Expert opinion
Pluses
- Fixed departures: arrival every Friday through the year, for a group from 2 people.
- Main sights covered: in 4 days you see 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 →, Did you know? Timur's tombstone went to Persia and came back The dark-green jade slab on Timur's grave in Gur-e-Amir was carried off by Nader Shah in 1740. It broke, and on his advisers' urging he sent it back to Samarkand. Read more →, The great mosque Amir Timur ordered after his Indian campaign of 1398–1399, one of the largest of its time. Read more →, Did you know? Why Shah-i-Zinda means 'the Living King' The necropolis grew around the shrine of Qutham ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. Legend says he did not die in battle but went down a deep well to a garden of paradise, where he lives on. Read more →, the Did you know? Ulugh Beg measured the year to within 25 seconds Working at his Samarkand observatory, Ulugh Beg put the tropical year at 365 days 5 h 49 min 15 s, about 25 seconds too long, closer than Copernicus a century later. Read more → and the Did you know? A 7th-century mural shows envoys from Korea Uncovered by road builders in 1965, the Ambassadors' Painting at Afrasiyab shows delegations bearing gifts, Chinese with silk among them, and two men in feathered hats thought to be envoys from Korea's Goguryeo. Read more → Museum with a guide, tickets included.
- A free day: day 3 is free: an optional trip to Bukhara, Shakhrisabz or Tashkent, or more of Samarkand.
Minuses
- Meals not covered: only breakfast and the Rice cooked in a kazan with carrots, onions and meat: the dish of every Uzbek celebration. Each region cooks it its own way. Centre lunch are included; other lunches and dinners are paid separately, as are flights.
- Extras on site: photo and video fees at the monuments, the Invisible Samarkand audio walk and the Bagizagan wine tasting ($35) are paid separately.
- Weather: the programme is outdoors and runs all year; July–August is outside the season and hot in Samarkand (34.5 and 33.3 °C by day).
AroundCA numbers
How we counted
By the AroundCA programme: we count only what is written in the day-by-day programme of this tour. If the programme gives no figure, we show nothing.
- Hotel changes
- none — one hotel
- Walking
- Medium
Walking: Medium: 3–4 sights on foot on days 1 and 2 (the Registan with three madrasahs, Gur-Emir, Bibi-Khanym, Shah-i-Zinda, the observatory, a museum); day 3 is free; no trekking.
Best time
Mar–Jun, Sep–Nov
March and November are the start and end of the season: 14–15 °C by day, few crowds and lovely weather. Winters are getting milder, too: very few people, sunny days and pleasant prices.
Cool, fewer people: Jan–Feb, Dec
Better to avoid
Jul–Aug
July–August is outside the season and hot: 33–34 °C by day in Samarkand.
A typical day
Day 2 starts with the Shah-i-Zinda complex and the Ulugbek Observatory. Lunch is at the Plov Centre, and after it you visit the Afrasiab Museum. On this day you can also add the optional Invisible Samarkand audio walk.
What the price includes
What is included
- 3 nights with breakfast
- All transfers by comfortable vehicle
- Excursion programme with a local guide
- Entrance tickets to the monuments on the programme
- Lunch at the Plov Centre
Not included
- Flights to Samarkand
- Lunches and dinners not specified in the programme
- Bagizagan wine tasting and the Invisible Samarkand walk
- Photo and video fees at the monuments
- Personal expenses and tips
Extra cost on site
- Bagizagan wine tasting ($35, optional)
- Invisible Samarkand audio walk (optional)
- Photo and video fees at the monuments
- Lunches and dinners not in the programme
- Tips
Good for
- Short breaks
- Travellers who want one city done properly
Maybe not for you if
- Those who want to see Bukhara and Khiva too — choose an 8-day tour
Questions about this tour
When does the tour run?
Arrival is every Friday and departure on Monday, with weekly Friday arrivals through the year. Exact dates are confirmed at booking, and the minimum group is 2 people.
What is included in the price?
Everything that is and isn’t included, and what you pay on site, is in one list: What the price includes
Are flights included?
No, flights to Samarkand are paid separately; the tour arrives and departs via Samarkand airport.
What happens on the free day?
Sunday is free: you can take an optional excursion to Bukhara, Shakhrisabz or Tashkent, or see more of Samarkand. The Bagizagan wine tasting is an optional extra at $35.
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A guided day
Arrival, departure, transfers
Programme and details
Day-by-day route, prices and terms
Group tour · 4 days
Samarkand Group Tour — 4 Days
A relaxed long weekend in Samarkand on a fixed weekly departure: the Registan, Shah-i-Zinda, the observatory and a plov lunch, with a free day for side trips.
from $460 per person
Arrival every Friday
Group, min 2 people
Programme
Day by day
Day 1 · Friday — arrival & Samarkand
Meeting at the airport and transfer to the hotel (check-in from 14:00; on early arrival we store your luggage at reception). Samarkand tour: Registan Square with the Ulugbek, Tilla-Kori and Sher-Dor madrasahs, the Gur-Emir Mausoleum and the Bibi-Khanym Mosque.
Day 2 · Saturday — Samarkand
The Shah-i-Zinda complex and the Ulugbek Observatory, lunch at the Plov Centre, then the Afrasiab Museum. Optional: the «Invisible Samarkand» audio walk.
Day 3 · Sunday — free day or side trip
A free day: an optional excursion to Bukhara, Shakhrisabz or Tashkent, or more of Samarkand — the tomb of Saint Daniel, the Meros silk-paper mill, the A network of caravan routes between China and the Mediterranean. Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva grew rich as stops along it. complex and the Eternal City. Optional: Bagizagan wine tasting ($35).
Day 4 · Monday — departure
Transfer to Samarkand airport for the onward flight.
Departures 2026–2027
Arrival every Friday
| October 2026 | 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 |
| November 2026 | 6, 13, 20, 27 |
| December 2026 | 4, 11, 18, 25 |
| January 2027 | 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 |
| February 2027 | 5, 12, 19, 26 |
| March 2027 | 5, 12, 19, 26 |
| April 2027 | 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 |
| May 2027 | 7, 14, 21, 28 |
| June 2027 | 4, 11, 18, 25 |
| July 2027 | 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 |
| August 2027 | 6, 13, 20, 27 |
| September 2027 | 3, 10, 17, 24 |
| October 2027 | 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 |
| November 2027 | 5, 12, 19, 26 |
| December 2027 | 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 |
Weekly Friday arrivals through the end of 2027. Exact dates are confirmed at booking.
Price
Price per person
| Group tour, 4 days / 3 nights | $460 |
The price is for 2026 departures; the 2027 price is on request. Airline: Uzbekistan Airways or Turkish Airlines (flights not included).
Booking
How to book
- Send a request via the form on this page, by email hello@aroundca.com or on WhatsApp. Reply within 24 hours.
- Fixed weekly departures — tell us your dates and we confirm availability. Extensions to Bukhara, Tashkent or Shakhrisabz can be added.
A long weekend in the heart of the Silk Road — fixed dates, easy to join.
