Aral Sea

Adventure Travel: To the Aral Sea

The journey to the Aral Sea allows tourists to experience humanity’s folly and feel the wonders of nature. The adventurous and active tour to the Aral Sea, located on the border between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, illustrates the scale of the tragedy surrounding the disappearance of the Aral Sea. The tour to the Aral Sea evokes mixed feelings of awe and sadness. Awe for the incredible beauty of the barren landscape and the Ustyurt Plateau. And sadness due to the open wounds of this region, which are so evident. In the unusual landscape of deserts and oases, we encounter hospitable people – open to the West yet deeply rooted in their centuries-old culture.

Detailed 12-Day Itinerary

Day 1: Tashkent. Arrival in Tashkent
Flight to Tashkent. Arrival in the evening or early morning of the next day (depending on flight connections). Upon arrival in Tashkent, you will be met by your tour guide at the international airport and taken to your hotel.

• After a rest at the hotel, you embark on a sightseeing tour through Tashkent’s Old Town. We visit the Khast-Imam Complex. On the large square, the Barak-Khan Madrasah and the Kaffal-Shashi Mausoleum bear witness to the era when Tashkent was a center of significant development in Islamic culture and religion. In the madrasah’s library, the world’s oldest Quran is preserved, a manuscript from the time of the third Caliph Uthman.
• Next, we visit the “Chorsu” Bazaar, known since the Middle Ages as a crossroads for caravans of the Great Silk Road. This is one of Tashkent’s largest markets, close to the city center. At the bazaar, you’ll see many Uzbek specialties, and a variety of exotic, spicy aromas will enchant your senses.
• The Museum of Applied Arts, housed in an impressive historic community center, contains over 7,000 exhibits of traditional folk art from past eras and foreign cultures. Afterward, we ride the metro, which impresses with its artfully decorated stations. You can stroll through pedestrian zones with numerous street vendors and cafés and take a ride on Central Asia’s only metro, fascinating for its uniquely designed stations. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 2: Tashkent – Nukus
Early breakfast at the hotel. At 05:30, transfer to the airport for the flight to Nukus from 07:10 to 09:55. After checking into the hotel, we visit the State Art Museum, named after I. Savitsky, which houses the world’s second-largest collection of Russian avant-garde art and one of the largest collections of applied art in Central Asia. Dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight in Nukus.

Day 3: Nukus – Kungrad – Ustyurt Plateau – Sudochye Lake – Aral Sea (approx. 450 km)
We leave Nukus at 06:00 toward the Ustyurt Plateau and Aral Sea, approx. 450 km, a journey of 8–9 hours. We pass through the Kungrad District, once a significant trading center along the Silk Road. The journey continues to the Ustyurt Plateau. Stop at Sudochye Lake, lunch at a fisherman’s house. After lunch, we continue to the Aral Sea. Along the way, we visit an old lighthouse and a village near a gas plant. You’ll have opportunities to photograph spectacular canyons and rugged landscapes. Arrival at the Aral Sea. We set up our tents and enjoy a simple campfire dinner. Overnight.

Day 4: Aral Sea – Muynak (250 km) – Mizdakhan – Gaur Kala – Nukus
Early rise to photograph the sunrise. Breakfast. Drive to Muynak (250 km – 4 hours) to visit the old port with its abandoned ships lying in the sand – a “ship graveyard”. Continue across the dried seabed of the Aral Sea, passing the gas towers of the Ushsay gas plant. Lunch. Stop in Nukus to visit the Mizdakhan architectural complex and the Gaur Kala ruins from the 14th century, destroyed by Genghis Khan. Arrival in Nukus. Dinner at a local hotel. Overnight.

Day 5: Nukus – Toprak-Kala – Ayaz-Kala – Khiva
Drive to Khiva with a stop at Ayaz-Kala – an impressive ancient mud fortress. In the Kyzylkum Desert, the massive ruins of one of the largest fortresses of ancient Khorezm – Ayaz-Kala – rise at the foot of an eastern spur of the Sultan-Uwais Mountains. Archaeological excavations date the Ayaz-Kala fortress to the 2nd century BC. It was part of a system of border fortresses defending the Khiva Oasis from the desert side. Next, we visit the Toprak-Kala mud fortress (the ancient capital of Khorezm, 2nd century AD). In the afternoon, we reach the oasis city of Khiva.
Today, enjoy a typical regional dinner – “Shivit Oshi”, meaning “green noodles”. The dough is prepared with dill juice, giving the noodles their green color. Two overnights in Khiva.

Day 6: Khiva
A highlight of your journey! The mud streets and two-wheeled donkey carts, still part of the street scene, give a glimpse of the unchanged way of life since the Middle Ages. On your tour through the historic center, you can admire the oriental ornaments and turquoise tiles of the richly decorated buildings and understand why Khiva’s old town is rightly called “Ichan Kala” (open-air museum). Visit the Kunya-Ark Fortress, once the residence of the Khans of Khiva, the Juma Mosque – a Friday mosque famous for its artfully decorated 212 wooden columns, the Pakhlavan-Makhmud Mausoleum, the madrasah and minaret of Islam Khodja – the wise vizier of Khan Muhammad Rahim Khan, and the Tash-Khovli Palace. Enjoy the magical impressions of this day.

Day 7: Khiva – Bukhara (approx. 420 km)
Take advantage of the cool morning hours for the long drive through the Kyzylkum Desert to Bukhara. You cross the famous “Amu Darya” River and enjoy numerous photo stops along the riverbanks and in the desert. In the late afternoon, you reach the next Silk Road metropolis, Bukhara. Dinner at a local restaurant. Two overnights in Bukhara.

Day 8: Bukhara
Today, you take a walking tour through the 2,500-year-old city of Bukhara. Visit the Ark Citadel, the Bolo-Khauz Mosque, the Chashma-Ayub Spring, and the Samanid Mausoleum – Bukhara’s oldest structures. In the afternoon, see the imposing Poi Kalyan architectural complex. You visit the domed bazaars and trading streets of the goldsmiths at Toki Zargaron, the hat makers at Toki Telpak Furushon, and the Kosh Madrasah complex with the madrasahs of Ulugbek and Abdulaziz Khan. Afterward, relax with a cup of tea at the refreshing water basin in the Lyabi-Hauz Complex. Listen to stories and legends in front of the monument of Nasreddin on his donkey, an oriental version of Baron Munchausen.

Day 9: Bukhara – Shakhrisabz – Samarkand
Today, drive to Shakhrisabz (270 km), the birthplace of Amir Timur (Tamerlane). Timur was a ruler who conquered Iran and the Caucasus in the 14th century and defeated the Golden Horde in southern Russia. After unforgettable impressions at the ruins of the Ak-Saray Palace, the Kuk-Gumbaz Mosque, and the “Dorut-Tilovat” Complex with the mausoleums of Shamseddin Kulal and Gumbaz Sayyidon, continue to Samarkand (170 km). Check into the hotel, then free time for the rest of the day. Dinner at a local restaurant. Two overnights in Samarkand.

Day 10: Samarkand
In Samarkand, “One Thousand and One Nights” begins anew. The city is among the world’s oldest and was the center of the famous Silk Road. At the Afrosiyab Museum, you gain insight into ancient Samarkand. Next, visit the Shakhi-Zinda Complex, a magnificent collection of mausoleums adorned in the Timurid style with majolica and mosaic tiles. At a paper manufactory, you’ll see that centuries-old traditions are still alive in Samarkand. Observe the traditional process of making paper from mulberry fibers. End the day with a visit to the Ulugbek Observatory, built in 1428–1429 on a hill of the Chupanata Range.

Day 11: Samarkand – Tashkent
Ancient Samarkand still radiates the splendor of bygone eras! In the Middle Ages, it was considered one of the most beautiful and significant cities in the world. The palatial mausoleum of the ruler Amir Timur, the Gur-Emir Mausoleum, will impress you. Today, enjoy the highlight of your journey – the Registan Square with its three massive, intricately decorated madrasahs. Next, visit what was once Central Asia’s largest mosque – the Bibi-Khanum Mosque. Then, head to a colorful oriental bazaar. Market stalls are piled high with pyramids of nuts, almonds, pistachios, dried apricots, raisins, and all sorts of fresh fruits and vegetables. Exotic aromas of spices and herbs fill the air. A market as vibrant and fascinating as life itself. In the late afternoon, depart Samarkand on the “Afrosiyab” high-speed train at 17:00 for Tashkent. Arrival at 19:10, transfer to the hotel. Dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight in Tashkent.

Day 12: Tashkent – Return Flight
After an early breakfast, you are taken to the airport for your return flight.

End of the Adventure Travel: To the Aral Sea.

Book your 12-day Adventure Travel: To the Aral Sea today!

Included in the Standard Price:

• Domestic flight Tashkent–Nukus
• Round trip / excursions and transfers in air-conditioned, country-typical vehicles
• Excursion to the Aral Sea with jeep, tents, and cook
• Accommodations in mid-range hotels (local category) in double rooms, 1 x tent overnight
• Sightseeing program including entrance fees as per the itinerary
• Savitsky – Avant-Garde Art Museum in Nukus
• Breakfast, camping lunch, dinner
• Farewell dinner in Tashkent
• High-speed train Samarkand – Tashkent
• English-speaking guide from DOCA TOURS from/to Tashkent airport

Not Included in the Standard Price:

• International flights
• Photo/video fees
• Tips for guides and drivers

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