This is a private, tailor-made cycling tour — the price depends on your dates, group size, bikes and support. Send the form and we will send you a detailed quote within 24 hours.
A cycling tour that links the great cities with the country in between. You start in Tashkent and Bukhara, then spend the middle of the trip in the saddle — across the Kyzylkum desert, along Aydarkul lake, and through the villages of the Nuratau foothills to Samarkand.
Days in the saddle run from about 30 to 90 km on quiet roads and desert tracks, with a support vehicle carrying your bags and picnics laid on. Nights are in hotels, a desert yurt camp and traditional village homestays.
Tashkent and Bukhara by night train and on foot, before the riding begins.
Cycle from the Nuratau edge across the Kyzylkum to a yurt camp on Aydarkul lake.
Ride through the Nuratau foothills, staying with families in Qushrabat and Juma.
Roll into Samarkand for the monuments, then the train back to Tashkent.
Arrival in Tashkent and transfer to your hotel.
A tour of old Tashkent — the Hasti-Imam complex, the Chorsu bazaar, the Kukeldash madrasah and the Museum of Applied Arts, with a look at the metro — then the overnight train west to Bukhara.
Arrival in Bukhara and a day exploring one of the oldest cities in Central Asia — the mosques, minarets and madrasahs of the walled old town, almost all within walking distance.
The shrine of Bahauddin Naqshbandi, founder of the Sufi order, then the Gijduvan ceramics workshop, and on to Nurata at the edge of the desert.
The riding begins: about 60 km into the Kyzylkum desert towards the yurt camp, with a picnic on the way. Dinner and a night in a traditional felt yurt.
A shorter ride, about 30 km, to Aydarkul lake, reaching the water around midday. A picnic by the shore, a free afternoon and an optional swim, with the night beside the lake.
About 60 km back to Nurata, with a picnic on the way, arriving in the evening.
The longest ride, about 90 km through the Nuratau foothills to the village of Qushrabat, where you stay with a local family.
About 70 km on through the villages to Juma, with a picnic on the way and a second night with a village family.
The last ride, about 45 km, into Samarkand — a city with more than 2,500 years of history behind it.
A rest day off the bike for the great sights: the Gur-e-Amir mausoleum, the Registan, the Bibi-Khanum mosque, the Siab bazaar and the tombs of Shah-i-Zinda.
A last morning around Samarkand — the Konigil Meros paper mill, the Ulugbek observatory and the Afrasiab museum — then the train back to Tashkent.
Transfer to the airport for your onward flight. End of the tour.
The Aydarkul yurt night as a short trip, without the cycling.
