National Parks in Uzbekistan

Ugam-Chatkal National Park covers the mountains north-east of Tashkent up to the Kyrgyz and Kazakh borders. Most visitors start at Lake Charvak, a turquoise reservoir with beaches, guesthouses and summer crowds from the capital, then head up to Chimgan, where a chairlift climbs Beldersay and footpaths lead towards the 3,309 m summit of Greater Chimgan. The Amirsoy resort nearby runs ski lifts in winter and gondola rides in summer.

For quieter walking, go up the side valleys above Burchmullo and the Ugam river, where walnut and apple forests give way to alpine meadows. Shared taxis and minibuses run from Tashkent to Chimgan and Charvak in about two hours. Sections near the borders, such as the upper Pskem valley, need a permit arranged through a local agency, so check before you plan a multi-day trek.

Zaamin National Park sits in the Turkestan range south of Jizzakh, one of the oldest protected areas in Uzbekistan. Its slopes are covered in Zeravshan juniper, the air is noticeably cooler than on the plains, and Uzbek families come in summer to stay at the old sanatoriums and new guesthouses. Trails lead up through the forest to high pastures with views across to Tajikistan. Reach it by car from Samarkand or Tashkent, about four hours from either, via the town of Zomin. Two days is enough for most visitors.

The Nuratau Mountains rise out of the desert between Samarkand and the Kyzylkum, and their villages have become the best-known community tourism project in the country. Families in villages such as Sentob and Hayat host guests, cook dinner and arrange walks along the streams and over the ridges, where the Nuratau-Kyzylkum reserve protects a rare population of Severtsov’s wild sheep. Bring cash, as there are no ATMs.

Below the range, Aydar Lake is a large lake that formed in the 1960s when floodwater was diverted into a desert basin. Yurt camps on its shore offer camel rides, swimming and nights under a sky without light pollution. Most trips combine a homestay, a yurt night and the town of Nurota, with its spring and pilgrimage mosque, as a two-night loop from Samarkand or Bukhara.

The south has the country’s highest ground. Khazret Sultan, at about 4,640 m long listed as the highest peak in Uzbekistan, stands on the Tajik border in a restricted zone. More accessible are Yuqori Topalang National Nature Park, in the same district as the Sangardak waterfall, and Bobotog, a low range of pistachio woodland near the Tajik border. The Baisuntau range around Boysun combines limestone gorges, villages with their own folk traditions and the Teshik-Tash cave, where a Neanderthal child’s skull was found. Use Termez or Denov as a base and hire a driver.

In the far west, the South Ustyurt National Nature Park protects the edge of the Ustyurt plateau, where white and pink cliffs, the chinks, drop to the old shoreline of the Aral Sea. Next to it the Aralkum park covers the new desert left on the dry seabed, and Sudochye lake is a wetland for migrating birds. Visits are by 4x4 tour from Nukus or Moynaq, usually two or three days with camping or a yurt camp, and they pair naturally with the ship graveyard at Moynaq. Closer to Khiva, the Xorazm National Natural Park protects tugai forest along the Amu Darya.

Entry to most parks is free or a small fee paid at a checkpoint; strict nature reserves (zapovedniks) need a permit and are best visited through an agency. Public transport reaches Charvak, Chimgan and Zomin, but elsewhere you need a car and driver, arranged through your guesthouse or a Tashkent, Samarkand or Bukhara agency. Mountain trails are rarely marked, so take offline maps and a guide for anything longer than a day walk.

Carry your passport, since police checkpoints are common on mountain and border roads, and registration rules still apply when you camp or stay in homestays; your host or agency usually handles it. Summer temperatures in the desert parks pass 40°C (104°F), so go to Ustyurt and Aydar Lake in spring or autumn. For general trip planning, see our first-timer’s guide to Uzbekistan; for the cities you will pass through, see historic sites and mosques.