Tour Overview
| Duration | 12 Days / 11 Nights |
|---|---|
| Destination | Uzbekistan — Tashkent, Nukus, Muynak (Aral Sea), Khiva, Bukhara, Nurata, Samarkand |
| Price From | $1,890 per person (twin share, small group) |
| Tour Style | Extended Discovery — Silk Road Cities + Aral Sea Ecological Tragedy |
| Best Season | March-May & September-November |
| Data Source | Advantour 2026 verified pricing, 6+ departure dates |
Itinerary Highlights
Day 1-2: Tashkent & Fly to Nukus
Arrive Tashkent, explore the capital. Day 2: fly to Nukus, capital of the autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan. Nukus is home to the Savitsky Museum — the “Louvre of the Desert,” housing the world’s second-largest collection of Russian avant-garde art (after the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg). Igor Savitsky, an artist and archaeologist, rescued over 90,000 works banned by Soviet authorities — paintings by artists who were later executed or died in the Gulag — and hid them in this remote desert city. The collection includes works by Alexander Volkov, Ural Tansykbayev, and the entire Turkestan avant-garde school. Overnight in Nukus.
Day 3: Muynak & The Aral Sea Ship Cemetery
The haunting day trip to Muynak, once a thriving fishing port on the Aral Sea. Today, the sea has retreated over 100 km, leaving a ghost fleet of rusting ships stranded on the dried seabed — the Aral Sea Ship Cemetery. The Aral Sea was once the world’s fourth-largest inland water body (68,000 km²); Soviet irrigation projects diverted its feeder rivers starting in the 1960s, and by 2007 it had shrunk to 10% of its original size. Muynak’s population dropped from 40,000 to fewer than 15,000. Visiting the ship cemetery is a sobering encounter with one of the 20th century’s greatest environmental disasters — but also with a community that persists despite everything. Return to Nukus.
Day 4-7: Khiva, Bukhara & The Kyzylkum Desert
Continue to Khiva (UNESCO), then cross the Kyzylkum Desert to Bukhara — visiting ancient fortresses en route (Toprak-Kala, Ayaz-Kala, massive mud-brick structures from the 2nd-5th centuries AD that were capitals of the Khorezm civilization). In Bukhara: the Ark fortress, Kalyan Minaret, Samanid Mausoleum, and the living bazaars. Special stop in Nurata — a small town sacred to both Muslims and Zoroastrians, where a holy spring full of sacred fish flows from the mountains, and the petroglyphs of Sarmish-say document 4,000 years of human presence.
Day 8-10: Samarkand — The Pearl of the East
Three days in Samarkand: the Registan, Gur-e-Amir, Shah-i-Zinda, Bibi-Khanym, the Ulugbek Observatory (where the astronomer-king calculated the length of the year to within 1 minute of modern measurements in 1437), the Afrosiyob Museum (with 7th-century Sogdian frescoes depicting ambassadors from China, Korea, and India), and a day trip to Shakhrisabz, Timur’s birthplace.
Day 11-12: Tashkent & Departure
Fast train to Tashkent. Last day exploring the Uzbek capital — the Museum of Applied Arts, the Minor Mosque, the metro art tour. Farewell dinner. Day 12: departure.
Inclusions
- 11 nights accommodation
- Daily breakfast, 4 dinners
- Domestic flights: Tashkent-Nukus
- Fast trains
- All ground transportation
- Professional guide
- All entrance fees
Exclusions
- International flights, travel insurance, personal expenses
