WHITE FIELDS
RED SANDS
BLUE TILES

A ten-day legacy journey to Central Asia’s most celebrated stan following a rather unusual route across lesser known and oftentimes downright forgotten backcountry provinces and Soviet outposts. Beyond a polished façade of Silk Road kitsch, exoticist narratives, and anachronistic restorations is where the real Uzbekistan hides!

AUGUST 31 ⇾ September 11

In addition to our regular group departures to Uzbekistan, we also offer tailored services for private travel parties and lone wolves alike. Get in touch for more info on our customised Uzbekistan Tours!

THE ROUTE

✮

DAY 1 to DAY 3 • A SOVIET STAR AND ITS SATELLITES

Meet-and-greet at Tashkent International Airport and transfer to our hotel of choice in central Tashkent.

We’ll spend the first three days of our Soviet Uzbekistan tour gallivanting in and around Tashkent, the national capital, losing ourselves among the many USSR-era gems of what was once the fourth-largest city in the entire Soviet Union: kaleidoscopic mosaics, colossal monuments and memorials, modernist concrete patterns, meandering street markets, and richly decorated metro stations.

Our sojourn will also include a few side trips out of the city knocking around Soviet working towns such as Almalyk and Angren and pay a de rigueur visit to the gargantuan solar furnace in Parkent.

Overnights in Tashkent.

DAY 4 • MERCILESS KHANS AND INEXPUGNABLE FORTS

In the morning, we’ll board a domestic flight bound for Urgench, a rather anonymous transportation hub that functions as the main gateway to Khiva, the jewel in the crown of Uzbekistan’s ancient caravan cities.

“They looked like lambs in the hands of their executioners,” wrote the 19th-century Hungarian explorer Arminius Vámbéry “Whilst several were led to the gallows or the block, I saw how, at the sign from the executioner, eight aged men placed themselves down on their backs upon the earth”.

Back in the old days of yore, Khiva was one of the world’s most dangerous cities for outsiders and the ruling khans made a name for themselves thanks to their ruthlessness. Nowadays, only the high fortified city walls preserve the memory of those who perished in chains and Khiva basks in all its architectural grandness, although the massive restoration efforts and the tourists’ hustle-and-bustle may at times convey a rather tacky open-air museum vibe.

Overnight in Khiva.

DAY 5 TO DAY 6 • LOST ART AND SHRINKING WATERS

Sunrise transfer to Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic within western Uzbekistan designed by the Soviets as the appointed homeland for the indigenous Turkic-speaking Karakalpaks.

We’ll first stop at the timeworn khorezmian fortress of Kyzyl-Kala and then head for the rather desolate city of Kungrad, whrerefrom we’ll drive further north to reach the unearthly salt fields of Baras-Kermes.

From Baras-Kermes, we’ll move east towards Sudochie, an almost intact natural reserve within the vast Amu Darya watershed, and visit the end-of-the-world kishlak (hamlet) of Urga, before eventually entering the mighty Ustyurt Plateau, an endless transboundary clay desert stretching across Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan.

Our final stop on the plateau will be the remote Soviet settlement of Kubla-Ustyurt and then we’ll descent towards the current shores of the Aral Sea.

Formerly the fourth largest lake in the world, the Aral Sea has been shrinking since the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects. The southern coastline of the Aral Sea lies now more than one hundred miles further north than it used to be and what’s been left behind is a somber wasteland aptly named Aral Kum (Aral sands), while former fishing towns along the original shores have now become ship graveyards.

Once we’ll reach the waterside, we'll set up a camp and prepare for a night full of stars, hundreds of kilometres from any form of civilisation.

On the following day, we’ll head back to Nukus, the dusty capital of Karakalpakstan, where we shall surface just in time for a quick lunch, an afternoon city tour of bazaars and mosaics, and a visit to the surprisingly rich Savitsky Collection of Renegade Soviet Art.

Overnights in Karakalpakstan.

DAY 7• RED SANDS AND FOLK ROCK

Early start in Nukus and long overland journey across cotton fields and red sands to the mythical city of Uchkuduk, a lost Soviet-era urban outpost rising out from the scorching dunes of the Kyzyl-Kum and eternalised by the eponym USSR-wide chart-topper Uchkuduk by Yalla, a Soviet-Uzbek folk rock ensemble with more hairs than talent.

We’ll make our gloriously begrimed entry into lovely Uchkuduk in the early afternoon hours and spend the rest of the day roaming around this desolate utopia of somewhat pleasant bleakness.

Overnight in Uchkuduk.

BESPOKE experienceS

A traditional craft workshop in Bukhara, an authentic family meal in rural Karakalpakstan, and a private visit to a USSR-era House of Culture near Tashkent.

DAY 8 to DAY 9• EMIRS AND REVOLUTIONARIES

Bidding farewell to Uchkuduk and the endless expanses of emptiness this forlorn city lies amidst, we’ll transfer south to Bukhara, a fabled Silk Road of Persian and Jewish heritage.

We’ll cross the threshold to Bukhara in the late afternoon and enjoy a sunset saunter around the meanders of the old city crowned by a well-deserved Persian dinner.

The following day, we’ll take a long sightseeing stroll all around Bukhara and its many wonders: spectacular ancient mosques, mausoleums, Jewish cemeteries, antique necropolis, dusty backstreets, crumbling houses, and—needless to say—Soviet art and architecture.

Overnights in Bukhara.

DAY 10 to Day 11• SILK ROAD POMP AND HIDDEN CULTURES

Today we’ll travel by train to Samarkand, a cosmopolitan [post] Soviet city where a plethora of diverse cultures (Uzbek, Russian, Tajik, Jew, Ukrainian, Tatar, Turkmen, and even Korean) blend together to form a compelling mixture of languages and culinary traditions.

A centre of primary importance on the Silk Road and capital of the Timurid empire and the second largest city of the Uzbek SSR, Samarkand harbours a captivating concoction of medieval edifices, Tsarist palaces, and Soviet behemoths: our urban trek will include a curated florilegium of both inescapable landmarks and little-known masterpieces hidden in plain sight beyond the well-trodden tourist paths.

Beyond its Timurid marvels, socialist mosaics, and elegant Russian mansions, Samarkand is also unjustly stigmatised for its large Lyuli population, the “gypsies” of Central Asia: accompanied by a member of the local community we will delve into a Lyuli neighbourhood and go beyond the many clichés still associated with this much-misunderstood culture.

Overnights in Samarkand.

DAY 12 • FAREWELL TO THE COTTON FIELDS

After sharing a last Uzbek meal together, we'll take care of your transfer to either Samarkand International Airport or Samarkand Train Station for you homeward flight via either Istanbul or Tashkent.

Possible tour extensions include: Turkmenistan and/or the Pamir Highway.

End of the tour.

✮

2490 €

INCLUSIONS
Double/twin-room accommodation (breakfast included), private transport in Uzbekistan (car/minivan), all entrance fees, English-speaking guiding service, 24/7 on-site and remote assistance.

EXCLUSIONS
Single supplement, international flights, main meals (lunches and dinners), extra drinks, visa fees (if required), tips, personal insurances (medical travel insurance and travel cancellation insurance are recommended).