Central Asia

What connects Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan?

Geographically the region stretches from Kazakhstan's flat steppe in the north – an area larger than Western Europe – through Uzbekistan's densely populated oasis cities to the seven-thousand-metre peaks of the Pamir and Tianshan mountains in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Turkmenistan lies in between, bordering the Karakum Desert, and remains the hardest of the five countries to visit.

All five states have a Turkic-language character – with the exception of Tajikistan, whose language is a Persian dialect, making it linguistically closer to Iran and Afghanistan than to its neighbours. Economically and politically the spread ranges from Kazakhstan's resource-rich, comparatively open economy through Uzbekistan's tourism sector, strongly liberalised over roughly the past decade, to Turkmenistan, one of the most isolated states in the world.

Sunni Islam is the majority religion in all five countries, but is practised differently: Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are considered comparatively secular, while religious practice is more traditional in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, and more tightly controlled by the state in Turkmenistan. Travellers usually combine two or three countries – classically Uzbekistan with Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan, more rarely a tour through all five.

How do the five countries of Central Asia differ at a glance?

On entry requirements, Turkmenistan is the clear special case: without a prior invitation (Cakylyk) from the migration service, nobody gets into the country, and in practice almost every trip runs through a booked, often fully guided tour operator. The other four countries grant Swiss, German and Austrian nationals visa-free entry for short holiday stays, in some cases with an additional electronic registration.

Sources: AHK Zentralasien · Wikipedia · Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA, Switzerland · Embassy of Turkmenistan, Berlin · Touring Club Schweiz TCS

What is the best time to visit Central Asia?

In Uzbekistan, temperatures in Bukhara and Samarkand regularly climb to 35 to 38 °C in midsummer, which is why spring and autumn are noticeably more pleasant for city trips. Turkmenistan sharpens this pattern further: in summer, values in Ashgabat rise above 40 °C, while winter turns cold – here too, March to May and September to November remain the best choice.

Bukhara, Samarkand, Ashgabat and Almaty through the year

Average daily highs and lows, and monthly rainfall. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station BUKHARA (5 km, 229 m). Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station SAMARKAND (6 km, 678 m). Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station ASHGABAT (4 km, 211 m). Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station ALMATY (7 km, 851 m), auf 800 m umgerechnet. Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020.

Kazakhstan is climatically split in two: Almaty in the south benefits from May/June and September/October, while the capital Astana in the north only truly warms up in high summer (June to August) and drops to as low as −30 °C in winter. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, with their high mountain passes, Lake Song-Kul and the Pamir Highway, only open up from June; outside the summer months many jailoos and pass roads are snow-covered or closed.

Bishkek and Dushanbe through the year

Average daily highs and lows, and monthly rainfall. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station BISHKEK (4 km, 760 m). Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020. Temperaturen: Mittel der täglichen Höchst- und Tiefstwerte 2010–2024 der Station DUSHANBE (4 km, 785 m). Niederschlag: NASA POWER, Monatsmittel 2001–2020.

Sources: Knecht Reisen · Touring Club Schweiz TCS

What characterises each of the five countries of Central Asia?

Kazakhstan: steppe, Tianshan and two metropolises

Kazakhstan is, at around 2.7 million square kilometres, the largest landlocked country in the world by area, stretching from the steppe in the north to the Tianshan mountains near Almaty in the south. Visa-free entry applies for 30 days; the electronic entry permit QazETA is being introduced and is not yet mandatory (as of September 2026). The capital Astana in the north, with its futuristic architecture, presents an entirely different face from mountain-adjacent, culturally established Almaty, which was itself the capital until 1997.

Uzbekistan: Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva

Uzbekistan brings together Samarkand, Bukhara and the old town of Khiva – the region's best-known Silk Road cities – and has deliberately liberalised its tourism sector over roughly the past decade. Visa-free entry applies for 30 days; an e-visa is available for longer stays, and a registration requirement within 72 hours of arrival still applies.

Kyrgyzstan: Issyk-Kul, Song-Kul and jailoos

Kyrgyzstan is geared towards trekking and nomadic culture, with the mountain lake Issyk-Kul and the alpine pastures (jailoos) around Lake Song-Kul as highlights. Visa-free entry applies for 30 days within 60 days (as of September 2026); Bishkek Manas airport is the country's main gateway.

Tajikistan: the Pamir Highway

Tajikistan is the only majority Persian-speaking country in the region and is strongly geared towards tourism on the Pamir Highway, one of the highest-altitude long-distance roads in the world. Visa-free entry applies for 30 days, or alternatively an e-visa via evisa.tj for 60 days; for the autonomous Pamir region (GBAO) an additional special permit is required.

Turkmenistan: Ashgabat and the Darvaza crater

Turkmenistan is the most strictly regulated country in Central Asia: without a prior invitation from the migration service, entry is impossible, and most travellers book a fully guided tour. The most important destinations are the white-marble-clad capital Ashgabat and the Darvaza gas crater, burning for decades in the Karakum Desert. In addition to the visa fee, a tourism fee of 2 US dollars per night is charged, collected together with consular and registration fees.

Sources: AHK Zentralasien · Wikipedia · Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA, Switzerland · Embassy of Turkmenistan, Berlin · Interesting Engineering

Which routes connect several countries of Central Asia?

Within Uzbekistan: the Silk Road route

The Afrosiyob high-speed train connects Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara in roughly two to three hours each; the onward journey to Khiva takes several more hours by car or rail through the desert. These four cities form the backbone of practically every Uzbekistan trip.

Kazakhstan–Kyrgyzstan: Almaty–Bishkek in a day

Almaty and Bishkek lie only around 230 km and four to five driving hours apart, making the two capitals the most obvious country combination in the region. Many travellers combine Almaty and the Tianshan mountains with Lake Issyk-Kul and Kyrgyzstan's jailoos on a joint two- to three-week route.

Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan: the Pamir Highway

The Pamir Highway from Osh in Kyrgyzstan via Khorog to Dushanbe in Tajikistan is one of the most spectacular but also most demanding overland routes in Asia, taking five to ten days depending on fitness and weather. A separate permit is required for the GBAO region along the route, which can usually be applied for together with the Tajik visa.

Turkmenistan: usually a standalone, guided trip

Because of its strict entry requirements, Turkmenistan is practically never combined with other countries in the region, but booked as a standalone, usually seven-day guided trip. A planned China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway would in future create a continuous rail link from China to Uzbekistan; for travellers it is not yet usable (as of September 2026).

Sources: Seat61 · The Diplomat · VisasNews

How do you fly to Central Asia and between the five countries?

From Europe, nonstop connections exist mainly to Almaty and Tashkent; the other three destinations are usually reached with a connection via one of these hubs, via Istanbul or via the Gulf. Within the region, Kazakh and Uzbek airlines handle a large share of short-haul routes, while Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan rely more heavily on overland routes because of their mountainous terrain.

Sources: Wikipedia · Wikipedia

What applies to entry and health in Central Asia?

In health terms the region is largely malaria-free – Uzbekistan since 2018, Tajikistan since 2023 according to the WHO – meaning malaria prophylaxis is not necessary for the usual travel routes. In the high-mountain regions of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, for example around Lake Song-Kul or along the Pamir Highway above 4,000 m, altitude sickness is by contrast the most relevant health risk, requiring slow acclimatisation.

Sources: AHK Zentralasien · Wikipedia · Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA, Switzerland · Embassy of Turkmenistan, Berlin

What does a trip through Central Asia cost?

In Turkmenistan, cash remains practically the only means of payment outside a few hotels in Ashgabat, which is why travellers should bring enough US dollars or euros to exchange. On the Pamir Highway in Tajikistan and in the more remote regions of Kyrgyzstan the same applies: ATMs are rare, and a larger cash reserve is part of trip preparation.

Sources: Knecht Reisen

Which cultures and religions shape Central Asia?

Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan still carry a strong nomadic tradition today: yurts, falconry and the horseback game Kok-Boru are as much part of the cultural heritage as the Soviet-shaped urban architecture of Almaty and Bishkek. Russian remains, alongside each national language, a widely used lingua franca in both countries, especially in the cities.

Uzbekistan is the architectural heart of the Silk Road: the madrasas of Samarkand, the old town of Bukhara and the walled city of Khiva display Islamic architecture from the 9th to the 17th century in extraordinary density. Two UNESCO Silk Road corridors – the Chang'an-Tianshan corridor inscribed in 2014, with component sites in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and the Zarafshan-Karakum corridor inscribed in 2023, with 33 component sites in Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – make the region's shared trading history visible today as cross-border World Heritage.

Tajikistan differs linguistically and culturally from its Turkic-speaking neighbours: as a Persian-speaking country it is culturally closer to Iran and Afghanistan, with its own musical, poetic and festival traditions. Turkmenistan, in turn, maintains a strongly state-directed cultural policy, visible in the white-marble-clad capital Ashgabat, which holds several world records for the density of marble facades.

Sources: UNESCO

Worth combining

• Kazakhstan
• Uzbekistan
• Kyrgyzstan
• Tajikistan
• Turkmenistan