Ancient civilisations: Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in 11 days

Highlights

• A full day in Khiva’s walled Ichan-Kala
• Barbecue dinner and a night in a yurt camp by the Darvaza gas crater
• Ashgabat, the “city of white marble”
• Akhal-Teke horses at a Turkmen stable
• Ancient Merv and the mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar
• Bukhara and the Registan of Samarkand

By airBy trainBy road

1. 1 TashkentDays 1–3, 10–11 By air → Khiva
2. 2 KhivaDays 3–4 By road → Darvaza gas crater
3. 3 Darvaza gas crater By road → Ashgabat
4. 4 AshgabatDays 5–6
5. 5 Ancient Merv By road → Bukhara
6. 6 BukharaDays 7–9 By road → Samarkand
7. 7 SamarkandDays 9–10 By train → Tashkent

Positions are exact; lines show the order of the route, not the road.

1. 1
2. 2
3. 3
4. 4
5. 5
6. 6
7. 7
8. 8
9. 9
10. 10
11. 11

1. Day 1Flight to Tashkent

   Departure on an international flight to Tashkent, for example with Turkish Airlines via Istanbul.

2. Day 2Tashkent

   Arrival in Tashkent and breakfast. Visit the old city with the 16th-century Khast-Imam square, the Barak Khan madrasah, the Kaffal Shashi mausoleum and the Muyi Mubarak madrasah, which keeps the Quran of Uthman (7th century), and the lively Chorsu Bazaar. Then the new city with the Metro and the squares of Independence, the Alisher Navoi Theatre and Amir Timur. Overnight in Tashkent.

3. Day 3Tashkent – Urgench – KhivaDomestic flight + 35 km

   Early flight to Urgench and drive to Khiva. A full day in Ichan-Kala (UNESCO), from the Ata Darvaza west gate to the Muhammad Amin Khan madrasah and Kalta Minor, the Kunya-Ark fortress, the Juma Mosque with 213 carved wooden columns, the Tash-Hauli Palace, the Islam Khoja madrasah and minaret, the Palvan Darvaza east gate, the Pahlavan Mahmud mausoleum, the Ak mosque, the Allakuli Khan and Kutlimurad madrasahs and the royal caravanserai with its bazaar. Overnight in Khiva.

4. Day 4Khiva – Dashoguz – Darvaza360 km

   Transfer to the Uzbek–Turkmen border at Shavat and through customs; meet our Turkmen team and drive to Darvaza, the “Door to Hell”. In 1971 Soviet geologists drilling here broke into a cavern of natural gas; the ground collapsed into a crater about 60 m wide and 20 m deep, and the gas was set alight so it would burn off in a few days. It is still burning. See the crater after dark, then a barbecue dinner and a night in the yurt camp (3–4 people per yurt).

5. Day 5Darvaza – Ashgabat270 km, about 4 hours

   Breakfast at the camp and drive to Ashgabat, the Turkmen capital, named the “city of white marble” by Guinness World Records in 2013 for its number of white-marble buildings. The tour includes the Wedding Palace, the Yildyz hotel, the Ferris wheel, the Constitution Monument, the Arch of Neutrality, the Independence Monument and park, the Ertuğrul Gazi Mosque, the Olympic stadium and the memorial to the earthquake and the Second World War. Overnight in Ashgabat.

6. Day 6Ashgabat – Mary350 km, about 3 hours

   Visit a stable of Akhal-Teke horses, the pride of the Turkmen people, a breed raised for some 5,000 years and never crossed with others. Drive to Mary; time permitting, visit the Green Bazaar, the regional museum, the library with its observatory and the old Russian church (1900). Overnight in Mary.

7. Day 7Mary – Merv – Bukhara365 km

   Explore ancient Merv, the “Queen of the World”, once one of the great capitals of the Muslim world beside Baghdad, Cairo and Damascus, and the Seljuk capital. See the two koshks of Kyz Kala, the Askhab complex, the Gyaur Kala fortress, the Sultan Sanjar mausoleum, the largest building of medieval Central Asia, and the mausoleum of Muhammad ibn Zayd. Continue to the Turkmen–Uzbek border, meet our Uzbek team and drive to Bukhara.

8. Day 8Bukhara

   A full day in Bukhara. Visit the Samanid mausoleum, the Chashma-Ayub mausoleum, the Bolo-Hauz mosque, the Ark citadel (outside) and the Chor Minor. At the centre stands the Poi Kalyan ensemble with the 12th-century Kalyan minaret, the Kalyan mosque and the Mir-i-Arab madrasah. Continue to Lyabi-Hauz with the Nadir Divan-Begi khanaka and madrasah and the Kukeldash madrasah, and the 16th-century trading domes. Visit a traditional puppet workshop and watch a show.

9. Day 9Bukhara – Samarkand260 km

   Drive to Samarkand, Timur’s capital, arriving in the afternoon. Visit Registan Square with the Ulugbek, Tilla-Kari and Sher-Dor madrasahs and the Gur-Emir, which holds the tomb of Timur and his family. Evening walk to Gur-Emir and Registan Square (outside the monuments).

10. Day 10Samarkand – Tashkent by train280 km by train

    Visit the Bibi-Khanym mosque and the colourful Siab Bazaar, the Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, the Ulugbek Observatory and a workshop where silk paper is made by hand. Transfer to the station and train to Tashkent. Overnight in Tashkent.

11. Day 11Departure from Tashkent

    Transfer to the airport for your international flight.

Hotels, transport & meals

Gallery

Experiences on this tour

• High-speed train across UzbekistanRide the Afrosiyob between Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara.

Questions about this tour