Best places to visit in Uzbekistan

A tiny Turkmen village razed in 2002 by order of the President, Derweze is famous for its fiery crater, nicknamed the "Door to Hell."

An inland sea straddling Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the Aral Sea has now almost dried out, exposing a landscape of desolate desert.

Located on the border between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Lenin Peak climbs majestically to a height of 7,134 meters.

An incredible, historic town built in clay, with magnificent turquoise domes, Khiva recalls the architectural beauty of the days of the silk road.

Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most visited country, and Samarkand was a key staging post on the Silk Road with its celebrated Islamic monuments.

The small Uzbek town of Shakhrisyabz reveals an incredible and historic palatial complex.

Rishton is a nice little village with a number of pottery factories. Perhaps it isn't worth staying 3 days, but coming here is a good idea!

Meaning "hot lake" in the Kyrgyz language, Lake Issyk Kul offers magnificent views of the surrounding snow-capped mountains.

Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and its largest city, as well as the heart of its economy and its cultural capital - but it's perhaps not the most beautiful of the country's cities.

Even though the city is transitioning into a popular tourist destination, where stores of all kinds are flourishing, the magnificence of its historic monuments and ancient streets means that Bukhara is a must-see destination during your journey to Uzbekistan .

Are you a fan of handcrafted goods? If so, Margilan and the surrounding area could have been made especially for you! On the other hand, if you are more interested in monuments built to honor the Emir Timur, keep going and head toward Samarkand.

Once we had arrived in Osh, we had crossed the cultural border between the highly "nomadic" north and the more densely populated south, which is closer to Uzbekistan, both geographically and culturally.

With a lunar landscape that creates an atmosphere like that of an old western film set, where hulks of rusty old boats decay in what was once the largest port on the Aral Sea, Moynaq makes a strange impression on visitors.

If you visit Khuva during your stay in Uzbekistan, make sure that you plan a visit to the Toprak Kala Citadel. The site, and the views, are well worth the effort.

A rather modern city, far from the main tourist attractions, Fergana is a quiet city that is at the heart of Uzbek culture and at the same time influenced by the Russian community that is still present there.

Urgench is a crossroads when traveling towards Khiva. Beyond this asset, the city has no particular appeal.

Like the rest of the Ferghana Valley, Kokand is not a town that attracts a lot of tourists; nonetheless, a day spent there can be full of pleasant surprises.

The largest Uzbek town in the Fergana Valley, Andijan still bears the scars of the massacre of May, 2005.

The capital of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, is a bright, golden, immaculate city with unparalleled charm and mystery.

Merv is an ancient, historic Islamic city on the Silk Road and is one of the finest examples of early Islamic culture.