Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy

Flight departs from Milan and arrives at Urgench airport, your driver will take you to the hotel in Khiva (35 km, 45min).
Arrive at the hotel, breakfast and check-in. Have a rest after the flight and get ready for an afternoon walking tour. Your private guide will pick you up from your hotel to begin your, Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy, Itchan-Kala the UNESCO world heritage site tour:

• Excursion at Kunya-Ark Fortress, the inner citadel of Ichan-Kala;
• Kalta Minor Tower, once destined to be one of the tallest minarets in Central Asia;
• Muhammad Amin-Khan, the biggest medieval madrasah and educational institution in Khiva;
• Muhammad Rahim-Khan Madrasah, a sprawling complex that once stood as one of the largest in all Central Asia;
• Juma Mosque, built with 212 wooden columns and a minaret 32.5 m high;
• Tash-Hauli Palace (Stone Courtyard Palace), which resembles a fortress with high battlements, towers and garrisoned gates;
• Necropolis of Pahlavan Mahmud, the ancient religious center of Ichan-Kala;
• Minaret and madrasah of Islam Khodja, the vizier of the last khan. The complex consists of a madrasah and a minaret whose top platform has a height of 45m.

Finish your walking tour of Khiva, the “Museum Under the Open Sky”. Overnight in Khiva.
Tour duration: 6 hours

Begin the second day of your Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy with a delicious breakfast at the hotel. Head to the railway station to take the train to Bukhara (480km, app.7hrs). Arrive in Bukhara, and transfer to your hotel in the Old City, the heart of Bukhara. Overnight in Bukhara.

After a leisurely breakfast, explore Bukhara on a walking tour with a local guide, the most impressive sights of Bukhara’s Old City. It is about 3km from starting point to finish, you will have a coffeehouse where you can enjoy and feel the atmosphere. Visit the following in your Italy to Uzbekistan Tour:

• Lyabi-Hauz ensemble holding the largest artificial reservoir of medieval Bukhara (14th-17th centuries). This ensemble includes some of the largest madrasahs in the city: the Khanaka Madrasah, Kukeldash Madrasah and Nadir Divan Beghi Madrasah (all 16th century);
• Magoki-Attori Mosque, the oldest mosque in Bukhara (12th century);
• Four Trade Domes (15th-16th centuries), which still house local handicrafts for sale;
• Poi Kalyan Ensemble (12th-16th centuries), consisting of the Kalyan Minaret, Kalyan Mosque, Amir-Alimkhan Madrasah and Miri-Arab Madrasah;
• Ulugbek Madrasah (15th century) and Abdulazizkhan Madrasah (17th century), relatively untouched yet impressive religious schools;
• Ark Fortress (4th century), the ancient center of Bukharan statehood and currently home to a small museum;
• Bolo-Khauz Complex, consisting of an artfully decorated 18th century mosque, a minaret and reservoirs that once provided water for the entire city;
• Samanids Mausoleum (9th-10th centuries), believed to be the most ancient brick building in Central Asia.

Overnight in Bukhara.
Tour duration: 6-7 hours

After breakfast, meet your driver in the morning at the hotel. Depart Bukhara towards the Nurata mountains (285km, 4hours). On the way visit Rabat-i-Malik Caravanserai ruins and Sardoba, an ancient reservoir. Continue driving Nurata, to visit a local mosque known for its holy spring waters and to explore the ruins of a fortress built by Alexander the Great. Arrive in Uhum village by lunch time and settle homestay, traditionally decorated rooms. Experience rural homestay, lunch with host family. The homestay is located in the upper part of the village and is a good start point for exploring the area. After lunch, one of the family members (basic English) will take you for a short excursion where you may get familiar with daily livelihood activities of the rural people and explore some local sights. In the evening you may watch or participate in the preparation of the traditional meal ‘Plov’ for dinner. After a full day of exploration, rest and relax at your guesthouse. This is just one of many exciting experiences you'll have on your Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy. Overnight homestay.

Enjoy your breakfast and start hiking around Uhum village with a local guide with basic English, valley up to the petroglyph site 4500 years old on the buffer zone of the Nuratau Nature Reserve (one way 4km, 2hours). On the way you will see the local population busy doing their daily livelihood activities such as butter making, bread baking in a tandir oven, fruit harvesting, and firewood collection. You will stop to visit the mausoleum of Hazrati Boboy Eshon. Reach the petroglyph site and come close to deep history. Return to the homestay and have lunch. After lunch time, drive to Samarkand (220km, 4hrs).
Arrive in Samarkand - the capital of Tamerlane's Empire. Transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel, on the fifth day of your Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy. Beginning your private tour of Samarkand to the following sites:

• Gur Emir, the imposing burial site of Tamerlane and Mirzo Ulugbek;
• Registan Square, the commercial center of Samarkand for centuries and Samarkand’s most famous site today. The square includes three madrasahs: Ulugbek Madrasah (15th century), Sher-Dor Madrasah (17th century) and Tilla-Kori Madrasah (17th century);
• Bibi Khanum Mosque, built by Tamerlane for his favorite wife;
• Siab Bazaar, a multi-level complex where you can shop for souvenirs and sample sweets, fruits and Samarkand’s famous bread;
• Shakhi-Zinda, a burial complex built between the 9th-14th centuries. Climb the blue-domed path and explore more than 20 small mausoleums that line the broad alleyway;
• Ulugbek Observatory, where you can see the remains of a 14th-15th century sextant and tour the Ulugbek Museum.

Transfer to the railway station to catch the afternoon train to Tashkent (330km, 2-3hrs). You’ll be met at the Tashkent station and taken to the hotel. Overnight in Tashkent.
Tour duration: 6-7 hours

In the morning breakfast and check-out. Your guide and driver will pick you up from your hotel to begin your private Tashkent city tour which include:

• Excursion to the Old City, including the Khazret-Imam Architectural Complex. The complex includes the Madrasah of Barak-Khan (16th century), Tillya-Sheykh Mosque, Juma Mosque and Mausoleum of Saint Abu Bakr Kaffal Shashi (15th century). Walking through the Islamic Civilization Center and Zarqaynar street;
• Visit to Chorsu Bazaar, Tashkent’s most well-established bazaar that includes a large selection of traditional Uzbek ceramics, jewelry, handbags, garments and more;
• Drive through Amir Timur Square and Independence Square, including the touching Mourning Mother Monument;
• Pass Drive to the Sacred Heart Cathedral, a 20th-century Roman Catholic Church with beautiful stained-glass windows and Gothic-style architecture;
• Tour of the Applied Arts Museum, an informative collection of Uzbekistan’s finest handicrafts housed in an ornately decorated villa.

In the afternoon transfer to Tashkent International Airport. Take a flight from Tashkent to Milan. End of Silk Road Uzbekistan Tour from Italy.
Tour duration: 4 hours