Samarkand and Bukhara with Kids: Making History Fun

Samarkand and Bukhara are ideal cities for children if you approach them the right way. Mosaics, domes, trading lanes and fairy-tale legends can captivate even those who usually get bored in museums. The main thing is to present history in an interesting way and not overload the programme. For the transfer between the cities and from Tashkent, Tashkent — Samarkand and Samarkand — Bukhara fit.

How to prepare the children

A few days before the trip, tell the children where you are going and what they will see. You can:

• read eastern fairy tales and legends;
• look at photographs and short videos of the cities;
• tell them about Tamerlane, Ulugh Beg (the astronomer) and the Great Silk Road;
• give the child the role of "explorer" and an important job: keeping a diary, taking photos, counting domes.

Interest awakened in advance makes sightseeing much easier.

Samarkand: what children will like

• The Registan. Three huge madrasas around a square. Tell them people studied here as at school, and the starry sky on the ceiling and the gold at the entrance bring delight. Let the child find the most beautiful decoration.
• The Gur-Emir mausoleum. Tamerlane rests here. Children like to hear what kind of man he was and how he lived.
• Shah-i-Zinda. A street of mausoleums with blue tiles: you can look for repeating patterns and play "find the colour".
• Ulugh Beg's Observatory. Especially interesting for schoolchildren fond of space: the great astronomer worked here, and the giant underground sextant makes an impression.
• Siab Bazaar. Bright colours, smells, flatbread, sweets. Let the child pick a fruit and watch the traders.
• Workshops. Samarkand paper in Konigil and silk workshops: you can see how the craft is done by hand and try it yourself.

Bukhara: what children will like

• Lyabi-Hauz. A pond surrounded by trees and teahouses: a convenient place to sit, eat and watch evening life. Nearby is a statue of Khoja Nasreddin, hero of many children's stories, and children like looking at the donkey and the figure.
• The trading domes. A maze under brick vaults selling skullcaps, dolls and jewellery. Children can pick a souvenir.
• The Ark (fortress). A large fortress where rulers lived: walls, gates, halls and a museum.
• The old town. Narrow lanes, madrasas, courtyards. A walk here is like a journey into a fairy tale.
• Workshops. Puppet and pottery workshops: you can see how a dish is born and try sitting at the wheel.

How to turn sightseeing into a game

1. Pattern hunt. Give each child a task: find a star, flower or bird in the ornament.
2. Count the domes. Have the child count how many domes are visible from the square.
3. Photo hunt. Assign taking the most beautiful shot of the day or finding something blue, golden or round.
4. Invent a legend. Let everyone make up a story about a building or ruler.
5. Traveller's diary. Drawings, stickers, tickets, notes: a memory that stays.
6. Evening quiz. Ask questions about what you saw, and give the winner a sweet.

How to cope with the heat

• Go sightseeing in the morning, and rest at midday in the hotel, a cafe or in shade.
• Bring water, sun hats and light-coloured clothes.
• Ice cream, cold drinks and watermelon are a strategic reserve on a hot day.
• Step periodically into cool madrasas, museums and teahouses.
• Spring and autumn are the best seasons to travel with children.

How not to get tired

1. One or two major stops a day. The rest is free time.
2. Breaks for rest and food. A short stop every hour and a half.
3. The child's pace. If they are tired or bored, do not insist: better to leave and return later.
4. Comfortable shoes. The paving of the old towns is uneven.
5. A stroller or carrier. For toddlers a carrier is better: on uneven streets a stroller gets in the way.

Food

In both cities it is easy to find child-friendly food: samsa, plov, flatbread, kebab, ice cream, fresh fruit. If a child is picky, you can always get bread and plain soup. Wash fruit and drink bottled water.

Transfers

Between Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara the road takes several hours, and children find it hard to sit for long. A train lets them get up and walk. A shared ride is more flexible on time, and on Tashkent — Samarkand and Samarkand — Bukhara via Yo'ldosh you can message the driver in advance and ask about a child seat and stops. Read more about trips with children in our separate article. See all directions on the all routes page.

Bottom line

Samarkand and Bukhara can become fairy-tale pages come alive for children. Play, ask questions, allow for rest, and history will stay in memory for a long time.

Cover photo: w0zny, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.