Ziyarat Uzbekistan Tour

Arrive in Samarkand, where our driver will pick you up from Samarkand International Airport or the train station for transfer to the hotel (check-in begins at noon). Begin your tour of Samarkand, a city at the crossroads of the world’s cultures.
Your private tour of this local holy land, led by an experienced guide, will include:

• Drive to Muhaddis Imam al-Bukhari Mausoleum, (30 km, 40 min), a beautiful holy site. On the way, visit the mausoleum of Sufi philosopher Hazrat Makhdumi A'zam Dahbediy;
• Return to Samarkand to visit Khodja Akhrar Vali Ensemble, dedicated to the 15th-century leader of the Naqshbandi Order;
• Continue to the Mausoleum of Abu Mansur Al Maturidi, a 10th -century Islamic philosopher;
• Tour the spectacular Registan Square, the commercial center of Samarkand for centuries and the city’s most famous site today. The square includes Ulugbek Madrasah (15th century), Sher-Dor Madrasah (17th century) and Tilla-Kori Madrasah (17th century).

Return to the hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Samarkand.
Tour duration: 5 hours

After breakfast, continue your tour of Samarkand with a local, experienced guide. Your tour today includes:

• Sightseeing at Gur Emir, the imposing burial site of Tamerlane, Mirzo Ulugbek and Mir Said Baraka;
• Exploration of Shakhi-Zinda, a burial complex built between the 9th -14th centuries. Climb the blue-domed path and explore more than twenty mausoleums, including the tomb of Kusam ibn Abbas, cousin of the Prophet Muhammad;
• Shopping at Siab Bazaar, where you can buy sweets, fruits and Samarkand’s famous bread;
• Visit to Bibi Khanum Mosque (15th century), built by Timur the Great (Tamerlane);
• Excursion to Ulugbek Observatory, where you can see the remains of a 14th-15th century sextant and tour the Ulugbek Museum;
• Tour of Mausoleum of Khodja Daniyar, believed to hold the remains of the prophet Daniel;
• Drive to Konigil Village to observe the traditional way of making Samarkand paper from mulberry leaves; you’ll also have the chance to buy these unique souvenirs.

Drive back to the hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Samarkand.
Tour duration: 7 hours

Breakfast at the hotel before taking the morning train to Bukhara (280 km, 1hr 30min). Arrive in Bukhara and transfer to your hotel in the Old City, an area resembling a scene from Arabian Nights.
Meet your guide and driver to begin your tour around Bukhara, a holy land where thousands of Islamic saints have resided:

• Depart from Bukhara and drive to Gijduvan (40km, 50min) to visit the tomb of Abduxoliq Gijduvaniy, a Sufi teacher and master of the Naqshbandi Order who received further training under Yusuf Hamdani;
• Head to Shofirkon (18km, 30min) to the tomb of Khoja Muhammad Orif Ar-Revgariy, best known for his treatise on Tasawwuf (Sufism) entitled “Arif Noma”;
• Drive to Vobkent (15km, 25min) to visit the burial site of Sufi spiritual leader Khodja Mahmud Anjir Fagnaviy;
• Continue to Ramitan District (25km, 30min) to the Mausoleum of Khoja Ali Ramitani;
• Drive to the tomb of Khodja Muhammad Baba as-Samasi, the successor of Khoja Ramitani.

Return to Bukhara. Overnight at the hotel in Bukhara.
Tour duration: 7 hours

After breakfast, meet your driver and guide to continue your pilgrimage:

• Drive (15km, 20min) to the burial site of Sufi author and poet Said Amir Kulal, whose tomb is regarded as holy;
• The seventh stop on the Bukhara pilgrimage ring, located in the village of Qasri Orifon (10km, 15min) is the Mausoleum of Khoja Bakhouddin Naqshbandi, founder of the Naqshbandi Order;
• Continue to Sumiton village (22km, 25min) to Chor-Bakr Necropolis (10th century), ancient burial grounds which were developed into a memorial complex in the 1500s;
• Visit the Mausoleum of Abu Khafs Kabir, teacher of Imam Al Bukhari;
• Continue to Samanids Mausoleum (9th-10th centuries), believed to be the most ancient brick building in Central Asia, and the Chashma Ayub Mausoleum;
• Finish at Bolo-Khauz Complex, which consists of a decorated 18th century mosque, a minaret and reservoirs that once provided water for the entire city.

Return to the city. Overnight at the hotel in Bukhara.
Tour duration: 7 hours

Breakfast at the hotel. With your private local guide, enjoy a walking tour of the most impressive sights of Bukhara’s Old City:

• Lyabi-Hauz Ensemble, holding the largest artificial reservoir of medieval Bukhara and some of the largest madrasahs in the city: 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 which currently houses a small museum.

Transfer to the railway station to take the afternoon train to Tashkent (580 km, 4 hrs). Arrive in Tashkent, Uzbekistan’s 2200-year-old capital city which has evolved from a small settlement into one of the largest metropolitan areas in the region.
Drive to your hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Tashkent.
Tour duration: 5 hours

Your guide and driver will meet you at your hotel (check out by noon) for your Tashkent pilgrimage. The private tour includes the following:

• Excursion to the Old City, including Khazret-Imam Architectural Complex, which holds the oldest known original Usman Quran in the world. Also on site are the Madrasah of Barak-Khan (16th century), Tillya-Sheikh Mosque, Juma Mosque, Mausoleum of Saint Abu Bakr Kaffal Shashi (all 15th century) and the Islamic Institute of Imam al-Bukhari (1971);
• Visit to Chorsu Bazaar, Tashkent’s most well-established bazaar with a large selection of Uzbek ceramics, jewelry, handbags, garments and more;
• Tour of Kukeldash Madrasah (16th century), a centre of Islamic education which remains active to this day;
• Visit to the Mausoleum of Sheikh Zainuddin-Bobo, a prominent poet and Suhrawardi Sufi (12th-16th centuries), located in the Kukcha Quarter;
• Wrap up your city tour at the Applied Arts Museum, an informative collection of Uzbekistan’s finest handicrafts housed in an ornately decorated villa.

Transfer to Tashkent International Airport. End of Ziyarat Uzbekistan Tour.
Tour duration: 5 hours