8-Day Uzbekistan Silk Road Tour with Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand

• Upon arrival at Tashkent International Airport, meet your guide and transfer to your hotel. Overnight stay in Tashkent.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Shah Polan Hotel in Tashkent

• Go to the old town and visit the historic Khast Imam complex. In the large square, you will see Tilla-Sheikh Mosque, Barakkhan Madrasa, Kaffal Shashi Mausoleum, and the library where the oldest Koran in the world is kept.

• Then, proceed to Chorsu Bazaar, which was already well known in the Middle Ages and stood at the crossroads of the caravansaries of the Great Silk Road.

• In the afternoon, walk through the modern town and visit Independence Square and Amir Timur Park.

• In the evening, fly to Urgench. Transfer to the hotel in Khiva, about 35 km from Urgench. Enjoy a typical local dish for dinner.

Two overnight stays in Khiva.

Meals: Breakfast
Accommodation: Musa Tura Hotel in Khiva.

• Visit Ichan Kala, the inner town citadel of Khiva. It still looks as historical as it did centuries ago. It is one of the few preserved places in Central Asia where one can imagine life as it was in the time of the Khanate. The famous buildings of Central Asia, which have long become landmarks, are found in Ichan Kala, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

• Take a walk around the historical centre to admire the Oriental ornaments and turquoise tiles. You will understand why the old town of Khiva, "Ichan Kala", is called an "open-air museum".

• In the evening, you can enjoy the sunset over the oasis. A sumptuous dinner is served in the summer palace of the Khans called Toza-Bog (for at least eight people). Let the magical impressions of the day take effect.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Muso Tura Hotel in Khiva.

• Travel through the vegetated Kyzylkum (Red Sand) Desert and the vast steppe to Bukhara, approximately 420 km away. On the way, stop for a lunch break at an Uzbek roadhouse.

• Arrive in Bukhara in the late evening and explore the city on your own.

Dinner in a local restaurant.

Two overnight stays in Bukhara.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Hotel Komil Boutique in Bukhara.

• Start the excursion in the old town with the Mausoleum of Ismail Samani.

• Then, visit Chashmai Ayub Mausoleum. After that, wander around the old town, where you will feel transported to the world of the stories from 'One Thousand and One Nights'. It is hard to believe that, just like 100 years ago, teaching and learning still take place in mosques and madrasas such as the Miri Arab Madrasa.

• Admire the classic architectural complex of Lyabi Khauz with its trading domes and several mosques, madrasas, and the dervish monastery Khanaka in the old town, and understand why Bukhara holds the honorary title of noble town.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Hotel Komil Boutique in Bukhara.

• Drive on to Samarkand, the town of the stories from 1001 Nights and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In the Middle Ages, it was considered one of the most beautiful towns in the world, and even today it has lost none of its charm. On the way, visit the Rabbati Malik Caravansaray and Sardoba water reservoir.

• Then, go to one of the visiting cards of Uzbekistan, the famous Registan Square with its three unique madrasas: Ulughbek, Sherdor, and Tillya Kori.

• Visit the palace-like mausoleum Gur-e-Amir of the ruler Timur. Dinner at Restaurant Samarkand, where you can experience the country's culture and people.

Overnight stay in Samarkand.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Hotel Ideal in Samarkand.

• Visit the paper-making factory of Samarkand with your Uzbekistan tour guide, where silk paper has been produced since 2005 using 8th-century technology.

• Then, head to Ulugbek Observatory, once the greatest research centre in Central Asia, and Shakhi Zinda Necropolis, the grave complex of the living king, where Timur's family members are buried today.

• Proceed to Bibikhanum, the largest mosque in Central Asia.

• Then, walk to Siyob Bazaar, just next to the mosque. The selection of dried fruits alone is awe-inspiring.

• At 18:00, take the fast train "Afrosiyob" to Tashkent.

Dinner in Tashkent. Overnight stay in Tashkent.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Shah Poland Hotel in Tashkent

• Take an early morning flight home.

Meals: Breakfast.