Aktau-Baku ferry (across Caspian)

[taborosi]

Has anyone taken this ferry in recent days? I'm hoping to catch it between the 17th and 20th of July and would like to try to calculate when it might be sailing. I heard it runs every 7-10 days. Does anyone have any current info? Thanks!

Danko

[Miquel-Silvestre]

I am right now In Aktau waiting for the ferry. I hope to have some reliable information later, but it seems no one really knows when the ferry is coming and leaving. From every 7 or 10 days they said. I think last one has recently left (I shouldn´t have wasted so long in Nukus with that russian girl...). If you are arriving 17th July, I wish you would not find me here, but anyway, If I am still here we can meet. Probably I will camp on the beach in the way to the port from the city.

[Nath]

There is info knocking around like matey said, but I'll whack the basics here as well.

I went baku-aktau a couple of weeks ago. Cost was 220 USD. Sailing time is around 20hours. If there are storms in the caspian you risk being stuck on board for days (we went nowhere for 3days). Not all the boats have a restaurant. English is not spoken.

BEWARE:
my 220usd fare was broken down to 120 and 100. The 100 part seems to be some kind of port charge at baku. A dutch guy coming from Turkmenistan payed his ferry ticket at the Turkmen end, around 120 also. When he arrived in Aktau they told him he had to pay the 100usd part. He had not been told about this and was understandabely unhappy. After arguing this out for a period of time he ended up paying 70usd, which seemed to be the fee for a moped.

[Miquel-Silvestre]

Last news about the ferry Aktau Baku. I took the last one on 15th July 2009. The cabin cost 100 $ and the bike about 80 to be paid in Baku. When you get the tiket you should go walking around the port trying to get the right guy for the right stamp. You need 4: custom, police, veterinary and fire men. Then, when ferry arrives, passport control, which takes one hour or more, then waiting on the parking for all the goods been taken off the boat, 2 or 3 hours more, then going into the hold and help yourself to tie the bike (better your own straps), then going into the crappy cabin and wait 2 or 3 hours to sail. In the ferry called Merkuri 1 there is restaurant ( 400 tenges, breakfast 400 tengues, main meal, 500 tengues) and one shared shower. Arriving Baku 14 hours later, waiting few hours to enter the port till the others boats leave place for you. I am still here, but there is good network mobilphone from Acerbaijan.

I met a local biker in Aktau (Bandit 1200) who speaks good English and wants to help:
Kiril: +77779115665