Preliminary Day by Day Itinerary

Day 1 DEPART U.S.A.
Thursday
Meet our group of very special people from across the U.S. We depart on Turkish Airlines from New York’s JFK this evening at approximately 4:45 PM. Add-on flights are available from many cities across the U.S.
(Meals en flight)

Day 2 CONNECT IN
Friday ISTANBUL
We arrive in Istanbul at 9:05 AM. Day rooms inside the terminal at the deluxe airport hotel are provided to freshen up or take a rest. Remember that our flight for Tashkent departs this evening at 9:25 PM, so you should be back at the departure gate by 8:25 PM to board TK flight 1368. In just a few hours you will be in another world completely!
(Meals en flight)

Day 3 ARRIVE TASHKENT
Saturday
We arrive in Tashkent very early this morning, at 4:00 AM. Welcome to Uzbekistan! We are greeted and assisted by our guide, Acelle Garipova, who escorts us to our hotel where rooms are waiting for immediate occupancy. We have time to rest and recover from jet lag before meeting for lunch at our hotel.

Rested and fortified, in the afternoon we embark on a guided sightseeing tour of Tashkent. In the Middle Ages, Tashkent stood at the crossroads of the caravan routes from Europe to Asia, and from Siberia, China and India to the Middle East and Europe. Although it is more than 2,000 years old, many of Tashkent’s ancient monuments were destroyed by conquerors, time and by the earthquake of 1966. But today the city is lovelier than ever. Parks and gardens occupy almost one third of its area. Tashkent’s architecture, which combines modern forms with traditional ornaments, is delightful. We visit the old city, the Hast Imam Complex Barak Khana, and the Tila Shaikh Mosque. The archives at the mosque house a rare copy of the Quran, written by Caliph Othman. This copy was brought by Tamerlane from Constantinople and was placed at his beloved wife’s mosque in Samarkand. Later, we proceed to Chorsu Bazaar, the Kukeldesh Madrassah, Friendship Square and the Applied Arts Museum. We will see the Navoi Theatre, perhaps enjoying a Ballet or Opera. Dinner and overnight in Tashkent.

(B-L-D) *****Hotel Inter-Continental

Day 4 TASHKENT
Sunday URGENCH
KHIVA
This morning we’ll awake rested and refreshed. After breakfast, we’ll depart on a morning flight to Urgench and on arrival proceed directly to Khiva (approximately 18 mile journey) and check into our hotel. Today we’ll step back into time as we have a thorough look at Khiva. The entire town is a museum, and recognized by UNESCO as a city of reserve! Like Samarkand and Bukhara, Khiva played a key role in the history of Central Asia and is part of the Great Triangle of the region. Here are the remains of the great palace fortress that was home to the Khan and his people, the clergy, the merchant class and the rich. Still intact are a spacious harem, a mint, an inlaid mosque and the 14th-century mausoleum of Seid of Allautdin. Our walking tour includes a visit to the Ichan-Kala architectural ensemble, Kalta minor, Kunya Ark, Madrassah Rakhimkhon, and Pakhlavan Makhmud’s Mausoleum, Islam Khodja Minaret and Museum. We’ll stop for lunch at the Madrassah Restaurant. As we continue our tour, we’ll see the Tashauli Palace/Harem, the Friday Mosque and the Caravan Sarai. Dinner and overnight in Khiva.

(B-L-D) ***Hotel Asia Khiva

Day 5 KHIVA
Monday BUKHARA
After breakfast, we will follow the Silk Road as we begin our 7-hour, 267-mile drive to Bukhara, via Kizilkum (red sands). We’ll make a short stop at the sight of Amudarya (Oxus River) for a picnic. We arrive in Bukhara late this afternoon. Bukhara is a city of mosques and minarets. Bukhara is like an open-air museum thanks to its more than 140 monuments, belonging to different periods, which form an architectural set. In the past, Bukhara and Samarkand rivaled each other in richness, beauty and magnificence. More than once Bukhara was destroyed by foreign conquerors; the Sack, the Greek-Macedonian, the Massaget, the Persian, the Arab and the Mongol ran along its roads. We’ll enjoy an evening walking tour to the Jewish Quarter and have dinner at Gowkushan Madrassah with classical music.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Asia Bukhara

Day 6 BUKHARA
Tuesday
Following breakfast, we’ll enjoy a full day exploration of Bukhara. We will visit Lyabikhauz, Madrassah Nadirkhon Divanbegi, Mogaki Attari Mosque, Poi Kalan Minaret and Mosque, Madrahsahs Aziz Khan and Ulugbek. We will also visit the Ark (fortress), the ancient heart of the town where behind its walls, the local regents - emirs with their courts - lived. Today, the fortress houses the Local Lore Museum. Bukhara cannot be imagined without its 12th-century Kaijan Minaret. According to the legend, not only did the minaret serve to summon the believer to prayer, but it was also used as a lighthouse for the caravans crossing the desert surrounding the town. The most ancient monument in the town is the 7th-10th-century Mausoleum of Ismail Samanid, who was the founder of the Samanide State: its arabesqued walls of bricks create a unique game of light and shadow which makes the building light, as if it were embroidered. In Bukhara, old caravanserais and covered bazaars are preserved. Still today under the three domes, handicrafts are made and sold: embroidered tyubeteikas (Central Asiatic peoples’ typical hats), jewels, fabrics and carpets. Dinner tonight will be at a madrassah with a local folk show.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Asia Bukhara

Day 7 BUKHARA
Wednesday SITORA-I-MOKHIKHOSA
Our morning excursion is to Sitora-i-Mokhikhosa, the summer residence of the former emir of Bukhara. It houses a wonderful collection of rare Chinese and Russian porcelain and numerous gifts given to the emir. Also we shall see a rare collection of ‘suzzane’ embroidery from different parts of the countryside. Return for lunch at the hotel. The afternoon is free to explore the covered bazaars of Bukhara that are next door to our perfectly located hotel.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Asia Bukhara

Day 8 BUKHARA
Thursday SHAKRE SABZ
SAMARKAND
Just after breakfast, we’re back on the Silk Road on a picturesque drive to Samarkand (265 miles). Along our way, we will visit Shakre Sabz, the birthplace of Tamerlane. We will see the Ak Saroy Palace ruins, Dorus Tilavat Seminary, Kok Gumbaz Mosque, Dorus Saidat and the Friday Mosque. We’ll have lunch at Shakre Sabz Hotel.

Our journey continues. Like the hordes of conquerors that were attracted to Samarkand by the splendor of its richness, we too arrive in the valley of the Zeravshan River. Samarkand is one of the oldest cities of Central Asia. It was called the “Eden of the Orient, precious gem of the Mohammedan world, the focus of the entire planet”! It existed in the same period of Babylon, Thebes, Athens and Rome and was chronicled in old Arab manuscripts. Samarkand contains elegant minarets, mosques, madrasahs and splendid palaces.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Samarkand Plaza

Day 9 SAMARKAND
Friday
After breakfast, prepare for a full day sightseeing tour of Samarkand, with its great historical background. It was old when Alexander the Great captured it in 329 B.C. Centuries later the Mongols led by Genghis-Khan stormed across the steppe and destroyed the city. Then in 1369 a new leader emerged —the great warrior, Timur the Lame who became infamous throughout Europe as Tamerlane, the “scourge of all central and western Asia.” He dreamed of building monuments in Samarkand, which would surpass in beauty anything built before. Artisans from India created medieval masterpieces. We’ll visit the perfect and harmonic set of Registan Square; and the majestic Bibi Khanym Mosque, and of course, the 15th century Mausoleum of Tamerlane (Gur Emir), with its characteristic blue-tiled dome. Samarkand was the capital of the Turkic Empire and, as such, was once the most important cultural and economic center of Asia. The lavish palaces and monuments of the city are filled with the booty of Turkic plunder.

Two generations later, Tamerlane’s grandson Ulughbek, called the “iron limping man,” was also known as a great and enlightened thinker, humanist and astronomer. He was the author of many scientific discoveries and created the largest observatory of the Orient (built in 1428-1429). Today, the preserved part of the observatory is used as the Museum of Ulughbek. The magnificent excavations of the ancient town of Afrasaib, the cradle of modern Samarkand, can be seen from the hilltop setting. We’ll also visit the Silk Road Bazaar in search of treasures. Later, we will visit the local Synagogue and have dinner with a local Jewish family.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Samarkand Plaza

Day 10 SAMARKAND
Saturday
Begin the morning with a visit to the History Museum and Ethnic Gallery. Later we shall proceed to a local Village nearby to see the traditional paper mill. We’ll take part in the making of some paper works and art of clay modeling. Lunch is served at the mill courtyard. Return to Samarkand at leisure to explore this amazing city. You might take this opportunity to catch up on your journal writing. Or, you might revisit the Silk Bazaar in search of more treasures. Dinner is served at a local restaurant.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Samarkand Plaza

Day 11 SAMARKAND
Sunday TASHKENT
We are off to the Sunday Market this morning in the village of Urgut. Here you have a good chance to see folks from all over the countryside selling their products – animals, daily usage and embroideries. Return for a farewell to Samarkand lunch at the Old city restaurant. Our private coach departs at 1 PM for the 205 mile drive to Tashkent with short stops enroute. Upon arrival check-in at the now familiar Hotel Inter-Continental This evening will be a special farewell dinner at the exclusive restaurant, “The Caravan.”

(B-L-D) *****Hotel Inter-Continental

Day 12 DEPART TASHKENT
Monday ISTANBUL-NEW YORK
Sadly, we bid farewell to this enchanting area, our newfound friends and our guide, Acelle. Our early morning flight departs at 3:00 AM and will connect in Istanbul via Turkish Airlines. We arrive back in New York’s JFK, the same day at 2:45 PM. (Meals en flight)

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner

Flight schedules are always subject to change.

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Ferghana Valley and Kyrgyzstan Extension
Culture, history, scenic grandeur and adventure

Day 1 TASHKENT-KOKAND
Monday RISHTON-FERGHANA
With our morning departure we’re bound for Ferghana via the Kamchik Pass. En route visit Kokand, former capital and now a religious center with hundreds of mosques and madrasahs. There we stop to see the Fort-Palace Museum of Ruler - Khodoyar Khan, the last Khan of Kokand. Later we’ll visit the Rishton Pottery Works to see the famous traditional blue glazed floral designs at the workshop of master Rustam Usmanov. In his workshop, see the entire process of ceramic making. Also enjoy the museum of pottery. We’ll have lunch with his family. Continue to Ferghana and settle in to our hotel for the evening. (216 miles)

(B-L-D) ***Hotel Asia Ferghana

Day 2 FERGHANA
Tuesday MARGILAN-OSH
Our full day tour of the Ferghana Valley includes a visit to Margilan Yodgorlik Silk Factories, to learn where the famous Central Asian silks originate. Today you’ll see traditional silk weaving and spinning of beautiful hand-made ornaments, and embroideries. It was said in a 10th century manuscript that, “All lands of Bukhara can be given for one silk curtain woven in Margilan.” Make a brief visit to the Margilan bazaar. We’ll arrive at the Kyrgyzstan border, where the border formalities will be handled. Continue on a two hour (28 miles) drive to Osh, the second largest city in Kyrgyzstan. It is also one of Central Asia’s oldest and most important crossroads on the Silk Road. The origin of this ancient city is associated with King Solomon, Alexander the Great, and Suleiman the Magnificent. Settle into the modest Sunrise Motel (unrated, but best available), and in the late afternoon, visit Solomon Gora Museum and view the valley. For those who wish, you may climb (an up hill walk) up to see the Babur’s praying hut. Visit the local bazaar then dinner at a local restaurant. (74 miles total today)

(B-L-D) Sunrise Motel

Day 3 OSH-UZGEND
Wednesday CHICHIKAN
This morning we depart for Chichikan. Enroute we’ll visit Uzgend, a Caravan town to see the Karakhanid period (11th/12th Century AD) buildings and a minaret. Enjoy a picnic lunch and other stops along the way. Upon arrival in Chichikan transfer to our hotel the Ilbirs Hotel. Short walks will introduce us to the town. (236 miles)

(B-L-D) Ilbirs Hotel

Day 4 CHICHIKAN-BISHKEK
Thursday
With our morning departure we’re bound for Bishkek via the scenic Suusamyr Valley and a panorama of the nearby mountains. Picnic lunch enroute. Upon arrival in Bishkek transfer to our four-star Hotel Ak-Keme.

(B-L-D) ****Hotel Ak-Keme

Day 5 BISHKEK–ISTANBUL
Friday NEW YORK
Our early morning flight departing at 3:35 AM will connect in Istanbul via Turkish Airlines. We arrive back in New York’s JFK, the same day at 2:45 PM. (Meals en flight)

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner

Flight schedules are always subject to change.