100% customisable travel idea
Uzbekistan Express Mythical cities of the Silk Road
Uzbekistan - Khiva - Bukhara - Samarkand
The essential Uzbekistan
Your journey
Uzbekistan is a vast country. This also calls for well-organised and precise logistics. Once on site, you travel in a private car with a driver; between Khiva and Bukhara, a flight is the expedient option. Between Bukhara and Samarkand, the Afrosiyob high-speed train is fantastic: you travel in comfort and at speed, and the staff wear smart uniforms. All of this is necessary to ensure the connections are made under the best possible conditions. The pace of the journey - one day, then two sets of three days - is perfectly manageable and lets you make the most of each stop. Your hotels are representative of Central Asian charm. In Khiva, you are even welcomed into one of the madrasas - the Muslim universities that brought glory to Uzbekistan. Ah, student life! And you don’t just travel through a country where UNESCO has listed so many sites - qualified guides are essential. This is why we have included tours in your itinerary. They let you get a feel for the place without preventing you from making your own discoveries. A few well-chosen options can enrich this menu even further. Should an off-the-cuff wish or a minor setback arise along the way, you have the contact details for our on-site Concierge service to assist you.
Itinerary
100% customisable for you
Night on board, arrival the following day.
Private transfer to Khiva. Stay for one night in the outer city, not far from the eastern wall. Your accommodation is a madrasah built in the early 20th century. If you look closely you can spot elements of modern design. The hotel conversion has preserved the original structure of the building. You stay in the former student rooms, which are simple and comfortable, decorated with the floral or ikat patterns of Uzbek fabrics. The courtyard garden is very pleasant at the right time of day. In the restaurant traditional Khiva cuisine is served. You can have your meals in the dining room or outside on the tapchan, the large platform bed where rugs, cushions and a low table are set up.
In your itinerary - Private tour of Itchan Kala. Travellers have long been impressed by the formidable walled inner city of Khiva, with its four gates and walls reaching 33 feet (10 metres) high Inside the walls, the narrow streets, squares and historical sites are an open air museum like no other. With your guide, you will discover, some of the highlights such as the old fortress Kunya Ark, residence of the Khans of Khiva from the 17th to the 19th centuries. Djouma Mosque features carved columns, which are even older than the mosque itself, which dates from the 18th century. The Pakhlavan Mahmoud Mausoleum is the poignant resting place of Pakhlavan Mahmoud (1247-1325). He was a furrier, a wrestler and a poet, and a prominent figure in Khiva. The building, built between the 14th and 20th centuries, is adorned with beautifully decorated blue glazed tiles. You might be lucky and hear prayers being sung inside the complex. Next, in the residential part of the old town, a family welcomes you for an Uzbek cookery class. Ravioli is on the menu and it's great fun to join in and help to make the dough. For this traditional Khorezm dish the ravioli or dumplings are stuffed with eggs!
Optional extra - The three fortresses of Ayaz Kala.
Private transfer to Urgench Airport. Flight to Bukhara. Another private transfer and stay for three nights in the old town. The hotel embraces tradition. The décor is lavish. Everywhere you look there are objects, fabrics, paintings, walls with niches, cornices. It's a vibrant mix of ornamentation and colour. The rooms are full of vibrant colour, but also well equipped and comfortable. The hotel restaurant serves homemade Uzbek and international cuisine. Tea is served in the courtyard, which is beautifully enclosed by a gallery of wood and wrought iron. Just a few minutes from Lyab-i-Hauz, you feel completely in tune with the atmosphere of Bukhara.
In your itinerary - Private tour of old Bukhara. With a guide, discover some of the city's most beautiful attractions. The Ark, or the citadel is one of them. Built in the 16th century by the Uzbek Shaybanids, its curved walls contain a mosque, an audience chamber, barracks and a treasury - it's like a town within a town. Nearby is the Bolo Haouz Mosque with its forest of slender wooden columns and richly decorated features reflected in the peaceful pool. The Samanid Mausoleum, dating from the 9th and 10th centuries was excavated in 1934, and has been meticulously restored. The Po-i-Kalyan religious complex is home to the Mir-i Arab Madrasah, built in the 16th century by the Sufi sheikh Abdullah Yamani. It was the only Bukharan Muslim school that continued teaching during the Soviet period. Opposite are the splendid mosque (16th century) and the Kalon minaret. The minaret dates from the 12th century, and served as both a place of execution and a landmark for caravans. In the Taki, the trading domes still covering three intersections, business has thrived since the 16th century. You might even want to do some shopping there. And be sure to try some tea in a choyxona.
In your itinerary - Gijduvon ceramics and the Vobkent minaret. About 50 km (31 miles) north of Bukhara lies Gijduvon, renowned for its ceramics. At the workshop and museum, where Abdullo Narzullaev and his family work, you can follow the entire traditional process from wheel throwing, to decorating with ground colours and firing the pottery. It's a truly illuminating tour. The reputation of the Gijduvon School has spread throughout Central Asia. Gijduvon pieces are generally lighter and more delicate and blurred than Rishtan ceramics. On the way back, stop in Vobkent to admire the minaret that dates from the 12th century and the Qarakhanid dynasty. It is one of the finest examples of Central Asian minaret design. And of course UNESCO was quick to add it to the World Heritage List. A private guide will come with you on these tours.
Optional extras - Bukhara surroundings tour; visit to the hammam.
Private transfer to the railway station. Train to Samarkand. Another private transfer and stay three nights in old Samarkand. The hotel is bursting with character. Small details are carefully considered. The inner courtyard is splendid. The carved woodwork , on both the walls and the ceilings gives the place a harmonious feel. Bricks are used to good effect too. The overall effect is understated and elegant. The same applies to the rooms. Your room is well equipped and comfortable. The tones used throughout are walnut stain, tobacco and chocolate. In the open air restaurant hearty breakfasts are served. On the rooftop terrace, there are hot tubs with uninterrupted views over the rooftops and the Bibi Khanym Mosque.
In your itinerary - Samarkand with a local. The idea is to explore Samarkand however you want. Nothing is planned in advance, you just meet up with a local who knows the city like the back of their hand. You have a quick chat about what type of things you're interested in, your likes and dislikes and take it from there. Then you set off, following your friend for the day, who will tell you all sorts of interesting things about Samarkand and its residents. It's the best way to get to know the city as it really is.
Optional extra - Tamerlane treasures tour.
In your itinerary - Private tour of Samarkand, the Blue City. With your guide, the tour starts at the Registan, the square where people gathered to hear royal proclamations. The square is surrounded by three impressive madrasahs. Ulugh Beg is from the 17th century, and Sher-Dor and Tilla-Kari are from the 18th century. Next is the Gur-e-Amir, the the mausoleum of Tamerlane, which was originally intended for one of his grandsons. It's quite moving to hear the prayer for the dead being chanted over his green jade tombstone. This majestic building inspired later Mughal architecture. It was undoubtedly a precursor to the Taj Mahal. It was also Tamerlane who commissioned the Bibi Khanym Mosque (15th century), an innovative building with marble features. Legend has it that women in Samarkand wear the veil because the building's architect is said to have stolen a kiss from the patron's first wife. Next to the mosque is the Siab Bazaar, with its stalls selling a wide variety of breads, dried fruit, vegetables, spices, cheeses and more.
Private transfer to the airport and flight home.
À la carte
This suggested itinerary can be customisable down to the smallest detail, including duration, stops and content. An à la carte menu of experiences is also available to create a journey that reflects who you are.
Khiva - The Three Fortresses of Ayaz-Kala
Why not cross the Amu Darya for a foray into Karakalpakstan? With a driver and guide, spend a day visiting the remarkable Ayaz-Kala citadels, built from the 4th century BCE onwards - probably by the Kushans, and then by the Afrighids. They are among the “desert castles” of ancient Khorezm. Despite the ravages of time, these defensive structures - their ochre shades shifting with the light - impress with their location at the gateway to the Kyzylkum, their size, and the hydraulic ingenuity needed for people to live here.Optional extra - Full day
Around Bukhara
Slip into a maze of alleyways that seem to highlight the yellow gas pipes, and emerge in front of the Chor Minor (19th century). The monumental entrance to a vanished madrasa, it looks like a small fortress with four turquoise-capped towers. A few kilometres from Bukhara, don’t miss the Chor Bakr Memorial Complex (16th century) or the mausoleum (16th century) of a great master of Islamic mysticism, Baha’ al-Dina Naqshband. You also stop to see the curious Sitori-i-Mokhi Khosa, the summer palace of the city's last emir, built in an Islamic-St Petersburg style! Virtuoso stuccoes, mirrors, stained glass, a collection of Chinese porcelain, pavilions, ponds - the whole ensemble evokes an Uzbek Belle Époque, brought to an end by the 1917 revolution. In the garden, the peacocks screech, fan out their tails to impress the peahens, and can barely fly better than chickens.Optional extra - Half-day
Bukhara - At the hammam
A tradition likely inherited from the Romans, the bath massage has its own Uzbek version. The brick building dates from the 16th century. You enter a hot room first. At the top of the dome, an opening lets the light in. Once you are thoroughly rinsed, you lie down on a stone table and the masseur begins their work. There’s a gentle or a tough version. The vigorous technique works deeply on the body, leaving it completely renewed after ginger and honey are applied, followed by repeated sprinkling with water that becomes gradually cooler. Over green tea, you reclaim a body that’s refreshed, both inside and out.Optional extra - Two hours.
Samarkand - All about Tamerlane
You begin the day at the Afrasiab Museum, which explores the origins of Samarkand. The oldest known chess pieces to date were discovered at this site, along with highly valuable diplomatic murals - they are thought to depict the four Central Asian powers of the 7th century: the Chinese, Indians, Iranians and Turks. At Shah-i-Zinda, Timurid aristocratic mausoleums (successors of Tamerlane) were built beside the tomb of a cousin of the Prophet. Pishtaks, domes and richly decorated glazed ceramic decor come together to form a breathtaking, compact ensemble. As for the Observatory of Ulugh Beg (a grandson of Tamerlane), this was the pinnacle of 15th-century astronomical facilities!Optional extra - Half-day.
Why visit Uzbekistan with Voyageurs du monde?
Every day, our travel specialists craft bespoke experiences shaped around each traveller's profile, desires and budget. These passionate experts design experiences delivered on the ground by a local network of Concierges and trusted contacts. These fully customisable, made-to-measure trips are complemented by a wide range of high-end services (lounges, 24/7 assistance, travel booklet, app, Wi-Fi, restaurant booking, etc.)
Let us create your tripA few of the advantages of travelling with us to Uzbekistan
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