Getting around Samarkand: public transport, passes and taxis

Samarkand is a low-rise city of separate monument clusters rather than one continuous old town, so the choice is usually walk, app taxi or bus. Fares below are 2026 estimates in UZS; confirm the current number locally, as they move with fuel prices.

The three headline sights — Registan, Gur-e-Amir and Bibi-Khanym mosque — sit close enough to link on foot, with Siab bazaar a short walk north-east of Bibi-Khanym. Plan the core as one morning or one late afternoon and you will not need transport at all.

Shah-i-Zinda and the Ulugh Beg observatory are the two outliers, roughly 2–4 km out (check). In summer heat, or with a tight schedule, take a taxi each way rather than walking both directions. Pavements exist on the main roads but are uneven, and crossing is informal; keep an eye on traffic, which does not always stop.

Walking is also how you see the mahalla streets between the monuments, which is most of what the city looks like away from the ticket offices.

Yandex Go works in Samarkand and is the simplest option: you set the destination, see the price, and pay in the app or in cash. Drivers are used to visitors at the stations and the main sights. If no car is available, the app will tell you rather than leaving you waiting.

Street taxis are everywhere and will stop if you raise a hand. There is no meter culture, so agree the fare before you get in and have small notes. Quoted prices to obvious visitors run higher than app fares; treat anything far above the app band as a reason to walk away.

For the airport and the railway station, book in the app a few minutes ahead or ask your hotel to call a car. Both are outside the walkable core.

City buses and marshrutkas (shared minivans) cover Samarkand cheaply, at UZS 2,000–5,000 a ride (check). You pay the driver or a conductor in cash; there is no visitor pass and no single ticket that covers several rides.

The practical barrier is information, not cost. Route numbers are on the windscreen and stops are not always signed in Latin script, and there is no English on board. Use Yandex Maps or 2GIS to find the number for your route, then confirm with the driver by showing the destination on your phone.

Marshrutkas also serve some outlying stops and nearby towns, but for day trips the shared-taxi stands near the bazaars and bus stations are usually quicker to work out.

A sightseeing day built on walking plus two or three app rides lands around UZS 60,000–150,000 per person (2026 estimate), which is roughly US$5–12. A bus-only day costs a few thousand som. The gap is small enough that most visitors default to the app and walk the core.

Budget more if you are moving between the station, the airport and the monuments on the same day, or if you hire a car and driver for a day trip. Shared taxis to Shahrisabz and other towns are priced per seat, not per car.

Install Yandex Go and an offline map before you arrive, and keep a little cash for buses and street taxis. A local eSIM makes the app work the moment you land, which matters most at the airport and the station where touts approach arriving passengers.

Distances look short on the map but heat, dust and uneven paving slow you down; plan two clusters a day rather than four. If you are heading onward to Bukhara or back to Tashkent, book the train first and arrange the taxi to the station around that departure.