Golden Bukhara: Exploring History in 2 Days

Bukhara rewards a slower pace. In one day you can walk its historic centre; with two days you also see the places outside the old walls that explain what the city meant — the summer palace of its last emir, the house of a rich merchant family and one of the most important Sufi shrines of Central Asia. This guide shows how to divide two days in Bukhara, and how to get there and back from Tashkent by high-speed train.

Key facts

• Where: Bukhara, whose historic centre has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993.
• Time needed: 2 days with 1 night; about 6–7 hours of sightseeing on day one and 3–4 hours on day two (tour data).
• Getting there: Afrosiyob high-speed train from Tashkent, about 4 hours each way.
• Day one: the old town on foot — Lyabi-Hauz, the trading domes, the Kalyan ensemble, the Ark, the Samanid Mausoleum.
• Day two: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa, the Fayzulla Khodjaev House Museum and the Bahouddin Naqshbandi complex.
• Good for: first-time visitors who want Bukhara without rushing, history lovers, travellers based in Tashkent.
• Book with: see the Golden Bukhara two-day tour or contact us — prices depend on group size and season.

Why two days in Bukhara?

Bukhara's centre is compact, so one day covers its famous monuments — our full-day Bukhara city tour guide walks you through them one by one. But the city is not only its centre. The emirs had their summer residence outside town, pilgrims still travel to the grave of Bahouddin Naqshbandi, and the Samanid Mausoleum stands in a park away from the trading streets. A second day also gives you an evening in the old town, after the day's sightseeing is done.

Getting there: Tashkent to Bukhara by train

The Afrosiyob high-speed train links Tashkent and Bukhara in about 4 hours, via Samarkand. On our tour you take a morning train and arrive in Bukhara before noon, and on day two an afternoon train brings you back to Tashkent in the evening. Our driver meets you at the station in Bukhara and takes you to the hotel to leave your luggage. For classes, tickets and timetables, see our guide to the Afrosiyob high-speed train.

Day 1: the old town on foot

The first afternoon belongs to the historic centre, all of it within walking distance. The tour goes from Lyabi-Hauz and the Magoki-Attari Mosque past Chor-Minor and the trading domes to the Ulugh Beg and Abdulazizkhan madrasas, which face each other across a narrow street. From there you reach the Kalyan Minaret, the Kalyan Mosque and the Mir-i-Arab Madrasa, then the Ark Fortress and the Bolo-Hauz Mosque.

The day ends a little further west, at two older buildings. The Samanid Mausoleum was built in the 10th century for the Samanid dynasty; it was buried under silt for centuries, which probably saved it from the Mongols, and was only excavated in the 1920s. Nearby stands the Chashma-Ayub, "Job's spring". Then you have free time in the old town.

An evening in Bukhara

After sunset the old town changes. Lyabi-Hauz is the natural place for dinner or tea by the water, and the domes of the Poi-Kalyan ensemble look different in the evening light. This is what a day trip from Samarkand misses.

Day 2: beyond the old walls

Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa

In the morning you drive to the summer palace of the last emir of Bukhara, Alim Khan, built between 1912 and 1918. Russian engineers worked on it, and the result mixes a European exterior with Eastern interiors; the palace was divided into men's and women's sections. Today it houses a museum of decorative and applied arts.

Fayzulla Khodjaev House Museum

Back in town you visit the house of a wealthy Bukharan trading family. Its son, Fayzulla Khodjaev (1896–1938), became head of government of the Bukharan People's Soviet Republic in 1920 and later of Soviet Uzbekistan, before he was executed in Moscow in 1938. The house is shown as the home of a rich local merchant.

Bahouddin Naqshbandi memorial complex

The last visit is to the burial place of Bahouddin Naqshbandi (1318–1389), founder of the Naqshbandi order, one of the largest Sufi orders of Sunni Islam. The complex lies in his home village just outside Bukhara and is an important place of pilgrimage. Visitors are expected to dress modestly and behave quietly, as at any shrine.

The tour description also mentions the Chor-Bakr necropolis, a 16th-century memorial complex about 5 km from Bukhara built around the grave of a 10th-century descendant of the Prophet's family; ask us if you want to include it.

In the afternoon you transfer to the station for the train back to Tashkent.

Practical tips

• Book train seats early: popular Afrosiyob departures often sell out, and sales usually open about 60 days before travel.
• Carry your passport on the train; it is checked with your ticket.
• Dress modestly for the Bahouddin Naqshbandi complex and mosques: shoulders and knees covered, a scarf for women.
• Spring and autumn are the most comfortable seasons for walking; in summer do the old town early and late.
• Keep small banknotes for tea, crafts in the trading domes and any photo tickets at monuments.
• Travelling light helps: on day one you go straight from the station into the old town.

Plan it with TravelBliss

On the Golden Bukhara two-day tour we arrange the transfers in Tashkent and Bukhara, the train, the hotel night and the guided sightseeing on both days. If you are already in Bukhara and have only one day, take the Bukhara City Tour. If you want to combine both cities, read our guide to Bukhara and Samarkand in 2 days. Prices depend on group size and season — see the tour page or contact us.