do too much research before traveling. Instead, I like to be surprised along the way.

I had assumed that Caspian Sea shipping was all ships that were built, lived, and died on the Caspian Sea.

My pals mentioned that the Fikret Amirov, though, was built in the former Yugoslavia. Then, I think one of the crew said it was built in East Germany. This started wheels turning in my head, and I vaguely recalled learning about Soviet shipping canals in high school. It turns out that the Caspian Sea is connected to the rest of the seas of the world via the Volga River and not one, but two ship canals.

a) Volga-Don Canal, connecting the Volga River to the Black Sea via the Don River.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volga%E2%80%93Don_Canal

b) The Volga-Baltic Canal, connecting the Volga near the headwaters to the Baltic Sea via a series of lakes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volga%E2%80%93Baltic_Waterway.
Even though this is maybe 1500 kilometers of river and lake, full size ships can sail it
"The locks' limiting dimensions are 210 m long, 17.6 m wide and 4.2 m deep, allowing passage of river-sea ships of up to 5000 tons displacement."

Anyway, it was pretty interesting to learn about these sorts of things firsthand.

4) Cabin

5) The cabin had 2 portholes that opened. You could stick your head out.

6) The top deck was quite pleasant.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/18 03:26 by gobbl3gook.

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7) Schematic of the ship

8) Detail of world map posted in the ship. How many "stans" do you see?

I see: 7 conventional stans -
a) Pakistan
b) Afghanistan
c) Tajikistan
d) Uzbeistan
e) Turmenistan
f) Kazakhstan
g) Kyrgrystan

And 6 countries that I don't normally see with a "stan" suffix
h) Hindistan (India)
i) Suudi Arabistan
j) Mogolistan (Mongolia)
k) Gurcistan (Georgia)
l) Yunanistan (Greece)
m) Macakistan (Hungary)

9) My pals from St. Petersburg, posing with Fikret Emirov himself, in the dining room. (Emirov was an Azerbaijani composer).

https://www.azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/54_folder/54_articles/54_amirov.html



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 02/03/18 20:51 by gobbl3gook.

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The sailing schedule was something like this:

* Told to report to the port in Aktau: 6:00 pm.
* Sat in port waiting room until 2:00 am, then started going through customs
* 4:00 am, boarded ship, went to sleep.
* 10:00 am, sailed from Aktau
* 10:00 am (25 hours later & 1 time zone) arrived at Baku harbor. Dropped anchor, waiting for the berth to open
* 8:00 pm, weighed anchor, arrived at Baku dock
* 10:00 pm, cleared customs

As you can see from the schedule, it's not the sort of voyage you'd take if you were in a hurry. That's 53 hours

10) While anchored in the harbor my pals got us a tour of the bridge.

11) The ship had a "Suez" function. Thus dispelling any lingering doubts I may have had about Caspian Sea shipping connecting to the other seas of the world.

12) Waiting up top, enjoying twilight in the harbor.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/18 03:29 by gobbl3gook.

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13) Around 7:00 pm they called us all to the dining room for passport control. You can see that the truckers are all pretty bored at this point.

14) On the ground in Azerbaijan.

15) One more ferry photo from mid-crossing.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/18 14:14 by gobbl3gook.

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So, if anyone wants to go from Europe to Asia by train, you'll soon be able to do it through Central Asia if you use the Caspian Sea Ferry.

Like I mentioned above, the Turkey => Georgia => Azerbaijan line will be open in about a year.
* It's pretty easy to get from Europe proper to Istanbul and Ankara by train.
* You'll be able to take an overnight train from Ankara, Turkey through Tbilisi, Georgia to Baku, Azerbaijan.
* Then, across the Caspian Sea by ferry.
* Then a train from Aktau, KZ to Almaty, KZ, then another train to Urumqi, China and on to other destinations in China.

Questions, Comments?

Ted in OR

16) Map of Eurasia, showing the new train/ferry route that will be possible after the Kars => Tbilisi line opens this year or next year.

2) Leaving Aktau harbor



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/18 14:16 by gobbl3gook.

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Thanks for sharing your trip. Interesting as always. I will vicariously visit Baku through your photos.

Thank you so much for alerting me to this option!

Are the difficulties you note in getting a Russian tourist visa specific for people who want to wander around, or do they also apply to people who just want to ride the RR? Basically, I would like to ride the trans-Siberian, with a simple layover to poke around Lake Baikal for a few days. Otherwise, I'll be on board.

This routing you describe here would make a dandy return leg, though!

Great photos and narratives.
Thanks very much for sharing your journey.
ALLEN

Great story, thanks

Green with envy, very.....

march_hare Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you so much for alerting me to this option!
>
> Are the difficulties you note in getting a Russian
> tourist visa specific for people who want to
> wander around, or do they also apply to people who
> just want to ride the RR? Basically, I would like
> to ride the trans-Siberian, with a simple layover
> to poke around Lake Baikal for a few days.
> Otherwise, I'll be on board.
>
> This routing you describe here would make a dandy
> return leg, though!

The best way to get a Russian tourist visa is to use a visa service. I've used TravelAllRussia.com and the application process is easier than trying to do it all yourself.

Yes, a Russian tourist visa isn't all that difficult. But it is a certain amount of hassle.

I planned to do it all summer, and in mid-August I finally buckled down and printed out all the visa application info, and started getting it filled out. They need things like "have you ever been arrested" and "list all the countries you've visited, with dates of visit, in the last ten years."

And, Travisa, the travel agency I was going to go through had all sorts of poorly tallied fees. "Letter of Introduction" $15. FedEx it back to you after we get it, $22. I started adding everything up and it looked like $350 or more just for a Russian visa. So the wheels started turning in my head -- if it's going to set me back $350, I want to spend a month or two in Russia, rather than just a 1 week train ride with some sightseeing along the way.
https://www.travisa.com/san_francisco

(I have heard, though, that if you live near San Francisco it's pretty easy to just walk in to the Russian consulate and hand them your application in person, and not use a travel agency.)

So I chose the easy-visa route instead. KZ => Caspian Sea => Azerbaijan => Georgia => Black Sea (I tried to get a visa to Turkey, but couldn't get one) => Ukraine => Romania => Bulgaria.

Azerbaijan requires a E-Visa, which costs $65 and took 3 hours to figure out online. Every other country I just showed up and they happily stamped my passport and welcomed me.

And my entire transportation, tourist visa and lodging cost, Almaty KZ to Sofia BG was only $1100. That's 9 trains, 2 ferries, 1 tourist visa, and 47 nights lodging. Not that I'd mind paying $350 for a tourist visa to Russia, and I'll probably do it in the next couple years, but this routing was 1) easier on the budget, and 2) a much more interesting adventure.

Edit -- a little more --

Googling, everyone agrees its a hassle to get a Russian visa.

https://thepointsguy.com/2015/07/getting-a-russian-visa/
https://thepointsguy.com/2017/01/russian-visas-more-expensive/

I talked to Travisa on the phone and asked about a multiple entry visa, and they said you needed to know your dates of travel all in advance. Which I had no idea of. But ThePointsGuy seems to think there's some merit in applying for a multiple entry visa...

https://waytorussia.net/RussianVisa/3-Year-Russian-Visa-US-Citizens.html
http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2016/06/20/russian-visa-for-us-citizens/

One question I've never figured out is what the problems are with deviating from your proposed itinerary. I suspect its not a problem at all...

February nights are a great time for googling this kind of info. There must be a Reddit-type forum where people talk through these things, too.

Also, US citizens can now get a 10 year multiple entry China visa. All you need to do, I think, is book a flight to China (choose a fully refundable ticket) & a couple nights in a hostel. The hostel will give you a Letter of Invitation, you send the flight confirmation, hostel LOI and passport and fees to the Chinese consulate, and they'll give you a visa that's good for 10 years. Then cancel the flight. And you're good to go, you can visit China anytime. (I don't like to plan ahead. So I'd like to get a 10 year visa, then I can just make a spontaneous trip to China sometime without needing to fuss with the visa.) Note that I don't know if this actually will work, but I'm pretty sure it will. (I'll research it more before actually doing it, of course).



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/03/18 03:48 by gobbl3gook.