Working with a DMC in Uzbekistan: a guide for travel agencies

Tickets for the Afrosiyob go on sale 60 days before departure, and the popular trains between Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara sell out. For a couple that is an inconvenience. For a group of thirty it decides the whole itinerary. Details like this are what a destination management company, a DMC, watches for you.

We are a licensed tour operator in Tashkent and work with travel agencies in Europe, the USA and Canada, South America, Australia, the Gulf, Russia and the CIS. Here is what a local DMC in Uzbekistan does, how to check one before you sign, and how far ahead to plan.

What a DMC in Uzbekistan handles

Your client sees one programme. Behind it stand a dozen suppliers, and the DMC contracts them and keeps them in step on the ground.

• Hotels. Booking, rooming lists, early check-in after a night flight. In Khiva the old town has small hotels, and a large group used to be split between several addresses; the new Arda Khiva quarter now has 17 hotels and guest houses in one compound.
• Trains. Afrosiyob runs from Tashkent to Samarkand in 2 hours 30 minutes and to Bukhara in about 4 hours. The Jaloliddin Manguberdi high-speed train to Khiva leaves Tashkent at 07:00 every day except Sunday. Each ticket is issued to a passport, so the DMC needs exact passport details for the whole group before it can buy.
• Guides. Guides in Uzbekistan work under a certificate issued by the tourism authority. Ask which languages are available for your dates, and get the guide's name confirmed in writing.
• Transfers. Airport and station meetings, vehicles sized to the group and its luggage. Stations are outside the old towns: in Samarkand it is more than 6 km to the Registan, in Bukhara about 12 km to the old city.
• Registration and tourist tax. Every foreign visitor must be registered within 3 days of arrival, weekends included. Hotels do it at check-in in the E-mehmon system, and the tourist tax is charged with the hotel bill. A clear quote says that both are covered.
• Venues and events. Dinners, workshops, conference halls and gala evenings.

New MICE venues in 2026

Three openings have changed what we can offer company groups.

• Arda Khiva opened in May 2025 on the shore of Lake Govuk, a short drive from the walls of Khiva. It has an amphitheatre for 3,000 people with water between the stage and the seats, and 17 hotels and guest houses. More in our guide to Arda Khiva.
• Khiva Congress Hall opened in August 2026 for international forums, business conferences and cultural events. Next to it stands a new three-star hotel with 156 rooms for 310 guests.
• Beldersoy Resort and Spa opened in July 2026 in the Chimgan mountains outside Tashkent, the first Destination by Hyatt property in Uzbekistan. It has 109 rooms, 36 private villas, two meeting rooms and a ballroom: an off-site in the mountains rather than among monuments.

Formats and logistics for company groups are on our MICE page.

How to check a DMC before you sign

• Licence. Under the 2019 Law on Tourism, tour operators in Uzbekistan may work only under a licence, issued for an indefinite term through the national electronic licensing system. Ask for the number, the issuing body, the date and a copy. Ours is tour operator licence No. 853484, issued by the Tashkent City Tourism Committee on 26 June 2025; the copy is on our contact page.
• Contract. An agency agreement that lists the services, the cancellation terms and what happens if a train or a flight changes.
• Payment terms. Agree the deposit, the final payment date, the currency and who pays the bank charges. Hotels and trains have their own deadlines, and the DMC's terms should follow them.
• A test request. Send real dates and a real group size. How quickly and how precisely the answer comes back tells you a lot about how your group will be handled.
• Who answers during the tour. Ask for the name and phone number of the person on call while your clients are in the country, not only during the sale.

Seasons and lead times

Spring and autumn are high season for cultural routes. In Tashkent the average afternoon is 22 °C in April and October and about 36 °C in July. Summer groups need early starts and a break in the heat of the day, and it is the season for mountain retreats.

• Trains: sales open 60 days before departure, and we buy as soon as they open. That is why we ask for the passenger list early. More in our guide to trains in Uzbekistan.
• Hotels and venues: for spring and autumn, book as early as your client confirms, especially if the group wants to stay together in one hotel in Samarkand or Khiva.
• Visas and flights: the rules depend on the passport. See our visa guide, flights guide and the market notes for travellers from Russia.

Group logistics on the ground

• Khiva train days. The high-speed train does not leave Tashkent on Sundays or Khiva on Mondays, so we keep the Khiva legs off those days.
• Station security. Tickets and passports are checked at the entrance and bags are screened. We advise individuals to arrive half an hour early; a large group needs more.
• Luggage. Each train passenger may carry up to 36 kg of hand luggage.
• Money. Visa and Mastercard work at almost all card terminals; clients need some cash for bazaars and street stalls. Details in our guide to cards, cash and tipping.
• Nights outside hotels. A homestay or a yurt camp registers guests too, but ask how before you book. See registration and customs.

Working with us

For agencies we work on net rates from direct contracts with hotels, guides and transport, so you keep control of your own margin. You get descriptions, photos and cancellation terms ready to pass on to your client, documents in English and Russian, and a tailored proposal, typically within 24 hours. We take groups from a two-person executive trip to delegations of 100 and more, in Uzbekistan and the neighbouring countries of Central Asia. Our B2B kit and agency agreement are sent on request from the partner page.

In short

• A DMC in Uzbekistan contracts hotels, trains, guides, transfers and venues, and hotels take care of registration.
• Before the first group, check the licence (number, issuer, date), the agency agreement and the payment terms.
• Train tickets go on sale 60 days ahead and sell out: send passport details early.
• New for MICE: the Arda Khiva amphitheatre for 3,000, the Khiva Congress Hall and Beldersoy Resort and Spa near Tashkent.