I visited this tentative WHS in June 2017. It is a very convenient stop between Shymkent and the Khoja Ahmed Yasawi Mausoleum. Most of the locals skip this site and head straight to the Arstanbab Mausoleum as part of their pilgrimage.

Solivagant's review is a great detailed walkthrough of what you will see when visiting the Otrar archaeological site. I particularly agree with him when he says: "Otrar is more a place to visit for what it once was rather than to see what it is now". As such it is similar to the 'experience' one gets by visiting Turkmenistan's Nissa WHS.

When I visited in June 2017, I was the only soul in the huge archaeological site and I felt as if I had trespassed into an archaeological site where excavations were still underway. There are pieces of broken pottery, tiles and mud bricks scattered everywhere, some partially visible in the mud, exposed after heavy rainfalls. Maybe that is why I felt lucky to be able to visit such a site, as I pictured myself walking on a semi desert mound which could possibly be hiding 'whole structures' like what happened with the Sphinx in Egypt (ok, maybe I had got a sunstroke by the time I finished visiting!).

The top left photo shows the remains of the 13th-15th century bathhouse, the top right photo shows the newly reconstructed Gate of Shakhristan, the bottom left photo shows the foundations of residential buildings, a mosque and possibly some fortresses, while the bottom right photo shows the carved remains and scattered pottery with one broken pot stuck in the mud brick walls.

All in all, the sheer size of it all and the lack of medieval historical sites in Asia could help Kazakhstan for a possible future inscription, however more archaeological work and less reconstruction have to be done.