All foreign nationals are required to obtain an entry visa to Uzbekistan. To obtain a visa you need visa support from national tourism agency or from one of authorized independent travel agencies. Citizens of Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Malaysia, Spain, Switzerland and UK do not need LOI, but they can be requested to obtain LOI, if they obtain Uzbekistan Visa outside of their country of citizenship.
Visa Questions
It is possible to obtain a visa at the international arrivals lounge of Tashkent International Airport, if both of the following conditions are met: There is no Uzbekistan Embassy or Consulate in the country, where you are originating your flight to Uzbekistan. Connecting flight to Uzbekistan, in the country where Uzbekistan Embassy or Consulate exists, does not provide enough time to obtain a visa.
A Letter of Invitation (LOI or Visa Support Letter) is a written document in support of a person seeking a visa to enter a foreign country. LOI for tourists visas are issued by travel agencies and approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Tour agency submits a visa application to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ministry reviews the application, reserving the right to deny any application without providing explanations. Approved visa support is telexed directly to the Embassy or Consulate in the country where you intend to obtain your visa. However, this cannot guarantee visa issuance at the Embassy.
Consular fee – money charged by consulate or embassy to issue a visa.
Group visa is a visa issued for a group. A group is defined as ten or more applicants traveling to the same location for the same purpose.
Transportation questions
No, you can not. At present, the rail service between Bukhara and Urgench (30 km from Khiva) is not carried out.
Uzbekistan overnight trains have three classes: Lux class coupe for 2 persons, 1st class coupe for 4 persons, and platscart class, but we do not recommend this class to travel by. Generally, coupe-classes have additional amenities and better service level.
There are no electronic train tickets in Uzbekistan. You can book tickets on the train, but you can buy them only within 30 days prior the trip.
Tashkent is a modern city with an extensive public transport system and has a wide choice of vehicles. In addition to taxis, you can go by regular buses as well as by public minibuses, cost of which is 1200 soums per trip (less than 50 cents). Also there is a “Gazelle” shuttle bus. And, of course, the subway!
Tashkent subway has three lines and 29 stations. You can easily reach the other side of the city for 40 minutes by the subway.
In such cities as Samarkand and Bukhara, it is recommended to go by taxi, because the distance from one tourist object to another is small enough, and public transport is not as comfortable as in Tashkent.
The average taxi in the cities of Uzbekistan costs $5-10 per trip. To order a taxi is much more convenient, in this case there is a probability that a driver will speak a foreign language. However, along with taxi companies there are a lot of private taxis. The price difference between private taxis and official taxi services is about $2-3 per trip.
No, there is not. But in Uzbekistan, you can rent a car with a driver.