"Samarkand" Samarkand by SallyM

Samarkand Travel Guide: 302 reviews and 892 photos

The end of the road

Samarkand was the final destination on a long journey that had taken us from Beijing to Uzbekistan.

By this stage we had seen a lot of medressas, mosques and mausoleums (not to mention carpets) and I was worried that Samarkand would be an anti-climax - it wasn't. I did have my only incident of traveller's tummy of the trip in Samarkand, but I don't think I can really blame the place for that. I might, however, blame our guide, who insisted that we have lunch at a restaurant run by some friends of his, even though it wasn't officially open that day.

Shahr-i-Zindan, Samarkand.

Samarkand is on a larger scale than Bukhara and Khiva. The monuments are incredibly impressive, but it's not so easy to explore on foot. It's worth getting central hotel, if you can.

Pros and Cons

Pros:Amazing architecture

Last visit to Samarkand: Jul 2007
Intro Updated Mar 6, 2009
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Reviews (7)

Shahr-i-Zindah Things to Do (6)

This is an avenue of tombs, covered with beautiful majolica tiles. The innermost is supposed to be the grave of... more travel advice

Bibi Khanym Mosque Things to Do (6)

This mosque has recently been renovated, though as with some other renovations to monuments in Uzbekistan, the work was... more travel advice

Afrosaib Things to Do (6)

The site of Afrosaib, ancient Marakanda, is worth a visit. The museum there is very interesting, with details of the... more travel advice

Site of Ulug Beg's Observatory - Samarkand

Ulug Beg's Observatory Things to Do (6)

The Timurid ruler Ulug Beg is perhaps better known for his skills as an astronomer than those as a ruler. You can visit... more travel advice

Hotels (1)
In the suburbs

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Comments (3)

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Jim_Eliason May 1, 2010 at 5:34 AM

Nice page!
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hindu1936 Mar 24, 2009 at 12:24 AM

Thank you for the beautiful photos and tight information. we look forward to seeing it in person in about two years.
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BillNJ Mar 7, 2009 at 2:00 PM

Interesting tips and photos!