Tashkent Walking Tour with Metro, Chorsu Bazaar and Khast Imam

Amir Timur Square and the modern centre

The walk begins in front of the large landmark hotel on Amir Timur Square, where the city shows its most formal face. The square is a round park with fountains and shady paths, ringed by striking buildings such as a blue-domed history museum and the Palace of International Forums. First-time visitors are often surprised by the skyline and the wide boulevards that radiate from here.

Your guide uses this first stop to explain why Tashkent has been rebuilt, renamed and reinvented more often than almost any city in Central Asia, from a Silk Road oasis to a tsarist garrison town, a Soviet capital and today a growing modern metropolis. Much of what you see dates from after the great earthquake of 1966, which changed the face of the city and the lives of its people.

Independence Square and the Eternal Flame

A short walk leads to Independence Square, the largest square in the country, with its golden globe monument, fountains and an arch topped by sculpted storks. It means something different to every Uzbek, and your guide explains its role in the history of the young republic since independence in 1991, and in the celebrations held here every year.

At one end of the square, the memorial known as the Square of Memory holds the Eternal Flame and the statue of a grieving mother, surrounded by long galleries listing those who did not return from the Second World War. Standing here in silence for a few minutes helps you understand the weight of the 20th century in Tashkent. It is one of the most moving places in the city and a contrast to the bright, busy bazaar to come.

The Tashkent Metro

Then you go underground. The Tashkent Metro opened in 1977 as the first metro in Central Asia, and its stations were designed as works of art, with marble walls, carved plaster, ceramics, mosaics and grand chandeliers. Each station has its own theme, from cotton and astronomy to space exploration, so a short ride feels like a visit to an underground museum. Photography in the metro has been allowed since 2018, so you can take pictures freely.

Many travellers search for a Tashkent metro tour because the stations are hard to understand alone; your guide explains the designs, the symbols and how the system was built in a city shaken by earthquakes. The ride is included and is also the easiest way to cross the city towards the old town. Trains are frequent, clean and air-cooled in summer.

Chorsu Bazaar

Back above ground, the city changes completely. Chorsu Bazaar has fed Tashkent for centuries, and the smell of spices reaches you before you see the giant blue dome of its main hall, built in 1980. Inside, round tiers of stalls sell spices, dried fruit, nuts, sweets and dairy products, while the streets around are full of fresh fruit, vegetables, bread and household goods.

Your guide walks through it with you, showing you what to try, what to photograph and how locals choose their produce for plov and other family dishes. It is the best place to feel the everyday energy of the city. Bring some cash if you want to buy dried apricots, nuts or sweets, and keep your bag close in the crowded passages.

Khast Imam, the spiritual heart of Tashkent

The walk ends at the Khast Imam complex in the old town, the spiritual heart of the city. Around a wide square stand the 16th-century Barak Khan Madrasah, the Hazrati Imam Mosque with its twin minarets, the Tillya Sheikh Mosque and the Kaffal Shashi Mausoleum. The quiet lanes of the old mahalla neighbourhoods begin just behind them.

The highlight for many visitors is the Muyi Muborak library museum, which keeps one of the oldest Quran manuscripts in the world, traditionally dated to the 7th century, written on parchment in an early Arabic script. Entrance to the museum is not included and is paid on site. Your guide gives you time to visit and explains the history of the complex, a fitting end to a walk through the three faces of Tashkent.