What is the Eternal City in Samarkand? It is a 17-hectare cultural quarter at the heart of the Silk Road Samarkand tourism complex, created by Uzbek artist Bobur Ismoilov, where the crafts, traditional dress and cuisine of Uzbekistan's regions are presented in a single place.
Imagine walking through a gate into a city that feels a thousand years old, yet was built for you to wander slowly. A potter turns clay under a wooden awning. Somewhere a dutar is playing. The smell of fresh bread and smoke from a tandoor drifts between domes and courtyards. This is the Eternal City, and for many travellers it has become the warm, human prelude to Registan, Gur-e-Amir and Shah-i-Zinda.
The Eternal City is the centrepiece of Silk Road Samarkand, a complex covering more than 260 hectares with eight hotels and about 1,200 rooms, green areas with some 30,000 trees, wellness facilities and shopping. The project, reported at around 580 million dollars, was designed so that visitors could stay, rest and explore in one place. In August 2026 a group of Azerbaijani journalists toured the quarter and were shown how it presents the ethnographic heritage, national traditions, craftsmanship and cuisine of Uzbekistan's regions together, with artisans at work, national costumes and examples of decorative art on display.
What makes the Eternal City special is that it is alive. You watch masters at work instead of looking at objects behind glass, you taste regional dishes instead of reading about them, and you can bring home handmade pieces from the people who made them. For families, it is an easy and safe way to show children what the Silk Road really was: a meeting of peoples, trades and flavours. For photographers, the evening light on the domes and arcades is pure gold.
The Eternal City works best as part of a wider Samarkand story. Start the morning at Registan, when the three madrasahs glow in soft light and the square is still quiet. Visit Gur-e-Amir, the tomb of Amir Temur, and climb the avenue of blue-tiled mausoleums at Shah-i-Zinda. Then spend the afternoon and evening in the Eternal City, where the monuments you saw in the morning suddenly make sense through the hands of the craftspeople who keep their traditions alive. With a private guide, the whole day becomes one continuous journey through twenty-five centuries of Samarkand history.
Uzbekistan welcomed 10.3 million foreign tourists in January–September 2026, up 20.4% on the same period of 2025, and arrivals from Russia grew 1.3 times, according to the country's Tourism Committee. For travellers from Russia and the CIS, Samarkand combines a familiar ease of travel with the feeling of being far away: communication is easy, the people are welcoming and the food is generous. Late autumn and winter bring calmer streets, shorter queues at the great monuments and cosy evenings over plov and green tea.
We recommend half a day for the Eternal City and at least two full days for Samarkand itself. Our Samarkand 3-day tour covers the essentials, while the 5-day Tashkent–Samarkand–Bukhara tour adds the capital and Bukhara. Browse our hotels for places to stay. GoUzbekistan is a licensed tour operator with offices in Tashkent and Bukhara, operating since 2007. Create your own custom tour, explore our tours, or message us on WhatsApp: +998 93 963-00-00.
في سمرقند، على طريق الحرير، تجمع «المدينة الخالدة» حِرف أوزبكستان ومطبخها وتقاليدها في مكان واحد، إلى جانب ساحة ريجستان وضريح تيمور. السياحة في أوزبكستان أقرب مما تتخيلون. اكتشفوا جولاتنا
Auf Ihrer Usbekistan Reise zeigt die „Ewige Stadt“ in Samarkand Handwerk, Trachten und Küche aller Regionen an einem Ort, nur eine Fahrt vom Registan entfernt. Perfekt für jede Seidenstraße Rundreise. Jetzt Reise individuell planen
En tus viajes a Uzbekistán, la «Ciudad Eterna» de Samarcanda reúne artesanos, trajes tradicionales y cocina de todo el país en un solo lugar, en plena Ruta de la Seda. Descubre nuestros circuitos
Pour un voyage en Ouzbékistan, la « Cité éternelle » de Samarcande rassemble artisans, costumes et cuisine de toutes les régions, au cœur de la Route de la Soie. Créer mon voyage sur mesure
乌兹别克斯坦旅游新亮点：撒马尔罕的“永恒之城”把全国各地的手工艺、民族服饰和美食汇聚一处，是丝绸之路之旅的理想一站。查看我们的线路
Туры в Узбекистан стали ещё насыщеннее: «Вечный город» в Самарканде собрал ремёсла, костюмы и кухню всех регионов страны в одном месте на Шёлковом пути. Соберём программу под вас. Смотреть туры
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