Khiva
A walled town of the khans in Khorezm, the first place in Central Asia on the UNESCO list, with an unfinished minaret banded in glazed brick.
- Arrival
- Urgench International · UGC
- To the town
- About 30 km, or 42 minutes by train
- Private jets
- Land at UGC, VIP hall in the terminal
- Best time
- April to May · September to October
The city
Inside the walls of Itchan Kala.
Khiva was the capital of a khanate by the early seventeenth century, and its inner town, Itchan Kala, is still ringed by crenellated walls of the late 1600s some ten metres high. Inside stand more than fifty historic monuments and some 250 old houses; in 1991 it became the first site in Central Asia on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The walls are best walked in spring and autumn, when April, May, September and October bring highs of 20 to 30 °C. Summer heat climbs to 37 °C and barely a millimetre of rain falls; in January afternoons only just pass freezing.
- Kalta Minor The broad minaret begun in 1851 by Muhammad Amin Khan and left unfinished at his death, banded in glazed brick.
- Juma Mosque A hall of more than a hundred carved wooden columns, some of them from the twelfth century.
- Islam Khoja Minaret A slender minaret 45 metres high, rising over the domes of Itchan Kala.
Arriving
Fly to Urgench, ride on to Khiva.
Urgench International lies about 30 km from Khiva, and since September 2026 an electric train has linked it to the old town in 42 minutes. A new terminal for 1,000 passengers an hour is being built, due at the end of 2028.
- Tashkent 1 h 20
- Almaty 2 h 10
- Athens 4 h 20
- Bangkok 6 h 45 long-range jet
- Nairobi 7 h 10 long-range jet
When to go
April to May, and September to October.
A desert climate with almost no rain from June to October. April and May, September and October have highs of 20 to 30 °C. Summer, June to August, climbs to 34 to 37 °C; in January the afternoons barely reach 2 °C.
- 2° J 9
- 5° F 8
- 13° M 18
- 22° A 18
- 30° M 11
- 35° J 3
- 37° J 3
- 34° A 1
- 29° S 1
- 20° O 5
- 12° N 9
- 5° D 13
Where to stay
By the gates of the old town.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
- Zarafshon Boutique Hotel Twenty-six rooms within the walls, in a new building of carved wood and ganch, with a garden and terrace.
- Asia Khiva Opened in 2004 beside the southern entrance to the old town, with an outdoor pool and a Finnish sauna.
- Bek Khiva Rooms and suites of 50 m², with a garden, within walking distance of the walls.
- Said Islom Khodja Fifty-seven rooms in a carved and painted oriental style around a courtyard pool, next to the station for the airport train.
Elsewhere in Uzbekistan
More reasons to come.
Flying to Khiva?
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A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.