Uzbekistan small group tour with added comfort
Description of Uzbekistan small group tour with added comfort
This small group tour journeys through Uzbekistan and its great cities: Tashkent, Bukhara, Khiva and Samarkand. Accompanied by a knowledgeable local tour leader, you’ll explore Uzbekistan’s Silk Road history, the Soviet legacy, and contemporary culture too, with a series of well-chosen activities that showcase Uzbekistan hospitality.
You’ll meet the rest of your group and tour leader on the first evening in Tashkent, getting to know everyone over a welcome dinner in a restaurant, and a walking tour of the city on day two. The group size is just 15 meaning that it’s sociable but not overwhelming, and you can stay in small, locally owned accommodation. In both Bukhara and Khiva you’ll stay in boutique historic properties – including a former madrassa in Khiva, with centuries of history in its walls.
Over the next week you’ll travel in a loop by private vehicle, high-speed train and metro, spending time in key destinations along the legendary Silk Road: Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. Each city’s colourful history will be revealed by the tour leader as you explore them on foot, with group meals organised on some evenings, while on other days you can follow your leader’s restaurant recommendations. You will have countless opportunities to enjoy local cuisine – indeed, in Khiva, you’ll take a cookery class and learn how to make a few dishes.
Expect a host of other activities too, all of them carefully selected to immerse you in Uzbekistan’s culture while also benefitting local people. In Samarkand, visit the studio of an artisan making paper with a 1,000-year-old method, and share a meal of plov, a rice dish, cooked in a cauldron over an open fire, with a local family. En route to Khiva, pause at a pottery workshop to learn about Uzbekistan’s ancient ceramics tradition, and to meet a family who produce beautiful silk fabrics known as suzani.
Uzbekistan is one of Central Asia’s most interesting and welcoming countries, and this fantastic tour makes for a memorable introduction.
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2 Reviews of Uzbekistan small group tour with added comfort
Reviewed on 22 Nov 2025 by Nishma Shah
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The whole thing!
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Avoid the summer months and Uzbekistan is a relatively easy and safe country to travel in.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
I believe it benefited local people -we bought our souvenirs from them, tried to use trains where possible or walk in cities to reduce use of cars/buses
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent
Reviewed on 20 Oct 2025 by Suzanne Gray
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The beautiful cities and monuments we visited. At times you could imagine being back in time with people from all over the region trading goods (souvenirs) as they have for centuries. We were also lucky enough to visit at the time of the Biennale in Bukhara, which was lovely to wander around in the evening with lots of local families and tourists.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Do some background reading on the history of Uzbekistan and the wider region. Our guide was very knowledgeable and happy to answer all questions, but its good to be prepared.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Local people were very friendly, and the visits to family homes for meals were hopefully beneficial.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
A positive experience giving me a much better understanding of the geopolitics of central Asia.
Responsible Travel
Planet
We use public transport on many occasions in this trip, first to get about Tashkent and well as using trains over longer distances such as Tashkent to Samarkand and Bukhara to Khiva. This trip has a maximum group size of 12, and we never exceed this. Travelling in small groups means we have a lower environmental impact on the locations visited, using fewer resources and leaving less waste behind. We are able to use smaller buses, rather than the coaches used by larger touring groups. This trip has a large water keg on the bus, from which our travellers can fill their reusable water bottles and our tour leaders are proactive in encouraging our travellers to produce as little waste as possible while on the tour. Ensuring we eat at local restaurants and in local’s homes allows us to reduce food waste support locally grown produce. This tour includes our highest rated tour leaders, who not only have incredible knowledge of local culture and history but also the local fauna and flora, acting as advocates for our style of travel and the natural environment.Since 2018 we have been certified as a B Corp. Certified B Corporations are leaders in the global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy. Unlike other certifications for businesses, B Lab is unique in our ability to measure a company’s entire social and environmental impact.
People
This trip supports the local economy in many ways, by using a local tour leader throughout, as well as various local guides and restaurants. We include a visit Chorsu Bazzar, one of the largest and oldest markets in Central Asia. Wandering through this giant marketplace is a fantastic way to see locals going about their daily lives and our local tour leader is on hand to bridge any language gaps. Our travellers will often chat with many locals who are some of the friendliest people in the world and keen to get to know foreigners. The group will again get to meet locals and purchase goods from local artisans and traders in Samarkand; visiting a traditional paper-maker and one of the oldest and best wine-makers in the area. In the evening the group join a local family for a cooking demonstration on the traditional meal known as plov. The group will sit down together for dinner with the family and chat about daily life. In Shofirkon the group meet with a lovely local family and learn how to make suzani, a beautiful silk fabric, each with a different story. This evening, the group enjoy an Uzbek folklore and music performance at one of the city’s medressas before heading for dinner at a wonderful local restaurant. In Khiva, we include a cooking class and learn the secrets of Khorezmian cuisine, making traditional dishes like shivit oshi and tuhum-barak.Popular similar holidays
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