Places in this article: Samarkand · Bukhara · Khiva · Tashkent
Uzbekistan in February: weather, skiing and low-season tips
February is the wettest month of the year in Tashkent: about 72 mm of rain and snow, more than in any other month. An hour and a half up the road, the same weather falls on the ski slopes as fresh snow. Down in the old towns, February is the last quiet month before the spring season begins.
We live in Tashkent and travel the country in every season. February is short, but the days grow fast, and by the end of it the afternoons are noticeably milder. Here is what the month is like and how we plan it.
Weather in Uzbekistan in February
Average daytime highs and night lows from the long-term climate normals (1991–2020), the same figures we use across this site. Khiva's numbers come from the weather station in Urgench, 35 km away.
| City | Day | Night | Rain in the month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tashkent | 10 °C | 0 °C | 72 mm |
| Samarkand | 10 °C | 0 °C | 52 mm |
| Bukhara | 10 °C | 0 °C | 24 mm |
| Khiva | 6 °C | −4 °C | 16 mm |
In Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara a February afternoon averages about 10 °C, three degrees more than in January, and nights hover around zero. Tashkent and Samarkand get the most rain and snow; Bukhara gets about a third of what falls on Tashkent.
Khiva is still the coldest of the four: about 6 °C by day and −4 °C at night, with only 16 mm in the whole month. By March the afternoons reach 15–17 °C in the three warmer cities, and the spring season starts.
Daylight: an hour more by the end of the month
Uzbekistan runs on one time zone, UTC+5, with no daylight saving, so in Khiva the sun rises and sets about 35 minutes later than in Tashkent.
- Tashkent, 1 February: sunrise 07:33, sunset 17:40, just over 10 hours of daylight.
- Tashkent, 28 February: sunrise 06:58, sunset 18:13, about 11 hours 15 minutes.
- Khiva, the same dates: sunrise 08:09 and 07:34, sunset 18:15 and 18:49.
Over the month Tashkent gains more than an hour of light. In early February we start city walks at about nine; by the end of the month, earlier. The fast train from Tashkent leaves at 07:00 every day except Sunday and reaches Khiva at about 14:30, and in late February that leaves more than four hours of daylight inside the walls. Details are in our guide to trains in Uzbekistan.
Ramadan in February 2027
February has no public holidays in Uzbekistan. In 2027 it is the month when Ramadan begins: it is expected to start around 8 February and to end around 9–10 March with Ramazon Hayit, a public holiday. The exact days follow the moon, and we confirm them when we plan your trip.
Uzbekistan is a secular country, and in the cities cafés and restaurants stay open in the daytime during Ramadan. How to behave and what Ramazon Hayit looks like is in our guide to etiquette in Uzbekistan.
Low season: what is open in February
Everything a traveller needs keeps working through the winter. The monuments of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva receive visitors, the museums of the Bukhara museum-reserve open every day with no day off, and the bazaars trade as usual. In our experience February mornings on the Did you know? The Registan's sun-carrying lion went on a banknote The Sher-Dor Madrasah (1619–1636) is named for the big cats with the sun on their backs on its portal. The image appeared on the reverse of Uzbekistan's 200-som note of 1997. Read more → and in the The heart of old Bukhara: the Kalyan Minaret of 1127, the Kalyan Mosque and the Mir-i-Arab Madrasah facing each other across one square. Read more → courtyard are as calm as in January, and hotels in the historic centres offer a wide choice of rooms at low-season rates.
Tashkent is a good base on a wet day. The Did you know? A metro designed to ride out a magnitude-9 earthquake The three original lines of the Tashkent Metro were built to withstand an earthquake of magnitude 9.0, and the tunnels lie unusually shallow, only 8–25 m below the street. Read more →, the museums and the big covered halls of Tashkent's old bazaar under a big blue-green dome, not far from Hazrati Imam. Bring cash in so'm. Read more → keep you dry, and the Khumo Arena ice rink holds public skating sessions.
Snow in the mountains: skiing in February
February is the middle of the ski season in the mountains 65–85 km from Tashkent. Mountains of the Western Tian Shan about 80 km from Tashkent: hiking in summer, skiing in winter, the Charvak reservoir nearby. Read more → gets about 113 mm of rain and snow in the month, more than in January, and averages 2.3 °C in the afternoon and −5.3 °C at night. The season lasts until about mid-March at Chimgan, late March at Amirsoy and early April at Beldersay, so February sits well inside it at all three.
- Amirsoy is the closest, 65 km away, with 11 easy and intermediate runs between 1,630 and 2,286 m. It suits families and beginners. In 2025 it had more than 800,000 visitors, and over a fifth of them came from abroad.
- Beldersay has a longer vertical, from 1,506 to 2,307 m, and a ten-seat gondola. Beldersoy Resort and Spa opened beside it in July 2026, so this is its first ski season.
- Chimgan is the old-school option, with snowmobiles, tubing and horse rides for those who do not ski.
Our ski weekend in the Tashkent mountains takes you from your hotel to the slope of your choice and back, with a night at the resort and help with passes and rental. For a single day, see Chimgan and Charvak in a day; for the lifts, cable cars in Uzbekistan; for the whole area, the mountains near Tashkent.
Booking and routes for February
Train tickets go on sale 60 days before departure, so for a trip in mid-February the sale opens in mid-December. If your trip runs on into Navruz week, remember that seats for 21 March go on sale on 20 January, and the holiday trains go first.
- The 8-day classic tour through Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva and Tashkent, with Khiva in the middle of the trip on a sunny forecast.
- The 8-day independent tour, with hotels, trains and transfers arranged, if you like to set your own pace.
- Samarkand in a day from Tashkent, if you come for skiing and want one day of history.
Navruz, the spring new year, falls on 21 March; how the season opens is in Uzbekistan in March. For the coldest weeks of winter, read Uzbekistan in January.
What to pack for February
- A warm coat, a hat and gloves: nights are around zero in the cities and −4 °C in Khiva.
- Waterproof boots and a hooded jacket or an umbrella: February is the wettest month in Tashkent.
- Thermal layers and sunglasses if you plan to ski; the sun on snow is strong.
- A light scarf for mosques and mausoleums; the rules are in our guide to what to wear and etiquette.
- A card and some cash for bazaars and small shops: see cards, cash and tipping.
In short
- February is milder than January: about 10 °C in the afternoon in Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara, 6 °C in Khiva, nights around zero.
- It is the wettest month in Tashkent, and in the mountains that means fresh snow in the middle of the ski season.
- The days grow fast: sunset in Tashkent moves from 17:40 to 18:13.
- No public holidays; Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin around 8 February.
- Low season means quiet sights and a wide choice of hotels. For the rest of the year, see when to visit Uzbekistan.
