Uzbekistan: Silk Road and Nature

At the agreed time departure by flight to Tashkent (intermediate connections). Arrive and transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel. City tour to discover its mausoleums, madrassas, the oldest market in the city and its subway. Free lunch and dinner. Accommodation.

The subway
Considered one of the most beautiful in the world, surpassing in beauty that of Moscow, the Tashkent metro system is much more than a simple means of transport. Its stations compete in beauty with the great palaces where both Soviet-style art and Islamic designs are represented. In early 2018, the strict ban on photographing the ornate stations of Central Asia's oldest metro system was lifted.

Breakfast and transfer to the airport to fly to Urgench from where we will continue by road to Khiva . Full day to tour Khiva visiting the city and its different architectural groups. Lunch and free time. Night in Khiva.

Vehicle journey: 30 km, 50 min

Khiva
We could spend hours exploring its tiny streets discovering the historic buildings of this ''open-air museum''. In Jiva we will find the traditional idea of an oriental bazaar as a place of abundant merchandise, brightness, colors and bustle.

Breakfast and early departure to the town of Bukhara . A day of travel through the Kizil Kum desert (translates as ''red sand''). Arrival in Bukhara and in the afternoon walk through the old part of the city. Night in Bukhara.

Vehicle journey: 470 km, 7-8h

Breakfast at the hotel. Day dedicated to visiting Bukhara , the so-called museum-city containing about 170 ancient architectural monuments. Lunch and free afternoon to enjoy its street life, its colorful oriental markets and its ancient monuments. Night in Bukhara.

Bukhara
Capital of Islamic culture, it maintains ancient traditions and rituals. It is here where the largest number of tombs of Islamic saints, mausoleums and mosques are concentrated, the city itself has been the center of Islamic civilization.

After breakfast we will go by road to the mountains of Nurata . Lunch en route in Nurata before continuing to the mountain village where we will spend the night. Upon arrival, walk around the village. At the last minute, we can participate in the preparation of the traditional plov dinner at home. Accommodation in a local house.

Vehicle journey: 300 km, 4 hours
Walk: 2/3 hours

Nuratau Villages
Located in the gorges of the Nuratau mountains, surrounded by trees, they form a small oasis in the region. Time seems to stand still in these towns. The houses are built in a traditional way, based on small stones and clay. They are hospitable and friendly populations that will allow us to discover rural life, outside the big Uzbek cities and to get to know the Tajik culture where they originate.

After breakfast transfer to the second village of Nurata. We will begin our walk along a pleasant path through which we will be able to observe the daily life of the village and enjoy nature towards the ruins of Korgon . Lunch at the local house and transfer to Samarkand. Arrival and lodging in the hotel. Night in Samarkand.

Walk: 2/3 hours
Vehicle journey: 215 km, 3.30 hours approx.

Breakfast at the hotel. Day of visits in Samarkand visiting, among other great constructions, the famous Registan Square, one of the most impressive architectural complexes in Uzbekistan and the Islamic world, bordered by its three beautiful madrassas. We will discover the daily life of the inhabitants of Samarkand in the Siab market, leaving for the end the impressive mausoleums of the Shahi-Zinda necropolis, one of the most beautiful ensembles of this surprising city. Night in Samarkand.

Tissue Paper Manufacturing:
There was a time when camel caravans, traveling from China to Europe, stopped in Samarkand promoting the exchange of products such as paper manufacturing. We will learn the process in a visit to a craft factory , where paper is produced following ancient technologies. Known for its exquisite quality, the paper is also called “tissue paper” because its surface is shiny and smooth.

Breakfast at the hotel before continuing with the visits to the mythical Samarkand. In the afternoon transfer to the station where the Afrosiab train will take us back to Tashkent. Arrival and accommodation. Night in Tashkent.

Train journey: 300 km, 2h 10m

Departure of the flight back to the city of origin (intermediate connections). End of our services.