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Voykit pocket guide · Uzbekistan

Tashkent

Toshkent

Tashkent is a morning-and-evening city: do Khast Imam and Chorsu before 11:00, hide from the heat at midday, and use the metro and short car rides between four spread-out clusters — the airport is close, but check that your hotel desk is staffed when you land.

Tashkent's sights are far apart on wide avenues, and the summer sun is strong. The trips that go wrong walk between clusters at noon in July, or arrive late to a hotel with no night desk. Four clusters cover a first visit: the Old City with Chorsu, Khast Imam, Amir Temur Square and Independence Square. Samarkand and Bukhara are trips away from one kept bed, not part of this line.

Chorsu Bazaar & Old CityKhast Imam (Hazrati Ima…Amir Temur SquareIndependence SquareAmir Temur Square areaChorsu and the Old Ci…1 kmpins: sleep areas · dots: places
Sketch, not to navigate by: shapes follow this guide’s areas and places, not official boundaries. North is up.
Country
Uzbekistan
Local name
Toshkent
Best months
Mar · Apr · May · Sep · Oct
Time zone
Asia/Tashkent
Stay
2 days: Khast Imam and Chorsu morning, Amir Temur Square evening

Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.

Essentials

Currency
UZS
Money
Keep UZS 200,000 in small notes; use ATMs inside banks, hotels or malls, not on dark streets.
Daily spend
Budget UZS 150,000–300,000 excl. bed · Mid UZS 300,000–700,000 excl. bed · High UZS 700,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
SIM and data
Beeline, Ucell, Mobiuz and Uzmobile sell SIMs with a passport at the airport and city shops; registration takes a few minutes.
Emergency
Fire 101 · Police 102 · Ambulance 103 · Unified emergency 112 · Tourist police (Samarkand Posts in the old towns
Plugs
Types C, F · 220 V · 50 Hz · European two-pin plugs fit; bring an adapter for UK or US plugs.
Tipping
Restaurants: A 10–15% service charge is often added; if not, 5–10%.; Taxis: Round up; no tip on app fares.; Guides and drivers: US$5–10 a day for a guide, a little less for a driver.
Water
Not safe from the tap; bottled water UZS 3,000–6,000 in shops. Boiled tea is always safe.
Toilets
Squat toilets at bazaars and bus stations, sometimes a small fee; carry tissue. Hotels and restaurants have Western toilets.

Get in

By air

Islam Karimov Tashkent International Airport (TAS)
TAS to the centre: one ride-hail car or an airport taxi, 20–45 minutes for about 8 km — the risk is not the ride but a hotel that has no staffed desk when you land late.

Get around

Walk inside a cluster; ride-hailing car or the metro between clusters.

Passes
No pass. Short car rides inside the centre are cheap; check the fare in the app before you ride.
Late at night
The metro stops at night (field-verify the last train); ride-hailing runs all night.

See and do

  1. 01Chorsu BazaarChorsu bozori

    Go early, before the crowd and the heat; the domed hall for bread, spices and dried fruit, 60 minutes, cash only; skip midday in summer.

  2. 02Khast Imam (Hazrati Imam) ComplexHazrati Imom majmuasi

    Go in the morning before the heat: 45 minutes across the squares, mosque courtyards and the mausoleum; dress covered and check prayer times.

  3. 03Amir Temur SquareAmir Temur xiyoboni

    Go late afternoon or evening: 25 minutes around the equestrian statue and gardens, then the history museum or a hotel café; free and always open.

Hours and prices are desk estimates (checked 2026-09); anything marked (check) is not confirmed. Coordinates open in any map app.

Eat

Plov and samsa near Chorsu bazaar
Walk-in plov and oven-baked samsa at the bazaar canteens; go before 13:00 — plov is a lunch dish and stalls can run out; pick the busiest counter.

Sleep

Amir Temur Square area
First-timers: bigger hotels with a staffed desk, lifts and a door the car can reach; the metro and the square are a walk away.
Chorsu and the Old City
Bazaar mornings on foot, but choose a guesthouse that confirms a night desk or door code in writing; lanes are narrow and cars stop at the edge.

Language

Uzbek is the state language, written in Latin script, though Cyrillic signs remain. Russian is the common second language in Tashkent and among older people everywhere. Samarkand and Bukhara are largely Tajik-speaking; Karakalpak is spoken around Nukus. English is growing among young people and in hotels.

  • Assalomu alaykum (hello), rahmat (thank you), qancha? (how much?) cover most transactions.
  • Addresses are often given by landmark (oriyentir); save them on a map.

Etiquette, safety and scams

Etiquette

  • Greeting: Right hand on heart with 'assalomu alaykum'; men shake hands with men; avoid: Offering a hand to a woman unless she offers first
  • Home visit: Shoes off; bring sweets or fruit; sit where the host shows; avoid: Sitting with feet pointing at people or at the table spread (dastarkhan)
  • Tea: Accept at least one bowl; avoid: Refusing everything offered
  • Bread: Break it by hand, place it face up; avoid: Throwing bread away where people can see
  • Dress: Long trousers or skirts in old towns and villages; avoid: Shorts and bare shoulders at religious sites
  • Elders: Stand when they enter; let them eat first; avoid: Interrupting

Red lines

  • Mosques and mausoleums: shoulders and knees covered; shoes off at prayer halls.
  • Do not photograph government buildings, guards or military sites.
  • Ask before photographing people at the bazaar.

Scams (Uzbekistan page)

  • Taxi overcharging at stations and airports: Book through Yandex Go; if you take a street taxi, agree the price in soʻm before you get in.
  • Black-market money exchange: Since the 2017 currency reform the bank rate is close to the street rate; use banks and ATMs.
  • Lookalike e-visa sites: Apply only at e-visa.gov.uz.
  • Minaret and madrasa 'guides' who charge after: Agree a fee before anyone starts talking; climbing closed minarets for a tip is not allowed.
  • Carpet and suzani 'antiques': Real antiques need an export certificate; ask the shop to provide it, or assume the piece is new.

One and two days

1 day

The first day of the timed plan.

Day 1 — Khast Imam morning, plov lunch near Chorsu

  1. 08:00Khast Imam (Hazrati Imam) Complex
  2. kaffal shashi (optional)
  3. 12:30Plov lunch around 12:30 (walk-in)
  4. Hotel or AC café 13:30–16:30; Chorsu bazaar again in the evening if the heat allows.

2 days

The first two days of the timed plan.

Day 1 — Khast Imam morning, plov lunch near Chorsu

  1. 08:00Khast Imam (Hazrati Imam) Complex
  2. kaffal shashi (optional)
  3. 12:30Plov lunch around 12:30 (walk-in)
  4. Hotel or AC café 13:30–16:30; Chorsu bazaar again in the evening if the heat allows.

Day 2 — Amir Temur Square, the museum, Independence Square

  1. 09:00Amir Temur Square
  2. temuriylar museum (optional)
  3. independence square (optional)
  4. Evening: a metro ride or a car to the next square; dinner near the hotel.

Sources

Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.

Pocket card

Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.

TashkentToshkent

My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)

Take me to

  • Chorsu bozoriChorsu Bazaar
  • Hazrati Imom majmuasiKhast Imam (Hazrati Imam) Complex
  • Amir Temur xiyoboniAmir Temur Square

Voykit · checked 2026-09

Printed from Voykit (/tashkent). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.