Uzbekistan’s cities of the Silk Road

Modern-day Uzbekistan sat at the heart of the Silk Road, and its major cities were key trading posts and resting points for merchants en route to Venice or Egypt, Persia or China. If you’re looking to uncover a little of Uzbekistan’s Silk Road heritage, there are a few big names to know – and, luckily, it’s really easy to combine them on one trip. Read on as we reveal Uzbekistan’s best cities to visit for Silk Road history…

Look out for quotes from product manager Phil, who's been lucky enough to visit Uzbekistan several times.

Tashkent 

Let’s begin in Uzbekistan’s capital city: Tashkent. You’ll fly in and out of the city, so you’ll have time to spend here at the start and end of your tour.  

Tashkent has held fast to its Silk Road roots, and today exports huge amounts of cotton, silk and textiles to Eastern Europe. While the city has sadly lost many of its historical monuments (architecture is more Soviet than Silk Road), it’s a wonderful place for experiencing modern Uzbek culture.

The State Museum of History is worth a visit to gain an understanding of Uzbekistan’s past, while the Museum of Applied Art takes a closer look at craft art – the displays of ceramics, jewellery, embroidery, wood paintings and porcelain are stunning.  

You’ll find more works of art underground in Tashkent. The city’s metro stations were glitzed and glammed up during the Soviet era, and feature glittering mosaics, huge murals and even chandeliers. Even if you don’t need to travel anywhere by metro, we’d still recommend paying a visit to a couple of stations to admire the art and architecture.

Khiva

The remote city of Khiva is one of the best places in Uzbekistan for Silk Road culture. It was a key resting place for travellers crossing the Kyzulkum Desert on their way to or from Persia.  

Khiva’s walled old town, Itchan Kala, is incredibly well preserved. A wander here reveals monuments, palaces and mosques, as well as hundreds of traditional dwellings that have stood unchanged for centuries (many now house little bazaars or handicraft workshops – be sure to have a nose inside).

Highlights here include the 18th-century Djuma Mosque, with its roof of elegant elm columns; the Tosh-Hovli Palace; the vast Kuhna Ark fortress; and the beautiful Pahlavan Mahmud Mausoleum. Khiva isn’t as well-visited as some of the other cities in this list (thanks to its far-fling location), so a couple of days here gives you a chance to explore some fascinating Silk Road sights without the crowds.

Bukhara

Not only was Bukhara an important trading city on the Silk Road, it was also something of a cultural, economic and religious powerhouse. The city’s historic heart is a UNESCO-protected World Heritage Site and is chock-full of incredible sights.

The Kaylon Mosque is a must-see, with its towering minaret (said to be the only monument Genghis Khan spared from destruction on his rampage across the region) and its intricately tiled madrasahs. Then you’ve got the old trading domes (centuries old, but still used as bazaars today – perfect for picking up souvenirs), the traditional tea houses, and the vast Ark (a ruined fortress that dates back to the 5th century).

Shakhrisabz

Shakhrisabz – formerly known as Kesh – makes a great stop-off in between Bukhara and Samarkand (it sits a couple of hours south of the latter).  

One of the oldest cities along the Central Asian Silk Road, it was also the birthplace of the 14^th-century emperor (and founder of Uzbekistan) Tamerlane. Many of the sights you’ll see here have a connection to Tamerlane in one way or another, from the ruined Ak-Saray Palace that the emperor had built, to the blue-domed mosque built by his grandson.

Samarkand

Last (but by no means least) on our round-up of Silk Road cities is storied Samarkand. Settled in the Zerafshan River valley, Samarkand was a hub of trading for more than 2,500 years – even today, the city is known for its silk weaving and textile trading.

Another of Uzbekistan’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Samarkand is teeming with incredible monuments. Begin in Registan Square, one of the most spectacular plazas you’ll ever stand in. On three sides, the square is bordered by madrasahs (centres for Islamic study), each one intricately tiled with everything from geometric patterns to wildlife pictures and astronomy images.

Tamerlane chose the city as the capital of his empire – his mausoleum is another must-see, and features a beautiful, turquoise-tiled dome and interiors coated in gold and blue. The Shah-i-Zinda necropolis is highly recommended, too. It’s a complex of medieval mausolea, each one featuring incredible tile and brick work in traditional Islamic and Central Asian designs.

Find out more about our Silk Road tours to Uzbekistan.