The Great Oasis Cities of the Silk Road Uzbekistan & Turkmenistan over 13 Days

Meet at the airport and board our flight to Tashkent.

Welcome to Uzbekistan! After arriving  in Tashkent early in the morning we will be met at the airport by our local guide and take our private transfer to the hotel where we can rest before enjoying breakfast and a full day guided sightseeing tour of the multi faceted capital of Uzbekistan.

Throughout the tour we will be staying in twin rooms but there is an option to have a room to yourself for the trip. If you wish to have a room to yourself the supplement will be £300. The supplement will be payable at the same time as the balance.

We will visit the Khasti Imam Square with the beautiful Barak Khan Madrasa, the Tilla Sheikh Mosque and the Kaffal Shashi mausoleum. Here we will see the Koran handwritten by the third Caliph Osman (644-656).

Continue with a visit to the huge Chorsu bazaar, whose oriental smells and spices will transport us into the fairy tales of 1001 nights.

In the afternoon we will continue our exploration in the modern part of the city and visit the museum of applied art,  Independence Square and Amir Timur Square.

Dinner in a local  restaurant.

This morning after breakfast we will take our transfer to the airport in Tashkent for our flight to Urgench and transfer to Khiva.

As early as the 6th century, the city  of Khiva became established as one of the main cities along the Silk Road and today  it remains one  of the best, having retained the fairytale atmosphere of an ancient, oriental city to this day.

The numerous sights of the historic fortress are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We will visit the old town of Khiva, and enjoy a full afternoon of the highlights of the city as well as visiting many different artisan craft workshops.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

After breakfast we will drive to the Turkmen border post Shavat-Dashoguz (60 km, 1 hour).

After passport control we will cross 1.5 km of the neutral zone and meet our Turkmen guide and drive to Kunya-Urgench (100 km, 1 hour 30 minutes).

Our guided city tour of Urgence includes visits to the mausoleums of Turabek Khanum, Sultan Tekesh, Sultan Il Arslan, Nadschmuddin Kubra and Sultan Ali. as well as exploring the Kutluğ Timur Minaret and Kyrka Molla Mountain.

This afternoon we drive to Darvaza to see Darvaza gas crater in the middle of Karakum desert.

Otherwise known as “The Door to Hell” The crater was supposedly formed in 1971 when Soviet geologists accidentally collapsed a natural gas chamber while drilling. Fearing the release of poisonous gas, they set it alight, expecting it to burn out quickly. But their plan didn’t work, and the crater has remained lit ever since. Or so the story goes…. It is a truly incredible sight and one that draws thousands of suicidal desert spiders every evening as they jump in to the crater mesmerised by the flames.

There’s no beating around the bush. Visiting the crater is an intense and multi-sensory experience that stays with you long after you’ve left and will stand out for the rest of your life. Hearing the crackling of the flames with the faint smell of burning gas as the heat from the fire warms your skin is a feeling second to none.

This evening we will settle into our yurt camp in the middle of the desert. (please note that for this day only we will be sharing yurts ).

Dinner in camp.

Today we travel to Ashgabat. On route  we will make a stop to visit  the village of Erbent. Characterized by a harsh continental climate with very hot summers and cold winters, and very dry conditions year-round, with scant rainfall,  It is a remote, desolate place with only sand, some wild-roaming camels for sustenance, and traditional, simple housing where locals maintain some elements of a half-nomadic lifestyle.

Arrival  in Ashgabat, the modern capital of Turkmenistan which features more white marble buildings than any other city in the world.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Today we enjoy a city tour in Ashgabat – the capital of Turkmenistan.

This city has seen a boom in “marble architecture” over the past 15 years.

Visit the archaeological monuments of Old Nisa (part of the UNESCO World Heritage List) and the Spiritual Mosque, one of the largest mosques in Central Asia.

During the afternoon we will visit the National Museum of History and the Neutrality Monument, Presidents Square, Ertugrul Gazy Mosque, Independence Park, and the Lenin monument.

Visit the Akhalkin racehorse stables, to see the metallic coated horses One of the defining characteristics of this desert-bred horse is its thin and silky coat – so thin that you can see the blood coursing through its veins, lending it the nickname “heavenly blood sweating horses”.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

After breakfast we will take a morning flight to Mary. Upon arrival, drive to Merv, a major centre for trade in international goods and goods on the Silk Road and one of the best preserved oasis cities in central Asia.

Explore the historical park with the Sultan Sanjar Mausoleum, Medieval castles ), the Keshk Fortress and other sights.

In the evening we will  transfer to the Uzbek- Turkmen border crossing. Meet our driver to drive to Bukhara (100 km, 1 hour 30 minutes).

Arrival in Bukhara, one of the most important cities on the Silk Road where traders flocked to sell their wares, carpets, and jewellery. It was also an important developing home for many religions such as Zoroastrianism and later Islam.

Check in to the hotel.  Free time  to relax or explore the old town.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Our full day tour includes many historical sights. We will visit the Samanids mausoleum, Bolo Houz Mosque, Ark fortress, minaret Kalon, Madrasa Mir Arab, Madrasa Ulugbek and Abdul-Aziz-Khan and the dome bazaars.

This evening we will enjoy a dance performance in a madrasa. The perfect end to a perfect day.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Around Bukhara there are other gems that simply cannot be missed. Our guide will let us in on the secrets of the summer palace of the last emir of Bukhara, Sitorai-Mohi-Khosa and show us the Chor Bakr mausoleum and the Bakhauddin-Nakhshbandi ensemble.

This tomb is visited daily by pilgrims and gives an insight into the living Islam.

After returning to Bukhara the rest of the day is to do with as we please.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Transfer to Samarkand via Shakhrisabz the birthplace of the  great Tamerlane (300 km).

We will visit the “White Palace” (Ak-Sarai XIV century),  and see the impressive unique mosaic decor.,  Kok Gumbaz Mosque, the Gumbazi Seidan mausoleum and the Khazrati Imam Mosque

In the late afternoon we will  transfer through the Zarafshan Mountains to Samarkand (100 km).

Dinner in a local restaurant.

The capital of Tamerlane, the great city of the ancient Sogdiana, lies at the crossroads of the main trade routes from China, Siberia, Persia and the west where, today, we will gain a deeper understanding of the power of the Khan dynasty at that time.

Be amazed by the incredible shades of blue over sights such as the famous Bibikhanum Mosque, the Gur-Emir, the Afrasiab Museum and Registan Square.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

As a religious pilgrimage site and market place, Samarkand is still a lively city today. The Shakhi Zinda necropolis on the outskirts of the old town is visited daily by hundreds of pilgrims who ask for their welfare in this holy place. In the necropolis of Shakhi Zinda, mingle with the pilgrims and admire the finely tiled mausoleums.

We will visit the old tissue paper factory and the Ulugbek observatory (15th century), which tells the fascinating story of the little son Tamerlane, the old paper factory and you have free time to stroll in the oriental bazaar.

In the evening we will take the train to Tashkent.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Transfer to the airport in Tashkent. Here we say goodbye to our guide and are left with unforgettable memories.