5/5
Uzbekistan: Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva on the Silk Road
10 days from Tashkent: three nights in Samarkand, two in Bukhara, two inside Khiva's walls, the fast train across the country and a flight back.
10 days · Round trip from Tashkent · up to 12 guests
The Kalta Minor minaret and Itchan Kala, seen from the Kuhna Ark in Khiva Photo: Fabio Achilli from Milano, Italy, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khiva,_Kalta_Minor_Minaret,_Uzbekistan_(6132641582).jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 10 days, 9 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Tashkent
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Activity level
Moderate
Walking days of 5 to 9 km on paving, cobbles and uneven old-town lanes, with short flights of steps at Shah-i-Zinda and an optional steep climb up the Islam Khoja minaret in Khiva. Spring and autumn days can still reach 30 C, so we walk in the morning and late afternoon, and you can sit out any afternoon at the hotel.
- Meals included
- 9 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 2 dinners
- Room of your own
- + CAD 730 (estimated price)
- Season
- April to June and September to October
Highlights
Why this trip
- Shah-i-Zinda at opening, its avenue of tiled tombs quiet before the tour groups
- The Registan at sunset and lit after dark, then its madrasa courtyards at opening the next morning
- Three nights in Samarkand, with the Afrosiab Museum, Ulugbek's Observatory and a paper workshop in Konigil village
- Bukhara's Po-i-Kalyan at golden hour, with the Kalyan Minaret that has stood since 1127
- Across the Kyzylkum to Khiva, and two nights at the walls of Itchan Kala instead of one
- The forest of carved wooden columns in Khiva's Juma Mosque and the city from the Kuhna Ark
- Tashkent's painted metro stations and the old Quran at Khast Imam, with time in both halves of the capital
What makes this trip different
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 730 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Tashkent
Tashkent International Airport to your hotel in Tashkent
- Welcome dinner
- Stay in Tashkent
- Drive about 15 min
Fly into Tashkent International Airport (TAS), only a short drive from the centre of the capital, and a driver meets you in the arrivals hall.
Evening
Plan to land by about 4 pm to reach the evening briefing; the latest arrival time is confirmed with your final itinerary. Tashkent was largely rebuilt after the 1966 earthquake, so its centre is wide Soviet boulevards, fountains and parks rather than an old town of mud brick, and it makes a calm first evening. If you arrive early, walk to Amir Timur Square or along the shady pedestrian street locals call Broadway. In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing on the trip: how the trains work, what to wear at mosques and shrines, and how the days are paced. Then we sit down together to a welcome dinner of salads, bread from the tandoor and grilled shashlik at a local restaurant.
Included
- Pick-up at Tashkent International Airport (TAS)
- Welcome briefing with your guide
- Welcome dinner
Free time: Free until the evening briefing
Old Tashkent, then the fast train to Samarkand
Tashkent old city to Chorsu Bazaar, then Afrosiyob train to Samarkand
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Samarkand
- Drive about 30 min

We start in the old city at the Khast Imam complex, Tashkent's religious centre, where the library holds the Uthman Quran, a manuscript traditionally dated to the 7th century and one of the oldest surviving copies.
Morning
A few minutes away, Chorsu Bazaar fills a great tiled dome with bread, dried apricots, spices and pickles, and the busiest hour is the morning.
Afternoon
Lunch is plov, the rice, carrot and lamb dish Tashkent cooks in huge cauldrons and eats at midday. Then we board the Afrosiyob high-speed train for Samarkand, 344 km away, about two to two and a half hours in reserved seats. Your bags go with us in our own vehicle to and from the stations. We check in to our hotel near the Registan and walk to Gur-e-Amir, the tomb of Timur, while the late sun warms its ribbed turquoise dome.
Evening
At sunset we reach the Registan, three tiled madrasas around one square, and stay as the lights come on.
Included
- Khast Imam complex and the Uthman Quran with your guide
- Chorsu Bazaar
- Plov lunch in Tashkent
- Afrosiyob high-speed train from Tashkent to Samarkand, reserved seats
- Gur-e-Amir, the tomb of Timur, in late light
- The Registan at sunset and after dark
Free time: Evening free after the Registan
Activity: The train time is set by the timetable and confirmed with your final itinerary. If it leaves early, we shorten the time at Chorsu Bazaar; if it leaves too early for the Khast Imam complex as well, your guide takes those with an afternoon or evening flight there on the morning of day 10.
Shah-i-Zinda at opening and Samarkand before Timur
Samarkand: Shah-i-Zinda, the Afrosiab Museum and Ulugbek's Observatory
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Samarkand
- Drive about 30 min

We are at Shah-i-Zinda when it opens, before the coach groups, and climb the short stairway into an avenue of mausoleums, most from the 14th and 15th centuries, faced in turquoise, cobalt and carved glazed tile. It grew around the shrine believed to hold Qusam ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet, and it is still a place of pilgrimage, so we walk it quietly. Next door rises Afrosiab, the hill where Samarkand stood until the Mongols destroyed it in 1220. Its museum keeps a 7th-century wall painting of ambassadors arriving at a Sogdian court, a glimpse of the city long before Timur. A short drive on, the curved trench of Ulugbek's Observatory survives from the 1420s, when the ruler and astronomer Ulugbek charted more than a thousand stars from it.
Afternoon
Lunch is home cooking with a Samarkand family. The afternoon is free: rest through the heat, or browse the craft shops.
Included
- Shah-i-Zinda at opening with your guide
- The Afrosiab Museum and its 7th-century wall painting
- Ulugbek's Observatory
- Home-cooked lunch with a Samarkand family
Easier option: Take the Shah-i-Zinda stairway at your own pace, then ride in our vehicle between the museum and the observatory, or go back to the hotel after the museum.
More active option: In the free afternoon, walk out to the Tomb of Daniyar by the Siab river below Afrosiab hill, a shrine revered by Muslims, Christians and Jews.
Free time: Afternoon free
Activity: About 3 to 4 hours on foot in the morning, with short flights of steps at Shah-i-Zinda. Covered shoulders and knees, and a scarf for women, at the shrine.
The Registan inside, Bibi-Khanym and paper in Konigil
Samarkand: the Registan, Bibi-Khanym Mosque and Siyob Bazaar, then Konigil village
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Samarkand
- Drive about 45 min

Back at the Registan at opening, we walk into the three madrasas you saw lit two nights ago: Ulugbek's, from the 1420s, then Sher-Dor with its tiger-and-sun portal and Tilya-Kori with its gilded mosque, both from the 17th century. Early in the day the courtyards are quiet and the light is soft on the tiles. From there it is a short walk along a pedestrian street to Bibi-Khanym, the vast Friday mosque Timur built after his Indian campaign of 1398 to 1399, partly rebuilt since an earthquake brought down much of it. Next door, Siyob Bazaar sells Samarkand's round flat bread, nuts, dried fruit and halva.
Afternoon
We then drive about twenty minutes to Konigil, a village on the river where craftspeople still make Samarkand paper from mulberry bark by hand, and you try a sheet yourself before lunch in the village. Back in town by mid-afternoon, the rest of the day is yours.
Included
- The Registan madrasas at opening: Ulugbek, Sher-Dor and Tilya-Kori
- Bibi-Khanym Mosque
- Siyob Bazaar
- Paper-making workshop in Konigil village
- Lunch in Konigil
Optional experiences
- A wine tasting at a Samarkand winery in the late afternoon, priced when you book
Free time: Afternoon and evening free
Activity: About 3 hours on foot on flat paving in the morning.
Fast train to Bukhara and an evening at Lyabi-Hauz
Samarkand to Bukhara by Afrosiyob train, then Bukhara old town
- Breakfast
- Stay in Bukhara
- Drive about 30 min
A slower start, then the Afrosiyob train west to Bukhara, about one and a half to two hours across cotton fields and the edge of the desert. Bukhara's station is in Kagan, about 15 km out, and our vehicle takes us into the old town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993 and lower and quieter than Samarkand, built of fawn brick around ponds and covered markets.
Afternoon
Lunch is free near our hotel. In the afternoon, with the heat easing, your guide walks you through the centre: Lyabi-Hauz, the 17th-century pool under old mulberry trees, with the Nadir Divan-Begi madrasa and its tiled birds; the domed trading halls where jewellers and cap-makers once worked and craftspeople still sell; the sunken Magoki-Attari mosque; and the facing madrasas of Ulugbek and Abdulaziz Khan. We end at Chor Minor, a little gatehouse with four turquoise-capped towers.
Evening
The evening is free: Lyabi-Hauz is where Bukhara comes out to eat.
Included
- Afrosiyob high-speed train from Samarkand to Bukhara, reserved seats
- Lyabi-Hauz and the Nadir Divan-Begi madrasa with your guide
- The trading domes
- Magoki-Attari mosque
- Ulugbek and Abdulaziz Khan madrasas
- Chor Minor
Optional experiences
- A traditional hammam in the old town in the evening, priced when you book
Free time: Lunch and the evening free
Activity: About 2 to 3 hours on foot in the afternoon on flat lanes.
Bukhara from the Samanids to the emirs
Bukhara: Ismail Samani, the Ark and the Po-i-Kalyan
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Bukhara

We go out early to the park west of the old town while it is cool. The Ismail Samani Mausoleum, built in the 10th century, is one of the oldest buildings in Central Asia, a cube of brick laid in patterns so fine the walls look woven, and it is said to have survived the Mongols because it lay half buried in sand. Then on to the Chashma-Ayub shrine over a spring, a few minutes away, and about a kilometre east to the Bolo-Hauz mosque facing the Ark, whose porch stands on slender wooden columns reflected in its pool. Then we climb the ramp into the Ark, the fortress where Bukhara's emirs ruled until 1920.
Afternoon
After a sit-down lunch the afternoon is free. When the light turns gold we meet at the Po-i-Kalyan: the Kalyan Minaret, built in 1127 and about 46 metres tall, the Kalyan Mosque's arcaded courtyard, and the blue domes of the Mir-i-Arab madrasa across the square, the moment most photographers wait for.
Included
- Ismail Samani Mausoleum with your guide
- Chashma-Ayub and the Bolo-Hauz mosque
- The Ark fortress
- Sit-down lunch in the old town
- The Po-i-Kalyan at golden hour: the Kalyan Minaret, the Kalyan Mosque and the Mir-i-Arab madrasa from the square
Optional experiences
- Sitorai Mohi Hosa, the last emir's summer palace about 5 km north, by vehicle with your guide in the free afternoon, priced when you book
Easier option: Our vehicle takes you from Ismail Samani to the foot of the Ark, and you can watch the Po-i-Kalyan from a terrace cafe.
More active option: In the free afternoon, walk the lanes of the old Jewish quarter and its synagogue with your guide's map.
Free time: Afternoon free
Activity: About 6 km on foot across the day, on paving and the Ark's steep brick ramp.
Across the Kyzylkum to Khiva
Bukhara to Khiva across the Kyzylkum Desert, by train or road
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Khiva
- Drive about 6.5 h

This is the one long travel day, and it is long because Bukhara and Khiva are about 450 km apart across the Kyzylkum, the Red Sands desert, with no practical flight between them. The daytime train runs on some days of the week only, so we confirm road or train for your date with your final itinerary.
Afternoon
By road we drive the desert highway in our own vehicle, six to seven hours of driving broken by stops every hour or two, a view over the Amu Darya where the road meets the river, and a sit-down lunch at a roadside tea house. When the train runs on our date, it takes about six to seven hours in reserved seats with room to walk about, and lunch is a picnic of bread, samsa, cheese and fruit bought fresh in Bukhara that morning. Out of the window the desert is low scrub, saxaul and red sand, then the irrigated fields of Khorezm.
Evening
We reach Khiva in the late afternoon, see the clay city walls turn gold at sunset, walking along the top where the wall walk is open, and sit down to dinner together.
Included
- Bukhara to Khiva across the Kyzylkum in our own vehicle with a sit-down lunch, or by daytime train in reserved seats on dates it runs
- Lunch on the way
- The Itchan Kala walls at sunset with your guide, and the wall walk where open
- Dinner in Khiva
Activity: By road the drive is about 450 km and six to seven hours, over our 4-hour daily cap; it is the only day that breaks it, and the stops and lunch are built in. The daytime train runs only on some days of the week, so we confirm road or train for your date with your final itinerary.
A full day inside Itchan Kala
Khiva: Itchan Kala on foot
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Khiva

Itchan Kala, the walled inner town of Khiva, was Uzbekistan's first UNESCO World Heritage Site, in 1990, and it is small enough to know by the end of the day. We start early, before the day visitors drive in from Urgench. Through the west gate stands the Kalta Minor, a fat turquoise minaret left unfinished in the 1850s. Inside the Kuhna Ark, the khans' fortress, we climb the Ak-Sheikh Bobo bastion for the view over domes and flat roofs. The Juma Mosque is a single hall held up by about two hundred carved wooden columns, a few of them centuries older than the building.
Afternoon
After the blue-tiled harem courtyards of the Tosh-Hovli palace and the green dome of the Pahlavon Mahmud mausoleum, we sit down to lunch, perhaps green dill noodles, a Khorezm dish.
Evening
The afternoon is free to wander the lanes, and at sunset the walls and minarets turn gold.
Included
- Itchan Kala with your guide: the West Gate, the Kalta Minor, the Mohammed Amin Khan madrasa, the Kuhna Ark and the Ak-Sheikh Bobo bastion
- The Juma Mosque
- The Tosh-Hovli palace
- The Pahlavon Mahmud mausoleum
- The Islam Khoja minaret and madrasa
- Sit-down lunch inside the old town
Easier option: Skip the bastion stairs and rest at the hotel after lunch; Itchan Kala is flat and every sight is within a few minutes' walk.
More active option: Climb the narrow, steep stairway of the Islam Khoja minaret, the tallest in Khiva, for the view across the old town to the desert.
Free time: Afternoon free
Activity: About 4 to 5 km on foot on flat lanes, with stairs at the Kuhna Ark bastion and an optional minaret climb.
Fly to Tashkent, the metro and a farewell dinner
Khiva to Urgench airport, flight to Tashkent, then central Tashkent
- Breakfast and dinner
- Stay in Tashkent
- Drive about 1 h
Evening
A last early walk inside the walls while Khiva is still quiet, then a 40-minute drive to Urgench airport for the flight to Tashkent, about an hour and a half, instead of the night train some trips use. From the airport we go straight into the city for a guided afternoon in the capital's modern half. Tashkent's metro, opened in 1977, is the reason to ride underground here: each station is decorated differently, from cosmonauts in blue ceramic at Kosmonavtlar to the chandeliers and carved plaster of Alisher Navoi. We come up at Amir Timur Square and walk past the arched Alisher Navoi Theatre, finished in 1947 partly by Japanese prisoners of war, to the Courage Monument, which marks the 1966 earthquake that levelled much of the old city. After a free hour at the hotel, we meet for a farewell dinner together.
Included
- Flight from Urgench (UGC) to Tashkent (TAS)
- Guided afternoon in Tashkent: a metro ride through the decorated stations, Amir Timur Square, the Alisher Navoi Theatre and the Courage Monument
- Farewell dinner
Free time: An hour free before dinner
Activity: Flight times change by season; if the flight lands late, we take the metro ride on the morning of day 10 for those with afternoon flights.
Depart from Tashkent
Your hotel to Tashkent International Airport
- Breakfast
- Drive about 15 min
Morning
Breakfast is the last meal of the trip, and there is nothing planned after it, so the morning is yours.
Evening
If your flight leaves in the afternoon or evening, there is time to go back to Chorsu Bazaar for dried fruit, nuts and spices to take home, to see the Museum of Applied Arts in its carved and painted house from the early 1900s, or to sit in a park with a pot of green tea. Our vehicle takes you from the hotel to Tashkent International Airport, a short drive from the centre, at a time set by your flight. Allow about three hours at the airport before an international departure, as security and passport checks can be slow at busy times. If you would like to stay longer in Tashkent, or add a few days in the Fergana Valley or the mountains east of the capital, ask us when you book and we will quote the extra nights and transfers.
Included
- Drop-off at Tashkent International Airport (TAS)
Free time: Free until your airport transfer
Activity: Any flight time works; plan to be at the airport about three hours before an international departure.
- Tashkent1 night
- Samarkand3 nights
- Bukhara2 nights
- Khiva2 nights
- Tashkent1 night
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: April to June and September to October bring warm, dry days and cool evenings. July and August are very hot in Bukhara and Khiva, often above 40 C, and winter is cold, so we do not run this trip in those months.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva with two or three nights in each
- Architecture, history and bazaars at an unhurried pace
- Trains and a short flight rather than long days in a bus
- Solo travellers who want a small group and fair single pricing
Not for you if you want
- Step-free access: old-town lanes are uneven and some sights have stairs
- Travellers who want nights in a desert yurt camp
- A beach or nightlife holiday
- July and August travel, when the cities pass 40 C
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
9 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Tashkent1 night
- Samarkand3 nights
- Bukhara2 nights
- Khiva2 nights
- Tashkent1 night
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 9 nights in central hotels of a 3-star-plus standard: 1 in Tashkent, 3 in Samarkand near the Registan, 2 in Bukhara near Lyabi-Hauz, 2 in Khiva inside or at the gates of Itchan Kala, and 1 more in Tashkent
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
- Hotels named when we confirm your dates
Transport
- Pick-up and drop-off at Tashkent International Airport (TAS)
- Our own vehicle and driver for the group in each city, including station and airport transfers
- Reserved seats on the Afrosiyob high-speed train from Tashkent to Samarkand and from Samarkand to Bukhara
- Bukhara to Khiva across the Kyzylkum in our own vehicle, or by daytime train on dates it runs (confirmed for your date)
- Flight from Urgench (UGC) to Tashkent
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from day 1 to day 10, including on the trains and the flight
- Licensed local guides in Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva where sites require them
Activities
- Tashkent: the Khast Imam complex and the Uthman Quran, Chorsu Bazaar, a metro ride through the decorated stations, Amir Timur Square, the Alisher Navoi Theatre and the Courage Monument
- Samarkand: Gur-e-Amir, the Registan at sunset and its three madrasas at opening, Shah-i-Zinda, the Afrosiab Museum, Ulugbek's Observatory, Bibi-Khanym Mosque and Siyob Bazaar
- Konigil: a paper-making workshop
- Bukhara: Lyabi-Hauz, the trading domes, Magoki-Attari, the Ulugbek and Abdulaziz Khan madrasas, Chor Minor, the Ismail Samani Mausoleum, Chashma-Ayub, Bolo-Hauz, the Ark and the Po-i-Kalyan
- Khiva: the Itchan Kala walls at sunset (and the wall walk where open), the Kalta Minor, the Kuhna Ark, the Juma Mosque, the Tosh-Hovli palace, the Pahlavon Mahmud mausoleum and the Islam Khoja minaret
- All entrance fees for included sights
Meals
- 9 breakfasts
- 6 lunches: plov in Tashkent, a home-cooked lunch with a Samarkand family, lunch in Konigil village, lunch in Bukhara, lunch on the way to Khiva and lunch in Khiva
- 3 dinners: a welcome dinner in Tashkent, dinner on arrival in Khiva and a farewell dinner in Tashkent
Not included
- International flights to and from Tashkent
- Visa fees, if your passport needs a visa
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed above
- Drinks
- Tips for your guide, local guides and driver
- Optional activities: the Sitorai Mohi Hosa palace, a hammam and a winery tasting
- Photo fees where a site charges them
- Personal expenses
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 730 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
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Good to know
Questions
What does the Uzbekistan trip price include?
Nine nights in central hotels, 9 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 3 dinners, airport transfers, our own vehicle and driver, reserved seats on the high-speed trains, the road or train crossing to Khiva, the flight from Urgench to Tashkent, your See Sight Tours guide throughout, local guides where required, and the entrance fee for every sight on the day plan.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests, fewer than the 16 most Uzbekistan group tours take, so everyone hears the guide inside a madrasa and fits around one table at lunch.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from arrival to departure, on every train and the flight too. Licensed local guides join in Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva where sites require them. We name your guide when we confirm your dates.
How fit do I need to be?
Moderately. Most days involve 5 to 9 km of walking on paving and uneven old-town lanes, often in warm sun, with short stairs at Shah-i-Zinda and the Kuhna Ark. Afternoons are mostly free to rest, and the minaret climb in Khiva is optional.
I am travelling solo. What does a single room cost?
A room of your own costs CAD 730 more on the small-group trip, shown up front before you book. You join the same dinners, tables and activities as everyone else; the supplement only covers the hotel room.
When is the best time to visit Uzbekistan?
April to June and September to October. Days are warm and dry, evenings cool, and the gardens and bazaars are full. July and August often pass 40 C in Bukhara and Khiva, and winter is cold, so we do not run departures then.
Do I need a visa for Uzbekistan?
Canadian citizens can currently visit Uzbekistan without a visa for up to 30 days. Rules differ by passport and change from time to time, so we check yours when you book. Hotels register you with the authorities each night; keep the slips they hand you.
How do you get from Bukhara to Khiva?
By road or by daytime train across the Kyzylkum Desert, confirmed for your date. The train runs only some days of the week, so most dates go by road: about 450 km in our own vehicle, six to seven hours with stops and a sit-down lunch. It is the trip's one long travel day.
Is there an overnight train or a yurt camp?
No. Some Uzbekistan trips return to Tashkent on a night train in shared compartments, or spend a night in a desert yurt camp with shared bathrooms. We fly from Urgench to Tashkent and stay in hotels every night.
How does booking work?
Choose a start date and request to book. We confirm your place within 24 hours, and no payment is taken when you send the request. Prices are per person sharing a room, taxes included: from CAD 3,645 on the small-group trip.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. The trip also runs as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose, from CAD 6,560 per person. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us from the dates section and we will quote the same hotels, trains and local guides.
Can I drink alcohol and is Uzbek food vegetarian friendly?
Beer and wine, including Uzbek wine, are sold in most city restaurants and hotels. Uzbek cooking leans on lamb and beef, but bread, salads, soups and vegetable dishes are easy to find; tell us your diet when you book and we brief each restaurant.