Heritage of the Silk Road: 6-Day Cultural Tour Through Uzbek Crafts

The heritage of the Silk Road in Uzbekistan is not only in its mosques and madrasahs. It also lives in workshops where potters, painters, bakers, paper-makers and weavers still work the way their families did for generations. The Heritage of the Silk Road tour is a 6-day cultural tour that combines the classic sights of Tashkent, Bukhara and Samarkand with master classes, so that you see the monuments and also try the crafts yourself.

Key facts

• Route: Tashkent – Bukhara – Samarkand – Tashkent, by train between the cities.
• Duration: 6 days, 5 nights; the programme can also start in another city on request.
• Focus: Silk Road monuments plus hands-on master classes in all three cities.
• Master classes in the programme: ceramics and plov in Tashkent; miniature painting and knife-making in Bukhara; bread, silk paper and carpet weaving in and around Samarkand.
• Evening programme: a folklore show in a Bukhara madrasah.
• Good for: travellers interested in art and craft, families with older children, repeat visitors who want more than sightseeing.
• Prices: depend on the number of travellers and the season — see the tour page or contact us.

A tour built around living crafts

On most first trips to Uzbekistan the days are filled with monuments. This tour keeps the key monuments but gives roughly half of the time to the people who make things by hand. Each city has one day that is mostly master classes, and the workshops are chosen to match the city: ceramics in Tashkent, the old trades of a merchant town in Bukhara, and bread, paper and carpets in Samarkand. You do not need any skills; materials are prepared and the masters show every step.

Tashkent: the old town, ceramics and plov

The first day introduces Tashkent: the Museum of the History of the Timurids, Amir Timur Square and Independence Square, then the Khast Imam complex with the Barakhan Madrasah, the Mausoleum of Kaffal Shashi and the library that keeps an early manuscript of the Qur'an. The day ends at the Navoi Theatre, built in the 1940s.

Day 2 is the first master-class day. At the Rakhimov ceramics studio, a family that has kept traditional methods for several generations, every guest decorates a piece of their own. Lunch is at a guesthouse, where you can join a master class on cooking plov and then taste the result. The late afternoon is free.

Bukhara: dolls, miniatures and blades

On day 3 you take the train to Bukhara. After lunch a half-day tour covers the essential monuments of the old town: the Ark Fortress, the Bolo-Hauz ensemble, the Poi-Kalyan complex with its minaret of about 46 m, the covered trading domes, Magoki-Attori Mosque and Lyabi-Hauz.

Day 4 shows why Bukhara was a city of craftsmen:

• Uzbek dolls: a museum-workshop of papier-mâché dolls, followed by a short puppet show.
• Miniature painting: a master class in an art where every detail carries a symbolic meaning.
• Knives and scissors: a forge where you learn how blades are chosen, forged and finished.

In the evening you watch a folklore show in the courtyard of the Nodir Devon-Begi Madrasah.

Samarkand: the great monuments in one day

On day 5 an early train takes you to Samarkand, and the day is given to the city's great ensembles: Gur-e-Amir, the tomb of Amir Timur; Registan Square with its three madrasahs; Bibi-Khanym Mosque; Siab Bazaar; and the Shah-i-Zinda necropolis. If you want a longer, more detailed visit, our Samarkand city guide covers each site.

Last day: bread, silk paper and carpets

Day 6 brings three more workshops. A baker shows you how Samarkand's round bread is made, and you take your own loaf with you. In the village of Konigil you learn how paper is made from mulberry bark, and at the Khujum carpet workshop you see how carpets are knotted by hand, from the choice of yarn to the finished pattern. Our article on silk carpets, Konigil paper and Urgut explains these crafts in more depth. In the evening the train returns to Tashkent, followed by the transfer to the airport.

Practical tips

• Ask before you photograph craftsmen at work; most are happy to pose, but some prefer not to be filmed.
• Leave room in your luggage: ceramics, paper and textiles you make or buy are easiest to carry in a soft bag inside your suitcase.
• Carry some cash in the local currency for purchases in workshops and bazaars.
• Wear clothes that can get a little dirty on master-class days (clay, paint, flour).
• The train days start early; keep your passport in your hand luggage, as it is needed for the tickets.
• Tell us in advance about allergies before the cooking and bread classes.

Plan it with TravelBliss

We arrange the train tickets, transfers, hotels, guides and the master classes in the Heritage of the Silk Road tour, and we can start the programme in another city if that suits your flights. If you are already in Samarkand and only want the crafts, the Silk Carpet, Konigil and Urgut tour is a shorter option. Prices depend on the number of travellers and the season — see the tour page or contact us.