Tien Shan

There was a lot of bus/ travel time on this journey. Given that, I felt that some days were very poorly planned.
Examples:
One day all we did was cross the border to Turkmenistan. We started at 1:pm and it took 2 hours. The next day there was a six hour excursion to a UNESCO site. Then back to the city for lunch. Then another 5.5 hour drive out to the gas crater. Obviously the UNESCO excursion could have been done the previous afternoon if we would have crossed the border in the morning. Then we would have arrived for sunset at the camp. Instead we were driving in the dark on a very poor and dangerous road, arriving stressed. As an aside, some passengers got bed bug bites at the camp.

The day we arrived in Uzbekistan we had been travelling for 9 hours. All we wanted was our hotel, a drink and some food. Sergi proceeded to say we had to go to the summer palace and a silk factory that night. The whole group was fed up and we did not enjoy either one. These activities were scheduled for the next day.

Anyway there were many days like this; it was agreed by all that we would prefer to get to our hotel in the late afternoon in order to unwind and perhaps explore on our own. There was no need for so many late check ins.

Most hotels were adequate. I did not have high expectations. Rooms were clean and comfortable. However, the breakfasts were horrendous. Cold food, empty buffet trays, very little offered.

Nickey Knight The Five Stans of the Silk Road – Almaty to Ashgabat

I’m writing this two months after coming back. I’ve just finished my photobook of the trip and completing this made me realise how much fantastic stuff we saw. And how it’s like two trips in one. Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan are based on mountains, open spaces and some walks. Uzbekistan is cultural, four interesting cities and fantastic Islamic architecture. It’s great to have experienced both and enjoyed three new countries in one adventure.

Nigel Turner The Silk Road

A lot to see on this whirlwind tour,stunning scenery in Kyrgyzstan, busy Almaty in Kazakhstan and a lot of mosques,minarets and mausoleums.
The included lunches and dinners were very good apart from the dinner and breakfast at the yurt which was very basic and tasteless,room for improvement.
The eagle hunting demonstration is excellent something I won’t forget. The yurt stay was basic but acceptable,a bit chilly at night in June,the next morning there’s a 6km walk down to the red rocks,a very easy walk and very beautiful.
The border crossing on foot into Kazakhstan was straightforward as it’s so quiet unlike the border crossing into Uzbekistan which was pretty chaotic.
The Charyn Canyon was amazing,easy walk down to the picnic spot,you can either walk back or buy a ticket for a ride back up in a soviet truck.
Both sleeper trains were 4 berth quite tight on space for luggage,first sleeper does have food and drink available.
Uzbekistan was stunning but overwhelming with the amount of mosques,minarets and mausoleum’s visited in 4 regions,personally I wouldn’t have been bothered if Khiva had been missed off the itinerary a bit of a tourist trap.

Susan Watson The Silk Road