Follow in the footsteps of ancient traders, uncovering the cultural and natural treasures of Central Asia
This trip includes 10 nights in hotels, one night in a guesthouse, one night in a yurt and one night on a sleeper train. Throughout most of the trip, we stay in two- or three-star hotels. The normal accommodations used on this trip can be found on the day-to-day itinerary; however, below are a few of the notable places we stay.
Djety Oguz: Yurt camp (night 4)
Yurts are traditional housing for nomadic communities across Central Asia and are generally quite cosy. We spend one night in a traditional yurt camp in the Djety Oguz Gorge in Kyrgyzstan. The camp has six sleeping yurts, each normally shared between four and five people and there are three toilets and one shower.
Sleeper train: (night 8)
The railway has long been a popular way of travelling around the ex-Soviet Union and this is a great experience and insight into Kazakh life. On the train from Tashkent to Almaty, we use second-class carriages with four-berth cabins.
Bukhara: Kavsar Boutique Hotel (nights 12-13)
Taking over an old mansion, this small boutique hotel is one of the standout accommodations on this itinerary. It’s embellished with intricate design features and plenty of antiques, while an atmospheric central courtyard provides a wonderful place to gather as a group.
Worth knowing
Single supplements don’t apply to the night on the sleeper train or the night in the yurt camp, and depending on the make up of the group may be mixed gender.
April and October departures: We stay in Almaluu Yurt Camp close to Lake Issyk Kul instead of the yurt camp in Djety Oguz.
In some places on this trip we use several different hotels. We will inform you before departure if your start hotel in Bishkek differs from what is mentioned in the Trip Notes.
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