Find places in Uzbekistan

Must-Haves

• Central Asian Plov Centre (Yunusabad)
  Watch plov cooked in giant kazans and eat it fresh at lunchtime, the way Tashkent does.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Chorsu Bazaar food stalls (Chorsu)
  Grab samsa, lagman and fresh bread among locals under the great green dome.

Great for Date Night

• Caravan Restaurant (Mirabad)
  Uzbek dishes served in courtyard rooms filled with crafts and textiles.
• Afsona Restaurant (Shaykhantakhur)
  Refined national cuisine in an elegant room near the Opera.

Fun for Everyone

• Navvat Restaurant (Yakkasaray)
  A big, lively Uzbek dining hall that suits families and groups.

Must-Haves

• Bon! Café (Amir Temur area)
  A long running local café chain for pastries, coffee and a quiet break.

Great for Date Night

• Tashkent City Park (Tashkent City)
  Evening fountains, lights and a promenade that come alive after dark.

Fun for Everyone

• Broadway (Sayilgoh Street) (Amir Temur area)
  The pedestrian street fills with artists, snack sellers and strollers in the evening.

Must-Haves

• Tashkent Metro (City centre)
  Ride a Soviet era metro where every station is decorated differently, from chandeliers to cosmonauts.
• Hazrati Imam Complex (Old City)
  The religious heart of Tashkent, home to the library holding the Uthman Quran.

Fun for Everyone

• Tashkent TV Tower (Yunusabad)
  Ride up for a sweeping view of the city and the mountains on clear days.
• Magic City Park (Chilanzar)
  A fairy tale themed park with rides and evening shows that children love.

Off the Beaten Path

• Kukeldash Madrasa (Chorsu)
  A sixteenth century madrasa beside Chorsu Bazaar that few tour groups linger in.

Must-Haves

• Navruz celebrations (Citywide)
  Spring new year in March brings sumalak cooking, music and festivities in parks.

Must-Haves

• Chimgan Mountains (Tashkent Region)
  Hiking, skiing and fresh mountain air a short drive from the capital.

Fun for Everyone

• Charvak Reservoir (Tashkent Region)
  A turquoise mountain lake where Tashkent escapes the summer heat.

Off the Beaten Path

• Amirsoy Mountain Resort (Tashkent Region)
  A modern ski and mountain resort with year round cable car rides.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Japanese Garden (Yunusabad)
  A calm, beautifully kept garden for a gentle afternoon walk.

Must-Haves

• Chorsu Bazaar (Chorsu)
  The capital's greatest market, with spices, dried fruit, bread and crafts under one huge dome.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Alay Bazaar (Mirabad)
  A central market loved for fresh fruit, nuts and friendly traders.

Off the Beaten Path

• Yangiabad Bazaar (Yashnobod)
  A weekend flea market full of Soviet relics, tools and curiosities.

Must-Haves

• State Museum of Applied Arts (Mirabad)
  Ceramics, suzani embroidery and carved wood in a beautiful old merchant's house.
• State Museum of History of Uzbekistan (City centre)
  The best single overview of the country from ancient times to today.

Great for Date Night

• Alisher Navoi Opera and Ballet Theatre (City centre)
  Opera and ballet in a grand building decorated by craftsmen from across the country.

Off the Beaten Path

• Museum of Victims of Political Repression (Yunusabad)
  A moving museum on the Soviet era told through personal stories.

Fun for Everyone

• Amir Timur Museum (Amir Temur Square)
  A blue domed museum dedicated to the founder of the Timurid empire.

Must-Haves

• Hyatt Regency Tashkent (City centre)
  A polished base close to the main museums and Amir Temur Square.

Great for Date Night

• Lotte City Hotel Tashkent Palace (City centre)
  A grand historic building opposite the Opera with classic style.

Must-Haves

• Registan (City centre)
  Three tiled madrasas facing one square: the defining image of the Silk Road.
• Shah-i-Zinda (Old City)
  An avenue of turquoise tiled mausoleums that glows in the late afternoon light.
• Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum (City centre)
  The ribbed blue dome and golden interior of Amir Timur's tomb.
• Bibi-Khanym Mosque (Old City)
  A colossal fifteenth century mosque built after Timur's campaign in India.

Off the Beaten Path

• Ulugh Beg Observatory (Northern Samarkand)
  The remains of a great medieval observatory and its giant sextant.

Great for Date Night

• Platan Restaurant (City centre)
  A long established favourite for Uzbek and European dishes near the Gur-e-Amir.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Siab Bazaar bread and samsa stalls (Siab)
  Taste the famous Samarkand non bread straight from the clay ovens.

Off the Beaten Path

• Bibi-Khanym Teahouse (Old City)
  Eat shashlik and drink tea within sight of the great mosque.

Must-Haves

• Siab Bazaar (Old City)
  A lively market for dried fruit, nuts, halva and the city's round breads.

Fun for Everyone

• Registan craft shops (Registan)
  Ceramics, suzani and miniatures sold in the madrasa cells around the square.

Must-Haves

• Silk Road Samarkand Eternal City (Silk Road Samarkand)
  A recreated old town with crafts, food stalls and evening entertainment.

Off the Beaten Path

• Rukhobod Mausoleum (City centre)
  One of the oldest buildings in the city, quiet and rarely visited.

Off the Beaten Path

• Urgut Bazaar (Urgut)
  A huge Sunday market in the foothills, famous for old suzani embroidery.

Must-Haves

• Poi Kalyan Complex (Old City)
  The Kalyan Minaret and mosque, the skyline of Bukhara for nearly nine centuries.
• Ark of Bukhara (Old City)
  The massive fortress where the emirs ruled until the twentieth century.
• Lyabi-Hauz (Old City)
  A shaded pool surrounded by madrasas and teahouses at the heart of the old town.
• Samanid Mausoleum (Samanid Park)
  A tenth century brick masterpiece, one of the finest early Islamic buildings anywhere.

Fun for Everyone

• Chor Minor (Old City)
  A small gatehouse with four turquoise domed towers that everyone wants a photo of.

Must-Haves

• Lyabi-Hauz teahouses (Old City)
  Eat shashlik and plov by the pool as the old town lights up.

Off the Beaten Path

• Silk Road Tea House (Old City)
  Spiced teas and sweets in a calm, crafts filled room.

Must-Haves

• Trading domes of Bukhara (Old City)
  Medieval domed bazaars still trading in carpets, knives and silk.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Bukhara Central Bazaar (Kogon road)
  A local market for fruit, spices and everyday life away from the tourist lanes.

Must-Haves

• Magoki Attori Mosque (Old City)
  A sunken mosque built over older temples, now a carpet museum.

Off the Beaten Path

• Hammam Bozori Kord (Old City)
  A centuries old bathhouse still offering traditional scrubs and massages.

Off the Beaten Path

• Aydarkul Lake yurt camps (Kyzylkum Desert)
  Sleep in a yurt, ride a camel and swim in a desert lake.

Must-Haves

• Komil Bukhara Boutique Hotel (Old City)
  A restored merchant's house with painted ceilings and a courtyard.

Must-Haves

• Itchan Kala (Old City)
  The walled inner town of Khiva, a museum city of mosques, minarets and palaces.
• Kalta Minor Minaret (Itchan Kala)
  A fat, unfinished minaret wrapped in turquoise tiles.
• Islam Khodja Minaret (Itchan Kala)
  Climb the tallest minaret in Khiva for views across the old town.
• Juma Mosque of Khiva (Itchan Kala)
  A forest of over two hundred carved wooden columns, some centuries old.

Fun for Everyone

• Kunya Ark (Itchan Kala)
  The khans' fortress with a watchtower that is perfect at sunset.

Off the Beaten Path

• Ayaz Kala desert fortresses (Karakalpakstan)
  Ancient mud fortresses in the desert, with yurt stays nearby.

Must-Haves

• Terrassa Café (Itchan Kala)
  Rooftop dinner with views over the old town.

Off the Beaten Path

• Woodcarving workshops of Khiva (Itchan Kala)
  Craftspeople carving doors, columns and stands in the old style.

Must-Haves

• Pakhlavan Makhmud Mausoleum (Itchan Kala)
  The tiled shrine of Khiva's beloved poet and wrestler.

Off the Beaten Path

• Savitsky Museum (Nukus)
  A remarkable collection of banned Soviet avant garde art, worth the trip to Nukus.

Must-Haves

• Orient Star Khiva (Itchan Kala)
  Sleep in former madrasa cells inside the old town walls.

Great for Date Night

• Hotel Asia Khiva (Near the South Gate)
  A comfortable base just outside the walls.

Must-Haves

• Rishtan ceramics workshops (Rishtan)
  Meet master potters famous for their blue glazed ceramics.
• Yodgorlik Silk Factory (Margilan)
  See ikat silk dyed, spun and woven by hand.

Off the Beaten Path

• Khudayar Khan Palace (Kokand)
  The ornate palace of the last khans of Kokand.
• Juma Mosque of Kokand (Kokand)
  A mosque with nearly a hundred carved wooden columns.

Must-Haves

• Kumtepa Bazaar (Margilan)
  A colourful old market for silk, fabrics and village life.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Fergana Central Bazaar (Fergana city)
  Fruit, nuts and daily life in the valley that feeds the nation.

Off the Beaten Path

• Margilan Crafts Development Centre (Margilan)
  A craft centre in an old madrasa where artisans teach ikat and embroidery.