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Central Asia Explorer: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan & Tajikistan – 17 Days

KYRGYZ ADVENTURE TRIP

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Tour route

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KYRGYZ ADVENTURE TRIP

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Central Asia Explorer: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan & Tajikistan – 17 Days — 1

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Central Asia Explorer: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan & Tajikistan – 17 Days — 2

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Central Asia Explorer: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan & Tajikistan – 17 Days — 3

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Duration17 days

DifficultyMedium

RegionKyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan & Tajikistan

Tour overview
This 17-day small-group journey crosses three Central Asian countries, from the mountain lakes and nomad pastures of Kyrgyzstan to the Silk Road cities of Uzbekistan, with a stretch through northern Tajikistan. Groups have no more than 12 travellers aged 15 and over, with a local leader throughout. You travel by private bus, metro and train, and stay in a mix of hotels, tourist yurt camps and village guesthouses or homestays, some of them basic. Breakfast is included every day, with 6 lunches and 7 dinners, many of them home-cooked. The trip is land-only, starting in Bishkek and ending in Tashkent.

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's leafy capital, opens with a city walk around Ala-Too Square. On the way to Issyk-Kul, one of the largest alpine lakes in the world, you visit the Burana Tower and share lunch with a Kyrgyz family. Two nights in a yurt camp by the lake include a visit to Kyzyl Tuu, a village of yurt makers, and the felt-making cooperative in Kochkor. You then climb to Son-Köl, a high lake sacred to the Kyrgyz and a summer pasture for nomadic herders, for a night in a yurt camp.

Your itinerary

Day 1

Bishkek Arrive in Bishkek

Welcome to Kyrgyzstan. Meet your leader and group at 6pm in Bishkek, followed by dinner together.

Day 2

Ala-Too Square, Bishkek

Join your leader on a city tour tracing Bishkek's history, from Ala-Too Square, once Lenin Square, to its parks and monuments.

Day 3

Burana Tower to Issyk-Kul

Stop at the Burana Tower, a minaret from an ancient Silk Road city, and share lunch with a Kyrgyz family in Don Aryk before reaching your yurt camp on the shore of Issyk-Kul.

Day 4

Yurt makers of Kyzyl Tuu

Visit Kyzyl Tuu, where almost every family makes yurts, for a workshop on how they are built, then enjoy free time by the lake.

Day 5

Kochkor, Son-Köl Son-Köl

Visit the women's felt cooperative in Kochkor, then climb to Son-Köl, a high lake sacred to the Kyrgyz and a summer pasture for nomadic herders, for a night in a yurt camp.

Day 6

Kyzyl-Oi To Kyzyl-Oi

Travel along gravel roads to the small village of Kyzyl-Oi for a night in a homestay and a demonstration of boorsok, Kyrgyz fried bread.

Day 7

Suusamyr plateau to Kök-Bel

A full day's drive across the Suusamyr Valley, a high steppe plateau at around 2,200 m, to the village of Kök-Bel.

Day 8

Uzgen, Osh To Osh

Travel to Osh, Kyrgyzstan's second city in the Fergana Valley, stopping at the medieval minaret and mausoleums of Uzgen.

Day 9

Osh Sulaiman-Too

Climb early to Sulaiman-Too, a sacred mountain and Kyrgyzstan's only UNESCO World Heritage Site, visited by Silk Road travellers for centuries. The afternoon is free for Osh's bazaar.

Day 10

Margilan, Kokand Into Uzbekistan: Margilan

Cross into Uzbekistan and visit Margilan, a centre of silk production since the 11th century, to see silk being woven by hand. Continue to Kokand.

Day 11

Khudayar Khan Palace, Kokand Kokand

Visit the Khudayar Khan Palace, the 19th-century residence of the last khan of Kokand, with its tiled facade and courtyards.

Day 12

Khujand Into Tajikistan: Khujand

Cross into Tajikistan and continue to Khujand, believed to have been founded by Alexander the Great as Alexandria Eschate.

Day 13

Panjakent and the Seven Lakes

A long travel day to Panjakent, once a capital of ancient Sogdiana, with lunch with a Tajik family by Lake Marguzor.

Day 14

Back to Uzbekistan: Samarkand

Cross back into Uzbekistan and travel to Samarkand, at the heart of the ancient Silk Road.

Day 15

Registan, Gur-e-Amir Samarkand

Visit the Registan, three great madrasas facing one square, and Gur-e-Amir, the mausoleum of Tamerlane, followed by a farewell dinner.

Day 16

Train to Tashkent

Take the train to Tashkent, the largest city in Central Asia, where grand mosques stand alongside Soviet monuments.

Day 17

Trip ends in Tashkent

The trip ends after breakfast. Extra nights in Tashkent can be arranged when you book.

What is included

Private tour with guide
Driver Accomodation Food
GBAO Permit included

Not included

International flights to Bishkek and from Tashkent
Airport transfers
Visas, where required
Meals not included8 lunches and 9 dinners
Single supplement, tips, travel insurance and personal spending