Moscow - Tashkent: an unforgettable journey

With Central Asia, Russia is traditionally linked by strong and in most cases friendly relations. The huge passenger flow, existing due to strong economic ties, provides a large number of different ways of getting into any of the states in the center of Asia.

Can be long and expensive

Between Moscow and Tashkent, several railway trains run, none of which are serviced by Russian railway workers. All trains belong to carriers, and the final destination is either in Tashkent or in Andijan. Most often, when traveling to Central Asia, the train is chosen by passengers with a lot of luggage, for which the plane would have to pay a lot of money. When traveling by rail, there are other regulations that allow large household appliances or large bags with gifts to be transported.

European backpackers on the route

The second group of railway travelers, and considerable at the same time, is made up of tourists and lovers of exotic means of transportation, because the train Moscow-Tashkent is on the road for sixty-eight hours and passes the most diverse regions of Russia and Kazakhstan, which allows you to get acquainted with a variety of landscapes, Let and through a window of the car.

At the same time, a train ride, even in the cheapest second-class car, costs more than a flight on an airplane. Big competition among air carriers allows passengers to use their services at reasonable prices.

Moscow - Tashkent. The plane will take in four hours

A direct flight to Tashkent, subject to advance booking and depending on seasonal fluctuations, costs about 20% less than a trip in the same direction by train.

There is a wide range of options to fly to Uzbekistan, and not always travelers choose direct and fastest flights, because flights with transfers that often cost less than direct ones allow you to see another city on the way.

Direct flight to choose or with a transfer?

For example, Kazakhstani air carriers offer flights with a long and often daily transfer to Alma-Ata. In this case, it is necessary to stock up the guide on the southern capital and the largest city of Kazakhstan, rebuilt in recent years with European taste and the latest architectural fashion.

Turkish airlines are opening an extremely tempting opportunity for one trip not only to visit the capital of Uzbekistan, but also to drop in for a day to Istanbul, a city that deserves a separate and very detailed story and about which many guides are written for every taste.

If you carefully study the search results in the air ticket aggregators, you can find even two transplants in Turkey - one in Istanbul and the second in Ankara, the capital of the country. But it should be noted that this is a rather tiresome enterprise, requiring some effort from the traveler and, above all, a strong desire to see these cities.

How to drive on the route Moscow - Tashkent by car?

The motorist on his way from Moscow to Tashkent will drive through the territory of three countries: Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. All countries are members of the CIS and grant the citizens of other countries members of this association the right of visa-free entry into their territory, but it is important to remember that border crossing is possible only in specially designated places - checkpoints on the borders of the two countries.

On the territory of Russia in the direction of Kazakhstan there are two main and popular routes for motorists. On the route Moscow - Tashkent it will be necessary to cross the Volga. Departing from Moscow to the east and driving through Nizhny Novgorod, the traveler will pass the great Russian river in Samara. Going south through Tambov, the Volga will have to drive through Saratov. On the eastern route is the city of Orenburg, and cross the border with Kazakhstan will need to be in its vicinity.

In the area of the Kazakh city of Aktobe, the routes merge and pass to the M-32 highway, which winds along the boundless great steppes to the checkpoint on the Kazakh-Uzbek border near the town of Zhibek Zholy. There is a chance to spend some time in the queue, as border guards and customs officers are overly attentive to the baggage of people crossing the border.

How long is the Moscow-Tashkent motorway? The distance is approximately 3400 km, depending on the chosen option.

Hospitable and warm city

The glory of Tashkent as a historical and cultural capital of the region has long ago not only bypassed the countries of the former USSR, but also penetrated the environment of Western tourists. A huge number of foreigners come to Uzbekistan to taste oriental sweets, taste authentic pilaf and stroll through the narrow medieval streets of the ancient city.

The ancient mausoleums of Muslim saints are also popular with tourists and pilgrims from other Islamic states.

And art lovers will be able to get what they want in art galleries and the city's fine museum, which presents an extensive collection of not only Western but also little-known local art. It is worth paying special attention to the work of local artists who wrote in Soviet times, because on the outskirts of the Soviet Union, censorship was not so severe, and the painters could afford a little more freedom in choosing topics and visual aids.

Whichever way the traveler gets to Tashkent, the city will meet him with a smile and sun, generously feed and warm.