Uzbekistan Itinerary: 7, 10 and 14 Days on the Silk Road (2026)
September 30, 2026 · Uzbekistan
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Uzbekistan is the easiest place to see the old Silk Road. Its four great cities sit roughly in a line running west from the capital: Tashkent, then Samarkand, then Bukhara, then Khiva on the far side of the Kyzylkum desert. A fast train now runs the whole way, so you can see all four in ten days without renting a car or taking a single internal flight.
The mistake most first-timers make is getting the balance wrong: two nights in Tashkent they didn't need, a single rushed day in Bukhara, and Khiva cut because the journey looked too long. This Uzbekistan itinerary fixes that. There's a main 10-day route, a 7-day version for a shorter trip, and a 14-day route that adds the Fergana Valley. Every leg includes the train times we checked in September 2026, so you can see exactly how much of each day goes on travel.
Uzbekistan itinerary: the quick answer
| Trip length | Route | Nights |
|---|---|---|
| 5 days | Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara | Tashkent 1, Samarkand 2, Bukhara 1 |
| 7 days | Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara | Tashkent 1, Samarkand 3, Bukhara 2 |
| 10 days | Tashkent, Samarkand (with Shahrisabz), Bukhara, Khiva | Tashkent 2, Samarkand 3, Bukhara 2, Khiva 2 |
| 14 days | Tashkent, Fergana Valley, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva | Tashkent 3, Fergana 2, Samarkand 3, Bukhara 3, Khiva 2 |
Our short version: for a first trip, 10 days is the sweet spot. It covers all four Silk Road cities, a day trip to Timur's birthplace at Shahrisabz and two nights inside Khiva's walls, and the longest train ride is about three and a half hours. With two weeks, add the Fergana Valley for silk, ceramics and a side of Uzbekistan most tourists never see.
How many days do you need in Uzbekistan?
Seven days is enough for Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara at a comfortable pace. Ten days lets you add Khiva, which is the part people most often regret skipping. Two weeks gives you time for the Fergana Valley, or a slower pace with a night in a desert yurt camp.
How long each city needs:
- Tashkent: 1–2 days. It's a modern capital with a few great sights (the Hazrati Imam complex, Chorsu Bazaar and the metro), but it's not the reason you came.
- Samarkand: 2–3 days. Two for the city, a third for Shahrisabz. Our guide to the best things to do in Samarkand breaks down what fits in each day.
- Bukhara: 2–3 days. It has more monuments than Samarkand and a much better old town to wander, so it rewards slowing down. See our 15 best things to do in Bukhara.
- Khiva: 1 full day, 2 nights. The walled old town is tiny, but you want to see it at sunset and early morning, without the day-trippers.
If you only have four or five days, skip Khiva and focus on Samarkand and Bukhara, flying into Tashkent and taking the train straight on.
Getting around Uzbekistan: train, taxi or plane?
For this itinerary, the train does almost all the work. Uzbekistan Railways runs the Spanish-built Afrosiyob high-speed trains from Tashkent to Samarkand and Bukhara many times a day, and since May 2026 the new Jaloliddin Manguberdi fast train continues all the way to Khiva three days a week.
Photo: Abdul Raaz on Unsplash
| Journey | Fastest option | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tashkent to Samarkand | About 2h10–2h20 (Afrosiyob) | Economy from about 311,000 som (around $26); several departures before 9am |
| Samarkand to Bukhara | About 1h40–1h50 (Afrosiyob) | The same trains continue from Tashkent |
| Tashkent to Bukhara | About 4h (Afrosiyob) | Economy from about 509,000 som (around $42) |
| Bukhara to Khiva | About 3h30 (Jaloliddin Manguberdi, Tue, Thu, Sat) | Otherwise the daily train takes about 4h40 |
| Khiva to Tashkent | About 7h45 (Jaloliddin Manguberdi, Wed, Fri, Sun) | Overnight sleepers take around 14h; or fly from Urgench |
| Tashkent to the Fergana Valley | About 5–6h by train | Over the Kamchik Pass; shared taxis take 4–6h |
Book trains as early as you can. Tickets go on sale on the Uzbekistan Railways site, eticket.railway.uz, up to 60 days ahead, and Afrosiyob seats between Samarkand and Bukhara regularly sell out in April, May, September and October. You'll need your passport details to book and your passport itself to board. Our guides to Tashkent to Samarkand and Bukhara to Khiva have the full timetables, station tips and backup options for each leg.
Use Yandex Go in the cities. Taxis ordered through the Yandex Go app are cheap and you see the fare up front, which avoids haggling at stations. A ride from Samarkand station to the Registan is usually 15,000–25,000 som.
Shared taxis and private drivers fill the gaps: to Shahrisabz, the desert fortresses near Khiva, or any day when the trains are full. If you'd rather not deal with stations at all, you can pre-book a private transfer from Tashkent to Samarkand at a fixed price.
The 10-day Uzbekistan itinerary
This is the classic route, travelling east to west and flying home from Urgench (or taking the fast train back to Tashkent). It needs two nights in Tashkent, three in Samarkand, two in Bukhara and two in Khiva.
Days 1–2: Tashkent
Photo: Sultonbek Ikromov on Unsplash
Most international flights land in Tashkent, often at night. Take it slowly on day one: sleep in, change money, buy a SIM or activate your eSIM, and book any train tickets you haven't already.
On your full day, start at the Hazrati Imam (Khast Imam) complex in the old town, whose library holds a Qur'an traditionally said to be the one Caliph Uthman was reading when he was killed in 656. Walk or take a short taxi ride to Chorsu Bazaar under its huge green dome, where you can buy dried fruit, fresh bread and spices. Spend the afternoon riding the metro. It's one of the cheapest sightseeing trips in Central Asia, and stations such as Kosmonavtlar and Alisher Navoi are decorated like Soviet-era palaces. End at Amir Timur Square and the pedestrian street of Sayilgoh (Broadway) in the evening.
Arriving: Tashkent airport is close to the centre, and Yandex Go works from the arrivals hall. If you land late, a fixed-price Tashkent airport transfer saves you haggling with the drivers outside.
Days 3–5: Samarkand and a day trip to Shahrisabz
Take a morning Afrosiyob from Tashkent's main station; the early departures reach Samarkand by about 8:30–9:45, which gives you almost a full day. Drop your bags and head straight to the Registan, the three tiled madrasas that are the country's most famous sight. Come back after dark, when they're lit up.
On day four, start early at Shah-i-Zinda, the avenue of tiled tombs, before the tour groups arrive around 9:30. Then see Bibi-Khanym Mosque and Siyob Bazaar next door, and in the afternoon, Gur-e-Amir, Timur's tomb. If you'd like the history explained as you go, a small-group Samarkand heritage tour covers the main sights in a few hours.
Spend day five in Shahrisabz, Timur's birthplace, about 80–90 kilometres south over the Takhtakaracha pass. The two surviving pieces of the entrance arch of his Ak-Saray palace are still enormous, and the Kok Gumbaz mosque and the Dorut Tilovat and Dorus-Saodat memorial complexes are a short walk away. Allow around 1.5–2 hours each way on the mountain road. Shared taxis go from Samarkand, but it's much easier to book a private Shahrisabz day tour from Samarkand so you can stop on the pass for photos.
Days 6–7: Bukhara
Photo: Sultonbek Ikromov on Unsplash
Take a morning Afrosiyob from Samarkand to Bukhara, which takes under two hours. Bukhara 1 station is in Kagan, about 12–15 kilometres from the old town, so allow 20–30 minutes by taxi.
Bukhara is the city that makes the most sense on foot. Start at Lyabi-Hauz, the pool square surrounded by madrasas and teahouses. Then walk through the covered trading domes to the Po-i-Kalan ensemble, where the 12th-century Kalyan Minaret stands between a mosque and the still-working Mir-i-Arab madrasa. On day seven, see the Ark fortress, the Samanid Mausoleum (one of the oldest buildings in Central Asia), the four-towered Chor Minor, and the carpet and ceramics workshops in between. A small-group walking tour of Bukhara's old city is a good way to start the first morning. Our 15 best things to do in Bukhara has the rest, with 2026 entry fees.
Days 8–9: Khiva
Photo: Farkhod Saydullaev on Unsplash
This is the day to plan around. If day eight falls on a Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday, take the Jaloliddin Manguberdi fast train, which leaves Bukhara around 11:00 and reaches Khiva at 14:31. On other days, the daily train (no. 706) leaves Bukhara at 15:45 and arrives at 20:25, which leaves you a free morning in Bukhara. If your dates don't fit either train, or you want to stop at the ruined desert fortresses on the way, you can pre-book a private transfer from Bukhara to Khiva. The drive takes 6.5–7.5 hours across the Kyzylkum. Our Bukhara to Khiva guide compares every option.
Khiva's walled inner town, Itchan Kala, is small enough to cross on foot in 15 minutes and full of minarets, madrasas and palaces. Spend day nine inside the walls: the unfinished Kalta Minor minaret, the Kunya Ark fortress, the Juma Mosque with its forest of carved wooden columns, and the Islam Khodja minaret, which you can climb for the best view over the rooftops. Walk the city walls at sunset.
With an extra half day, take a car out to the Elliq Qala ("fifty fortresses") region north of Khiva. Mud-brick forts such as Ayaz Kala and Toprak Kala stand alone in the desert, some of them over 2,000 years old.
Day 10: Fly home from Urgench or ride back to Tashkent
Urgench airport is about 35 kilometres from Khiva, roughly 40 minutes by taxi, with daily flights to Tashkent in about an hour and a half and a few international routes. Most people connect in Tashkent for the flight home.
If day ten is a Wednesday, Friday or Sunday, you can instead take the Jaloliddin Manguberdi back to Tashkent. It leaves Khiva at 07:20 and arrives at 15:06, in time for an evening flight. Economy fares are around 780,000 som (about $65). The overnight sleeper trains take around 14 hours and cost from about 245,000 som in open-plan platskart.
The 7-day Uzbekistan itinerary
With a week, drop Khiva and keep Tashkent short. You'll have time for Samarkand, Bukhara and the Shahrisabz day trip without feeling rushed.
| Day | Plan | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive in Tashkent; Hazrati Imam, Chorsu Bazaar and the metro | Tashkent |
| 2 | Morning Afrosiyob to Samarkand; Registan by day and after dark | Samarkand |
| 3 | Shah-i-Zinda, Bibi-Khanym, Siyob Bazaar, Gur-e-Amir | Samarkand |
| 4 | Day trip to Shahrisabz (or the Konigil paper mill and a slower day) | Samarkand |
| 5 | Afrosiyob to Bukhara; Lyabi-Hauz and the trading domes | Bukhara |
| 6 | Po-i-Kalan, the Ark, Samanid Mausoleum, Chor Minor | Bukhara |
| 7 | Afrosiyob back to Tashkent (about 4 hours) and fly home | – |
If Khiva is a must: skip Shahrisabz and one night in Tashkent. Arrive in Tashkent, take the train to Samarkand the next morning, spend two nights there and two in Bukhara, then take the fast train to Khiva for one night and fly out of Urgench. It's tight but doable, as long as your Bukhara to Khiva day is a Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday.
The 14-day Uzbekistan itinerary with the Fergana Valley
Two weeks lets you add the Fergana Valley, the fertile, densely populated basin in the east of the country, ringed by mountains. It's where Uzbekistan's silk and ceramics come from, it sees a fraction of the tourists, and it gives you a very different picture of everyday life than the Silk Road cities.
Photo: Far Chinberdiev on Unsplash
| Days | Plan | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Tashkent | Tashkent (2 nights) |
| 3–4 | Train over the Kamchik Pass to the Fergana Valley: Margilan's silk workshops, Rishtan's ceramics and Kokand's palace | Fergana or Margilan (2 nights) |
| 5 | Train back to Tashkent | Tashkent (1 night) |
| 6–8 | Samarkand, with a day trip to Shahrisabz | Samarkand (3 nights) |
| 9–11 | Bukhara at a slower pace, or two nights in Bukhara and one in a yurt camp | Bukhara (3 nights) |
| 12–13 | Khiva and the desert fortresses | Khiva (2 nights) |
| 14 | Fly home via Urgench and Tashkent | – |
In the Fergana Valley, base yourself in Fergana city or Margilan, which are next to each other. In Margilan, watch silk being dyed and woven by hand using the ikat technique the town is known for. Rishtan, about an hour west, has been making blue-glazed ceramics for centuries, and several family workshops welcome visitors. On the way in or out, stop in Kokand to see the tiled Khudoyar Khan Palace. The train from Tashkent takes around 5–6 hours through the mountains. Shared taxis are a little faster, and there are short flights to Fergana, though autumn and winter fog sometimes delays them.
A night in the desert: between Samarkand and Bukhara, several yurt camps near Aydarkul lake in the Kyzylkum offer a night under the stars with dinner and a camel ride. It's easiest as a one-night detour by car from Samarkand, continuing to Bukhara the next day.
Best time to visit Uzbekistan for this itinerary
April to May and September to October are the best months: warm days, cool evenings, and the long train rides and walking days are comfortable. They are also the busiest months, so book trains and the better guesthouses early.
June to August is hot. Afternoons in Bukhara and Khiva regularly pass 40°C, so sightsee early and late and rest in the middle of the day. November to March is quiet and cheap, but cold: expect frost in Khiva and the Fergana Valley, occasional snow, shorter opening hours and some guesthouses closed.
To compare flights into Tashkent and home from Urgench or Tashkent, use the search below.
Tips for planning your Uzbekistan trip
Photo: Dasha Novikova on Unsplash
- Check your visa. Many nationalities, including most of Europe, the UK, Canada, Australia and Japan, can visit visa-free for up to 30 days, and US citizens have been visa-free for 30 days since January 2026. Others can apply for an e-visa online. Always check the current rules for your passport before booking.
- Keep your registration slips. Hotels and guesthouses register your stay with the authorities automatically. Keep any slips they give you until you leave the country.
- Carry cash. The currency is the som, at roughly 12,000 to the US dollar in 2026. Hotels and many restaurants in the big cities take cards, but taxis, bazaars, small cafés and many entry tickets are cash only. ATMs are easy to find in Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara, but not all accept foreign cards, so bring some dollars or euros to change as a backup.
- Get mobile data on day one. You'll need it for Yandex Go, maps and e-tickets. An Uzbekistan eSIM from Airalo works as soon as you land, or buy a local SIM at the airport with your passport.
- Dress modestly at religious sites. Uzbekistan is relaxed, and shorts are fine in Tashkent, but cover your shoulders and knees at mosques, shrines and mausoleums. Women should carry a scarf for active mosques and pilgrimage sites.
- Get travel insurance. Khiva and the desert are a long way from a big hospital. You can compare EKTA travel insurance plans online in a few minutes.
- Keep your passport on you. You'll need it to board every train and check in at every hotel.
Frequently asked questions
How many days do you need in Uzbekistan?
Ten days is ideal for a first trip: enough for Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva, plus a day trip to Shahrisabz. A week covers Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara comfortably. With two weeks, add the Fergana Valley or a night in a desert yurt camp. With under five days, skip Khiva.
What is the best month to visit Uzbekistan?
April, May, September and October. Temperatures are pleasant for walking and the long train rides, and the gardens are green in spring. July and August are very hot, often over 40°C in Bukhara and Khiva, and winters are cold, with frost in the west and the Fergana Valley.
Is Samarkand or Bukhara better?
They're different, so try to see both. Samarkand has the single most impressive sights, the Registan, Shah-i-Zinda and Gur-e-Amir, spread out across a modern city. Bukhara has more monuments in total and a car-free old town that's much nicer to wander and stay in. If you can only give one of them three days, make it Bukhara.
What should I wear in Uzbekistan?
Light, loose clothes that cover your shoulders and knees are the easiest choice everywhere, and they're expected at mosques, shrines and mausoleums. Tashkent is relaxed and modern, and shorts are fine there. Bring a light scarf (for women at religious sites, and for sun and dust for everyone), comfortable walking shoes for uneven streets, and a warm layer for spring and autumn evenings.
Do I need a visa for Uzbekistan?
Citizens of many countries, including the US, UK, most of the EU, Canada, Australia and Japan, can visit for up to 30 days without a visa. Other nationalities can usually get an e-visa online. Rules change, so check the official e-visa portal or your government's travel advice before you book.
Is Uzbekistan safe for tourists?
Yes, it's generally considered one of the safest countries in Central Asia. Violent crime against tourists is rare, the police presence is visible, and the main risks are ordinary ones: overcharging taxi drivers (use Yandex Go), the summer heat, and uneven pavements. Take normal precautions with your valuables in busy bazaars and stations.
How we researched this guide
This itinerary is based on timetables and fares from Uzbekistan Railways (eticket.railway.uz) and The Man in Seat 61, official tourism information from Uzbekistan Travel, UNESCO's World Heritage listings for Samarkand, Bukhara, Itchan Kala and Shahrisabz, plus recent traveller reports and questions from people planning the same route. Visa rules were checked against the Uzbek government's January 2026 changes. Times, fares and rules were checked in September 2026 and can change, especially since the new fast train arrived, so always confirm before you travel. Found something out of date? Let us know.
Planning the rest of the trip? Start with Tashkent to Samarkand, pick your sights with the best things to do in Samarkand and in Bukhara, then see Bukhara to Khiva for the long leg west. Or browse all our Uzbekistan guides.
