The Seven Saints of Bukhara: Uzbekistan's Ziyarat Road Opens to the Gulf

Just before sunrise in Bukhara, the call to prayer reaches the necropolis of Chor Bakr before the light does. Rows of pale brick tombs stand in a garden planted five centuries ago, and for a few minutes the only other sound is a broom moving across stone. Then the courtyard fills — families from Tashkent, a grandmother in a violet scarf, four men from Jeddah who landed after midnight — and the quiet turns into something warmer. This is the oldest pilgrimage road in Central Asia, waking up for the day.

This autumn, that road is closer to the Gulf than it has ever been.

Abu Dhabi to Bukhara: the Gulf's shortest way onto the Silk Road

On 9 August 2026, Etihad Airways operated its first scheduled service to Uzbekistan — a daily nonstop between Abu Dhabi and Tashkent on the Airbus A320. The inaugural flight sold out. The airline paired the route with a codeshare on Uzbekistan Airways that carries passengers onward to eight domestic airports, including Bukhara, Samarkand, Urgench, Termez and Nukus. In practice, a traveller can leave Abu Dhabi in the evening and be drinking green tea in the shadow of the Kalon Minaret the following morning.

Entry is just as straightforward. Uzbekistan admits citizens of more than 90 countries visa-free, the Gulf states among them, and no embassy appointment stands between you and the journey. The demand is visible in the numbers: between January and July 2026 the country welcomed 7,749,308 foreign visitors, 22.6% more than in the same months of 2025. Autumn is the season that fills first, and hotel rooms inside old Bukhara are finite.

The Seven Pirs: Bukhara's ziyarat circuit, walked in two days

Bukhara does not present its sacred sites as a museum trail. They are living places, and they sit close enough together that two unhurried days cover them properly.

The circuit traditionally begins twelve kilometres outside the city at the complex of Khoja Bahauddin Naqshband, the fourteenth-century master whose Naqshbandi order spread from this courtyard to India, Anatolia and beyond. Pilgrims walk the shaded colonnade, sit by the pool, and stay far longer than they planned. From there the road returns to the city for Chashma Ayub, the spring associated with the Prophet Ayyub, and the modest tomb of Sayfiddin Boharziy. Chor Bakr, the vast garden necropolis of the Juybari sheikhs, is best kept for late afternoon, when the brick turns the colour of dates.

Many Gulf travellers continue to Samarkand, where the memorial complex of Imam al-Bukhari — compiler of the Sahih, and arguably the most revered scholar of hadith in the Muslim world — reopened in renewed form in 2026. The high-speed train covers Bukhara to Samarkand in under two hours, which leaves the day intact.

Halal travel in Uzbekistan: what Gulf families actually find

Food is the part that surprises people least and pleases them most: lamb, beef and bread are halal by default here, not by special arrangement. Plov is cooked in cast-iron cauldrons in the open air, samsa comes out of clay ovens still too hot to hold, and every meal begins with tea and ends with melon.

Prayer is uncomplicated — mosques stand within walking distance almost everywhere in the old cities, and any competent guide builds the day around prayer times rather than around a coach schedule. Hotels in Bukhara and Samarkand offer connecting family rooms, courtyards where children can run safely, and staff who are used to guests arriving on late flights from the Gulf. Arabic-speaking guides can be arranged with notice.

In Tashkent, the Center of Islamic Civilization opened in March 2026, built around the Samarkand Codex — the Mushaf attributed to the Caliph Uthman, one of the oldest Qur'anic manuscripts in existence. It is worth a morning before you fly home.

When to come, and who plans it

October is the month. Days settle around 22-26°C, the humidity of the Gulf summer is a memory, the pomegranates are in, and the low autumn light does something to blue tilework that photographs cannot quite hold. Book six to eight weeks ahead for the good courtyard hotels.

GoUzbekistan is the brand of Lochin Express Plyus LLC, a licensed Uzbek tour operator (licence No. 662280, issued 13 March 2025 by the Committee for Tourism Development) that has been working in travel since 2007. Our office is at Islam Karimov Street 21 in Bukhara — a short walk from Lyabi Hauz, which means the people planning your ziyarat live on the road you are coming to walk. Tell us how many days you have and who is travelling, and we will build the route around your family. Create your own custom tour, or explore our tours if you would rather start from a ready itinerary.

Plan your Uzbekistan trip — in your language

العربية — رحلتك إلى أوزبكستان

السياحة في أوزبكستان تبدأ من سمرقند وبخارى على طريق الحرير: قباب فيروزية، ومزارات الأولياء، وضيافة تشبه ضيافتكم. نحن فريق محلي في بخارى نصمّم لكم البرنامج يوماً بيوم. صمّم رحلتك الخاصة أو تصفّح جولاتنا.

Deutsch — Ihre Usbekistan Reise

Eine Seidenstraße Rundreise durch Samarkand, Buchara und Chiwa: türkisfarbene Kuppeln, stille Innenhöfe und eine Gastfreundschaft, die man nicht vergisst. Wir planen Ihre Usbekistan Reise individuell, von Buchara aus. Reise individuell zusammenstellen oder unsere Touren entdecken.

Español — Viajes a Uzbekistán

La Ruta de la Seda empieza en Samarcanda: cúpulas azules, mercados llenos de granadas y noches templadas de otoño. Diseñamos viajes a Uzbekistán a medida, con guías locales y ritmo humano. Crea tu viaje a medida o descubre nuestros circuitos.

Français — Votre voyage en Ouzbékistan

La Route de la Soie, de Samarcande à Boukhara : coupoles turquoise, caravansérails de brique et thé vert à l'ombre des mûriers. Nous composons votre voyage en Ouzbékistan sur mesure. Créez votre voyage sur mesure ou explorez nos circuits.

中文 — 乌兹别克斯坦旅游

丝绸之路从撒马尔罕开始：蓝色穹顶、布哈拉古城、以及热情好客的手工艺人。我们为您量身定制乌兹别克斯坦旅游线路，行程节奏由您决定。定制您的专属行程，或浏览我们的线路。

Русский — Туры в Узбекистан

Шёлковый путь начинается в Самарканде: бирюзовые купола, тихие дворики Бухары и осенние базары с гранатами. Мы составим индивидуальный тур в Узбекистан — без визы и без языкового барьера. Составить свой тур или посмотреть готовые туры.