Green Bazaar Almaty: a market on the same square since the 1860s

The Green Bazaar in Almaty, known in Kazakh as Kök bazar and in Russian as Zelyony bazar, is a public market in the city centre, at the crossroads of Zenkov and Jibek Joly streets. It sells spices, prepared foods, produce, textiles, furniture and antiques, and English Wikipedia describes it as a major tourist attraction in Almaty. It is a short urban stop rather than a day trip, and it works in any season because the main trading floors are under a roof.

Where the Green Bazaar is and what kind of visit it is

The bazaar stands in Medeu district, in the central part of Almaty, at the crossroads of Zenkov and Jibek Joly streets. For a traveller this means a city visit of a few hours, easy to fit between other sights. Kok-Tobe hill is about 4 km away in a straight line, so the two pair naturally in one day.

The complex has two parts. The main building dates from 1975. A newer pavilion opened in 2017 on land that had been container stalls, open counters and, until the early 2000s, the market’s open car park.

The table gives you the two names to show a taxi driver and the street corner to aim for. We could not confirm public transport routes to the market, so travellers without Russian should have the address written down.

What the Green Bazaar sells, and where souvenirs fit in

By Wikipedia, the market sells spices, prepared foods, fresh produce, textiles, furniture and a wide range of other goods, including antiques. For a visitor hunting souvenirs, the spices, textiles and antiques are the likely candidates. We could not confirm whether there is a dedicated souvenir section or how large the antiques trade is today.

Food has always been the core. In the 1940s the bazaar sold live cattle, dairy products and Almaty Aport apples, with fruit and vegetables brought in from nearby collective farms. Whether Aport apples are on sale now, and in which months, we could not confirm.

Since February 2021 the market has also housed “social shops” that sell staple foods at reduced prices: potatoes, carrots, onions, cabbage, sugar, buckwheat, sunflower oil, rice, pasta and flour. These are aimed at residents, and they show that this is a working city market, not a market built for tourists.

If the stalls leave you unsure what to order, our guide to Kazakhstan food explains kazy, kurt and kumis.

Opening hours and closing time: what we could not confirm

Sxodim (16 May 2023) lists Tuesday to Sunday, 08:00–19:00, closed Monday. We could not confirm this with the market itself, and neither Wikipedia article gives hours. The 1975 hall and the 2017 pavilion may also keep different schedules, and stalls inside a market often set their own hours.

If you arrive at closing time you lose the visit, and the market is not something you can see properly from outside. Check current hours shortly before you go.

From caravan yard to a 1975 hall: 150 years on one square

The site has been a trading place far longer than the current building has stood, and it shaped how central Almaty grew. According to Russian Wikipedia, the city grew south-west from the bazaar. The two Wikipedia articles give different starting points. The Russian one dates the trading square to 1868, and the English one counts from 1875, when the first market buildings went up.

In its early years the Gostiny Dvor took in traders from across Central Asia and, by the Wikipedia accounts, even from Japan. It had stone shops, storage sheds, flowing irrigation ditches and fountains built for Muslim merchants’ prayers. During the Second World War it was the only place in the city where goods were still sold for money rather than issued on ration cards, though at very high prices.

The sources describe the 1975 building differently: Russian Wikipedia calls it Soviet constructivism, English Wikipedia calls it brutalism. It was designed with an 800-place main pavilion, a 200-place summer market and parking for 400 cars.

When to go to the Green Bazaar

Any month works, because the main trading floors are covered. The weather matters mostly for the walk there and for pairing the market with outdoor sights. The figures below are computed normals from the ERA5 reanalysis for 2011–2020 at a grid point at 788 m, not readings from a weather station.

Winter is cold: January averages about 0°C by day and -8°C at night, which makes an indoor market a sensible outing. July is the warmest month, at about 29°C by day. April is the wettest, at about 146 mm, with May close behind at about 115 mm. May, September and October have mild days, which makes them good months for combining the bazaar with a walk or a trip to the hills.

Pairing the bazaar with Almaty’s hills and gorges

The bazaar fits easily into a day spent in Almaty itself. Kok-Tobe, about 4 km away in a straight line, adds a view over the city. Medeu is about 15 km away in a straight line, and Big Almaty Lake about 24 km. For more ideas, see nature near Almaty. These are mountain trips that need their own half day or full day, so visit the market on the same day only if you start early.

Within the city, the bazaar pairs with Arbat on Zhibek Zholy and the Central Mosque, which one guide places about three streets to the north.