For centuries, Samarkand and Bukhara were the stuff of legend — names that conjured visions of caravans laden with silk and spices crossing vast deserts. Today, Uzbekistan's Silk Road cities remain astonishingly beautiful and wonderfully affordable.
Samarkand: Crossroads of Cultures
The Registan is the showstopper — three madrasahs covered in intricate turquoise, blue, and gold tile work, arranged around a vast plaza. Visit at sunset when the tiles glow golden. The Shah-i-Zinda necropolis is a street of stunning 14th-15th century mausoleums with some of the finest tile work in the Islamic world. The Bibi-Khanum Mosque was once one of the largest in the world.
Bukhara: The Living Museum
With over 140 protected monuments, Bukhara's old city is a UNESCO site where people still live and work among the history. The Kalon Minaret — so beautiful that Genghis Khan supposedly spared it — has dominated the skyline for 900 years. The Ark Fortress was the emir's city-within-a-city. The Lyab-i-Hauz plaza around a 400-year-old pool is the perfect place to sip green tea and people-watch.
Khiva: The Open-Air Museum
The walled inner city of Itchan Kala feels like stepping into a medieval Silk Road town. Climb the unfinished Kalta Minor minaret (covered in turquoise tiles) and walk the city walls at sunset for views over the flat-roofed city to the desert beyond.
