The charm of Uzbekistan’s Ferghana Valley is understated compared to the big-ticket attractions of Tashkent, Bukhara, Samarkand and Khiva.
It’s a good place for slower travelers, for people looking to while away an afternoon in a tea house in busy conversation with the local whitebeards, searching out craftspeople in their workshops or getting to grips with local mores while visiting villages without a claim to fame.
Zigzag borders place most of the Ferghana Valley in Uzbekistan these days, but Osh and Khujand also belong here. Through its diaspora of Ferghanachi, loose ties connect the valley with bazaars in Kabul, Riyadh and Karachi.
Usually, travelers like to hopscotch through the major towns in a day or 3. That’s enough time to get a feel for the place and see the highlights.
Those highlights are the silk factory and bazaar of Margilan, the ceramics workshops of Rishton and the monuments of historic Kokand.
With more time, add in a stop at ghost town Angren or at a mountain village between Tashkent and Kokand, and make a bigger circle to include colourful Namangan, the nation’s third-biggest city, and the crafts villages of Chust and Shakhrikhan (handmade knives and skullcaps) and Kosonsoy (woodwork), as well as the enclave of Shohimardon (if it turns out to be possible).
Russian-built Ferghana is a good base to visit Margilan and Rishton, although Margilan has good accommodation as well these days. Near the Kyrgyz border, Andijan is a twin town to Osh on the other side. We think Osh is better placed to receive visitors.
Delve deeper
Find out more about Uzbekistan’s different regions.
- Central Uzbekistan: Bukhara, Samarkand, Khiva and Tashkent. Stay with locals in the Nuratau mountains and Kyzylkum desert.
- Qaraqalpaqstan: Aral Sea, Savitsky museum, and the fortresses of Khorezm.
- The South: Buddhist relics, and a village culture nestled in green uplands to escape the blazing summer heat.
Or head towards the other bits of the Ferghana Valley in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan: the Osh and Batken regions in Kyrgyzstan, and Sughd region around Khujand in Tajikistan.
More on Uzbekistan
- The basics
- Transport
- Regions