Worldwide Escorted Tours 2024-2026

THIS TOUR EXPLORE Includes direct flights Day 1: UK to Tashkent Depart the UK on your overnight flight to Tashkent. Day 2: Tashkent D On arrival into Tashkent, you will be met by a local guide and transferred to your hotel – then head out to enjoy a cultural tour of Tashkent starting with Hast Imam Square. The square is the religious centre of Tashkent and home to a number of beautiful mosques, monuments and madrasas. As a contrast to these 16th Century sites, you’ll then visit the Chorsu Bazaar and experience the hustle and bustle of everyday Central Asian life as everything from spices, grains and fruits are sold. This is followed by a visit to the Alisher Navoi Opera and Ballet Theatre Square built in neoclassical style by famous Russian architect Alexey Shchusey. Finally you’ll pay a visit to Mustaqilik (Independence Square) home to the country’s senate and government buildings. Day 3: Tashkent to Khiva B/L/D Morning at leisure before catching your flight to Urgench for your transfer to Khiva. You will have an afternoon at leisure. Day 4: Khiva B/D Khiva is an important trading post on the Silk Road for centuries due to its position halfway between China and Rome, it is a colourful treat for the eyes and a UNESCO-listed treasure that feels more like an open-air museum than a functioning city. Wander its ancient streets and discover a millennium of history on a fascinating guided tour. Gaze up at the imposing mud-brick walls of Ichan Kala, Khiva’s inner city; explore the 12th century fortress of Kuhna Ark and wonder at the intricately tiled Pahlawan Mahmud Mausoleum. Day 5: Khiva to Bukhara B/L/D After breakfast, you’ll begin your journey to Bukhara. Upon arrival, you’ll have time to explore. Day 6: Bukhara B/D One of the most ancient cities in Uzbekistan, Bukhara is over 3,000 years old and dates back to nearly a thousand years before Alexander the Great’s conquest of Central Asia. Like most historic cities in Uzbekistan it was an important trading post along the Silk Road, but is probably better known throughout the Islamic world as a being a great centre of learning and has even been referred to as Central Asia’s holiest city. Explore some of its many architectural wonders on a guided tour of the city – including the formidable Ark citadel was initially built in the 5th century and was the fortified residence of the rulers of Bukhara for centuries, containing palaces, temples barracks and even a prison. It has been destroyed and subsequently rebuilt many times, including by Genghis Khan who ransacked Bukhara in 1220 AD. Uzbekistan’s place at the heart of the ancient Silk Road has attracted architects, scientists and mathematicians for centuries, as well as marauding conquerors intent on plundering the riches within. What you’ll see  Explore Uzbekistan’s cosmopolitan capital Tashkent with its beautiful mosques, monuments and madrasas  Visit the colossal Kalta Minor Minaret in Khiva and marvel at the amazing array of colours  Discover Bukhara, Central Asia’s holiest city and one of it’s most ancient  Delight in a Khoresmian Folk show with dinner  Visit the ruins of Ak Saray Palace in Shakrisabz  Enjoy a delicious wine tasting at the Khovrenko Winery and sample a range of local Samarkand wines  Follow an ancient trading route across the Kyzyl Kum desert  Gaze in awe at Registan Square in Samarkland  Enjoy a cookery class with a local family in Samarkand Uzbekistan and the Silk Route Poi Kalan, Bukhara 36  Central Asia, India & Sri Lanka Hundreds of escorted tours are available on our website www.mercuryholidays.co.uk