The Five Stans Of The Silk Road

Guide

The group will generally be between five and 16 people. There will be a Western leader for the duration of the tour who will be supported by a different local leader in each country. Due to legal restrictions, each local leader will say farewell to you at the border and you will meet the next local leader on the other side.

Meals

All breakfasts, three lunches and eight dinners included Common dishes in the region include shish-kebabs and plov (rice usually with mutton, onions, carrots, spices, raisins and peas). The kebabs can be from different meats, including lamb and beef, while plov is a rice-based dish (variants elsewhere are known as pilaf or pilau rice). Another main staple is bread, especially in Uzbekistan where it is freshly baked and sold everywhere; in Turkmenistan, churek is a flat, round bread baked in clay ovens. Other traditional dishes include chorba, a meat and vegetable soup; manty, steamed dumplings filled with lamb; qu’urma, a lamb dish; ichlekli, a meat and onion pie; and gutap, a pie filled with meat, potatoes, spinach and pumpkin. There are normally a couple of opportunities to try home-cooked meals. Tea is also plentiful, both black and green, and drunk with most meals and throughout the day. Please note, vegetarian food choices are limited. If you are vegetarian or have any special dietary requirements, please notify us well in advance. In this region, the availability of certain specialised products for restricted diets, eg gluten-free or dairy-free, is minimal or non-existent and we strongly recommend you bring such specialised dietary items from home. Drinking water is included and will be provided in large containers for you to refill your bottle from – please bring a reusable bottle with you.

Others

‘Door to Hell’ giant burning gas pit in Turkmenistan Islamic architecture and ruins along the great Silk Road Villages and lakes of the Fann and Tien Shan Mountains Post Soviet grand monuments History of traders, preachers and invaders 20th July 2019 departure: accompanied by photographer and National Geographic Explorer, George Kourounis

Transport

The transport we use varies depending on group size and we change vehicle every country. We normally use local ‘tourist class’ minibuses/coaches. Larger groups may be split across two vehicles or in a larger bus in some countries. Some of the drives are long but they are mostly on sealed roads with just a few sections on dirt roads, including the desert road to the burning pit at Darvaza, and heading to Son Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan. We use SUV/4×4 vehicles for the journey to Darvaza as the last 6mi (10km) to the crater is off-road. If you decide to do the Astana extension, you will travel by internal flight.

Accommodation

Most nights are in standard hotels, though we also stay in homestays, cottages, yurt camps, and a guesthouse which will be more basic. Hot water is normally available but is not always reliable; toilets may be squat toilets; and toilets and/or showers may be outside in the more basic accommodations. At the homestays in Arslanbob and Kyzyl Oi (days 15, 16 and 18), you may have to share with three/four people in a room. Similarly, for the two nights in the yurt camp at Son Kul (days 19 and 20), you may have to share with three people to a yurt. Every effort is made to ensure that men and women who are not travelling together don’t have to share a room, but this cannot be guaranteed. We stay in these places, however, as there are very limited options in some of the areas we visit. Additional Accommodation In Turkmenistan, hotels charge a daily tourist tax of around US$2 per person per day – this is included in the holiday price for the main tour, so you needn’t worry about it. However, if you book extra nights’ accommodation in Ashgabat before the tour, you will need to pay directly to the hotel yourself. If you book pre-tour accommodation in Turkmenistan (and will be staying in the country for more than three days plus your arrival day), you will be required by law to register your passport with the State Service of Turkmenistan – our local partner will assist with this. Single Supplement If you prefer to have your own room, a limited number of single supplements are available on a ‘first-come, first-serve’ basis on some nights of the tour – please request this at the time of booking. Please note, a single supplement is not available at the homestays (three nights) or the yurt camp (two nights) and in these locations you may have to share with three/four people per room. Single supplements are also not available at the cottages by Iskanderkul Lake (one night), which are on a twin-share basis.

Others

— Travel Insurance — Single accommodation (available on request) — Visas or vaccinations

Flights

International flights are not included.

Optional

Other activities and services are not included.

Insurance

Insurance is not included.