Page 15 - CENTRAL ASIA

Day 1 TASHKENT
Meet our representative at the airport, and check-in at the hotel.
Day 2 TASHKENT
Day devoted to exploring the capital. Visit the Khasti-Imam complex, located in the heart of
the medieval old town. Continue to the medersas and the Khasti-Imam mosque. Explore the
Chorsou Bazaar, the capital’s oldest market.
Day 3 TASHKENT - KOKAND - RISHTAN - FERGHANA
Transfer to Tashkent station to take the train to Kokand, one of the oldest cities on the Silk
Road. Discover the majestic palace built in 1870 and the Djouma mosque. On to Rishtan, a
town famous for its ceramics, and a visit to a workshop to learn about the production process.
Last stop of the day in Ferghana.
Day 4 FERGHANA - MARGUILAN - TASHKENT - SAMARKAND
Depart to Marguilan, following in the footsteps of the ancient Silk Road. Visit the largest
handicraft center to learn about the manufacturing process of “Atlas” and “Adras” silk fabrics.
On the way to Tashkent, stop by the Namangan bread market and admire the scenery over the
Kamchik Pass. Arrive and transfer to the station for the train to Samarkand.
Day 5 SAMARKAND
Day dedicated to discovering Samarkand. Visit the city’s most sacred site: Chakhi-Zinda (Living
King) and the Bibi-Khanym mosque. Stroll through the Siab bazaar, renowned for its dried fruit,
nougat, spices and wafers. Discover Registan Square and its three medersas.
Day 6 SAMARKAND
Continue to the discovery of Samarkand. Visit to the Ulugh Beg observatory (astrology was the
emir’s passion). Discover the Afrasiab Historical Museum, renowned for its famous murals. Drive
to Koniguil village to visit the mulberry bark paper factory.

Day 7 SAMARKAND - SHAHRISABZ - SAMARKAND
Drive to Shahrisabz via the Takhti-Karatcha pass, with its panoramic views of the Guissar and
Zarafshan mountains. Upon arrival, visit the birthplace of Timur the Great, with the remains
of the Ak Saray Palace, the most beautiful secular building in Central Asia. Then, visit the
Dorouttilovate (House of Meditation and Contemplation) and the Doroussaodate (House of
Power) architectural ensembles. Return by road to Samarkand.

Day 8 SAMARKAND - BUKHARA
Drive to Bukhara, stopping at Karmana to visit the remains of the ancient caravanserai
(underground water cistern), then at Guijdouvan to visit the workshop of a local ceramist.
Arrive in Bukhara by mid-afternoon. Stroll through the historic center of the old town.
Day 9 BUKHARA
Explore the city, visiting mausoleums, the main market and the Bolo-Khaouz mosque.
Continue to the Ulugh Beg Medersa, one of the oldest universities in Central Asia, and the
Poi-Kalon architectural ensemble, tracing the architectural evolution from the Karakhanids
to the Shaybanids.
Day 10 BUKHARA
Visit the monuments outside the city walls. Discover the necropolis of Bahaouddin
Naqshbandi, one of the country’s most important Muslim pilgrimage sites, with the tomb of
this Sufi saint and founder of the Naqshbandiyya Sufi order.
Day 11 BUKHARA - KHIVA
Drive to Khiva through a magnificent landscape of dunes and saxauls (light-trunked trees) in
the Kyzylum desert. Arrival by mid-afternoon.

Day 12 KHIVA
Visit the inner city, medersas, mausoleums, palaces of the Kings of Khiva, minarets and
the mosques of Itchan-Kala. Discover the Tach-Khaouli palace, one of the most important
buildings in civil architecture.
Day 13 KHIVA - TOPRAK-KALA - AYAZ-KALA - KHIVA
Discover the Toprak-Kala fortress, dating from between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC, and the
first capital of the ancient Khorezm state under the Kushans. Followed by a visit to the Ayaz Kala
fortress.
Day 14 KHIVA - URGENCH - DEPART