Uzbekistan in 8 Days: Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva
The four great Silk Road cities in one week, in the order the road runs: licensed guides, 3–4★ hotels with breakfast, every transfer and the monument…
Fergana Valley 2-Day Tour from Tashkent: Kokand, Rishtan Ceramics and Margilan Silk
Two days over the Kamchik Pass into the Fergana Valley, by private car with an English-speaking guide: the Khudoyar Khan palace in Kokand, the potters of Rishtan and the silk workshops of Margilan. One price for the car.
About this trip
The Fergana Valley is where Uzbekistan still makes things by hand. Rishtan has been making its blue-glazed pottery for centuries, and Margilan's silk is still spun from the cocoon and dyed into ikat. This two-day trip takes you there from Tashkent by private car, with an English-speaking guide and one night in Margilan.
What you see
- The Kamchik Pass, the mountain road out of Tashkent, at more than 2,200 metres
- Kokand: the palace built for Khudoyar Khan in the 1870s, and the Juma Mosque with its carved wooden columns
- Rishtan: a ceramics workshop, where master potters show how the turquoise and cobalt ware is thrown, painted and fired. If you want to try it yourself, a masterclass can be added on the day
- Margilan: the Yodgorlik silk factory, where you follow silk from cocoon to thread to the finished ikat cloth, then the bazaar and the old neighbourhoods
How the two days go
The road from Tashkent to Kokand takes four to five hours with stops. Day 1 covers Kokand and Rishtan and ends at your hotel in Margilan. Day 2 is Margilan in the morning and the drive back to Tashkent in the afternoon, arriving in the evening.
The price
The price is for the whole car with driver and guide, not per person, and includes one night in a hotel in Margilan with breakfast. Entrance tickets and meals are paid on the spot.
Who it suits
Travellers who have seen Samarkand and Bukhara and want the crafts and the everyday life behind them, and anyone interested in ceramics, textiles or markets.
Day by day
- Day 1
Tashkent to Kokand and Rishtan
Pickup at your hotel in Tashkent in the morning and a drive over the Kamchik Pass into the Fergana Valley, with stops for the views.
In Kokand, visit the Khudoyar Khan palace and the Juma Mosque, then stop for lunch. In the afternoon, continue to Rishtan to visit a ceramics workshop and meet the potters. An optional masterclass lets you shape and paint a piece yourself.
Check in to your hotel in Margilan in the evening.
- Day 2
Margilan and the drive back to Tashkent
After breakfast, visit the Yodgorlik silk factory and watch the whole process, from boiling the cocoons and spinning the thread to dyeing and weaving the ikat.
Then walk through the Margilan bazaar and the old neighbourhoods around it. After lunch, drive back to Tashkent over the Kamchik Pass, arriving in the evening.
What's included
- Private air-conditioned car with an experienced driver for both days
- English-speaking guide for both days
- 1 night in a hotel in Margilan, double or twin room, with breakfast
- Pickup and drop-off at your hotel in Tashkent
- Guided visits to the Khudoyar Khan palace, the Juma Mosque in Kokand, a Rishtan ceramics workshop and the Yodgorlik silk factory
- Bottled water
Not included
- Entrance tickets to monuments and sites
- Lunches and dinners
- Ceramics masterclass in Rishtan (optional, about $15–25, paid on the spot)
- Travel insurance — required for every traveller
- Personal expenses and tips
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