The Ancient Cities of the Silk Road Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan

Tour operates:  Mid March until October
No of days: 12 nights 13 days
Route: Tashkent-Khiva—Dashoguz-Kunya Urgench-Darvaza Gas Crater-Ashgbad-Mary-Bukhara-Samarkand.
Transport: Air conditioned transport, economy class domestic flight
Accommodations: All comfortable accommodations with private facilities
Guide: Fully Escorted English speaking guides in each country
Tour Start and End point: Tashkent
Guaranteed departure: Daily- Minimum 2 people required

Day by day itinerary

Day 01: Arrival in Tashkent

Upon arrival at Tashkent international airport you will be met by our guide and transferred to your hotel, the rest of the day is free at Leisure.

Overnight in Tashkent Hotel (D)

Day 02: Tashkent-Urgench Khiva

Morning flight to Urgench and transfer to Khiva, Depending on the flight schedule, possibly half day sightseeing of Khiva city

Overnight in Khiva hotel (BD)

Day 03: Khiva City Tour

Legend has it that Khiva was founded when Shem, son of Noah, discovered a well here. The town certainly existed by the 8th Century, as a minor fort and trading post on a Silk Road branch to the Caspian Sea and the Volga. In the early 16th century, Khiva was made capital of the Timurid Empire, becoming a busy slave market and pivot of the khanate for the next three centuries. Until Russia finally wrested the region from Timurid grasp in the 19th century, even the boldest hearts feared encounters with these fierce tribesmen and their desert territory. Khiva is an ancient walled city and looks much like it did in centuries past. It is one of the few sites in Central Asia where one can easily imagine life during the time of the emirates. We will spend the morning wandering its maze of ruins and great mosques. Later, a tour of this living museum including the Ichon-Qala gates, Muhammad Amin and Rakhim Khan’s Medressas, Tosh-Khovli Palace, Islom-Huja Medressa and Minaret.

Overnight in Khiva at hotel (BD)

Day 04: Dashoguz-Kunya Urgench

We cross the border into little known Turkmenistan and head for the site of Konya-Urgench, which has been the ancient capital of the land of Khorezm with beautiful mausoleums. Our tour of Kunya Urgench historical site, includes the Kutlug Timur minaret and Kyrk Molla.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 05: Gas Crater-Ashgabad

Free morning at leisure, later in the afternoon we drive to Darvaza flaming Gas Crater or the ‘mouth of hell’. En-route we visit some small Nomadic villages located in the Karakum desert.

Enjoy the amazing views with picnic dinner. Later continue driving to Ashgabad.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 06: Ashgabad visit

City tour of Ashgabad, Includes visit of Tolkuchka bazaar, Old Nisa – ancient Parthian settlement, Spiritual Mosque of Turkmenbashi and the National Museum of History & Ethnography of Turkmenistan.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 07: Mary

Morning flight to Mary, Later sightseeing of Mary visit the ancient ruins of Merv which came under Persian, Greek, Sassanian and Moslem rule and from the 11th century was the capital of the Seljuk Turks, who controlled an empire stretching from Afghanistan to Egypt. In the 13th century Merv was destroyed by the Mongols leaving only the ruins of these numerous civilizations, later visit the History Museum, Sultan Sanjar Mausoleum and Kys Kala.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 08: Bukhara (Uzbekistan)

In the morning, drive to the Turkmen Uzbek border, after border formalities you will be met by our Uzbek guide, later drive to Bukhara. Afternoon city tour of Bukhara

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 09: Bukhara

Today we explore the old quarter on foot. Bukhara is an ancient city with its bustling “trade domes,” active mosques, and the Kalyan Minaret (“tower of death”), one of Central Asia’s tallest. We’ll stroll around the streets and visit the old town center where old men with long white beards gossip for hours while drinking tea. Bukhara has been designated a World Heritage Site; the resulting restoration of some of the mosques, constructed in the 11th to 15th centuries, to make them appear as if they were built yesterday. There are even some structures still standing that date back to Zorastrian times 2,500 years ago.

We also visit The Ark, a large fortress with the Emir’s open-air throne room and the Mausoleum of Ismail Samani, an intricate and beautiful 10th century brick structure that is nicely preserved. We’ll also venture to the outskirts of Bukhara and visit the summer palace of the last Emir, built by a Russian Czar with grand halls and a harem. We will also see Char Minar, a gate of an ancient madrassa long time gone. It was built in 1809 and has more in common with Indian art styles than local.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 10: Bukhara – Shakhrisabz – Samarkand

We depart early for Shakhrisabz, the birthplace of Tamerlane, where we tour Ak-Saray Palace, Kok-Gumbaz Mosque, House of Meditation and the Crypt of Timur, a man who changed the course of history and made a signfigant difference to Central Asia. There’s little left of Timur’s Ak-Saray Palace except bits of the gigantic, 40 m (98 foot) high entrance covered with gorgeous filigree like blue, white and gold mosaics, but it’s staggering to try and imagine what the rest of this glorious summer palace must have looked like. We continue later to Samarkand. For most people, Samarkand is as mythical as Atlantis or as remote and legendary as Tombouctou. The sublime larger-than-life monuments of Timur, the technicolour bazaar and the city’s long, rich history work a special kind of magic. On arrival we’ll visit the old bazaars for which this exotic city is famous.

Overnight in Malika Prime Hotel (BD)

Day 11: Samarkand City Tour

Samarkand, sometimes called the ‘Rome of the Orient’ was already flourishing when Rome and Babylon were founded. During the course of our full day tour we visit the famous Registan Square, Bibi Khanum Mosque, Mausoleum of Tamerlane, Observatory of Ulughbek, the site where Uleg Bek, grandson of Tamerlane, made some of the greatest achievements of the pre-telescope era of astronomy in the 15th century. We also visit the regal mausoleums of Shah-I Zinda, site of Central Asia’s most sacred Islamic shrine, the massive mosque of Bibi Khanym, and the adjacent colourful market. You can purchase Samarkand’s famous bread which Alexander the Great unsuccessfully tried to have duplicated back home in Greece, or try some of the region’s local produce, from grapes to the world’s tastiest melons of multiple varieties. Our afternoon tour covers the Afrosiab Museum, located on the site of ancient Afrosiab.

Overnight in Hotel (BD)

Day 12: Samarkand-Tashkent

In the morning we drive along the scenic road as it winds along the eastern spurs of the Pamir Ranges to Tashkent.
We continue on a city tour of Tashkent visiting mosques and madrassas (Islamic schools) housing craft workshops and dating from the 14th century. We visit the Kukeldash Medressa, a grand 16th century academy undergoing restoration and the History Museum of Uzbekistan and the Museum of Fine Arts.

Overnight at hotel in Tashkent (BD)

Day 13: Onward flight

Trip will end with airport transfer (B)

 

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Tour costs and Dates

We guarantee all tour departures for a minimum of 2 passengers. In order to confirm your booking we will need a non-refundable deposit of 400 USD per person. The final invoice will be sent to you 4 weeks before the tour departure, the final cost dependent on the final group size. If the following dates or the described itinerary does not meet your travel needs, please write to us, we can arrange a customized tour for you.

Tour cost premium class

Tour cost tourists class

Hotels

*** Please note that all above hotels are subject to availability or we will arrange
alternative hotels of a similar standard.

Tour departures 2013

TOUR COST INCLUDES

• All domestic transportation and transfers, domestic flights mentioned in the itinerary.
• Twin sharing accommodation at hotel mentioned above
• Meals indicated above: Key (B) Breakfast (L) Lunch (D) Dinner
• All the sightseeing tours as described in the itinerary and entrance fees
• English speaking local guides
• Visa letter support

TOUR COST EXCLUDES

• Visa Fees.
• Expenses in hotels such as laundry, telephone and room service, etc.
• Optional activities
• Meals not mention above
• Personal expanses
• Single supplements
• Tips for Guides and drivers
If you would like to customize your trip please write to us we are more than happy to arrange your trip according to your request