People shopping at outdoor market stalls with historical blue and beige brick buildings in the background, including a tall patterned minaret and a large dome, under a partly cloudy sky.

East Babylon

Samarkand

An intricately carved wooden door set into a wall decorated with blue and white Islamic tile patterns. The tile design includes geometric and floral motifs, with a brick base and a cobblestone ground in front.

Things to Do

Samarkand is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central Asia along the ancient Silk Road. Known for its stunning turquoise domes and grandiose Islamic architecture, the city’s crown jewel is Registan Square, a masterpiece of Timurid design.

Photographer: Clarissa Tan

    • Registan Square 

    • Shah-i-Zinda 

    • Siab Bazaar

    • Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum

    • Bibi-Khanym Mosque

    • Ulugh Beg Observatory 

    • Ancient Afrasiyab

    • Afrasiyab Museum of Samarkand 

    • Samarkand Museum of history 

    • Museum of Winemaking 

    • State Museum of Culture and Art of Uzbekistan

    • Hazrat Khizr Mosque

    • Namazgoh Mosque 

    • Khoja Ahrar Mosque 

    • Rukhabad Mausoleum Mosque

    • Central Park ( Alisher Navoi Central Park)

    • University Boulevard (Boulevard  of Samarkand State University)

    • Imam Al-Bukhari Memorial Park 

    • Amir Temur Park 

    • Eternal City (New Samarkand

    • Emirhan

    • Bibikhanym Chaikhana

    • Sogdiana Café 

    • Eternal City

    • Joni Osh

    • Peperoni’s

    • Siab Bazaar 

    • Khujum Silk Factory 

    • Registan Area Souvenir Shops 

    • Samarkand Handcrafts Center

  • Intricate blue and gold mosaic ceiling with detailed geometric and floral patterns in an Islamic architectural style.

    Registan

  • Colorful tiled facade of a building with intricate geometric and floral patterns, typical of Persian or Islamic architecture, against a clear blue sky.

    Shah-I-Zinda

  • Details of an ornate Islamic dome with turquoise and blue tile work, Arabic calligraphy, and geometric patterns.

    Bibi Khanym Mosque

  • Indoor market with vendors selling various goods, including colorful textiles and ceramics, beneath a metal roof with blue and green fabric decorations.

    Siab Bazaar