Uzbekistan Country Information

• Bradt Travel Guides

This new edition of Bradt's Uzbekistan continues to offer more practical detail for independent travelers than any other guidebook, written by expert authors who have lived and worked in Central Asia since 2008. With first-hand descriptions of everything from UNESCO World Heritage Sites and the world's best collection of Russian avant-garde art, to riding across deserts by camel and cooking plov, Uzbekistan's authors bring the country alive in this updated 2nd edition. Comprehensive details of accommodation, restaurants and public transport options are included, along with a number of detailed maps, trekking and hiking routes and off the beaten track locations, as well as full information on how to travel around the country by bus, train and shared taxi. There's more on the country's flora and fauna, and detailed, hard-hitting information on the current state of the economy, domestic politics and foreign affairs. All listings have been thoroughly updated and the latest highlights brought to the fore.
Uzbekistan is famed for the golden road to Samarkand and the equally famous Silk Road cities of Bukhara and Khiva. Beyond these indisputable highlights, however, lies a country rich in history but with a complex and intriguing modern streak. Striking medieval and contemporary architecture battles for your attention, standing in sharp contrast to the empty, endless deserts and the majestic mountainscapes of the Tien Shan range. The authors' use of historical anecdotes and high quality photographs, as well as their amusing travel stories, make Uzbekistan an enjoyable read and the perfect companion both before and during a trip to Central Asia's most populous country and the heart of the historic Silk Road.

• Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher

Lonely Planet Central Asia is your passport to all the most relevant and up-to-date advice on what to see, what to skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Sample lamb kebabs and nan bread from roadside grills, hike through the spectacular canyons of the Kyrgyz Alatau Range, or marvel at Yasaui Mausoleum's beautiful architecture; all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of Central Asia and begin your journey now!

Inside Lonely Planet's Central Asia Travel Guide:

• Colour maps and images throughout
• Highlights and itineraries show you the simplest way to tailor your trip to your own personal needs and interests
• Insider tips save you time and money, and help you get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots
• Essential info at your fingertips - including hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, and prices
• Honest reviews for all budgets - including eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, and hidden gems that most guidebooks miss
• Cultural insights give you a richer and more rewarding travel experience - including customs, history, the Silk Road, religion, art, literature, film, music, architecture, landscapes, border crossings, outdoor activities, wildlife, environment, and cuisine
• Over 65 maps
• Coverage of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Almaty, Taraz, Astana, Tashkent, Khorezm, Karakalpakstan, Bishkek, Tamchy, Naryn, Dushanbe, Khojand, Khorog, Ashgabat, Merv, and more

eBook Features: (Best viewed on tablet devices)

• Zoom-in maps and images bring it all up close and in greater detail
• Downloadable PDF and offline maps let you stay offline to avoid roaming and data charges
• Seamlessly flip between pages
• Easily navigate and jump effortlessly between maps and reviews
• Speedy search capabilities get you to what you need and want to see
• Use bookmarks to help you shoot back to key pages in a flash
• Visit the websites of our recommendations by touching embedded links
• Adding notes with the tap of a finger offers a way to personalise your guidebook experience
• Inbuilt dictionary to translate unfamiliar languages and decode site-specific local terms

Authors: Written and researched by Lonely Planet, Bradley Mayhew, Mark Elliott, Tom Masters and John Noble.

About Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places they find themselves in.

TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category

'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times

'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia)

• Airphoto International Ltd

• KUPERARD

Conjuring images of nomadic horsemen, spectacular monuments, breathtaking scenery and crippling poverty, Central Asia remains an enigma. Home to the descendants of Jenghiz Khan’s Great Horde, in the nineteenth century the once powerful Silk Road states became a pawn in the ‘Great Game’ of expansion and espionage between Britain and Russia, disappearing behind what would become known as the ‘Iron Curtain’. With the collapse of the USSR, the nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan were born. Since independence, Central Asia has seen one civil war, two revolutions and seven dictators.

   An insightful mix of travel, history and reportage, in Does it Yurt? journalist Stephen M. Bland takes the reader on a voyage of discovery. Travelling to a desert sea, a collapsed Russian gas rig daubed the ‘Gate to Hell’ and along the ‘Heroin highway’ atop the roof of the world, the author sets out to explore these lands, unearthing the stories of the people and places behind this fascinating region.

 

Written sharply, vividly… If you’re looking for an antidote to chirpy travel-guide descriptions of Central Asia, then this is the book for you.’ 
— Sam Tranum, author of Daily Life in Turkmenbashy’s Golden Age.

 

‘Packed with insights into every corner of the region.’
                                      — Paul Wilson, Trailblazer Guides writer and author of The Alphabet Game.

 

‘Weaves together my favourite elements of a travelogue: historical context and current observations mixed with a dry sense of humour and amusing anecdotes... Does it Yurt? will result in my journey to Central Asia being that much more rewarding.’ 
                                      — Ric Gazarian, author of 7000KM To Go and Hit the Road India; top 500 travel blogger.

 

‘Stephen M. Bland’s writing captures the magical whirlwind flavour of Central Asia in this very perceptive and insightful book. Those who have visited this wonderful part of the world will instantly recognise and reminisce on the many stories of potholed journeys by shared taxi, generous encounters with friendly locals and the inevitable run-ins with bumbling bureaucracy. Those who haven’t yet visited will be inspired to book their next adventure as soon as they can put the book down. A thrilling ride from start to finish.’
                                     — Nick Rowan, author of Friendly Steppes: A Silk Road Journey
 

'Deserves to be shared among friends, as well as having a designated place on your shelves. Stephen M. Bland succeeds in bringing the region alive, and his story is an interesting and hard-to-decline invitation to join in his travels.'    —  Eugenette Morin, writer

• With inset maps of Tashkent and Samarkand
• Shows shaded relief, rivers, roads, and villages

• Bradt Travel Guides