Covid-Aware” Travel to Central Asia and the Caucasus, plus Top Tips for Future Travelers

A lot has changed in the world since 2019 including the travel industry! More than 34 groups had originally scheduled Central Asia and Caucasus tours with us for the 2020 travel season. Our clients were excited at the prospect of exploring the fabled Silk Road cities of Bukhara, Samarkand, and Khiva in Uzbekistan, Tbilisi in Georgia, Baku of Azerbaijan, Mary of Turkmenistan, and ancient sites like Penjikent in Tajikistan. We ended up continually re-scheduling 2-3 times as the year played out.

This year we've been grateful that many of our guests have been able to experience safe and exceptional trips to Central Asia and the Caucasus. I was so honored meeting our special guests, give them tour in Tashkent, Bukhara, or in the mountains and share the meal with them. You can read about our recent guests through their comments about their travel.

Our colleagues on the ground are vaccinated or routinely tested and they kept in constant contact with our visitors, ensuring that every aspect of their travel was safe and enjoyable. Itineraries were full, and many tailored to include more fabulous outdoor locations. There were excursions to the Tian Shan mountains in Uzbekistan and Kazbegi, Georgia; agro-tourism Gala asia village visits, the beautiful Black Sea shore of Baku, Azerbaijan, and activities in the Kyzylkum desert, as well as safely arranged visits, private tours, and personal connections at local weddings and festivals. Local transportation is private vehicle or small van for groups.

Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia were open this fall for visitors. These countries worked hard to provide the travelers with safe experience and remain open for the rest of the year. Everyone is still learning how to handle this new way of travel; everyone has different levels of comfort and some clients have re-scheduled again for 2022. We are happy to help and ready when you are. This part of the world, Central Asia and Caucasus, has been around for 3,000 years, we can wait a little longer for you!

Covid-aware travel may seem stressful, almost impossible, but with the right information from the right experts, our travelers are more than ready. The key to success is trusted travel advisors, continually updated information from the tour experts at the destinations and itinerary flexibility. That's what we do best. I have been home to Uzbekistan three times this last two years and our recent intrepid groups have enjoyed the same warm welcome and hospitality as always - just well distanced with good social hygiene.

Silk Road Treasure Tours offers hassle-free visas, multi-nation entries, border crossings and airline connections, as well as information for pre-trip Coronavirus testing and required proof of tests or vaccinations. We arrange for doctors to give return or transit PCR tests right at our guests' hotels. All our travelers reported that they felt safe and secure for their entire trip! Visitors from the US, the UK, Ireland, France, Qatar and Russia took advantage of this time to travel. Knowing that we can still create fabulous travel experiences makes us happy. Many remarked that it was the right decision to go, as they had their choice of luxury and boutique hotels with balconied and spacious rooms, and upgraded amenities and views, VIP experiences on railways and in restaurants, and none of the most popular sites were in the least crowded.

We've been honored with Conde Nast's Top Travel Specialist Award again this year! Thank you to Conde Nast and to our loyal clients. Thank you to our guides on the ground for providing our guests with hospitality and care throughout Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. We look forward to helping you get to your dream destination with Silk Road Treasure Tours as soon as you are ready!

I've learned so much these last 2 years of "pandemic travel" and can't wait to provide you with safe and enjoyable experience for 2022