Life at Tashkent International Airport used to be a chaotic affair because of incompetent management and crazy customs rules. It got a lot better since those halcyon days. Green corridors mean you quickly walk through customs, and a brand-new terminal for international arrivals was completed in 2018.
One minus: airplanes tend to arrive simultaneously, often in the middle of the night.
Routes
Find the most up-to-date flight routes for Tashkent airport at Flightradar24 (map) and Wikipedia (list). We also have more on air travel to, from and inside Uzbekistan.
Services
Money
For a long time, exchanging sum back into another currency at the end of your trip was not possible inside the airport. These days, it is no longer a problem, but you need a bank receipt detailing an exchange the other way (so if you only have taken out sum from an ATM, it might not work).
Exchanging your foreign currency into sum at the airport at arrival is also possible. The exchange offices are located at either side of the passport control and are open 24/7, but with breaks (closed: 0930-1030, 1300-1400, 1900-2000, 2300-0000, 0300-0400). Currencies accepted are British pound, US dollar, Euro, Swiss franc, Russian ruble, Kazakh tenge and Japanese yen.
There are now 2 ATMs at the airport. When leaving: once past security in the duty-free zone, only dollar is accepted.
Lounge, sleeping, wi-fi, sim cards, storage and food
Seating space is limited, but there are a few points where you can charge your phone. A business lounge is available at the elevated cost of 125$. A few shops and bare-bones food places are still in business since people who do not read this website come to the airport with pockets full of sum, only to find out they cannot be exchanged. All services are open 24h a day.
Sleeping at the airport is not comfortable: seats have armrests between them, it is noisey and the guards eye you suspiciously.
Wi-fi is available at the airport, but the signal is bad: do not expect it to be of much use. And you can only get access if you have a local sim card.
You can buy a sim card at the airport. There is no luggage storage facility in the airport. What’s a good place to store your luggage nearby? Still an open question.
Trollies are limited and not readily available. You have to buy a token to unlock the trollies as well.
Domestic to international terminal
Note that while the domestic and international terminals (terminals 3 and 2) are at the same airport, the only way to get from one to the other is by road (map).
For the 5-minute taxi ride, locals would not pay more than 2000 sum, but foreigners might struggle to get the price under 10 000 sum. Alternatively, there are 2 buses that operate between both terminals: #11 and #77. Walking would take close to an hour.
There is no direct connection, meaning you will have to pick up your luggage and go through security, customs and check-in again for the connecting flight.
Transport between airport and city center
Taxi
A taxi is an inexpensive and fast way to travel between the airport and the city center. The airport is close to the city center. A fair price, depending on where you are staying in the city, would be between 25 000 sum.
Going through the official taxi service at the airport will cost a multiple of this – maybe 3 to 4 times the price you will find through a ride-hailing app.
When exiting the airport, unofficial taxi drivers will be fighting for your custom. It’s good to keep walking through the initial storm towards the taxi stand 50m off. This is where official taxis are standing. From here, you can start negotiating.
Or you can use a ride-hailing app.
Bus
To catch a bus from the international terminal, walk straight out, past the parking lot and veer left. The bus stops are just before the main road.
From the domestic terminal, the bus stop is to the left of the terminal (walking out of the terminal) in a large parking lot that does not look like a bus stop.
Buses run from 6am until midnight. Bus #62 and #95 head for the city. Bus #40 goes to the train station. Fare is minimal. Jump on board – the on-board ticket seller will come around to collect the fare.
Q&A
Questions and reports are welcome in the Tashkent airport forum thread.