Gijduvan ceramics and the holy spring at Nurata on the way in, two nights with village families, and a 12 km walk over the mountains between them — arriving in Samarkand on day three.
Estimated price — availability and the final quote are confirmed by our team. No payment is taken on this page.
Private tour — price per person depends on group size:
| 1 traveler | $475 / person |
| 2 travelers | $295 / person |
| 3 travelers | $235 / person |
| 4 travelers | $265 / person |
| 5 travelers | $235 / person |
| 6 travelers | $220 / person |
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The same three days as the Samarkand-to-Bukhara version, run the other way round — and it works well in this direction because the sightseeing falls on day one, while you are still fresh.
You leave Bukhara after breakfast, stop at the Narzullaev ceramics workshop in Gijduvan and the Rabati Malik caravanserai, then at Nurata for the Chashma holy spring and the hilltop ruins of the Nur fortress, attributed to Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. The first night is in Hayat.
Day two is the crossing: roughly 12 km on foot from Hayat to Asraf via Ukhum, with a mountain guide, while your luggage goes round by road. Day three is breakfast, then the drive down to Samarkand.
Pickup with all your luggage — you continue to Samarkand and do not return this way.
The Narzullaev family workshop, seventh generation. Hand-painted ceramics and a look at the kiln.
A photo stop at the surviving Karakhanid portal on the old Bukhara–Samarkand road.
A sacred spring full of carp beside an old mosque, below the hilltop ruins of the Nur fortress — attributed to Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC.
Lunch at a local restaurant.
Arrive in Hayat, a village high in the Nuratau mountains, and settle in with your hosts.
Dinner with the host family.
Breakfast before the walk.
The main walk: roughly 12 km across high pastures and ridges, through the village of Ukhum and down into Asraf, with a local mountain guide. Rock carvings appear on the hillsides along the way.
Arrive in Asraf and settle in with a second host family.
Dinner with your hosts.
A last breakfast with your hosts.
Down out of the mountains and south to Samarkand.
Door-to-door drop-off at your Samarkand hotel, early afternoon.
Questions about this itinerary? We reply within 24 hours, and there is no payment to enquire.
The shorter version — one homestay night and a village walk instead of the mountain crossing.
The same route plus a night in a desert yurt camp on Aydarkul lake.
A shorter transfer sleeping in a desert yurt camp rather than the mountains.