7-Day Silk Road Tour in Uzbekistan

Culture

31%

Nature

8%

History

28%

Relax

10%

Party

2%

Adventure

4%

Food

13%

Wellness

4%

Arrival in Tashkent in the morning. After completing customs formalities, meet the driver and transfer to the hotel. Accommodation in the reserved rooms with early check-in.

Breakfast at the hotel and free time until 11:00 a.m. to rest after the long journey. At 11:00 a.m., meet the driver and guide at the hotel and begin the Tashkent city tour, discovering the capital of Uzbekistan.

The visit will start in the Old City, with the Khast-Imam Complex, where the renowned Quran of Caliph Uthman is preserved. Inside the complex, you will visit the Barak-Khan Madrasa, the Tilla-Sheikh Mosque and the Mausoleum of Kaffal Shashi.

Lunch at a restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit the colourful Chorsu Bazaar and the Kukeldash Madrasa, a remarkable 16th-century Quranic school whose square fills with worshippers every Friday for the weekly prayer. The tour will continue through central Tashkent with visits to Amir Temur Square, Independence Square, the Museum of Applied Arts and the State Museum of the Temurids.

The programme also includes a visit to several Tashkent Metro stations, each distinguished by impressive architecture, works of art and a unique design: a genuine underground museum.

Dinner at a restaurant.

Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Included meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Culture

30%

Nature

4%

History

28%

Relax

7%

Party

1%

Adventure

12%

Food

11%

Wellness

7%

Breakfast box. Two hours before departure, meet the driver and guide in the hotel lobby and transfer to Tashkent Domestic Airport. Departure by air for Urgench at 07:00, with scheduled arrival at 08:30. Meet the driver and transfer to the hotel in Khiva (30 km, approximately 35 minutes).

After leaving your luggage at the hotel, with check-in available from 14:00, begin the visit of Khiva and Ichan-Kala Fortress, an open-air historical and archaeological museum and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Enclosed by defensive walls, it covers 26 hectares and preserves approximately 60 historic buildings that evoke the atmosphere of an ancient Eastern city.

The itinerary includes Kuhna Ark, a fortified citadel adjoining the western ramparts; the Mukhammad Rahimkhan Madrasa (1876), dedicated to an important member of the Kungrat dynasty, which ruled Khiva from 1770; and the Mukhammad Aminkhan Madrasa (1851-1854), the largest madrasa in Khiva and Central Asia, with 125 cells designed to accommodate 260 students.

The visit continues with the Kalta-Minor Minaret (1855), the symbol of Khiva, standing 29 metres high and distinguished by the glazed tiles covering its unfinished structure, and the Juma Mosque, dating from the late 18th century, whose vast 55 × 46-metre hall is supported by 215 wooden columns and has no portals, domes or courtyards.

Lunch at a restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit the Tash-Khovli Palace (19th century), the summer residence of the khans and a refined expression of the region’s architecture and decorative art. Continue to the Mausoleum of Pakhlavan Makhmud (1701), recognisable by Khiva’s only blue dome and dedicated to the celebrated 14th-century poet and warrior: a place of prayer and reflection where visitors may drink holy water.

The final stop is the Islam-Khoja Minaret (20th century), the tallest minaret in Uzbekistan, standing 56 metres high and measuring 9.5 metres in diameter at its base. At the end of the tour, free time to stroll through Ichan-Kala Fortress and enjoy some shopping.

Dinner at a restaurant. Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Culture

22%

Nature

21%

History

24%

Relax

12%

Party

1%

Adventure

10%

Food

7%

Wellness

3%

At 09:00, meet the driver and guide at the hotel and depart for Bukhara. The journey follows the ancient route of the Great Silk Road, which once connected Khiva and Bukhara across the Kyzylkum Desert. Stops are planned along the way to admire the desert landscape, the Amu Darya River and for lunch.

Lunch at a restaurant.

Arrival in Bukhara at approximately 16:00, followed by a visit to Sitorai Mohi-Khosa, the summer residence of the last Emir of Bukhara and a unique complex distinguished by its fascinating combination of Eastern and Russian architecture.

Hotel check-in.

Dinner at a restaurant.

Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Culture

34%

Nature

3%

History

33%

Relax

8%

Party

1%

Adventure

6%

Food

10%

Wellness

5%

Breakfast at the hotel.

At 09:00, meet the driver and guide at the hotel and begin the tour to discover Old Bukhara.

The visit starts at the Faysulla Khojayev House Museum, a traditional residence that once belonged to the family of the renowned Uzbek statesman, whose father was a wealthy 19th-century merchant. Continue to the Labi Hauz Complex (16th-17th centuries), developed around one of the city’s ancient pools and comprising the Kukeldash Madrasa (1568-1569), the Nodir Divan-begi Khanaka (1619-1620) and the Nodir Divan-begi Madrasa, originally built as a caravanserai.

The itinerary continues with the Magoki-Attori Mosque (12th century), built on a place of worship with pre-Islamic origins, and the Ulugbek Madrasa (1417), the oldest of the three Quranic schools commissioned by the ruler and astronomer. Opposite stands the Abdulazizkhan Madrasa (1651-1652), renowned for its lavish decoration and courtyard with four iwans, surrounded by students’ cells and domed rooms.

Walking through the historic centre, you will pass beneath the ancient trading domes: Toki Sarrafon, once used by money changers; Telpak Furushon, initially dedicated to books and later to headwear; Tim Abdullakhan, associated with the trade of carpets and fabrics; and Toki Zargaron, the traditional jewellery market.

The visit then reaches the Poi Kalon Complex, dominated by the Kalon Minaret (1127), the symbol of Bukhara and once used to call worshippers to prayer. The complex also includes the Kalon Mosque (15th century), a Friday mosque with a spacious courtyard and maksura hall, and the Miri-Arab Madrasa (16th century), a refined example of the city’s religious architecture.

Lunch at a restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit the Ark Fortress, the ancient citadel and residence of the khans, as well as a symbol of Bukhara’s political power. Continue to the Bolo-Khauz Mosque (1712), overlooking the historic Registan Square and comprising a water basin, a Friday mosque and a minaret.

The itinerary also includes the Chashma-Ayub Mausoleum (12th-16th centuries), known as the “Spring of Saint Job” and connected to the legend of the prophet who caused water to spring from the desert, and the Ismail Samani Mausoleum (9th century), built as a dynastic tomb and symbolically associated with the passage from earthly life to eternity.

The final stop is the Chor-Minor Madrasa (1807), distinguished by its four differently decorated towers, traditionally interpreted as a symbol of the encounter between cultures and religions.

Dinner at a restaurant. Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Culture

25%

Nature

18%

History

5%

Relax

12%

Party

1%

Adventure

10%

Food

20%

Wellness

9%

Breakfast at the hotel.

At 09:00, meet the driver and guide and depart for Samarkand, travelling through the village of Mitan, where you will enjoy an authentic experience in close contact with Uzbek culture and daily life.

Mitan, winner of the World Responsible Tourism Award “To Do” at ITB Berlin in 2015, will welcome the group into the home of a local family. Lunch at the family home will include traditional welcoming dishes such as bitchak, oven-baked pastries filled with spinach or pumpkin, and plov, prepared with rice, fresh beef, yellow or orange carrots, onions and vegetable oil. Those who wish may take part in preparing the dishes.

Meeting the residents will provide an opportunity to discover the traditions, hospitality and lifestyle of an Uzbek village, sharing everyday moments, customs, joys and challenges. In the afternoon, it will be possible to walk among the houses and through the surrounding countryside, still largely untouched by urban development, while enjoying Mitan’s nature and peaceful atmosphere.

At the end of the experience, departure for Samarkand. Upon arrival, visit a traditional paper mill, where paper is still handmade according to ancient artisan methods that have made this product famous throughout the world.

Transfer to the hotel and check-in.

Dinner at a restaurant. Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Culture

35%

Nature

3%

History

34%

Relax

8%

Party

2%

Adventure

5%

Food

9%

Wellness

4%

Breakfast at the hotel.

At 09:00, meet the driver and guide and begin the tour of Samarkand.

The first stop is the Gur-Emir Mausoleum, the dynastic sanctuary of Tamerlane. The complex originally included a khanaka and the madrasa commissioned by Muhammad Sultan, the grandson of Amir Timur, and later became the burial place of the conqueror and his descendants.

Continue to Registan Square, the monumental heart of the city, whose name means “sandy place”. The square is framed by three renowned Quranic schools: the Ulugbek Madrasa (15th century), the Sher-Dor Madrasa (17th century) and the Tilla-Kori Madrasa (17th century), famous for its refined golden decorations.

Lunch at a restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit the Bibi Khanim Mosque, one of the largest mosques in 15th-century Central Asia, built during the reign of Tamerlane and dedicated to his consort. Continue to Siyab Bazaar, Samarkand’s oldest market, filled with stalls selling local produce, spices, dried fruit and traditional specialities.

The itinerary continues to the Shakhi Zinda Necropolis, an extraordinary complex of eleven mausoleums built between the 14th and 15th centuries and decorated with tiles in intense shades of blue. The burial place of members of royal and noble families, it also contains the mausoleum traditionally attributed to Kusam Ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. The name Shakhi Zinda means “Living King” in Persian.

The final stop is the Ulugbek Observatory, an important testimony to medieval astronomy. Part of the great underground astronomical instrument survives from the original structure. With a radius of approximately 40 metres, it was used to observe and calculate the positions of celestial bodies with remarkable precision.

Dinner at a restaurant. Return to the hotel and overnight stay.

Not to be missed: after dinner, a walk through Registan Square is recommended, when the evening lighting highlights the façades and decorations of its three madrasas.

Breakfast at the hotel or a breakfast box, depending on the departure time.

Three hours before the return flight, meet the driver at the hotel and transfer to Samarkand International Airport.