Tour to Uzbekistan from Tajikistan - 3

Flight to Dushanbe.

Arrival at Dushanbe International Airport (ETA 08:00).

Migration formalities usually take 20 min to 60 min: visa/passport control and baggage claim. 

Come out of the terminal and meet the driver and guide holding a sign “ANUR TOUR” or with your name on it.

Transfer to the hotel to drop off the bags. Standard check-in (14:00).

Start Dushanbe sightseeing tour visiting:

- Tajik National Museum of Antiquities with the biggest Buddha in Nirvana.

The Museum consists of 22 exhibition halls with departments of nature, antiquity and the Middle Ages, modern history, fine and applied arts.

- Tajik flagpole-one of  the world's tallest flagpoles (165-meter flagpole);

- Main square of Dushanbe. The Monument of Ismoili Somoni-the forefather of the Tajik Nation located on the main square. A 40-meter-high monument built to the memory of Ismaili Saman-Khuda, founder of the Samanid dynasty;

- Mehrgon Bazaar - one of the biggest markets of Dushanbe;

- Gissar Fortress- the remains of the Bukhara Emirate Beck’s palace. Its thick walls once guarded a pool, garden, and palace, while the fortress itself overlooked a noisy market and caravanserai. The place was famous as a center of commerce during the Silk Road. You will also be able to visit the Old Medressa (Madrasai Kuhna) of the 16th- 17th century with a museum inside, the new Madrassa of the 17th- 18th  century, as well as Caravan Saray.

Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to Penjikent via Istaravshan town.

Located in the northern foothills of the Turkistan mountain range, 78 km southwest of Khujand, Istaravshan is one of the most ancient cities of Tajikistan (more than 2500 years). Its ancient name was Cyropolis, founded by Cyrus the Great in 544 BC as a border fort of the Achaemenid Empire.

During the Soviet era, the city was known as Ura - Tyube.

Overview of sightseeing in Istaravshan:

- Mazori Sharif mausoleum,

- Kog Gumbaz madrasa (16th century)

- Kuhi Mug, the ruins of the ancient fortress.

Arrival in Penjikent.

Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09: 00 Start sightseeing tour in Penjikent, visiting: 

Lunch at the local café.

Afternoon border crossing at BP Jartepa to Uzbekistan (takes about 30 min-1 hr), meet the driver at Uzbekistan side of the border. 

Transfer to Samarkand.  

Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the guide and driver. Start the Samarkand sightseeing tour, visiting 

– Gur Emir Mausoleum – a burial vault of Timur the Great and his descendants, decorated with gold ornaments and considered 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;

– Samarkand Bazaar Siyab.

Transfer to the hotel.
Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.    

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Transfer to Shakhrisabz.

Excursion tour in Shakhrisabz includes visiting (2,5 hrs):

- Ak Saray Palace (“White Palace”), the ruins of the summer palace of Tamerlane. The palace was constructed and decorated by skilled builders, masters, and artisans deported from conquered Khorezm. Some parts of the gate tower survived to the present day.

- Mausoleum of Dorus-Saodat ("The Place of Power", 14th century) contains the tomb of Eldest and favorite Tamerlane’s son, Jahangir.

- Visit Kok Gumbaz, the so-called “House of Meditation.

- Mausoleum Gumbazi-Seyidon of the 16th century, where the descendants of Ulugbek are buried. 

21:00 Transfer to the railway station in Samarkand.

22:23 Departure for Bukhara by high-speed train "Afrosiyob".

00:06 Arrival in Bukhara. Transfer to the hotel.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the guide in the lobby. Start the walking sightseeing program in Bukhara (5 hrs):

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

- Magoki Attari Mosque is one of the oldest mosques to survive 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);

- Trading domes or so-called covered bazaars, Toki Sarrofon, Toki Telpak Furushon, and Toki Zargaron, preserved from the 16th century, and these bazaars were the centers for trade of silk, jewelry, and even for money exchange. Today, as well, visitors can purchase different souvenirs of a wide range, from small souvenir magnets to the famous Bukhara carpets;

- 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 that impresses the imagination;

- Ark Fortress – the oldest citadel dating back to the 1st 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.

Morning at leisure.

11:30 Transfer to the train station in Bukhara.

12:24 Departure for Khiva by train (as per train schedule) OR transfer by car (475 km, 7 hrs).

17:51 Arrival in Khiva.

Come out of the terminal and meet the driver.

Transfer to the hotel.

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

Breakfast at the hotel.

09:00 Meet the guide at the hotel.

Start a walking excursion in the historical part of Khiva – Ichan- Kala (translated as “Inner Town”). Ichan- Kala - the largest Museum in the open air in Central Asia, consisting of:

- Ata-Darvaza, Kunya - Ark;

- Madrassah of Muhammad Rahim Khan;

- Madrassah of Muhammad Aminhan;

- Kalta Minor, the Palace of the Allakulihan Khan of Khiva;

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

- Caravanserai and Tim Allakulihan;

- Pahlavan Mahmud Gates, Mausoleum of Seyd Allaudin,

- Pahlavan Mahmud Mausoleum - one of the best works of Khivian architecture - mausoleum of Pahlavan Mahmud - done in the tradition of Khorezm architecture of the XVIII-XIX centuries  and Pahlavan Mahmud Gates,

- Islam-Khoja Madrassah - was built in 1908 by Islam-Khoja, the Prime Minister of the Khan. The minaret is a symbol of the country and is an early example of the architecture of the XIV century.

- Mosque and Jami Minaret.

Resting time in the evening. Overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

08:00 Transfer to Urgench Airport.

09:55 Flight Urgench - Tashkent HY 12.

11:15 Arrival in Tashkent. 

Come out of the terminal and meet the driver and guide, who will wait for you with a tablet with "ANUR TOUR".

Start a sightseeing tour of Tashkent (5-6 hrs) 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 Amir Timur to honor the cultural and historical contribution of the great conqueror.
Around the Square, there is the Museum of History of Timurids, Uzbekistan Hotel, Forum Palace, and the famous Tashkent striking clock.

- Tashkent striking clock, one of the major symbols of Tashkent.

- Theater Square with the Opera House: The State Academic Theater of Uzbekistan named after Alisher Navoi, built in 1947, is one of the best opera theaters in the world 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, and 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 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 is one of the most significant spiritual centers in Central Asia and attracts pilgrims and visitors from all over the world.

- Chorsu bazaar – the ancient bazaar of Tashkent. “Chorsu” means “four waters”, symbolically meaning the conjunction of four major parts of the old city in the bazaar where people come to trade. The bazaar's beautiful blue dome, built in traditional style after the Tashkent earthquake, is often depicted in postcards and international magazines and has become one of the major sights of interest both for locals and guests – one can see the oriental tiled bazaar from different souvenir shops with ceramics, handicraft works, carpets and jewelry, the whole pavilion full of delicious fruits to the finest textiles and colorful fabrics.

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

Transfer to Tashkent International Airport.

Departure by evening flight.

End of the tour.