From
$1,540 USD
Land of the Blue Domes
Tour overview
Weekly Monday departures, lunches and a folk night included
- Trip code
- PT-BLUE8
- Days
- 8
- From
- Tashkent
- To
- Khiva
- Country visited
- Uzbekistan
- Group size
- 2–12
- Min age
- 8+
- Physical
- Guide languages
- 18 languages
A weekly Monday departure through Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva, with six lunches, a folk night in a Bukhara madrasah and sunset over the walls of Ichan-Kala.
This is the most sociable version of the classic route. It leaves every Monday, it runs with a Spanish- or English-speaking guide, and it includes the two evenings that make a difference: the folk night in the courtyard of the Nodir Devon Begi madrasah in Bukhara, and sunset from a Khiva rooftop with a glass of something cold while the mud walls go from ochre to rose.
Lunch is included on six days, which matters more than it sounds — it means no daily negotiation about where to eat, and it means eating in the places locals send you to rather than the ones on the main square.
The trip ends in Khiva. Fly home from Urgench, thirty minutes away, or add the flight back to Tashkent if your ticket needs it.
Inclusions & activities
What’s included
Destinations
In flight · Tashkent · Samarkand · Bukhara · Khiva
Meals
Breakfast · Lunch
Transport
Private vehicle · High-speed train · Walking
Accommodation
Hotel in Tashkent · Hotel in Samarkand · Hotel in Bukhara · Hotel in Khiva
Included in the price15
- Hotel accommodation on a twin/double sharing basis
- Breakfast every morning at the hotel
- Air-conditioned private vehicle with a professional driver
- Licensed English-speaking guide for all sightseeing
- Entrance fees to every monument named in the itinerary
- 1 litre of bottled water per person per day
- Hotel and city tourist taxes
- Arrival and departure transfers
- 24/7 support from our Samarkand office during the trip
- Six lunches in local restaurants, with tea and water
- Early check-in on arrival in Tashkent
- Folk show at the Nodir Devon Begi madrasah in Bukhara
- Sunset aperitif with fruit and cheese in Khiva
- Economy-class train Tashkent–Samarkand
- A map and a Uzbek souvenir for each traveller
Not included11
- International flights to and from Uzbekistan
- Visa fees where a visa is required
- Travel and medical insurance
- Lunches and dinners unless listed as included
- Drinks, including bottled water at restaurants
- Photo and video permits at monuments
- Tips for the guide and driver
- Porterage at airports, stations and hotels
- Personal expenses and anything not listed as included
- Porterage, roughly €15 per person for the whole trip, paid locally
- Tips, roughly €35 per person for the whole trip, paid locally
Your contact for this trip
Muzaffar Shermamatov
Founder
“Write to me with any question. I reply within 24 hours and will adjust the route to you.”
Route & itinerary
Tashkent → Samarkand → Bukhara → Khiva → Urgench
In flight
Day 1 of 8
Flight
Day 1 Fly to Tashkent
Depart your home city for Tashkent. Night on board.
Moderate
Getting around
Flight · Overnight flight
Flight
Day 2 Tashkent
Arrive, transfer to the hotel with early check-in included, then breakfast. The old city: the Earthquake Memorial, the Hazrati Imam complex with the Barak Khan and Kaffal Shashi madrasahs and the Uthman Quran, and Chorsu bazaar. Lunch, then Independence square, the Romanov palace from outside, the opera square, Amir Timur square and the metro.
Moderate
- Hazrati Imam complex
- Chorsu bazaar
- Independence square
- Tashkent metro
Stay
Hotel in Tashkent
Getting around
Flight · Airport transfer, then a full sightseeing day
Breakfast, Lunch included
Train
Day 3 Tashkent to Samarkand
Train to Samarkand and straight into the city once known as Maracanda: Gur-e-Amir, then Registan square. Lunch, then Shah-i-Zinda and Ulugh Beg’s observatory.
Moderate
- Gur-e-Amir mausoleum
- Registan square
- Shah-i-Zinda
- Ulugh Beg observatory
Stay
Hotel in Samarkand
Getting around
Train · Train 2h10, check-in from 14:00
Breakfast, Lunch included
Road
Day 4 Samarkand to Bukhara
Finish Samarkand with Bibi-Khanym mosque and Siab bazaar, then drive 260 km to Bukhara. In the evening, the folk show in the courtyard of the Nodir Devon Begi madrasah — musicians, dancers and a parade of Bukharan costume.
Moderate
- Bibi-Khanym mosque
- Siab bazaar
- Folk show at the Nodir Devon Begi madrasah
Stay
Hotel in Bukhara
Getting around
Road · About 5 hours driving, 260 km
Breakfast, Lunch included
On foot
Day 5 Bukhara
A full day in the holy city: the Samanid mausoleum, the Chashma Ayub spring, Bolo Hauz mosque, the Ark citadel, the Kalon minaret and mosque and the Miri Arab madrasah. Lunch, then the three trading domes, Lyabi-Hauz and the Ulugh Beg and Abdulaziz Khan madrasahs facing each other across the street.
Moderate
- Samanid mausoleum
- Ark citadel
- Kalon minaret and mosque
- Three trading domes
- Lyabi-Hauz
Stay
Hotel in Bukhara
Getting around
On foot · Walking day
Breakfast, Lunch included
Road
Day 6 Bukhara to Khiva
The desert crossing — 460 km and six to seven hours through the Kyzylkum, with lunch at a roadside cafe. Arrive in Khiva in time for sunset on the hotel terrace with a glass of wine or beer and a plate of fruit and cheese.
Moderate
- Sunset aperitif on the hotel terrace
Stay
Hotel in Khiva
Getting around
Road · 6–7 hours, 460 km
Breakfast, Lunch included
On foot
Day 7 Khiva
Ichan-Kala, the walled inner town, is a UNESCO site you can cross in twenty minutes and spend a day inside. The Kalta Minor — a fat turquoise stump of a minaret abandoned when its khan died — then Kunya Ark fortress, the Muhammad Amin Khan madrasah, Tash-Hovli palace with its harem courtyards, the Pakhlavan Mahmud mausoleum and the Juma mosque, where 213 carved wooden columns hold up a roof in near-darkness. Lunch in the old town, then the Islom Khodja minaret, the Allakuli Khan madrasah and caravanserai.
Moderate
- Ichan-Kala
- Kalta Minor
- Kunya Ark
- Juma mosque
- Tash-Hovli palace
- Pakhlavan Mahmud mausoleum
Stay
Hotel in Khiva
Getting around
On foot · Walking day inside the walls
Breakfast, Lunch included
Road
Day 8 Depart from Urgench
Breakfast, then the 30 km transfer to Urgench airport for your onward flight.
Moderate
Getting around
Road · 30 km, about 40 minutes
Breakfast included
In flight
Day 1 of 8
Read this first
Before you book
Group sales close 30 days before each departure — 21 days for the March, June, July, August and November dates. Later than that, ask us and we will check what is still available; Uzbekistan runs close to full in high season and domestic tickets are the bottleneck.
Uzbek railways release seats 60 days before departure and no earlier, so we need full passport details at least 62 days ahead to ticket you. In peak season Afrosiyob seats are occasionally withdrawn for government use; if that happens we move you to the Sharq train or a domestic flight at no extra cost to you.
Hotel check-in is 14:00 and check-out 12:00. Early check-in on arrival day is included only where the itinerary says so. Most Uzbek hotels are low-rise conversions without lifts, and the local star rating is not the European one — every hotel we use has en-suite bathrooms, air conditioning and daily housekeeping.
Dates & prices
Choose your start date
DepartingFinishingAvailabilityPer person
Before you book
Questions about this trip
How big is the group?
Never more than twelve travellers. Group departures run from two people; if a date sells beyond twelve, we open a second group with its own guide rather than enlarge the first. On a private tour the group is just your own party.
When is the best time to do this trip?
April to early June and September to early November are the two sweet spots: 20–28°C, clear light on the tilework, and fruit in the bazaars. July and August regularly pass 40°C, so summer departures start earlier and keep the middle of the day for museums and lunch. Winter is cold but empty — Registan without a crowd is worth the coat.
Do I need a visa for Uzbekistan?
Citizens of most of Europe, the UK, Japan, South Korea, Israel, Turkey and much of Latin America enter visa-free for 30 days. Everyone else can apply online at e-visa.gov.uz, which takes two to three working days. Your passport must be valid for six months beyond the date you arrive. We will confirm what applies to your nationality when you book.
Can I join as a solo traveller?
Yes. Solo travellers pay a single supplement for their own room, which we quote with the trip. On group departures we do not pair strangers in a room unless both of you ask us to.
What if I am vegetarian or have allergies?
Tell us when you book. Uzbek cooking is meat-heavy but every restaurant we use can produce good vegetarian food — the salads, breads, pumpkin manti and vegetable stews are excellent — and we brief each restaurant ahead of your arrival. Gluten-free is harder because bread is central, but it is workable with notice.
Payment, date changes and cancellation
- Nothing to pay until 60 days before the start — the booking holds without a card.
- Change your dates free of charge up to 60 days ahead; from day 59, 20% of what you have paid.
- Cancel 60 days or more ahead and nothing is kept.
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Tashkent, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz, Bukhara and Khiva
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Regular price $1,42529% off
From $1,000 USD
on 17 Nov 2026
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