Bishkek is a classic Soviet-planned city of wide boulevards, marble government buildings and shady parks, sitting at 800 metres on the northern edge of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too mountains. With a population of around one million, it feels spacious and green in summer, though architecturally it won't win any beauty contests.
The city is the main travel hub for Kyrgyzstan and the place where most visitors begin and end their trips. You will likely spend a day or two here arranging onward transport, visiting travel agencies, and stocking up on supplies. Use that time well: Osh Bazaar is a sprawling market worth exploring, the State Historical Museum on Ala-Too Square offers Soviet-era exhibits, and the city's parks — Panfilov, Oak Park, Victory Square — are pleasant for a stroll.
For Soviet history, the perfectly preserved Frunze Museum — built around the cottage where the Bolshevik general was born — is one of the strangest and best museums in Central Asia. The Bishkek Circus, a 1976 concrete flying-saucer, is a piece of late-Soviet architecture worth a passing look. Out of town, the Ata-Beyit memorial marks the mass grave of 137 Kyrgyz killed in Stalin's purges.
Bishkek's dining scene has improved dramatically in recent years, with good Central Asian, Korean, Dungan and European restaurants alongside the standard laghman and plov joints. The cafe culture is surprisingly lively, with modern coffee shops scattered around the centre. Nightlife exists but is modest.
Apart from the city itself, Bishkek is the jumping-off point for Ala-Archa Gorge, an easy day trip into the mountains; the 11th-century Burana Tower on the route to Tokmok; and onward travel to Issyk-Kul, Karakol and the rest of the country.