Travel guide
Uzbekistan holidays: a travel guide for UK visitors
Samarkand’s Registan, the old city of Bukhara and the walled town of Khiva: a practical guide to Uzbekistan holidays and Silk Road tours, with the best time to visit Uzbekistan month by month.
Why visit Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan holds the cities that most people picture when they hear the words Silk Road. Samarkand has the Registan, three great madrasas faced in blue and gold tiles around one square, and the tomb of Timur, the conqueror who made the city his capital. Bukhara is older and lower, a maze of mud-brick lanes, domed bazaars and madrasas around the Kalon minaret, which has stood since the twelfth century. Khiva, far to the west on the edge of the desert, keeps a whole walled inner town almost intact. Tashkent, the capital, is modern by comparison, with a metro whose stations are decorated like palaces. People often ask whether it is safe, welcoming and easy to visit. It is generally all three, and the food, from plov to bread baked in clay ovens, is better than its reputation. What is less easy is the paperwork and the logistics: the police registration of visitors, the popular trains that sell out, the long road to Khiva. A tour takes care of all of it.
Best time to visit Uzbekistan
The best time to visit Uzbekistan is spring, from April to May, or autumn, from September to October, when days are warm and dry, evenings are cool and walking around the old cities is a pleasure. These are also the busiest months, so trains and hotels book up early. March brings Navruz, the spring new year, around 21 March, though the weather is still changeable. June is hot, and July and August are very hot, often above forty degrees in Bukhara and Khiva, which makes long days of sightseeing hard work; if you do go in summer, see the sights early and late. Winter, from about November to February, is cold, with freezing nights and sometimes snow in Samarkand and Tashkent, but the monuments are open and nearly empty, and there are few other visitors.
Uzbekistan month by month
- JanuaryQuiet
- Cold, often below freezing, with snow possible in Samarkand; the sights are nearly empty, but days are short.
- FebruaryQuiet
- Still cold, with a slow thaw beginning in the south; few visitors and some reduced opening hours.
- MarchGood
- Spring arrives quickly, with some rain; Navruz, the new year, is celebrated around 21 March.
- AprilBest
- Warm, clear days and blossom, one of the best and busiest months for touring the Silk Road cities.
- MayBest
- Warm and settled, turning hot by the end of the month; long light evenings in the old towns.
- JuneGood
- Heat builds fast, and the bazaars fill with cherries and apricots; sightseeing is best early and late.
- JulyAvoid
- The hottest month, regularly above forty degrees in Bukhara and Khiva; hard going on foot.
- AugustAvoid
- Still fiercely hot through most of the month, with the desert cities the worst affected.
- SeptemberBest
- The heat eases into warm, dry days, the melon harvest is in, and touring is comfortable again.
- OctoberBest
- Crisp, clear and golden, with cool evenings; busy, so trains and hotels book up early.
- NovemberQuiet
- Cooling fast, with cold nights, occasional rain and the first frosts.
- DecemberQuiet
- Winter returns, with freezing nights and the chance of snow; very few visitors.
Top things to do in Uzbekistan
- 1
See the Registan and the monuments of Samarkand
Almost every one of our Uzbekistan holidays stops in Samarkand. The Registan, three tiled madrasas facing one another across a great square, is the sight everyone comes for, and it is worth seeing at different times of day. Nearby are the Gur-e-Amir, the tomb of Timur, the huge Bibi-Khanym mosque and the Shah-i-Zinda, a street of tiled mausoleums climbing a hillside.
- 2
Walk the old city of Bukhara
Bukhara is a city to explore on foot, and most tours give it two or three nights. Its centre is the Kalon minaret and mosque, with the Mir-i-Arab madrasa opposite; around them are covered bazaars, the Ark fortress and the Lyabi-Hauz, a pool shaded by old mulberry trees, where people gather in the evenings.
- 3
Stay inside the walls of Khiva
Khiva’s inner town, the Itchan Kala, is surrounded by mud-brick walls and packed with madrasas, mosques, minarets and palaces, as if the whole city had been kept as a museum. Most of our tours include it, travelling across the Kyzylkum desert by road from Bukhara or flying to nearby Urgench. Climb a minaret or the walls at sunset for the view over the domes.
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Uzbekistan travel questions
- When is the best time to visit Uzbekistan?
- April to May and September to October, when it is warm and dry without the summer heat. These months are busy, so book early. July and August are very hot, often above forty degrees in Bukhara and Khiva. Winter is cold, but the sights are open and quiet.
- Is spring or autumn better for Uzbekistan?
- Both are good. Spring brings blossom and green countryside, and Navruz, the new year, in March. Autumn is drier and golden, with the harvest in the bazaars. Late April and late September are often the most comfortable for walking around the cities.
- Is a week long enough for Uzbekistan?
- A week covers Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara, travelling by fast train. Ten days to two weeks adds Khiva, which is a long way west, and more time in each city. Many of our holidays also continue into Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan or Kazakhstan.
- Is Uzbekistan safe for tourists?
- Most visits are trouble-free, and visitors are generally made very welcome. Pickpocketing and bag snatching happen in bazaars and on public transport, so keep valuables out of sight. Read the UK government’s travel advice before you go, including its advice on the border with Afghanistan.
- Is Uzbekistan good for solo travellers?
- Yes, especially on a tour, which takes care of the paperwork, trains and transfers. Some of our holidays are designed for people travelling alone, including Just You’s tours, which are for solo travellers. Dress modestly and take the usual care at night.
- Do UK citizens need a visa for Uzbekistan?
- No, for visits of up to 30 days. Your passport must be valid for at least three months after you arrive, and you must carry it at all times. Check the UK government’s travel advice before you go.
- What is OVIR registration, and will my tour handle it?
- Every visitor must be registered with the local authorities within three days of arriving, and again in each new place they stay for longer than that. Hotels usually register their guests for you, so on a tour it is taken care of. If you stay anywhere else before or after the tour, check how you will be registered.
- How do you travel between Samarkand and Bukhara?
- Usually by the Afrosiyob high-speed train, which links Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara in a few hours. Tickets sell out quickly in the busy months, which a tour books for you. Khiva is reached by road across the desert, or by a flight to Urgench.
- What should I wear to visit mosques and madrasas?
- Cover your shoulders and knees, and women should carry a scarf to cover their hair in working mosques. Take your shoes off where asked. Most of the great madrasas are now museums or craft markets, and are relaxed about dress, but modest clothing is appreciated everywhere.
- Can I take photographs in Uzbekistan?
- At the monuments, freely. Be careful around government buildings, airports, border posts, military sites, police stations and bridges, where photography can cause trouble with the authorities, and ask before photographing people.
- Can I take my medicines to Uzbekistan?
- Check carefully before you go. Uzbekistan restricts some medicines, and some that are sold freely in the UK, including codeine, can cause problems. Carry a doctor’s prescription for prescription medicines and declare them on arrival. Check the UK government’s travel advice and the Uzbek Embassy’s list of restricted medicines.
- Should I take cash or cards to Uzbekistan?
- Cash is still important outside larger hotels and shops. Take clean, undamaged US dollars or euros to exchange at banks or official booths; US dollar notes issued before 2013 are often refused. Black-market exchange is illegal. Cash machines exist in the cities but are not always reliable.
- What vaccinations do I need for Uzbekistan?
- See your GP or a travel clinic at least six weeks before you go. They will check your routine vaccinations and advise on any others for your itinerary. TravelHealthPro publishes the current advice for Uzbekistan.