Magnificent Cities – Samarkand Bukhara Tashkent 5 days 4 nights

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the railway station. Departure to Samarkand by Afrosiab train at 07:28. Arrival in Samarkand at 09:42. Your guide and driver will meet you at the train station. Accomodation , leaving luggage in the hotel (check in after 14:00). City tour of Samarkand: ancient city of blue domes Samarkand is the heart of the fabulous East, where ancient eastern civilization and modernity meet. The city will impress you with the greatness of its architectural masterpieces. Visit Registan Square, which was the main city square during the reign of Tamerlane. It is surrounded by three majestic buildings: Ulugbek Madrasah, Sher Dor Madrasah and Tilla Kari Madrasah.

After lunch in one of the best restaurants in the city, a visit to Ulugbek Observatory, the Museum of Archeology Afrosiob, Shahi Zinda Necropolis – « City of the Dead » complex of elegant, sparkling blue tombs, consisting of 20 mausoleum, which were built one after another.

Return to the hotel, rest. Dinner in the restaurant, where the most delicious kebabs are cooked, including a variety of barbecue served on lavash with onions. A good addition to meat will be a vegetable kebab made of potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant or mushrooms. In addition to dinner, you will enjoy a cozy atmosphere, live music and various show programs. After dinner you will have a short night tour of Samarkand. Night at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel. Continue your discovery of Samarkand: Visit the old paper workshop in Konigil village in the suburbs of Samarkand (10 km from the center). Here you can see with your own eyes the whole process of making the famous Samarkand silk paper using ancient revived technology. Carpet factory « Hujum » where you can see all the stages of manual production of magnificent silk carpets, starting from unwinding a cocoon of mulberry silkworm! The mausoleum of St. Daniel: the grave of St. Hodja Daniyar as Muslims call him, or the biblical prophet Daniel – this is what Christians call him, or Daniel – one of the four great Jewish prophets.

Lunch in a national house – a cooking class of the Samarkand plov. After lunch, visit Guri Emir Mausoleum with a majestic blue dome. It is the place where Tamerlan is buried with his sons and grandchildren. Bibi Khanum mosque was built on the orders of Timur to become the grandest building of that time. Visit Samarkand bazaar Siob. Here you can buy famous Samarkand round bread, all kinds of spices, fruits and vegetables. Free time, visit souvenir shops and workshops.

We invite you to visit the unique Samarkand winery. The visit program includes the tasting of collection wines at the winery named after Khovrenko, where after a traditional tour of the museum of the oldest winery, you will be offered 10 traditional glasses « increasing, » from soft wine to herbal liqueur.

Dinner at a restaurant. After dinner transfer to the station. The Afrosiab high-speed train leaves for Bukhara at 21:03. Arrival in Bukhara at 22:34. Hotel accommodation.

After breakfast meet your guide for excursion in the old city: Bukhara retained the medieval layout, due to which each building, each house in the curved narrow streets has a charm of antiquity. Here time boundaries are erased and you lose the feeling of time. The city tour includes acquaintance with such monuments as: Lyabi House Ensemble with honako and Nodir Divan Begi madrasah, Kukeldash madrasah, a monument to Hodja Nasreddin. Visit to the center of Crafts Development of Bukhara, located in the Saifiddin caravanserai. Walk under trading domes: Toki Saraffon, Toki Telpak Furushon, Toki Zargaron where artisans (jewelers, miniaturists and others) sell their products. The Magokki Attori Mosque, built on the site of the chapel of fire worshippers, is one of the 3 monuments in Bukhara that survived the invasion of Genghis Khan. Caravanserai of Bukhara: Tim Abdullahan – an indoor bazaar which used to trade expensive silk fabrics. Ulugbek Madrasah, built by Tamerlan’s grandson, Abdullazizhan Madrasah, Kalyan Mosque, Mir-i-Arab madrasah, famous Kalyan Minaret. Lunch in town. After lunch, the continuation of the excursion in Bukhara: Samanid Mausoleum, the pearl of architecture of Central Asia, the family tomb of the Samanid dynasty. Farm market – a bazaar selling vegetables and fruits, including the most delicious and sweet strawberry in the world – the first berry of the new season in Uzbekistan. Visit Chashma Ayub Mausoleum, Ark citadel, Bolo House Mosque.

Visit gold embroidery factory. In this place they produce gold thread embroidery: hand embroidered carpets and luxurious curtains, women’s and men’s chapans, headdresses, cases and ladies’ handbags, wallets, shoes and various souvenirs.

Gala dinner with folklore show in a madrasah. You have a unique opportunity to join the culture of the Uzbek people, feel the oriental hospitality and enjoy traditional dance, music, cuisine and much more. Free time to walk in evening Bukhara. Overnight at the hotel.

After breakfast the continuation of the excursion in the vicinity of the city: a trip to summer residence of Bukhara Emir Sitorai Mohi Hosa. This is a unique building, the architecture of which combines eastern and Russian elements of decor. Visiting the complex – the mausoleum of Bahoutdin Naqshbandi, a Sufi teacher who is considered the founder of the most significant Sufi order of Naqshbandi. Return to the city. Visit a rich merchant’s house located in the historical part of the old city. The house belonged to the father of a millionaire merchant who traded karakul in Russia, Germany and other countries. Fayzulla Khodzhaev was the first Chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars of the Uzbek SSR. The house of Fayzullah Khodzhaev is a beautiful example of Bukhara residential architecture of the 19th century. A visit to the Chor Minor Madrasah hidden in the narrow streets of the old town.

Lunch at a national house with a cooking class. You will learn how to make traditional Uzbek dumplings Manti and baked Samsa.

At 14:20 transfer to the station (12 km.). The Afrosiab high-speed train leaves for Tashkent at 15:20. Arrival in Tashkent at 19:10. Farewell dinner in a traditional Uzbek restaurant with a music show. After dinner transfer to the airport or hotel.

End of the programme.