Who has not dreamed of travelling the famous Silk Road? In October 2019 I finally did so by following its route from Khiva to Tashkent. Together with my friend Claudia, I explored Khiva, Bukhara, Samarkand and Tashkent all on Uzbekistan’s comfortable trains. All these towns bear witness of how unimaginable rich this region once was, mainly through trade. My favorite place? Samarkand!
Samarkand, Registan
In this post you find all links to other posting regarding this trip and Information regarding accomodation and transport
Accommodation: There is everything you want, it is a matter of price. We stayed mostly in private homes that we booked via booking.com only 1-2 days before our arrival. A typical Uzbek home has a lovely courtyard, breakfast is plenty and tasty. Usually the hosts organise onward travel or little excursions by taxi.
our home in Samarkand
Our home in Tashkent
Our room in Tashkent
Travelling Uzbekistan: I travelled with my friend Claudia, all we booked prior to leaving was the first night in each city. We flew Aeroflot via Moscow to Tashkent. To catch the plane to Urgench we had to change airport in Tashkent, but it is close and there is no traffic in the early morning hours. Within the country the train is your best bet, there are different categories, we never used the most expensive one Afrosiob. Taxis are cheap and needed for excursion to the outskirts of the city or to the Khorezm Fortresses.
Train travel Uzbekistan
Advertisement of Uzbek Railways
Train travel Uzbekistan
Thing we had wished to see we only had 10 days in the country so the long haul to Moynaq, on what once was the shore of Aral Sea. To see the abandoned shipyard was truly tempting but it would have meant two days travelling from and back to Khiva. On another trip I certainly will visit the Fergana Valley in very east of the country.
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