Socialisation Opportunities for Expats in Almaty, Kazakhstan

Socialisation for foreigners and expats in Almaty.

When arriving in Almaty, Kazakhstan on assignment, you might not know much about living and working here let alone know other people that you could socialise with. I believe that socialisation is truly important for increasing expatriate adjustment. If you are lucky your co-workers both foreign and local will take you under their wing and show you around to meet other like-minded individuals. However, many expats come here not having any idea on how to meet new people and find little support from the work environment.

The socialisation opportunities in Almaty can be rather slim compared to other countries; however, there are more and more get-togethers being established to fill this need. So, excluding co-worker socialisation there are also other ways of meeting other expats and locals.  

A great club for expat-partners or spouse is the International Women’s club of Almaty (AIWC). An annual fee is required to be a member. Meetings are every Wednesday and it provides great opportunities to join activity groups and charity events for spouse and family. This club is not exclusive to expat wives only, as more and more men are accompanying their female spouses on assignments and are also welcome at the club. http://www.almatyclub.org

Inter Nation event is held once a month and is more focused on getting foreign and English speaking locals working in Almaty together and networking. Meetings are once a month and you need to be a member, just sign up online http://www.internations.org

“Friday Almaty” is a group that is on Facebook, with the goal of  “after-work-drink-mingle for professionals”.  Every Friday might be at a new event so check out their Facebook page for more information https://www.facebook.com/fryday.almaty/info

My favour Facebook page is called “Whats on Almaty”. It is a great place to pose various questions about finding about things in Almaty and other fun things to do in Almaty. The sister page “Market place Almaty and Astana” is for advertising things for sale, jobs and other specials also for the region.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/214618305398/ and https://www.facebook.com/MarketplaceALMATY?fref=ts

I hope this has provided you with some useful information. I wish you all the best with your adjustment in Almaty and Kazakhstan and please leave comments and questions below.