To visit any of the “Stans“… that’s the last thing I needed to cross off my travel bucket list. Three months ago I found a cheap flight from Seoul to Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, so I saw that as a sign. (Fun fact: there are lots of migrant workers from Central Asia in Seoul, which would explain why it’s easy to find a cheap flight if you book early enough)

Back when I was in Nosy Be, I met an Uzbek during one of the tours and he showed me pictures of his country. Uzbekistan wasn’t on my list, but after seeing those pictures and after learning a couple of things about his country, I thought it would be a nice place to visit. A lot of my friends have been asking why I’m visiting Uzbekistan of all places. This is the reason why. For some reason a lot of people think it’s a dangerous place to visit. I dunno why, maybe because it also ends with “stan” like Afghanistan? Check out the travel advisories, guys. It’s level 1. There’s a chance that it’s more dangerous traveling within your own countries. 🙂

Most international flights land in Tashkent. Here are a couple of basic things to know before arriving in Tashkent (or elsewhere in the country):

• If you don’t speak Uzbek or Russian, download a reliable translation app. In my experience, Google Translate worked well.
• Download 2 other essential apps: Yandex Maps and Yandex Go. Central Asian countries used to be part of the Soviet Union. No wonder a Russian tech company is king. You’d need a local phone number to be able to connect to the Wi-Fi at the airport, so it’s best to download these apps prior to arrival.
• Yandex Maps is the map application that works best in Central Asia. It would even have information about public transport. Forget about Google Maps, Apple Maps, or any other navigation app. These apps won’t help you with public transportation. They often showed inaccurate information too. I tried using Google Maps several times, it frequently led me to dead ends.
• Yandex Go is basically Central Asia’s version of Uber. It’s really tempting to keep using this since prices are ridiculously cheap. Seriously. Most rides within the city only cost 1-2 USD. 5 bucks can bring you to the next town. You can pay with either cash or card (saved on the app). If you’re wary of giving a Russian Company access to you personal information, just pay with cash.
• For these apps to work, you’re gonna need a data connection. Luckily, prepaid SIM cards from the major local providers are sold at the airport. At Tashkent International Airport, you can find them right at the baggage claim area. You can choose among UCell, Beeline, or Uzmobile. Don’t worry, there’s no convenience surcharge at the airport. This isn’t a thing in Uzbekistan… at least not yet. I went with Uzmobile because although they have the least number of subscribers, I’ve been told they have the fastest network and they have the widest coverage in the country. I can vouch for this. During those long train rides, I often had coverage in between the major towns, while the dude I ended up traveling with who had a Beeline SIM often had none.
• Some will recommend getting an eSIM from an international provider like Airalo. Here we go again. 7-8 bucks gives you around 2 GB if you get an eSIM from any of these providers. The same amount (UZS 100,000) gave me 35 GB. Why even purchase an eSIM from these providers when you could easily buy a prepaid SIM card at the airport? Now if you’re one of those unlucky enough to have an eSIM only phone because several cellphone manufacturers have been pushing this tech way too early (*cough* Apple *cough*), well yeah. You have no choice but to spend a lot of money just to be able to stay connected.
• If you need cash, there’s also a currency exchange right by the baggage claim area. The rates are pretty good. Surprisingly, they actually offered better rates than the banks in the city. There’s also an ATM so you could easily get cash. Before I arrived, I’ve been told that all ATMs in Uzbekistan only accept cards with 4 digit PINs. This was a problem for me because all my debit cards had 6 digit PIN codes. As of May 2024 this is true about the ATMs at the airport, so bring some cash for exchange… at least enough for a Yandex. In the major cities however (Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva), I had no problem finding ATMs that accept debit cards with 6 digit PIN codes. All Kapitalbank ATMs seem to accept cards with 6 digit PINs.
• At least in the major cities, credit cards are widely accepted. Let me rephrase that… Visa credit cards are widely accepted. How about Mastercard? Some do accept these, but not all. They say Visa and Mastercard have similar acceptance rates? Hogwash. I’ve been to a number of countries where stores do not accept Mastercards but accept Visas. I have yet to encounter establishments that do not accept Visa cards yet accept Mastercards. It’s either stores accept both or just Visas. What about Amex? Forget about it lol.
• So yeah, Visa credit cards are widely accepted. Even in small convenience stores and fast food restaurants, they’d assume I’d pay with card. This is really convenient, I hate carrying thick wads of cash. So yeah, you don’t always need to have lots of cash with you. Just bring enough small bills to pay for public transport and Yandex. In Tashkent, taking a bus or the Metro only costs 2,000 Som (16 US cents!) per ride.

How to get out of the airport? Now that you have cellular service, get a Yandex. Ignore all those taxis waiting outside the arrival area. For these taxis, the going rate seems to be anywhere from UZS 60,000-130,000. Head outside the airport, walk a little bit more, then get a Yandex. You’d only pay around UZS 15,000-20,000 (about 1-1.50 USD) depending on where you’ll be staying in the city. If you really need to save money, you can take a public bus. These run from 6AM to 12 AM. The bus stop is to the left once you’ve exited the airport. You’d need to hop on either the #62 or #95 bus. Use Yandex Maps so you’d know which bus to take to get to your accommodation. Take note that these buses can get crowded, and they don’t have allotted spaces for luggage. Personally I don’t see the point of taking a bus from the airport when a Yandex only costs a little over a buck.

About Tashkent— man, I had no idea it was such a huge and vibrant city! Lots of parks, lots of open spaces… this is what proper urban planning looks like! There are lots of good restaurants too, lots of shops and malls, it’s real easy to find everything you need. Public transport is very efficient too, it’s easy to get anywhere by taking the Metro or buses. I know Yandex is real cheap so it’s tempting to keep using it. I’d say hold off using Yandex when you’re sightseeing because you won’t be able to see the Metro stations. With such unique architecture, each metro station is an attraction in itself. One dude at the hostel even spent the entire day just checking out each station lol.

Other attractions of note: Amir Temur Square, which is at the heart of the city. From here you could check out Hotel Uzbekistan if you’re interested in modernist Soviet architecture from the 1970’s.

Independence Square is another famous landmark close to Amir Temur Square. It’s a huge park with lots of interesting sculptures and monuments.

Tashkent Tower is also worth checking out, as well as the Memorial to the Victims of Oppression nearby. This is a really beautiful park. There’s a museum in this park that’s also worth visiting.

There’s not much historical structures in Tashkent because the earthquake in 1966 destroyed most of these, but some remain. You can check out the Khast Imam Ensemble in the old town as well as the Kukeldash Madrasah, though admittedly these don’t compare to the ones you’ll see elsewhere in the country. The Kukeldash Madrasah is right by the Chorsu Bazaar, a huge sprawling market wherein various items are sold. To get to any of these attractions by public transportation, use Yandex Maps.

Nightlife is pretty good too. There are lots of bars and clubs in the city. Do keep in mind that Uzbekistan is still a predominantly Muslim country. People do drink alcohol here, but the nightlife doesn’t get as wild as those in more liberal countries.

While exploring the city, you’ll surely notice the amount of Chevrolets. These cars are everywhere. There’s an ongoing joke among citizens of neighboring countries. They sometimes refer to Uzbekistan as Chevistan or Chevrolestan because of this. You’ll see a disproportionate amount of Chevy cars in the country because these are the cheapest cars available. Cars imported from other countries are heavily taxed. There’s a Chevrolet manufacturing plant in Uzbekistan so these cars are produced in the country. Thus they’re exempted from heavy taxes.

Most people who are visiting the country start from Tashkent. Good thing it’s easy to head to other major destinations in the country from here. At least for tourists, the main mode of transportation is the train. To get to the train station, simply hop on the Metro and get off at Tashkent Station. The main train station is right outside, as well as the ticketing office.

I’d advise purchasing tickets online for convenience. It doesn’t matter if you purchase online or in person. They have access to the same database in the train stations, so ticket availability is the same. Purchasing online would save you the trouble of trying to converse using a translate app. Those working at the ticketing offices do not speak English at all, thus purchasing a ticket could take a while because you’d be conversing using a translation app. You’d also save yourself from the trouble of dealing with people who do not fall in line. I bought tickets in person most of the time, and most of the locals do not fall in line at all, it was so annoying. Here’s where you can purchase tickets:

https://eticket.railway.uz/en/home

I’ve heard that some international credit cards aren’t accepted though. If you can’t purchase tickets online, head to the train stations at least one day prior. If you’re on a tight schedule, purchasing tickets on the day itself would be risking it. Tickets may already be sold out.

I’ve tried fast trains and the ordinary trains, as well as the sleeper ones. I wasn’t too pressed for time, I just rode whatever’s available at the time that’s most convenient to me. Those who have limited time in the country should opt for the fastest option. There’s a fast train connecting Tashkent to the main tourist spots, Samarkand and Bukhara. This is the Afrosiyob Train and it takes just a little over 2 hours to get to Samarkand, and 4 hours to get to Bukhara. It’s pretty pricey though. An economy class ticket to Samarkand costs UZS 245,000 (about USD 19), while an economy class ticket to Bukhara costs USZ 403,000 (about USD 32). It’s frequently sold out— I guess most tourists in the country aren’t on a tight budget? lol. Another option is the Sharq train which is much cheaper: it costs UZS 125,700 (about USD 10) to Samarkand, and UZS 166,810 (a little over USD 13) to Bukhara. On this train, it takes a little over 3 hours to get to Samarkand, and 6 hours to Bukhara. To me, the difference between the duration of the trips does not justify the difference in cost. Let’s say I’m going to Samarkand. If I take the Afrosiyob train, I’d get there an hour early, and I’d also get free coffee and a small pastry. Yeah, I’d rather spend that extra 119,000 Som on something else. The last option would be the long distance sleeper trains. I’d suggest avoiding these if you’re heading to Samarkand or Bukhara. Take a bus instead. Not only do these trains take way longer to reach both cities (5 hours to Samarkand, 8-9 hours to Bukhara), tickets are also about the same price as tickets on the Sharq trains. Only take these trains if you’re heading to far flung destinations like Khiva because there’s no other option.

What if you’ve checked online and train tickets are already sold out on the day you want to leave? Based on my experience, seats can open up the day before, sometimes even on the day itself. I don’t know why, maybe they sell tickets by batches? Or maybe people decide to cancel trips? Keep monitoring the website for availability. In case all trains are really sold out on a certain day, don’t worry. As I’ve mentioned above, you can take buses. These are cheaper than taking the train. You can also check the schedule and purchase tickets online:

https://avtoticket.uz

There are lots of buses leaving daily from the Tashkent Avtovokzal (main bus terminal), starting from 6AM until around 10PM. To get here, simply take the Metro and get off at the Olmazor stop.

Keep in mind that security personnel check all bags at the metro stations, so be prepared for a bit of a delay if you have lots of stuff with you. One bus leaves per hour so these rarely get sold out. Depending on the type of bus, a ticket can be as cheap as UZS 48,000 (less than USD 4) to Samarkand and UZS 139,000 (about 11 bucks) to Bukhara. These buses are about as fast as the Sharq trains. If you want to head straight to Khiva and you’re unlucky enough not to get a seat on the sleeper train, you could also take an overnight bus from here, one leaves per day at around 6:30 PM. I wouldn’t advise this though, these aren’t sleeper buses. If you’re taking a bus out of the country, this is where your bus will be leaving from too. There are buses to Shymkent, Bishkek, Almaty, even to destinations as far as Astana in Kazakhstan (that’s a 34 hour bus ride!).

In the unlikely event that even buses are sold out, there’s a makeshift terminal nearby, close to another exit from the Olmazor Metro station. Here you’ll find marshrutkas (mini vans) heading to many destinations including Samarkand and Bukhara. These are the cheapest options, so expect these to be crowded. There’s no set schedule for Marshrutkas, they depart once they’re full. Keep in mind that these don’t usually run in the evening.

Generally I’m not fond of huge cities, but Tashkent is that one rare city that I wouldn’t mind coming back to again and again. For digital nomads who are looking for a new location to base themselves at for a couple of weeks, I would highly recommend this city. The city has lots of beautiful spots, the locals are friendly, it doesn’t get too congested, public transport is efficient, there’s high speed internet, everything is cheaper in Uzbekistan compared to most countries— what more could you possibly ask for? 🙂