Please read and post reports on the Denau - Tursunzade border crossing between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan below.
We summarize all info on the Tajikistan border crossings and Uzbekistan border crossings pages.
Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
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Before asking a border crossing question, make sure you have read the relevant article about the country. Overview page: http://caravanistan.com/border-crossings/
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Thank you!
Before asking a border crossing question, make sure you have read the relevant article about the country. Overview page: http://caravanistan.com/border-crossings/
Before submitting a crossing report or question, have a look first to see if a topic already exists. Existing forum topics are linked to from the border crossing pages on the site.
Thank you!
Re: from uzb to tajik Denau border crossing
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ibrakadavra
- Posts: 2
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Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Crossed yesterday the border from Uzbek to Tajik via Denau. In Denau there's Denau Hotel 60000 for 3 people room - no internet and just 1 bathroom for the whole place. From there to the border car ride was 40000som for 3 people. At the border they did not check our overnight staying receipts, they just did routine control except looking for all the pictures on our smartphones. if you have anything they could question (pics of military places or simply naked chicks) better to delete them in advance. Tajiks we already had the visa, everything very quick and friendly. Uzbek side took at least 40 mins without any queue.
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trevor warman
- Posts: 17
- Joined: Wed Apr 01, 2015 3:36 am
Dushanbe to Samarkand border crossing info Tursanzade/Denau
Dushanbe to Samarkand border crossing info....(Tursanzade/Denau)
1. Zanisar bazzar in Dushanbe to Tursanzade - marshrutka 70mins, 5 TJS
2. Tursanzade to border - shared taxi, 10 mins, 7 TJS
3. (After clear all immagrations) limited options, not many people.
Border to Denau - shared taxi, 10,000 Uzbek som. priced agreed before ride, then they say that it was 10$.. luckily you pay after the ride. just walk away.
4. Denau to Samarkand.. long wait - shared taxi, 8hrs, 40,000-50,000 Uzbek som. very hot, no air con , sit on right side for marginally less sun. AGAIN, priced agreed was for a ride to the Registran but then they drop you somewhere else claiming they are not official taxi, etc etc , normal sob story, and call a taxi for you. prepare the money before, then take out 5,000 cos they wanna cheat you again. luckily you pay after the ride. argue the toss and walk away.
#. Immigration
get the immigration documents, fill out 2, one for them and one for you.. declare ALL money. if you get money from an ATM assuming you can find one, make sure you spend the money. if u try to take out more they you brought in, they like to confiscate it then fine you. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PISS OFF THE IMMIGRATION GUARDS.
#. Money
change left over TJS at Tursanzade. 20$worth will be enough to get you to Samarkand.
black market rate exists.... 1$ = 2200som at the bank, 4200-4400 on black market. border money changers like to change at bank rate with unsuspecting tourists
1. Zanisar bazzar in Dushanbe to Tursanzade - marshrutka 70mins, 5 TJS
2. Tursanzade to border - shared taxi, 10 mins, 7 TJS
3. (After clear all immagrations) limited options, not many people.
Border to Denau - shared taxi, 10,000 Uzbek som. priced agreed before ride, then they say that it was 10$.. luckily you pay after the ride. just walk away.
4. Denau to Samarkand.. long wait - shared taxi, 8hrs, 40,000-50,000 Uzbek som. very hot, no air con , sit on right side for marginally less sun. AGAIN, priced agreed was for a ride to the Registran but then they drop you somewhere else claiming they are not official taxi, etc etc , normal sob story, and call a taxi for you. prepare the money before, then take out 5,000 cos they wanna cheat you again. luckily you pay after the ride. argue the toss and walk away.
#. Immigration
get the immigration documents, fill out 2, one for them and one for you.. declare ALL money. if you get money from an ATM assuming you can find one, make sure you spend the money. if u try to take out more they you brought in, they like to confiscate it then fine you. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PISS OFF THE IMMIGRATION GUARDS.
#. Money
change left over TJS at Tursanzade. 20$worth will be enough to get you to Samarkand.
black market rate exists.... 1$ = 2200som at the bank, 4200-4400 on black market. border money changers like to change at bank rate with unsuspecting tourists
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Re: Dushanbe to Samarkand border crossing info Tursanzade/De
thank you!
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Re: Dushanbe to Samarkand border crossing info Tursanzade/De
Travelled this route with one travel partner in the other direction (Samarkand-Denau-Dushanbe) at the end of June.
Samarkand-Border: Found shared taxi at the Grebnoy Kanal/Betonka stop outside of the city at 7.30 am. We found no other travellers and the driver needed to go at 8.30. 50$ direct to the border for the entire car (Nexia).Trip took 8 hours including a 1 hour car break down. When entering the Termiz province we needed to register at a checkpoint.
Border took 1.5 hours without any lines. Uzbek border guards examined our entire luggage (unpacking it) in detail including the content of your cell phones, flash drives, SD cards. Make sure to delete any potentially controversial pictures and documents including any content or pictures you do not want a border guard to see. Border guard disappeared with cell phones to his office to examine pictures on my cell phone for 15 minutes and made me delete pictures in front of his eyes. Tajik side friendly and efficient.
Border to Dushanbe: 10$ per person direct to hotel in Dushanbe. No Tajik Somoni needed until arrival in Dushanbe where there are plenty of ATMs.
Take-away: Direct transport to the border might be expensive for solo travellers as route seemed lightly travelled. Make sure you do not give Uzbek border guards any reason to hold you up.
Samarkand-Border: Found shared taxi at the Grebnoy Kanal/Betonka stop outside of the city at 7.30 am. We found no other travellers and the driver needed to go at 8.30. 50$ direct to the border for the entire car (Nexia).Trip took 8 hours including a 1 hour car break down. When entering the Termiz province we needed to register at a checkpoint.
Border took 1.5 hours without any lines. Uzbek border guards examined our entire luggage (unpacking it) in detail including the content of your cell phones, flash drives, SD cards. Make sure to delete any potentially controversial pictures and documents including any content or pictures you do not want a border guard to see. Border guard disappeared with cell phones to his office to examine pictures on my cell phone for 15 minutes and made me delete pictures in front of his eyes. Tajik side friendly and efficient.
Border to Dushanbe: 10$ per person direct to hotel in Dushanbe. No Tajik Somoni needed until arrival in Dushanbe where there are plenty of ATMs.
Take-away: Direct transport to the border might be expensive for solo travellers as route seemed lightly travelled. Make sure you do not give Uzbek border guards any reason to hold you up.
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Re: Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Pretty good experience crossing this border in a UK registered car, early November.
The border was very quiet with occasional foot traffic, a few trucks, and just one car, which was ours. Despite it being quiet, there were lots of money changers either side of the border, and in no man's land. We were able to get a good rate.
1. Tajikistan exit relaxed. Stamped out, passing glance in the back of the car and a wave goodbye in less than 15 minutes. They did ask for the customs/import document that we were given at entry, which showed that we had paid the vehicle tax.
2. Uzbekistan processing thorough (about 3 hours) but very friendly. Driver and passenger processed at separate customs areas but met up back at the car before leaving the complex. The customs officials were happy to dig out English customs forms.
As well as the standard stamped customs forms for each person, driver was given an import form for the car which was pre-filled. This was asked for when exiting the country a few weeks later. A 4000 UZ som (< $1) veterinary services fee was requested and a real-looking receipt provided. There was a standard paddling pool at the entrance, so this appeared legit. No other money changed hands during the crossing.
3. Search of the car took some time, as expected. We have a fairly expansive first-aid kit which was emptied entirely (re-packing it was challenging!) but nothing proved to be a problem.
Unfortunately some random items did go missing (incidentally, both after being picked up and enquired about by one particular man). There were 5 people searching the car and the luggage sprawled out on the floor mat, and only 2 of us to watch, so it was tricky. We do keep our cash in pockets and money belts at borders, and electronics in a locked compartment that we can keep an eye on - so in the end, nothing valuable was taken.
4. Emerging into Uzbekistan, auto insurance booth on the right hand side offered 24,000 UZ som (just over $4) for 2 weeks.
The border was very quiet with occasional foot traffic, a few trucks, and just one car, which was ours. Despite it being quiet, there were lots of money changers either side of the border, and in no man's land. We were able to get a good rate.
1. Tajikistan exit relaxed. Stamped out, passing glance in the back of the car and a wave goodbye in less than 15 minutes. They did ask for the customs/import document that we were given at entry, which showed that we had paid the vehicle tax.
2. Uzbekistan processing thorough (about 3 hours) but very friendly. Driver and passenger processed at separate customs areas but met up back at the car before leaving the complex. The customs officials were happy to dig out English customs forms.
As well as the standard stamped customs forms for each person, driver was given an import form for the car which was pre-filled. This was asked for when exiting the country a few weeks later. A 4000 UZ som (< $1) veterinary services fee was requested and a real-looking receipt provided. There was a standard paddling pool at the entrance, so this appeared legit. No other money changed hands during the crossing.
3. Search of the car took some time, as expected. We have a fairly expansive first-aid kit which was emptied entirely (re-packing it was challenging!) but nothing proved to be a problem.
Unfortunately some random items did go missing (incidentally, both after being picked up and enquired about by one particular man). There were 5 people searching the car and the luggage sprawled out on the floor mat, and only 2 of us to watch, so it was tricky. We do keep our cash in pockets and money belts at borders, and electronics in a locked compartment that we can keep an eye on - so in the end, nothing valuable was taken.
4. Emerging into Uzbekistan, auto insurance booth on the right hand side offered 24,000 UZ som (just over $4) for 2 weeks.
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Re: Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Travelled yesterday from Samarkand - Denau - Dushanbe.
Faced with my visa expiry on the same day, I did not want to risk having to wait until others show up for the shared taxi stand. Hence I managed to pre-arrange transport through Bahodir Hostel in Samarkand directly to the border in Sariyosio. I settled the price at $90 with the driver, although I could have gotten a better pre-arranged deal (around $80 with a “collegue”). However, as the driver spoke a bit of English and was very professional and reliable I decided for him despite charging me $10 more. We left at 5am and I arrived at the border by 1pm (in between we had about 45 mins break for gas and toilets, etc).
Crossing the border everyone was friendly. The Uzbeks flicked through all my pictures on my mobile (I think more out of curiosity than of duty) and went through all of my luggage in detail. Specifically medication (even aspirin) and electronic devices including memory sticks attract their attention. Had to open my laptop and show everything. Hence it was really worth spending some time in Samarkand on deleting and transferring files. I had no waiting time at all at the border but the checks in Uzbekistan took about 45mins-1hr.
Border crossing to Tajikistan was easy and took a max of 15 mins. Shared taxi directly to my hotel in Dushanbe was 35 Somoni (approx. $4-5). I arrived in Dushanbe around 3.30pm.
Faced with my visa expiry on the same day, I did not want to risk having to wait until others show up for the shared taxi stand. Hence I managed to pre-arrange transport through Bahodir Hostel in Samarkand directly to the border in Sariyosio. I settled the price at $90 with the driver, although I could have gotten a better pre-arranged deal (around $80 with a “collegue”). However, as the driver spoke a bit of English and was very professional and reliable I decided for him despite charging me $10 more. We left at 5am and I arrived at the border by 1pm (in between we had about 45 mins break for gas and toilets, etc).
Crossing the border everyone was friendly. The Uzbeks flicked through all my pictures on my mobile (I think more out of curiosity than of duty) and went through all of my luggage in detail. Specifically medication (even aspirin) and electronic devices including memory sticks attract their attention. Had to open my laptop and show everything. Hence it was really worth spending some time in Samarkand on deleting and transferring files. I had no waiting time at all at the border but the checks in Uzbekistan took about 45mins-1hr.
Border crossing to Tajikistan was easy and took a max of 15 mins. Shared taxi directly to my hotel in Dushanbe was 35 Somoni (approx. $4-5). I arrived in Dushanbe around 3.30pm.
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Re: Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Crossed 3 days ago.
No problem on Uzbeck side.
Tadjik passport control was a breeze.
However car check people were really horrible.
They charged 3$ for the first two documents, something related to vet and car. We were tricked into paying because they showed receipts with stamps and signature.
It is when they asked a 25$ "road tax" (with signed amd stamped receipt of course) that we understood the scam.
Ensued 2h30 of patience game with fake smiles and pressure to pay.
These guys played it friendly and really tried to milk us.
Nasty people.
Stand firm, have time and remember all these documents are free. Their receipts are only decoys.
No problem on Uzbeck side.
Tadjik passport control was a breeze.
However car check people were really horrible.
They charged 3$ for the first two documents, something related to vet and car. We were tricked into paying because they showed receipts with stamps and signature.
It is when they asked a 25$ "road tax" (with signed amd stamped receipt of course) that we understood the scam.
Ensued 2h30 of patience game with fake smiles and pressure to pay.
These guys played it friendly and really tried to milk us.
Nasty people.
Stand firm, have time and remember all these documents are free. Their receipts are only decoys.
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abombardier
- Posts: 17
- Joined: Sun Mar 20, 2016 3:46 am
- x 6
Re: Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Hi everyone,
Does anyone know if this border closes on the weekends? We would be crossing next Sunday and I would like to make sure it's open before we head all the way there! if somebody has a recent update on the schedule of this particular border, I would really appreciate it!
Thank you in advance!
Amélie
Does anyone know if this border closes on the weekends? We would be crossing next Sunday and I would like to make sure it's open before we head all the way there! if somebody has a recent update on the schedule of this particular border, I would really appreciate it!
Thank you in advance!
Amélie
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abombardier
- Posts: 17
- Joined: Sun Mar 20, 2016 3:46 am
- x 6
Re: Denau-Tursunzade (UZ-TAJ) border crossing
Hi everyone,
My update on this border crossing:
We crossed last Sunday (June 26th) and everything went well. So the border is open on the weekend!
I can imagine long delays if there are a lot of people at the same time. Uzbek side is more thorough and much longer than tajik side (45 minutes vs 10 minutes). They ask a lot of questions and search your luggage especially for your medicine, books and videos and pictures. They might ask you to count all your money (happened to my boyfriend but not to me). This said, they are not very organized in their search and things can easily escape their radar since you are the one taking out your stuff and they don't know all the pockets your bag has.
On the Tajik side, to get to Dushanbe, you find yourself in a disadvantaged position to negociate the price with the shared taxi drivers especially since we arrived late at around 6:00 PM on a Sunday. Their starting price was US$40. If we would have waited for other passengers, he would have accepted US$20 but since we wanted to leave right away we paid US$25.
Regards,
Amélie
My update on this border crossing:
We crossed last Sunday (June 26th) and everything went well. So the border is open on the weekend!
I can imagine long delays if there are a lot of people at the same time. Uzbek side is more thorough and much longer than tajik side (45 minutes vs 10 minutes). They ask a lot of questions and search your luggage especially for your medicine, books and videos and pictures. They might ask you to count all your money (happened to my boyfriend but not to me). This said, they are not very organized in their search and things can easily escape their radar since you are the one taking out your stuff and they don't know all the pockets your bag has.
On the Tajik side, to get to Dushanbe, you find yourself in a disadvantaged position to negociate the price with the shared taxi drivers especially since we arrived late at around 6:00 PM on a Sunday. Their starting price was US$40. If we would have waited for other passengers, he would have accepted US$20 but since we wanted to leave right away we paid US$25.
Regards,
Amélie
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