How to Get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva (2026)

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Post overview: This guide breaks down how to get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva. It details the best ways to get there (usually by train), as well as what types of trains go there, the travel time, and some tips for your journey.

I also discuss how to book a train ticket in Uzbekistan so the process is less intimidating.

Quick Bukhara Travel Guide

If you’re traveling to Bukhara at the last minute, be sure you have hotels and tours booked ahead of time. Below are some of my top picks:

🇺🇿 Best cultural workshops and activities from Bukhara:

Plov masterclass in a traditional workshop (beautiful location!)
Suzani embroidery workshop (organized by Craft&Culture, my fave company in UZ)
Bukhara transfer from Khiva (including 5 desert fortresses!)

🛌 Top hotels and lodging in Bukhara:

Duston Boutique Hotel (where I like to stay in Bukhara, near historic sites)
Bibi-Khanym Hotel (beautiful, woman-owned hotel in the city)
Rayhon Boutique Hotel (affordable option close to main sites)

Many, if not most, first-time travelers to Uzbekistan have Bukhara on their itinerary of places to visit. I happened to visit three times just this year, so I have explored pretty much every option for arriving in Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva.

Exterior of Bukhara railway station in Uzbekistan, a white building with arched blue-glass windows and "VOKZAL" and "BUXORO" signs on the roofline, seen from a paved plaza where a traveler carries two bags toward the entrance. — How to get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva

In this guide, I am going to detail how to get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva. I am only recommending trains, except when it comes to Khiva. The reason for this is that I don’t think Uzbek drivers are the pinnacle of safety. I have had a lot of close calls in Uzbekistan and really don’t love being in a car where someone wants to show off how fast they can drive.

I will be recommending one car transfer from Khiva to Bukhara, however. I took a transfer this route through a verified company (that I also took other excursions with) and loved the experience. You can also make stops at fortresses along the way, so it’s a win/win.

Weathered mud-brick walls of a ruined desert fortress rising above dry, cracked ground scattered with stones, under a clear blue sky in Uzbekistan. — A desert fortress between Khiva and Bukhara

If you have any questions about how to get to Bukhara from Samarkand, Tashkent, or Khiva, leave a comment below or send me a message. Thanks!

📝 Megan’s Notes

If you’re visiting Bukhara for the first time, I highly recommend getting a tour guide. I found the best guide named Kamilla for my trip. She spoke impeccable English, made the tour interactive, and showed me the best of her city, Bukhara. You can send her a message on WhatsApp to arrange a walking tour +998 97 300 69 99.

How to Get to Bukhara Overview

Before I dive into the guide, I have to reiterate how challenging it can be to get train tickets in Uzbekistan, especially for the fast trains. Consider this your warning!

With that being said, it is imperative to book these tickets immediately after you secure your plane tickets into Uzbekistan.

Screenshot of the O'zbekiston Temir Yo'llari (Uzbekistan Railways) ticket booking website, headed "Safe travel across Uzbekistan," with From, To and Departure Date fields, a Search button, and quick links for cities including Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. — This is where you’ll book your tickets

Another thing to know is that if you go to the website and see no tickets available, you can continue to check until your trip, as sometimes groups of tickets will pop up.

Travel agencies will purchase bundles of tickets and not be able to sell through them, only for the agency to return them to Uzbek Railways. I got on a train last minute this way (because I didn’t heed my own advice of purchasing far in advance).

How to Book Train Tickets to Bukhara

I strongly advise you to prioritize Uzbekistan’s national railway website. This is the official place to purchase them, and honestly, it is pretty easy.

If for some reason you can’t get tickets on the Uzbekistan railway website, you can check 12Go Asia, which seems to sell tickets for the route. I have never done this, FYI. But 12Go is a legit site that is a very well-known name across Asia, so you will be fine purchasing from there.

Interior of a train carriage with rows of blue patterned seats on both sides of a central aisle, overhead luggage racks holding backpacks, and a passenger in a red jacket standing beside a seat as sunlight streams through the windows. — On the Sharq train from Tashkent to Bukhara

Some people also have issues with their cards not working on Uzbek websites (mostly for airfare, but sometimes for trains). This may also be a case where you want to use 12Go Asia.

But if you can book tickets on the Uzbekistan Railways website, do this. They will send you a PDF you can print or leave in your email for boarding that will have your wagon number and seat on it.

Good to Know

Tickets on the Uzbekistan Railways website don’t go on sale months in advance, so you can often only find tickets 90 days out or so. And fast trains WILL sell out in an instant once these go on sale.

Business Vs. Economy On Trains

I have taken both, and honestly, I would just book a ticket wherever you can secure one. Both classes were filled with men watching YouTube videos out loud, so it really was kind of all the same to me.

View through a rubber-sealed train gangway toward a glass door marked "B biznes" (business class), with geometric star-pattern frosted glass on the lower panel and blue seats visible in the carriage beyond. — Business class does NOT mean quiet class in Uzbekistan

Booking a Driver to Bukhara

If you have tried over and over to get train tickets to Bukhara and can’t seem to get them, you can use Indy Guide to put out a request for a driver.

I put out a request for one for Samarkand to Tashkent and informed him that I would still be looking for train tickets (it cut down driving time a lot), and he was cool with a flexible booking. I did end up canceling this because I got a last-minute train ticket (I lost the 10% deposit). But this is an option if you haven’t managed to get on one of the trains.

How to Get to Bukhara from Tashkent

There are 4-5 different trains that go from Tashkent to Bukhara: the sleeper train, Sharq, Afrosiyob, and the Jaloliddin Manguberdi.

The Jaloliddin Manguberdi and Afrosiyob are the fastest (with the first being faster and going up to 250-260 km/h). Check train ticket prices and availability from Tashkent to Bukhara here.

Hand with bright pink nails holding a clear plastic cup of fresh strawberries inside a train corridor, with wood-paneled walls and a window showing green fields outside. — World’s most expensive strawberries (IYKYK)

Approximate travel time from Tashkent to Bukhara:

Sleeper train and express: 6-7 hours, depending on the train
Sharq: 5 hours, 55 minutes
Afrosiyob: 4 hours, 10 minutes
Jaloliddin Manguberdi: 3 hours, 54 minutes

Front of the Afrosiyob high-speed train standing at a station platform, with a silver body, blue roof and green and blue stripes, beneath overhead power lines and a red gantry against a blue sky. — The Afrosiyob train in Bukhara

My experience: I have taken both the Afrosiyob and Sharq to and from Bukhara. The Sharq is slightly slower, but I enjoyed the experience just as much. It was a spacious train, and while it takes more time, it was fine and more modern than I expected.

How to Get to Bukhara from Samarkand

Similar to arriving from Tashkent, you have quite a few options for trains to get from Samarkand to Bukhara. These are all on the same route as the Tashkent-Bukhara line, so you will be getting on in the middle of a journey.

Back of a blue train seat with a folded tray table, stickers for onboard Uztelecom Wi-Fi and contactless NFC payment, and a green water advert, beside a window showing power lines and the track at dusk. — Enjoying the train ride to Bukhara

There are 4-5 different trains that go from Samarkand to Bukhara: the sleeper train, Sharq, Afrosiyob, and the Jaloliddin Manguberdi. As stated above, the Jaloliddin Manguberdi is the fastest train from Samarkand to Bukhara. Check train ticket prices and availability from Samarkand to Bukhara here.

Approximate travel time from Samarkand to Bukhara:

Sleeper train and express: 3-3.5 hours
Sharq: 2 hours, 25 minutes
Afrosiyob: 1 hour, 40 minutes
Jaloliddin Manguberdi: 1 hour, 31 minutes

Interior of a business-class train carriage with blue seats and headrest covers reading "Uzbekistan Railways," ceiling-mounted screens showing route maps, geometric-pattern panels above the luggage racks, and passengers seated and standing along the aisle. — Inside the Afrosiyob business wagon

My experience: I have taken both the Afrosiyob and Sharq to and from Bukhara from Samarkand. The Sharq is a little slower, but a comfortable experience nonetheless.

How to Get to Bukhara from Khiva

The train journey from Khiva to Bukhara is slightly different, as you have fewer options and the journey can be cumbersome. The train options you have are a sleeper train, an express train (the number 707), and the new fast train called the Jaloliddin Manguberdi, which just launched in May 2026. Check train ticket prices and availability from Khiva to Bukhara here.

Approximate travel time from Khiva to Bukhara:

Sleeper train and express: 6-7 hours, depending on the train
707 Express: 4 hours, 37 minutes
Jaloliddin Manguberdi: 3 hours, 28 minutes

I have never done this route by train, to be honest. The reason was that I didn’t like the options available at the time, and I thought it would be cool to hire a driver from Khiva to Bukhara so I could admire the scenery. You can also visit desert fortresses along the way!

Flat desert landscape of orange sand and low green scrub seen across an empty highway and metal guardrail, with power lines stretching toward a hazy horizon under a pale blue sky. — The desert between Khiva and Bukhara

This trip with Islambek Travel (I used them for several tours and transfers in Khiva and Nukus) picks you up from designated places in Khiva and drops you off in Bukhara after 11-ish hours. You will see 5 desert fortresses, as well as have some local experiences along the way. This is such a cool way to get from Point A to Point B, and I highly recommend it over the train.

Arriving in Bukhara

Bukhara’s train station is not near the historic center, which is likely where your accommodation is! You will need to get a transfer from the railway station there. This is around a 30-minute ordeal if traffic plays nicely.

You can book a Yandex Go, and the cost is around $3. There are a lot of wild street taxis in this area, and you will likely be hounded to take one.

Spacious railway station hall with a geometric star-patterned marble floor, a mezzanine balcony carrying a blue Silk Road map and the words "Discover Silk Road with Uzbekistan Railways," a security checkpoint with uniformed officers on the left, and a "Coffee to Go" kiosk and souvenir stand at the back. — Inside the Bukhara train station

Your driver will be waiting in the lot near all of this chaos, so you just need to be patient and look for him around there.

If you are staying at accommodation that isn’t self-service, it may be worth asking them to arrange a pickup. This may be more expensive, but you can possibly get a sign with your name on it that will be easier to find.

How to Get to Bukhara FAQ

Below are some frequently asked questions about traveling to Bukhara. Let me know if you have any other questions I did not answer here.

The best way to get from Tashkent to Bukhara is by train. There are several trains running daily that range from as fast as 3 hours and 54 minutes to nearly 8 hours. You can secure tickets on the Uzbek Railways website.

The best way to get from Samarkand to Bukhara is by train. Like the journey from Tashkent to Bukhara, there are several trains you can take to Bukhara.

To get from Khiva to Bukhara, it is best to take a train or book a transfer there with a service like Islambek Travel. The company offers a full-day transfer where you’ll stop at desert fortresses along the way. It is a good way to see more of Uzbekistan’s desert landscapes before arriving back in a city.

It depends on where you’re coming from, but if you are leaving from Tashkent or Samarkand, the fastest train to Bukhara is the Jaloliddin Manguberdi, which just started service in May 2026. It books out fast, so the second-best train option is the Afrosiyob.

I would take the train to Bukhara. It is an experience in itself and a far cheaper way of reaching the city.

Bukhara’s train station is to the east of the city and takes around 30 minutes to get to. It is best to use a Yandex Go taxi and to not take a street taxi.

Immediately after you have your plane tickets if you’re traveling somewhat last minute. Train tickets in Uzbekistan don’t go on sale until around three months prior to the date, so you should monitor the days closely and check regularly around your travel dates.

Yes, this is pretty common. You can leave Tashkent and head to Samarkand first, Bukhara second, and return to Tashkent from there. Or you can swap Samarkand and Bukhara around. It is all the same train line and very easy to do.

Yes, there is food on the train to Bukhara. I would bring cash and also be cognizant of the prices when you purchase something. The tempting and delicious strawberries are around $6 for a small cup. It is probably better to bring your own food.

Yes, you can purchase tickets to Bukhara in person at any of the railway stations mentioned in this guide. But train routes sell out fast, so I would secure them online ahead of time to be sure you can get one.

No, you can use the e-ticket Uzbekistan Railways sends you to board.

Do you have any questions about how to get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, or Khiva? Let me know in the comments. Thanks!

Uzbekistan Travel Guides & Resources

Tashkent

Bukhara

Khiva

How to Get to Bukhara from Tashkent, Samarkand, and Khiva (in 2026)