Tashkent is a very green city, lots of tree lined avenues, parks and wonderful fountains. We had a chance to visit the main attractions on our first and last days in this city, the highlight was the ride on the Tashkent Metro on our final day. There is a strict policy of no photography here, so suggest you visit the internet to see images of the wonderful architecture and décor as each station is unique.

The day after our arrival we fly to Ungench and then travel for about 30 minutes to he ancient city of Khiva, or Itchan Kala as it is known. Our hotel, where we stay for 2 nights, is a converted Madrassah situated just inside the west gate of the crenellated walls that surround the inner city. It is easy to visualise the caravans laden with goods arriving here to rest before continuing their journey along the Great Silk Road. Islamic architecture and majolica covered brickwork are a feature of this historic city.

All too soon we leave Khiva and take the 10 hour road journey through the Kyzylkum Desert to Bukhara where we have a 3 night stay. Our hotel is situated within easy reach of the main square where you find some of the major historical buildings. We are also close to the trade domes where again it is easy to imagine the caravans arriving to trade their goods. Our hotel has a lovely roof terrace overlooking Bukhara’s wonderful architecture, a perfect place to relax. The Silk Road coffee house around the corner from the hotel is worth a visit, the price for coffee is 15 sum, it includes a free refill and an assortment of sweets to enjoy with your drink.

Our next destination for the next 3 nights is Samarkand known as ‘the heart of the Great Silk Road’. Again our hotel is within easy reach of all the sites of historical interest, the buildings are visually stunning with breathtakingly beautiful interiors. Visit the nearby market which is buzzing with activity particularly early in the day, the noise hits you even before you enter the fray. The spice stalls were a particular favorite, such a wonderful aroma.

During our stay we also visit Shakhrisabz, the birthplace of Amir Temur. Travel here is by taxi as the roads through the mountains are unsuitable for our coach. Age has taken it’s toll on these ancient buildings, the town is in the process of being re-built so unfortunately in some places it is a demolition site. On our return we made a stop at a typical mountain village where a local family welcomed us, offering bread for us to share, we were delighted to have the chance to see into one of their homes, a rare opportunity and a real privilege.

Roads – There is a new dual carriageway being constructed through the Kyzylkum Desert which is yet to be completed, the sections that are open are very good. Many of the Russian laid roads have bad surfaces due to the extreme temperatures between winter and summer causing the surface to break up. The mountain roads are the roughest, but again there is evidence of these being repaired and upgraded.

Toilets vary between pedestal and the squatty potty type. With the exception of the ladies at Urgench airport are all clean and well maintained, a lot have attendants, for this there is a charge of 500 sum.

Money –During our visit the exchange rate was $20 = 50,000 sum.

Food – I found it to be very good, we were offered 4 courses at lunch and dinner in the majority of restaurants where we ate. The range of salads was particularly good.

Uzbekistan is a very clean country, streets are washed and brushed daily, by hand, and there is no evidence of litter or graffiti. The people are very friendly and welcoming and you are very safe to walk around alone.

Our days typically started between 8.00am and 8.30am as we were covering most of the sights on foot, so by early afternoon when it was getting extremely hot, we had completed our sightseeing. We enjoyed plenty of free time on most days allowing us to explore at leisure or just relax and people watch.

Finally a big thank you to my fellow travellers for you company and all the fun we had, and to Laura our tour manager and Larissa our local guide who made sure we got the most from each day by getting us to every destination before the other tour groups arrived.

This has been a truly memorable holiday.

Yve

great review thank you for posting such a detailed report..glad you had a great tour

Cindy

Jaya

Best wishes,

Bob

Keith

It seems you will be disappointed as it is not in the brochure for 2015. A shame because I agree its one of JY's best.

I think the expression is ...this tour is resting I am sure it will be back some time soon..

Cindy

Great review, glad you had such a good time, I can't wait for my turn to come around later this year.

One question I would like to ask is roughly how much money would you say you need to allow for each day. I know its half board including 7 lunches but obviously there are things like drinks and other lunches to pay for plus maybe a souvenir if something unusual catches my eye, I have no idea how their cost of living compares to ours.

Avocet

How much money you need each day will obviously depend on how much you intend to by in the way of souvenir's but as a rough guide this is what we were paying for drinks. Beer and wine, 7000 sum, Vodka, the most I paid was 4000 sum. Coffee 6000 sum and green tea 3000 sum, perhaps allow up to 15000 sum for lunch if you have more than one course. Restaurants prefer local currency but did accept Euros and Dollars if that's all you had, the shops and stalls preferred Dollars, however I think it depends on which currency has the best exchange rate at the time. Changing money was easy, the hotels can do this, but you will probably find that the coach driver will also provide this facility. We were amused one evening in Bukhara to see our driver make a phone call and 5 minutes later someone turned up with a carrier bag stuffed with cash.

I hope you have as good a time on this tour as our group did.

Yve

Hi Avocet

How much money you need each day will obviously depend on how much you intend to by in the way of souvenir's but as a rough guide this is what we were paying for drinks. Beer and wine, 7000 sum, Vodka, the most I paid was 4000 sum. Coffee 6000 sum and green tea 3000 sum, perhaps allow up to 15000 sum for lunch if you have more than one course. Restaurants prefer local currency but did accept Euros and Dollars if that's all you had, the shops and stalls preferred Dollars, however I think it depends on which currency has the best exchange rate at the time. Changing money was easy, the hotels can do this, but you will probably find that the coach driver will also provide this facility. We were amused one evening in Bukhara to see our driver make a phone call and 5 minutes later someone turned up with a carrier bag stuffed with cash.

I hope you have as good a time on this tour as our group did.

Yve

Hi Yve

Sorry for the delay in thanking you, I just come back from another holiday.

Your info is much appreciated, at least I can now start to work

out what I need to allow for drinks etc., I'm not a big souvenir buyer so will allow just little extra in case something small catches my eye relating to Uzbek, I've always got dollars as I find quite a few countries prefer them to other currency, if I have any left over it wont matter.

Many thanks again

Avocet

I've been sorting through all the paperwork for this holiday and found all the photo permits for this tour, so you need to budget for these too. The most expensive was Khiva which was 7000 sum but covers all the museums etc. In Bukhara and Samarkand they varied each day between 2000 and 4000 sum.

Yve

Cheers,

Bob

I too was pleased to see this tour included for next year, but I doubt if I will be able to fit it in next year. Hopefully it will still be on offer in 2016 though I have my eyes on a few others as well.

Jaya