10 Places in Uzbekistan That Rarely Make the Standard Itinerary

The classic route covers the essentials, but Uzbekistan is much bigger than three cities.

1. Nurata — a hilltop fortress attributed to Alexander the Great, and the Chashma sacred spring with fish that, by legend, must never be caught.
2. Sarmishsay gorge — petroglyphs up to 9,000 years old, one of the largest collections of rock art in Central Asia.
3. Gijduvan — home to one of the country’s main ceramics schools, where you can watch the craft happen live.
4. Denau and the Surkhandarya mountains — green mountain scenery sharply different from the desert image of Uzbekistan.
5. Chimgan and the Charvak reservoir — a ski resort in winter, a lake for relaxing in summer, all an hour from Tashkent.
6. Termez — Buddhist monuments and fortresses near the Afghan border, one of the country’s most underrated historical spots.
7. Moynoq — a former fishing port on the shore of the dried-up Aral Sea, with a ship graveyard sitting on sand.
8. Shah-i-Zinda at closing time — even on the classic route, there’s a way to see something familiar differently: arrive right before closing, after the tour groups have left.
9. Kampyr Tepa — an archaeological site on the location of an ancient city on the Amu Darya, little-known even among locals.
10. Zaamin — a national park with juniper forests in the mountains, a rare example of untouched nature in the region.

Access and conditions on some remote routes can depend on the season.