SOVIET RELICS AND IMPERVIOUS MOUNTAINS

May 04 ⇾ May 11
September 03 ⇾ September 10

In addition to our regular group departures to Tajikistan, we also offer tour services for private travel parties and lone wolves alike. As a traveller-oriented boutique operator, tailored trips and bespoke adventures are our bread and butter. Get in touch for more info on our customised journeys to Tajikistan! 

ITINERARY

DAY 1 TO DAY 2 — Dushanbe 

  • Meet-and-greet at Dushanbe International Airport and transfer to our hotel of choice in downtown Dushanbe.

  • We will spend the next two days touring the many Soviet wonders and the few pre-Soviet sights of Tajikistan’s lovely capital.

  • The list of highlights of our sojourn in Dushanbe will include (but is not limited to): Concert Palace, State Circus, Rohat Chaikhana, Mevlana Mosque, National Theatre, City Library, Ministry of Economic Development, Cable Car Station, a surprisingly vast amount of well-preserved Soviet mosaics, as well as a short half-day excursion to the ancient Silk Road town of Hisor, just a few miles west of the capital.

  • Overnights in Dushanbe.

DAY 3 — Tajikistan’s Deep South    

  • We’ll leave Dushanbe in the early morning and spend the day exploring the little-visited flatlands of Southern Tajikistan, close to the border with Afghanistan.

  • During the good old Soviet times Southern Tajikistan saw dramatic agricultural and industrial developments through collectivisation of the land and modernisation of the production processes.

  • The modernisation included, however, also a more or less forcible resettlement of mountain peoples to the lowlands, a controversial policy sadly resulting in social and cultural tensions that later led to violent clashes during the dark years of the Civil War (1992-1997).

  • Travelling through a sun-drenched landscape of endless cotton fields and abandoned factories, we’ll visit a few truly melancholic southern Tajik towns such as Qurgonteppa, Sarband, Danghara and Nurek, before eventually returning to Dushanbe for the night.

  • Overnight in Dushanbe.

DAY 4 — Pugus    

  • We’ll leave Dushanbe right after breakfast and begin our journey towards the northern districts of Tajikistan.

  • Following the course of the Varzob river, we’ll travel to the Soviet resort village of Pugus, home to a colossal modernist sanatorium nestled in an awe-inspiring setting of high mountains and forested slopes.

  • We will then spend the rest of the day at the Soviet resort, trying out the wide range of diverse, unusual – and often bizarre – health and wellness treatments they have been offering since the heydays of the USSR.

  • Overnight in Pugus.

DAY 5 — Istaravshan

  • From Pugus we’ll travel north along the scenic M34 towards Khujand, formerly known as Leninabad, the second-largest city in Tajikistan.

  • Our first stop will be Sarvoda, a nostalgic mining town that harbours a large panoply of Soviet-era monuments, memorials and other relics.

  • The road to Khujand will then lead us into the depths of the Anzob Tunnel, aka the Tunnel of Death, a once notoriously scary passage drilled through the hard rock of the Zarafshan Mountains.

  • After exiting the tunnel, we’ll visit the picturesque hamlet of Ayni, once home to one of the largest Soviet military bases in Central Asia, and then call at the gargantuan Lenin monument overlooking the water reservoir in Istaravshan.

  • Overnight in Khujand.

Bespoke Experiences • Metal welding and bladesmithing show at the old bazaar in Istaravshan and visit to the clothing workshop of a local business women’s association near Khujand.

DAY 6 — Khujand

  • We’ll devote a full day to the architectural and cultural heritage of Khujand: concrete apartment blocks, Soviet modernist gems, WWII memorials, Soviet mosaics and bas-reliefs, Stalinist grandeur, photogenic bazaars, ancient fortresses, and one the largest Lenin statues in Central Asia.

  • Overnight in Khujand.

DAY 7 — CLOSED TOWNS

  • Today we will explore Northern Tajikistan and tour the vast array of USSR-era architectural and monumental treasures hidden in the formerly Soviet closed towns of Buston, Ghafurov and Istiklol (once known as Chkalovsk, Sovietabad, and Taboshar).

  • In the afternoon we might also hit the crowded urban beach of the Kayrakkum Reservoir, a USSR-era artificial lake where locals like to flock to in order to escape the summer heat.

  • Overnight in Khujand.

DAY 8 — Farewell to the Mountains

  • After enjoying a last Tajik meal together, we'll take care of your transfer to Khujand International Airport.

  • For those wishing to take the train/bus to reach further destinations: transfer to the local train/bus station in Khujand.

  • Possible tour extensions to this itinerary include: Afghanistan and/or Kyrgyzstan.

  • End of the tour.

1990 €

INCLUSIONS
Double/twin-room accommodation (breakfast included), private transport in Tajikistan (car/minivan), all entrance fees, English-speaking guiding service, 24/7 on-site and remote assistance.

EXCLUSIONS
Single supplement, international flights, main meals (lunches and dinners), extra drinks, visa fees (if required), tips, travel insurance.