Two men drink tea in the Fergana Region of Uzbekistan. Tuul & Bruno Morandi/Getty Images
If you haven’t always dreamed of traveling to Uzbekistan, we humbly recommend reordering your bucket list.
Magnificent blue-domed mosques, towering minarets, atmospheric Silk Road cities and ancient bazaars are coupled with the Central Asia’s best accommodation, great transportation options and terrific value for money. It’s the most visited of the Central Asian republics – and with good reason.
With frequent flights and streamlined visa requirements, travel to Uzbekistan is also easier than ever. (Certainly easier than in the 1990s, when I first visited the region to research Lonely Planet guides.) Still, there are a few considerations to keep in mind as you get ready for your journey.
Here are 16 tips as you prepare for your trip to Uzbekistan.
Planning for your trip to Uzbekistan
1. Uzbekistan can be uncomfortably hot in summer
Time your trip to coincide with the best weather. Landlocked Uzbekistan has an extreme continental climate, which means very cold winters and hot, dry summers. While it’s possible to visit Uzbekistan year-round, the most comfortable months weather-wise are from March to May, and September to November.
July and August’s summer heat often bring punishing temperatures of over 40°C (104°F) – though a visit in this timeframe may be inevitable if you are heading onward to the mountains of neighboring Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan, which are accessible only in the warmest months.
2. Most nationalities qualify for a visa-free one-month stay
These days, getting a visa for Uzbekistan is easy. Citizens from over 60 countries are now eligible for visa-free travel for up to a month, including those from the UK, most EU countries, New Zealand, Australia, South Korea and Israel. Citizens of other countries (including the USA and India) are required to apply for an e-visa online – still, this is an easy process that only takes a couple of days.
3. Book high-speed train tickets in advance
The most comfortable way to travel the modern Silk Road between Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and the Fergana Valley, is on Uzbekistan’s ultra-modern, high-speed Afrosiyob train service. It takes just over two hours to travel from Tashkent to Samarkand, and the same again to reach Bukhara from Samarkand. For longer distances, Russian-style sleeper trains are an atmospheric way to travel overnight between Tashkent and the remoter cities of Nukus, Khiva or Termiz.
Since seats do sell out on popular routes, especially for high-speed tourist services, be sure to book tickets a week or more in advance. Try online via the Uzbekistan Railway e-ticket portal, use the Uzrailway phone app (for iOS and Android), or book through a local travel agency (expect a markup).
4. In the high season, book B&Bs well ahead of your arrival
The traditional towns of Samarkand, Khiva and Bukhara all offer an excellent selection of comfortable family-run B&Bs – easily the most interesting places to stay. The best ones fill up quickly in late spring and summer, so be sure to book a few weeks in advance. Contact owners directly, or see what comes up on Booking.com.
5. Pre-book an airport pickup when flying into Tashkent
Many international flights to Tashkent arrive into Uzbekistan’s sprawling capital in the dead of night. If you don’t fancy negotiating with a scrum of eager taxi drivers while bleary-eyed after a seven-hour flight, it might be worth booking an airport pickup through your accommodation.
If you’d prefer to take a taxi, be aware that overcharging by taxi drivers is not uncommon in Uzbekistan; always try to get a rough idea of the correct fare ahead of your arrival. The easiest way to arrange a taxi ride in Tashkent is via the ride-sharing app Yandex Go (though you’ll need a local SIM card to use it).
6. Visit to Samarkand at night, and skip Mondays in Tashkent
Be sure to return to the exteriors of the main architectural sights in Samarkand at night, as most are spectacularly lit up. Also, when planning your itinerary, avoid visiting Tashkent on a Monday, when most of the museums are closed.
7. Credit cards are widely accepted, but carrying cash never hurts
Credit and debit cards (especially Visa) are accepted by most accommodation and upmarket souvenir stalls. ATMs in major cities accept foreign cards, but we recommend stocking up on Uzbek som (the local currency) if you are headed into the countryside. It’s always a good idea to have a stash of small-denomination euros or US dollars for an emergency, a border crossing or just a bit of shopping.
Etiquette in Uzbekistan
1. Travel is easier if you speak a few words of Uzbek or Russian
English is not widely spoken in Uzbekistan outside of tourist hotels, so it helps to learn some words of Uzbek (a Turkic language similar to Old Turkish), or Russian, which remains a lingua franca among older people across the former Soviet Union. Street signs are mostly in Uzbek Latin script, though you may also see some Russian-style Cyrillic script; it’s useful to familiarize yourself with both so you can at least read signs for place names and bus destinations.
Knowing numbers in Uzbek or Russian will come in particularly handy when negotiating with shared taxi drivers. Google Translate can help, but only if you have smartphone data – to minimize roaming costs, tourist SIM cards valid for a month are available from several local companies, notably Beeline and Ucell. And an eSIM is always a seamless way to stay connected abroad.
2. Brush up on your chaikhana etiquette
Chai (tea) is the universal social lubricant all over Central Asia, so it helps to know the local tea etiquette. Look like an expert in the local chaikhana (teahouse) by pouring the first two bowls of tea back into the pot before drinking, to help it brew. Choose from Russian-style kara (black) or Asian-style kok (green) chai.
3. Pay attention to body language
Uzbeks are big hand-shakers, so be sure to shake the hands of any men you come into contact with, especially elders (known as aksakal in Central Asia). Another particularly graceful gesture used by Uzbeks and Tajiks is to place your hand on your heart when meeting someone. When meeting women, a slight bow, rather than a handshake, is the norm.
At the end of a meal, Uzbeks and Tajiks generally place their hands in front of their face in a cupped prayer gesture and run them lightly over their face to give thanks for the meal. Following suit will earn you respect for understanding and following Uzbek customs.
4. Haggle – but don’t push things too far
Haggling over things like the price of taxis and buying produce at markets is common in Uzbekistan. But since prices are not vastly overinflated, expect only a modest discount. Aggressive haggling is not appreciated, so always keep things light-hearted and friendly. Outside of the high season, you may also be able to bargain for a discount on accommodation prices.
Safety in Uzbekistan
1. Uzbekistan has some quirky rules and laws
Uzbekistan has become very tourist-friendly – though there are a few idiosyncrasies travelers would be wise to keep in mind. When entering the country, you cannot bring in any codeine-based medications (such as painkillers), and you may need to declare how much foreign cash you are carrying. In reality, you are unlikely to be quizzed at customs if you arrive by air in Tashkent, but you might be when entering via land crossings.
You may also find that your hotel or B&B gives you a small paper registration slip when you check in. In the past, you had to produce these for each night of your stay when departing the country; these days, an online registry has superseded the old paper system – mostly. Slips are rarely checked, but you should still hold on to these when you receive them, just in case.
Be sure to carry your passport (or at the very least a photocopy) with you when you set out o sightseeing in Uzbekistan. Police have the right to inspect your passport on demand, and you’ll likely need to show it at checkpoints on any long-distance trip.
2. Uzbekistan is generally safe
Uzbekistan is generally a very safe country for tourists. Despite sharing a border with Afghanistan, there is little religious extremism and crime against foreigners is rare. As in big cities anywhere, watch out for pickpockets on crowded city buses and bazaars in hubs such as Tashkent; tourist police frequent the more popular sights.
3. Women travelers will face few problems
Uzbekistan is a Muslim country, but not a puritanical one. Women travelers will have few problems traveling solo here, and will not have to overthink their wardrobes. Still, short skirts, tank tops and yoga pants are best avoided, and you may want to cover your arms and legs when visiting the conservative Fergana Valley. Bring a headscarf to cover your hair when entering active mosques.
4. Vegetarians can get by at restaurants – and will love bazaars
Food in Uzbekistan is quite meat-heavy, focused on the four staples of shashlik (lamb kebabs), plov (pilau rice), shurpa (stew) and laghman (noodles) – all sometimes featuring more fat than visitors may be used to. But there are almost always a few vegetarian options, including plenty of Russian-influenced salads – so don’t be afraid to ask for a meat-free meal.
In between sit-town meals, Uzbekistan’s bazaars are good places to stock up on dried fruits and nuts, fresh fruit (Uzbek melons and peaches are legendary), spicy Korean salads, jars of mountain honey and freshly cooked non (naan) bread. In other words, everything you might not be able to find on a restaurant menu.
5. Skip the tap water
The most common complaints among visitors are heat exhaustion in summer and the occasional dodgy tummy after eating too much oily plov or shashlik. Wash your hands, sticked to bottled water, and wash all fruit and salads before eating, and you should be fine.