Bestseller Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan

Flight to Bishkek.

Morning Arrival in Manas International Airport (ETA 07:00).

Migration formalities usually take 30 min to 60 min: visa/passport control and baggage claim. Come out of the terminal and meet the driver holding a sign “ANUR TOUR”.

Transfer to the hotel. Arrival in the hotel, check – in. Resting time after the flight.

Breakfast at the hotel. 

Start Bishkek sightseeing tour visiting:

- Oak Park in the city center. It is known also as Dubovy Park - today it is one of the favorite places among locals and tourists in Bishkek. 

- Ala-Too Square is the central square in Bishkek. It serves as a place for state events and celebrations. Philharmonic hall – situated at the top of Rose Alley.

- Statue of Manas (Manas is a legendary Kyrgyz hero and the classic centerpiece of Kyrgyz literature).

- Victory Square in the centre one can see the Victory monument, a memorial which was completed in 1984. Usually, the main festival events are held in Bishkek at eternal flame, on Victory Square, where is posted a guard of honor, forces of Kyrgyz garrison, and a military band.

- State History Museum is a perfect display of the Kyrgyz people and the history of Kyrgyzstan.

Transfer to the yurt camp near Issyk Kul with sightseeing en-route.

- Burana Tower was the vertical dominant of the ancient city Balasagun, the north capital of the Turkic lingual state of the Karakhanids, and the small nearby museum with its collection of ancient bal-bals, carved stone figures used as monuments. 

- Continue to Issyk-Kul. The lake is called "the pearl of Central Asia". Due to the salty water, Lake Issyk Kul possesses curative qualities. 

- Easy hike near the lake. Issyk Kul is one of the most wonderful lakes of the world, located in the north-eastern part of the Kyrgyz Republic. Issyk Kul is translated as “Hot Lake”.

Enjoy your stay in and real experience of nomadic life in the yurt camp.

Traditional dinner/BBQ and overnight in a yurt.

Breakfast in the yurt camp. 

09:00 Transfer to Karakol en-route visiting

– Jeti Oguz gorge is famous for its red rocks formations that have the name Seven Bulls. One can see there Broken Heart Mountain, one of the most popular places among locals and visitors. By request, light hiking tour to go on a top of a mountain (20 minutes) to see a panorama view of the gorge.

Arrival in Karakol, start light sightseeing tour visiting

- The wooden Russian-orthodox church;

- Dungan mosque is one of the most famous places in Karakol town. The most interesting thing is that it is built without a single metal nail. More than 100 years ago there was a Chinese master who lived in this town. Dungans are people from China who had Muslim religion. The construction was made of bricks and wood and decorated with various ornaments.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Transfer to green Chon Kemin valley en- route visiting:

- Ancient stone inscriptions (dating back to 800 B.C.). These petroglyphs were made more than 2 000 years ago by shamans. They depict wolves, long-horned ibex, goats, horses, snow leopards, sacrifices, and some hunting scenes.

- Light sightseeing in beautiful Chon Kemin valley to enjoy the leisure and relaxing time, fresh air, and the breathtaking nature of Chon Kemin green valley.

Morning easy hike to enjoy the panorama of the Chon Kemin village and the fir and birch forests.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the guesthouse.

Breakfast at the guesthouse. 

Transfer to Bishkek with sightseeing en-route:

- Ala Archa Natural park (~35 km from Bishkek, ~ 40min)

Take an easy walk high up to observe the view of mountains and rich Kyrgyz nature, spectate birds and animals living their lives, watch how cold water of Kyrgyz rivers falling down the mountains and continue its way among ancient trees and gorge itself.

Time to explore the area, take photos, and enjoy the fresh air and beautiful nature.

Transfer to Bishkek.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

06:00 Transfer to Bishkek airport.

08:00 Flight Bishkek - Osh.

08:40 Arrival in Osh Airport. 

Meet the driver and guide at the meeting zone.

 Start sightseeing tour in Osh, the oldest city in Kyrgyzstan, visiting

-  Suleiman Too (Suleiman is the prophet Solomon - Suleyman in Quran, “Too “is “mountain”). The museum is the only UNESCO sight of the whole mountain with many sacred places in caves and paths. It is quite unusual – the museum with rare artifacts is located in the largest cave in the mountain. Besides, there are several caves, rocks, and niches each with its name. The locals and pilgrims believe every spot of the mountain is sacred and come here to follow the rituals and pray for a better life and good health; couples come to pray to be blessed with a child. It is believed that every spot of the mountain is sacred. There is a watching platform with beautiful panoramic views of the city and surroundings.

- Osh Bazaar, a colorful bazaar with more than 2000 years of history, plays an important role in the Great Silk Road as a major landmark. Nowadays, the visitors may take a walk around and enjoy shopping in the shops of national clothes, embroidery, handicrafts, and souvenirs.

-  Main Square with Lenin statue. Kyrgyz people are very respectful of the history of the Soviet period and kept the monument to Lenin in main cities as the country major developments were made during the Soviet time.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

11:00 Transfer to the Kyrgyz- Uzbek border  Dostyk- Dostlik. Border crossing formalities (40 min- 1, 5 hrs depending on the customs formalities and tourist flow).

Meet the guide and driver on the Uzbekistan side of the border.

Transfer to Fergana with sightseeing en-route.

- Margilan (“Marg” from Persian green grass, “lon”- “place“) was an inhabited settlement in Fergana valley since IV-III Centuries BC, the town was well known for its crafts and finest silk fabrics from the Great Silk Road period up to now.

- Silk factory Yodgorlik where visitors are welcome to observe the process of silk manufacture with traditional decoration “ikat”.

- Fergana is a relatively young city that was founded as a strategic fortified point in Turkestan in 1876 during the tsarist period of the region. The town was initially called New Margilan, further in the Soviet period renamed Fergona in 1924. Nowadays, Fergana is a flourishing beautiful town and despite its young history became the central point of Fergana valley.

- Visit Ahmad Al-Fargoni monumental complex.

Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Transfer to Kokand with sightseeing en-route:

- Rishton (50 km west of Fergana) is famous all over the world for its pottery that is decorated according to the ancient tradition that is more than 800 years. Masters hand down their trade secrets from father to son. The unique red clay ceramic masterpieces are decorated with naturally made ultramarine, turquoise, and azure ornaments known as blue glaze "ishkor".

- Workshop of the famous potter Rustam Umarov where visitors are welcome to observe the finest Rishtan ceramics in wonderful hand-made and painted tea sets and lagans and beautifully decorated jugs and vases.

Start sightseeing tour around Kokand visiting:

- Khudoyar-Khan Palace of 19th century is listed in the world heritage of UNESCO, at present days houses Kokand Regional History Museum that exhibits a unique collection of more than 3000 artifacts from ancient, khanate, and tsarist periods of the region.

- Norbut-Biy Madrassah, the largest madrassa in Kokand. The madrassa was built in the XVIII century by captured architects as well as the famous Bukharian architect Usto Muhammed Salih Kasim, so the design and construction are quite typical to some monuments of the XVIII Century in  Bukhara.

- Modari Khan Mausoleum (Modari-khan means "Mother of Khan”)  was built in 1825 by order of the widow of Umarkhan,  famous poetess Nodira to honor the tomb of her mother-in-law. Since then the mausoleum became the family mausoleum where most of the female members of khan family were buried.

Afternoon transfer to Tashkent ( about 4, 5 hrs) OR transfer by evening train Kokand - Tashkent. Arrive in Tashkent in the evening.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Start sightseeing tour of Tashkent (5 h) visiting old and new parts of the city:

- Amir Timur Square, founded in 1882 and originally called Konstantinovsky Square, was renamed on August 31, 1994 after the Amir Timur to honor the cultural and historical contribution of the great conqueror.

- Theater Square with the Opera House: State Academic Theater of Uzbekistan named after Alisher Navoi built in 1947 is one of the best opera theaters in the world that performs both classical and national repertoires. 

- Independence Square, the main square of Uzbekistan reflects the past, present, and future of the country. There are fountains standing for the life energy of Uzbek people, the Cabinet and the Senate, the “Eternal flame" in honor of soldiers who died during the Second World War.
- Earthquake Memorial, the composition is devoted to the tragic date of the earthquake in Tashkent on April 26, 1966, and is erected in the approximate place of the earthquake epicenter. Residents still come to the monument to honor those people who took a part in the reconstruction of Tashkent;

- Khast Imam Square – a religious center of the city consisting of the Barakkhan madrasah; Kaffal Shashi Mausoleum and the library of Islamic Literature with the Holy Koran Book of the VII century (original Quran Othman). Khast Imam, one of the most significant spiritual centers in Central Asia, attracts visitors all over the world.

- Chorsu bazaar – the ancient bazaar of Tashkent. “Chorsu” means “four water”, symbolically meaning the conjunction of four major parts of the old city in the bazaar where people come for trades.

- Tashkent Metro (the first line was launched in 1977) with beautiful train stations each decorated in thematic style with traditional ornaments and special lightning.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

06:00 Transfer to the local airport.

07:25 Flight Tashkent – Nukus HY 11.

09:05 Arrival in Nukus.

Come out of the terminal to meet the driver and guide at the meeting zone.

Transfer to Muynak via beautiful Red Canyons with the beautiful and unusual Martian landscape. Arrival in Muynak city that used to be one of the richest cities in the delta of Amu-darya,” the gates to Uzbekistan from the sea”. Nowadays there is only a ship cemetery of Aral Sea 200 kilometers from the present seashore.

- Visit Mizdakhan necropolis on the way back to Nukus (about 20 km from Nukus), an ancient cemetery, and located next to the remains of the Gyaur-Kala fortress.

- Gaur Kala (translated as the fortress of pagans) was a Zoroastrian town with the citadel, the fire altar, and a large cemetery nearby. Even after the Arab invasion and Islam expansion, the town was inhabited until the 14th Century and people continued to bury their relatives in Mizdakhan as they believed the place was a sacred place.

Resting time in the afternoon. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the driver in the lobby.

- Visit Savitsky Museum exhibiting a unique collection of antiques of Khorezm and Karakalpak, Uzbek fine arts, and second-largest collection of Russian avant-garde works after the Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg.

The founder of the museum, Igor Savitsky devoted his life to piece-by-piece collecting of the finest works of modern artists of Uzbekistan and Russian avant-gardists. In the 70s it was quite risky to become an anti-Soviet propagandist. During perestroika and the first years since Uzbekistan independence, the museum earned world recognition and deserved rightfully the must-see site status in Central Asia.

Transfer to Khiva en-route photo stops at the ruins of fortresses of ancient Khorezm.

- Ayaz-Kala and Toprak-Kala, the fortresses of Kushan period of Ancient Khorezm that used to be mighty border forts protecting the residents from raids of nomadic tribes.  The forts were built in ~4-7th century BCE, during the ages when Khorezm achieved its independence. The fortresses are located on the hills quite close to each other and visitors are welcome to have a short overview tour in the monumental forts that currently are drowning in sands.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the guide and start walking excursion in the historical part of Khiva – Ichan-kala (“Inner town”). Ichan-kala, the largest Museum in the open air in Central Asia consists of

- Ata-Darvaza, 

- Kunya- Ark;

- Madrassah of Muhammad Rahim Khan;

- Madrassah of Muhammed Aminhan;

- Kalta Minor,

- the Palace of the Allakulihan Khan of Khiva;

- Tash Hauli, where the harem of 40 concubines was;

- Caravanserai and Tim Allakulihan;

- Mausoleum of Seyd Allaudin,

- Islam-Khoja Madrassah was built in 1908. The minaret is a symbol of the country, an example of the medieval architecture.

- Mosque and Jami Minaret.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer Khiva to Bukhara by car (475 km, 7 hrs) via Kyzylkum desert OR transfer by train (depending on train schedule).

Arrival in Bukhara. Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the afternoon/evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the guide in the lobby.

Start WALKING sightseeing program in Bukhara (5-6 hours):

- Ensemble Lyabi Hauz (Nadir Divanbegi Madrassa, Khanaka, Kukeldash Madrassa and the monument of Khodja Nasreddin);

- Magoki Attari Mosque is one of the oldest mosques survived in Bukhara from the time before the Mongolian invasion;

- Abdullakhan’s Tim with numerous handicraft shops of souvenirs, ceramics, national clothes, and carpets;

- Caravanserai Sayfuddin (the Center of Handicraft Development of Bukhara);

- There are three trading domes or so called covered bazaars Toki Sarrofon, Toki Telpak Furushon, and Toki Zargaron preserved from the XVI century and these bazaars were the centers for trade of silk, jewelry and even for money exchange. Today as well, one can enjoy and purchase different souvenirs of a wide range, from small souvenir magnets to the famous Bukhara carpets;

- Visit Ulugbek and Abdulazizkhan Madrassas or so-called Kosh (pare) madrassas opposite each other with the distinctive style of facade ornamental decoration;

- Poi Kalon Square with Kalon Minaret and Mosque, Mir Arab Madrassa – the heart of Bukhara, a monumental complex impresses the imagination;

- Ark Fortress – the oldest citadel dating back to I century BC where one can feel the history of the great fortress covered in beautiful legends and myths.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Free day* in Bukhara for leisure sightseeing and shopping.

*Optional, Bukhara countryside tour can be added by request.

Sightseeing program in Bukhara countryside visiting:

- Samanids mausoleum (IX century), a monument of early medieval architecture.

- Naqshbandi mausoleum (the founder of Naqshbandi Sufi Spiritual order) Located near Bukhara the memorial complex of Bakhauddin Nakshbandi is considered as one of the most significant religious places of Bukhara that attracts many visitors as well as pilgrims.  The memorial was rebuilt several times in XIV - each Emir of Bukhara wanted to build something new near the mausoleum. This complex impresses with its incomparable style of oriental architecture, which reflects the spirit of the Sufi Order.

- Sitora-I – Mohi Khosa – last Emir summer residence visit by request.

12:00 Standard check out.

15:00 Transfer to the railway station in Bukhara.

15:50 Departure for Samarkand by high-speed train "Afrosiyob".

17:20 Arrival in Samarkand.

Come out of the terminal and meet the driver. Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Start sightseeing program in Samarkand (6 hours):

– Gur Emir Mausoleum – a burial vault of Timur the Great and his descendants decorated with gold ornaments and considered as one of the most significant places in the world;

– Continue to the famous Registan Square – the heart of Samarkand and a real masterpiece of Central Asian medieval architecture consisting of three grandiose buildings: Ulughbek Madrassa, Madrassa Sherdor, and Madrassa Tilla Kori.

– Bibi Khanim Mosque – the biggest medieval building in the city which was one of the most magnificent mosques in the Islamic world in the 15th Century;

– Shahi Zinda Necropolis – unique complex of Mausoleums  formed by standing on both sides of the cenotaph (an imaginary grave) belonging to the Muslim person named Saint Abbas ibn-Kussam;

– Samarkand bazaar – Siyab.

16:30 Transfer to the railway station in Samarkand.

17:28 Departure for Tashkent by high-speed train "Afrosiyob".

19:44 Arrival in Tashkent.

Come out of the terminal and meet the driver.

Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Transfer to Tashkent International Airport.

Morning return flight from Tashkent.

End of the tour.