The Aral Sea and the Silk Road Oases

Victim of the shrinking Aral Sea

Click on the name of the hotel for details

15 days from £1435

excluding international flights

DAY 1 – Depart UK.

Recommended flight from London: Turkish Airlines from London Heathrow via Istanbul (see below). If you are travelling from a country other than the UK we would be happy to give you guidance on your flight options.

DAY 2 – Tashkent.

On arrival in Tashkent in the early morning you will be met by a representative of World Discovery outside immigration and customs and taken by private car to your hotel. Your hotel will be booked for the previous night to guarantee immediate occupancy. In the afternoon your guide will take you for an afternoon's sightseeing in what has become the largest city in Central Asia. Visit the History Museum, the Fine Arts Museum and also visit the market (pictured).  Tonight you will enjoy a welcome dinner at a local restaurant.
Meals included: Dinner.

DAY 3 - Fly to Nukus.

An early rise this morning for the flight to Nukus, located in the remote west of Uzbekistan. Nukus is the capital of the autonomous Republic of Krakalpakstan (literally ‘Black Hat’) and is located close to the Amu Darya River (the ‘Oxus’ of classical history).  This is a dusty, fairly uninteresting city which few tourists visit, although it does contain the highly rated Regional Museum with its collection of avant garde masterpieces that survived the purges of the Stalin era.  You will be given a guided tour of the museum, which also houses exhibits of tribal art from the desert regions.  You will also visit the Khojeili tombs, a local necropolis which reflects Zoroastrian burial traditions.
Meals included: Full breakfast, dinner.

DAY 4 - The Aral Sea.

A full day excursion (a round trip of some 350km) to Muyinak, former fishing community on the Aral Sea when the waters were at their normal old level.  Here you will see the rusting remains of boats stuck in the sand where the sea used to be before its tragic shrinking in size.  Return to Nukus in the late afternoon.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 5 - Drive to Ayaz Kala.

Leave Nukus after breakfast and drive through the desert to Shylpyk Kala, a Zoroastrian ‘Tower of Silence’.  Continue to the ruins of the royal fortress of Toprak Kala (pictured), one of the best preserved citadels in the region, before driving via a smaller fortress at Kizil Kala to the Yurt camp at Ayaz Kala for a short walk to Ayaz Kol lake and an overnight stay.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 6 - Drive to Khiva.

After breakfast visit the Ayaz Kala ruins overlooking the Yurt Camp before setting off for Khiva.  En route visit Buruni, birthplace of the famous mathematician Buruni.  Arrive in Khiva just after midday.  Khiva, situated on the left bank of the Amu Darya River, is the most intact of the ancient caravan cities along the famous 'Silk Road'; the afternoon is free to walk through this delightful walled city, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 7 - Khiva.

A full day walking tour of Khiva, often described as an 'Open Museum', a city with a history going back some 2,500 years.  Khiva has the distinction of having more minarets than any other city in Asia.  Visits today include the unfinished Kalta Minar (pictured), the Kunya Ark, the Rakhimkhon madrassah (Islamic college), the UNDP workshops for the development of local handicrafts, the Mausoleum of Pakhlavan Makhmud, the 44 metre-high Islam Khodja minaret and the museum.  You will also see the Friday Mosque, the Tashauli Palace and harem, and the Caravan Bazaar.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 8 - By road to Bukhara.

A long drive today (460km) takes you through the barren desert and across the Amu Darya River to Bukhara.  Lunch is taken en route. After checking in at your hotel there should be time to walk through the narrow lanes to Lyab-i-Hauz Square, surrounded by 3 beautifully decorated madrassahs. Here you may sit at a cafe overlooking the ornamental pool, sipping green tea and simply watching the world go by - the perfect introduction to this wonderful ancient city.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch.

DAYS 9 and 10 - Bukhara.

Two days of sightseeing in Bukhara, the holiest of the ancient Silk Road cities with a history of more than 2,500 years. At the heart of the old city lies the Kalyon Mosque (pictured) with its stunning 48m/155ft minaret. As well as exploring this and the nearby Islamic monuments, you will visit the infamous Ark, palace of the ruling emirs of Bukhara, including Emir Nusrallah who was responsible for the cruel treatment and subsequent beheading of the British envoys Stoddart and Connolly in 1842, an incident that caused international outrage. Just outside the Ark is a small park which is graced by the exquisite 10th century Ismael Samani Mausoleum with its intricately patterned brickwork. The unique Chor Minar with its 4 blue-tiled towers is on your itinerary, as is the unusual early 20th century Summer Palace, some miles outside the city proper, whose eclectic and somewhat bizarre decor is not to everyone's taste. One of the joys of Bukhara is simply wandering through the old city to take in the atmosphere, stop at a cafe or browse in a handicraft shop.
Meals included: Full breakfast each day.

DAY 11 - By road via Shakresabz to Samarkand.

Your journey continues eastwards through the Kizilkum Desert to arrive in time for lunch in Shakresabz, birthplace of the Emperor Tamerlane. Visit the remains of Tamerlane's Aksaray Palace and the tomb of his son Jehangir, before continuing to Samarkand.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch.

DAYS 12 and 13 - Samarkand.

The very name of Samarkand conveys grandeur and extravagance as well as mystery and remoteness. Tamerlane's great capital city was one of the richest and most extravagant cities in the world and its remaining monuments bear clear witness to this. The Registan is undoubtedly one of the world's wonders - ".the noblest square in the world" according to Lord Curzon in the 19th century. Its unique combination of massive but elegant mosaic facades, turquoise domes and patterned minarets creates a perfect harmony and balance. You will spend time in and around The Registan before walking to Tamerlane's awesome Bibi Khanum Mosque, once the largest mosque in the world. Other included visits are to Tamerlane's final resting place, the Gur Emir Mausoleum with its distinctive ribbed dome, and the Astronomical Observatory built in the 15th century by Tamerlane's grandson Ulug Beg. One of Samarkand's less well known but most delightful treasures in the complex of tombs known as the Shah-i-Zinda (pictured), located in the old city of Afrosiab which predated Samarkand and was destroyed by Genghis Khan in the 13th century. The Shah-i-Zinda tombs contain some of Central Asia's finest majolica tilework.
Meals included: Full breakfast each day.

DAY 14 - Return to Tashkent.

Drive back to Uzbekistan's capital and check into your hotel.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 15 - Depart for home.

Private transfer in the early morning to the airport for your flight home

International Flights

We recommend the direct services of Turkish Airlines. Current timings (subject to possible change) are as follows:
Heathrow/Istanbul.  Depart 11.25; arrive Istanbul at 17.20
Istanbul/Tashkent. Depart at 21.25; arrive Tashkent at 04.00 (next morning)
Tashkent/Istanbul.  Depart at 05.55; arrive Istanbul at 09.15
Istanbul/Heathrow. Depart at 13.10; arrive Heathrow at 15.15

The Aral Sea and the Silk Road Oases (Tour Reference: WDUZ002)
2010 Departures
Price per person based on a minimum of two persons travelling together:

Single Room Supplements on request.

The price includes:

• Scheduled domestic flight by Uzbekistan Airways from Tashkent to Nukus, including taxes.
• Hotel accommodation as listed above in twin-bedded rooms with private facilities. Simple Yurt Camp for the night at Ayaz Kala
• 12 full breakfasts, 3 lunches and 4 dinners as shown in the itinerary.
• Private transportation throughout.
• Your own private guide for all included sightseeing.
• All sightseeing as shown, including entrance fees.
• Porterage at airports and hotels
  

Not included in the price:

• International flights (see our recommendation above). We are happy to discuss the flights with you and give you further guidance.
• Optional sightseeing. The World Discovery representatives in Uzbekistan will be pleased to organise any additional sightseeing you may wish to include during your stay.
• International airport taxes.
• Tipping. We will be pleased to give guidance in this often sensitive matter.
• Uzbekistan visa. This must be obtained before departure from the United Kingdom. We recommend that you obtain your visa through CIBT in London - www.uk.cibt.com. World Discovery will assist in obtaining your visa as documentation is required from our agents in Uzbekistan.

A deposit of £250 per person is required at the time of booking. The balance of the price for your travel arrangements must be paid at least 8 weeks before your departure date.