Uzbekistan with Turkish Airlines

Meet at Istanbul Airport 3 hours before departure. Fly to Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, with Turkish Airlines flight TK364 at 22:00.

Arrive in Tashkent at 06:35 after a ~4.5-hour flight and start city sightseeing: Kaffal Shashi Mausoleum, Barak Khan Madrasa (now crafts & souvenirs), Hazrati Imam Mosque, the Muyi Mubarak Madrasa housing what is believed to be an original Mushaf from the era of Caliph Uthman, Amir Timur Square and Independence Square. Visit the 2,000-year-old Chorsu Bazaar and tour the Tashkent Metro (opened 1977, among Central Asia’s first). Hotel check-in and overnight in Tashkent.

After breakfast transfer to the airport for the domestic flight to Urgench (Khorezm). Continue ~40 km to Khiva and spend the day exploring the old city: enter via Ata Darvaza, see Muhammad Amin Khan Madrasa, Kalta Minor Minaret, Kunya-Ark Citadel, Muhammad Rahim Khan Madrasa & Khivan Khans Museum, Muhammad Emin Inaq Madrasa & Science Museum, Allakuli Khan Stone Courtyard Palace with Harem, Juma Mosque & Minaret, and Islam Khoja Madrasa & Minaret. Also see Pehlivan Darvaza Gate and the Mausoleum of Pahlavan Mahmoud. Free time for shopping and strolling. Overnight in Khiva.

After breakfast depart across the Kyzylkum Desert, following the Amu Darya (Ceyhun) River towards Bukhara. On arrival visit the tombs of Sayyid Amir Kulal and the revered complex of Bahauddin Shah-i Naqshband and his mother. Check in and dinner. Overnight in Bukhara.

After breakfast explore Silk Road Bukhara: Ismail Samani Mausoleum, the Spring & Tomb of Prophet Job (Ayub), Bolo-Hauz Mosque, Ark Fortress, and in the Po-i-Kalyan complex: Kalyan Minaret, Mir-i-Arab Madrasa, Friday Mosque. Also see Ulugh Beg Madrasa, Abdulaziz Khan Madrasa, Magok-i Attari Mosque, Nadir Divan-Begí Madrasa and Char Minar. Time in the caravanserai bazaars. Transfer to the station for the train to Samarkand (~2 hours). Arrival and hotel check-in. Overnight in Samarkand.

After breakfast, Samarkand tour: Gur-e Amir (Tomb of Tamerlane), Registan Square with the Ulugh Beg, Tilla-Kari and Sher-Dor madrasas, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, and the Shah-i-Zinda necropolis including the tomb of Qutham ibn Abbas (cousin of the Prophet). Continue to the Ulugh Beg Observatory and visit the tombs of Imam Maturidi and Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar. Evening train to Tashkent (~2 hours) and hotel check-in.

Late night transfer to Tashkent Airport with lunchboxes. Fly to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines flight TK365 at 06:05. Arrive at Istanbul Airport at 09:30 and end of services.