How was it to travel as a woman alone in a country like Uzbekistan? Is Uzbekistan safe for solo female travellers? I’ll tell you everything in this blog post!
Editor’s note: this was my experience traveling to Uzbekistan in 2017. I also traveled there in 2019, 2022 and 2023. A lot of things have changed since then, so you’ll find notes throughout the post.
Uzbekistan isn’t a popular travel destination (yet). It’s actually one of the few countries that aren’t overrun by foreign tourists.
Maybe it’s not so appealing because Uzbekistan is in the heart of Central Asia and therefore seems far and out of reach? Or is it because it’s a neighboring country of Afghanistan, a country that has been pictured in a negative light over the years?
I can tell you with certainty that you absolutely have nothing to fear! The Uzbeks are extremely hospitable and helpful people.
It’s also very easy to get around by public transport and it’s really a top destination if you like beautiful Oriental architecture, colorful bazaars, and great food.
Plan your trip to Uzbekistan
- 18 important things to prepare your trip to Uzbekistan
- 26 beautiful places to visit in Uzbekistan
- Uzbekistan Itineraries: 1 to 4 weeks in Uzbekistan
- How to travel around Uzbekistan by train
- What to pack for Uzbekistan
- Uzbekistan Safety Guide
- Uzbekistan Money Guide
- Tours & Experiences: Guided City Tours in Uzbekistan, Adventure Tours in Uzbekistan
Why did I travel as a woman alone to Uzbekistan?
2017: I’ve been traveling with Niko for 3 years. Before that I was a solo traveler. Traveling alone had a big influence on my personal development. It wasn’t always easy to travel alone. I had to do everything by myself, there were moments I felt very vulnerable and it could get pretty lonely at times.
It was often challenging and I didn’t always enjoy traveling solo, but now that I look back on it, it has shaped me into the person that I am today.
I became emotionally and mentally stronger, I’ve got more self-confidence and I’ve learned how to be alone. I can now honestly say that I enjoy my own company.
For the past 3 years, I haven’t traveled by myself. Why should I, when I have a travel partner with whom it works so well?
Even though Niko and I are constantly together, we give each other space and allow each other to be ourselves. We complement one another perfectly and I know that I can always count on Niko for support (and vice versa). If everything went so smoothly between us, then why did I decide to go alone to Uzbekistan?
It was initially our plan to go together. I had already applied for the Uzbek visa at the embassy in Almaty (Kazakhstan) when Niko was still organizing the papers he needed for his application.
As a Belgian, I don’t need a letter of invitation to obtain a visa, but Niko, being Canadian, needs one.
2023 Update: Citizens of many countries can now travel visa-free in Uzbekistan or have to apply for an e-visa. Read more about it here.
Just as he was about to apply for his visa, he received a message from his brothers that they were coming to meet him in Kazakhstan.
Exactly in the same period that we had planned to go to Uzbekistan. He hadn’t seen his brothers in two years, so his decision to postpone our trip was quickly made.
In the meantime, my visa application for Uzbekistan had been approved. This visa had a specific date so I could only use it for the period I had requested, which overlapped with the arrival of Niko’s brothers.
I had the choice between letting this visa expire to travel with the three brothers or… going alone to Uzbekistan.
Although that thought made me quite nervous – after all, it had been a long time since I traveled by myself – it somehow felt like the right thing to do.
I already knew that it was going to do me well. Traveling solo for the first time in years would take me out of my comfort zone. It would be enriching to reconnect with myself and test the skills and knowledge I had acquired over the past years.
It would also be a great opportunity for Niko to spend some time alone with his brothers and strengthen the bond between them. And for us, as a couple, we would experience how it’s like to miss each other.
So I made the choice to travel alone to Uzbekistan.
2023 Update: Niko and I broke up in 2020 and I’m traveling solo again since then.
IS Uzbekistan safe for solo female travellers? my experiences in Uzbekistan
However brave traveling alone to Uzbekistan may sound, I admit that I felt anxious when I crossed the border from Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan in 2017.
With my blond hair and a big backpack, I quickly caught the attention of the other people who were waiting to cross the border. I might as well have stuck a sticker on my forehead with “I’m a tourist”.
People were looking at me with curious eyes and I became very self-conscious. The good thing was that all the staring quickly came to a stop when one of the border guards noticed me and pulled me out of the queue.
He escorted me ahead of the line, where an official stamped my passport. After that formality was done, the same guard guided me to customs. I had the impression that they didn’t see many tourists around, especially not women traveling alone. My presumptions got confirmed at customs.
There were very strict rules about what you can and can’t bring in the country and I read that they carefully check the content of your luggage. The two customs officers seemed to be more interested in me than in what I had packed in my bag.
Update 2023: Things have changed a lot in Uzbekistan in the last few years and with the exception of a drone, you don’t have to worry about bringing”illegal” content in the country.
“Are you alone?”, one of them asked, while his colleague sniffed through my backpack. “Yes, I travel by myself”, I replied. “Can I see your passport?” When I gave it to him, he looked attentively at my photo.
“So, you aren’t married?” He asked. “No, I’m not”. “You look young for your age.” remarked the other official, who had stopped inspecting my bag and was looking at my passport over the shoulder of his colleague.
“What is your job?”, he asked while looking me straight into the eyes. “I’m a teacher”. Now I had his full interest. “How much do you earn per month?” was his next question.
I started having the feeling that I was on a speed date instead of a border check. “I guess you’d love to know but I’m not so sure that this is very polite to ask a woman you just met.”, I responded.
“So I guess I can’t ask you for your phone number either”, he said while handing me back my passport. I started laughing. His colleague, who had followed the conversation, returned my backpack with a grin. “Enjoy your stay in Uzbekistan.”
I thought it was pretty funny. I had heard horror stories about how annoying the officers at the borders can be, but I never expected them to start flirting with me. I only hoped that the other men in Uzbekistan wouldn’t approach me like that. Otherwise, this would become a very tiring journey!
I didn’t have to worry. With the exception of one guy who randomly started chatting with me in the train station of Samarkand and kept insisting on us having a drink together (he tried hard, he even promised me some chocolate cake), the male population of Uzbekistan left me alone.
I got the impression that, despite their curious looks, they didn’t feel comfortable approaching me. I suspect that, according to their culture and religion (predominantly Islam), it’s not appropriate to speak to a single foreign woman.
However, when that pushy guy at the train station didn’t give up, some men rushed to my aid and told the guy to leave me alone.
So yes, it is really safe to travel as a woman alone in Uzbekistan. The Uzbek people welcome you as a guest in their country and they want you to enjoy yourself. Tourism is gradually becoming one of the most important sources of income and the people do their best to ensure that you, as a tourist, have a fantastic experience.
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Something else that I also noticed, is the big amount of police officers in the streets. You see them everywhere in the cities: on nearly every street corner and at the entrance of public buildings.
If you want to travel by train, you first have to go through a security scan and you also have to show your passport.
There’s always someone on the lookout, so even if a person would have bad intentions, he or she wouldn’t get far without being chased by a cop. This also ensures that you, as a traveler and especially as a woman, will feel extra safe. Big Brother is watching!
2023 Update: Security isn’t so tight anymore in Uzbekistan. You’re now even allowed to photograph the stunning metro stations in Tashkent, something that was forbidden until a couple of years ago!
I mainly traveled by train in Uzbekistan. It was the cheapest, fastest and most comfortable way to move from city to city .
I also preferred train travel to taking a shared taxi (another cheap way to get around Uzbekistan) to avoid dealing with pushy taxi drivers.
A few times I got really angry with them. Whenever I was leaving the train station, they were swarming around me like bees around honey. I know that they have a job to do and they want to earn money but they have to learn to take no for an answer.
I hated it when they followed me down the street, and kept asking if I needed a taxi. Wasn’t it clear that I didn’t need one?!?
In the few situations where I needed a taxi, I didn’t like the bargaining part. I always informed myself in advance about how much I should pay for the trip so I knew when they doubled their rates because I was a foreigner.
I found it so annoying to bargain with the drivers to get the correct price and neither they or I wanted to give in for a long time (we probably looked like bickering siblings). It wasn’t like they were asking for a high price, but when you know that it’s double the amount of money you should normally pay, it sucks to feel scammed.
As the days went by, I became better and more confident in negotiating.
I know that it’s part of the culture and since Niko and I are planning on staying in Central Asia for at least another 6 months, I have to learn how to deal with it. But up to this day, I still don’t like bargaining.
Despite the annoying taxi drivers (whom you actually find all over the world), Uzbekistan is a very nice and safe country to travel in. The people are genuinely friendly and helpful.
They are very curious about you and if you visit the towns or villages, you can certainly expect to get invited for a tea or a meal!
How was it to be alone as a woman in a foreign country?
As this was an important part of my trip, I’d like to share how it was to be alone in a country where I barely spoke the language.
It was a big adjustment in the beginning. My first destination in Uzbekistan was its capital Tashkent. I always find big cities overwhelming and this time I felt extra vulnerable because I was alone.
In the first few days, I was a bit defensive and I wasn’t really open towards the people. I also felt lonely because I kept thinking that it would have been a lot more fun if Niko had accompanied me.
It felt awkward to go to a local restaurant and eat there by myself. I was really stuck in a negative thought pattern and I nearly regretted that I went on my own to this foreign country.
Fortunately, I quickly became aware of these thoughts. I just had to give myself some time to find my own rhythm. Nothing is more relaxing for me than nature, so I spent a lot of time in one of the many beautiful parks in Tashkent.
There I was able to recharge myself. It felt like I had to find myself again. I knew that it had been my choice to travel alone so I had to embrace it and make the best out of it. As soon as I did that, I started feeling much better. I actually starting liking my own company!
I think the hardest part of traveling alone is, that you spend a lot of time (often too much) in your own head. You can’t really focus your attention on someone else. We’re often our worst enemy. It’s so important to be kind to ourselves!
A little trick that I used, was pretending that I wasn’t talking to myself but to a friend. Sounds a bit schizophrenic but it helped. After all, you won’t be mean to your best friend, right?
So why not treat yourself in the same way? That’s how I became fully aware of how I treated myself and my thoughts.
As the days went by, I began to enjoy my alone-time and my self-confidence started growing. I opened myself to people and they started responding to it.
You are never really alone. It really depends on your attitude. People feel it when you close yourself off and therefore will approach you less quickly. When you look at your surroundings with an open heart, it will respond to you in the same way.
The only thing I regretted was that I didn’t spend more time studying Russian, so my level of the language wasn’t good enough to have a deep conversation with the people.
Especially the women really wanted to talk to me and I often felt awkward because I couldn’t understand them (and neither could they). A golden tip if you travel alone: try to learn the language!
The solo trip to Uzbekistan has done me really well. Not only have I seen fantastic things , I’ve also made a beautiful journey within myself.
The beginning might have been a bit difficult, but at least I learned a lot from it!
I feel good about myself and I now know that we are never alone after all. I strongly recommend going at least once in your life on a solo journey. Who knows what you will discover about yourself!
In case you prefer to travel with a group of like-minded people:
Step into the heart of the Silk Road and experience Uzbekistan beyond the guidebooks: from the blue domes of Samarkand to remote desert landscapes and hidden mountain trails.
Join the 14-day Highlights of Uzbekistan Adventure Tour and experience the country in a deeper, more meaningful way!
Have you ever traveled by yourself? How was that? What did you like about it and what was challenging? What did you learn from it? Let me know in the comments below!
More about UZbekistan travel
What to wear in Uzbekistan – The Essential Uzbekistan packing list
The best way to get from Tashkent to Osh and from Osh to Tashkent, crossing the Dostyk border (Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan)
Uzbekistan Travel Itinerary (2026): 1, 2, 3 & 4 Week Travel Routes + Tips
Uzbekistan Money Guide (2026) – How much does it cost to live and travel in Uzbekistan?
What are the Best Places to visit in Uzbekistan in 2026?
Hi Cynthia!
Great blog post, thank you for writing this.
Can you please share what clothing felt appropriate to wear in Uzbekistan (and, actually, in central Asia in general)?
Dress standards always end up being very important as a solo female traveller!
Thank you 😊
Suzanna.
Hi Suzanna,
Most big cities in Central Asia are quite liberal so you can wear T-shirts, tops, dresses (I still suggest not to wear too revealing things). The people in small towns and villages are more conservative so there I recommend covering your arms and legs. Have a great trip!!
This blog is just superb and mind-blowing. I loved the way you have designed the entire blog with such beautiful pictures. Not to forget the content is informative and well-drafted. Thanks for sharing this blog.
Thank you Sona 🙂
HI Cynthia
Loved your blogposts on Uzbekistan and the fabulous photos especially.you have really inspired me to go there when travel opens up again. I’m 67 but still active – to an extent older women become kind of invisible which can really help keep off the annoying men! And some people still love their mums I guess so treat me nicely. BARgaining is a big part of many cultures isn’t it? Crucially – know roughly what the price should be/ you’re prepared to pay – treat it like a game – be prepared to walk away if necessary.
CAnt wait to get back out there.happy travelling – or daydreaming till then.
Hi Gill, it’s so nice to hear from you! And you made me laugh by saying that older women become kind of invisible or people will treat you like their mum 😀 That is so true! Older women get more respect and will be harassed less, probably as it makes the men think of their mums :).
I think you’ll enjoy traveling in Uzbekistan, just be prepared indeed to play the bargaining game 🙂 However, I think after this whole pandemic madness, the Uzbek people will be delighted to see tourists returning to their country! Happy daydreaming (and traveling for after 🙂 )!
Hi everyone, I would like to share a piece of information which would be, I guess, interesting and beneficial for travellers wishing and planning to visit Uzbekistan. The issue I want to bring up is the problem with buying train tickets online. Because when foreigners want to buy tickets at a place they, more often than not, are sold out. Foreigners usually have trouble buying tickets online if they attempt to do this with their Visa cards due to some technical imperfections on the website . Therefore, I want to give a solution by offering the assistance of local people who will make a purchase instead of travellers. Unlike travel agencies, they do not charge much. The fee varies from 5 to 10 dollars per person, no matter how many tickets the one is going to buy. Isn’t it a solution? The only thing needed is a copy of the passport. The same can be done with airplane tickets. There is no place for hesitation about their reliability as such kind of services can be found on respectable travelling and guiding platforms. I dont know whether I can refer to any of them here. But if you need I can write more.. Any questions are welcome.
Hi Mikie, you’re right about the issue of ordering train tickets online. I always talk about this in this article and in my other articles about traveling to Uzbekistan. My suggestion is to go to the train station upon arrival in Uzbekistan and buy all the tickets in one go there that you need for the rest of the journey. I don’t think many people would feel secure by giving a 3rd party money or a copy of their passport to buy them tickets when they can do it themselves 🙂
helllo
first such a good blog post I was thinking to go by my self there too, so thanks
second, Id like to know if u have a tour guide or somehing is Samarkan.
thanks
Hi Martha, happy to hear you liked my blog post! I didn’t have a tour guide in Samarkand, I explored the city by myself. I’m sure if you go to the tourism office there that they can help you with finding a tour guide. Have a great trip to Uzbekistan!
Hi. Liked reading about your experience, sure helped me put uzbekistan on my list.
I.m more concerned about techjical issues as wi-fi / internet services, should i have service from home or can i purchase a local sim for wi-fi servides?
How cheap/ expensive is uzbekistan?
And where did you prefer to sleep- hostels or hotels, what made uou feel safer?
How did you reach the remote villages? Could you have stayed there? I.d like to have an off the beaten road experience and i.m wondeing if thats possible. Can i buy a car there maybe
Hi Hila, I’m glad this post inspires you to visit Uzbekistan!
Concerning your questions: the wi-fi in Uzbekistan isn’t very good. I didn’t buy a local sim card when I was there and I remember that it wasn’t possible back then to buy one as a foreigner. However, things have changed a lot in the last year so it might be possible now. I’m going back to Uzbekistan this August so I’ll know more about it then 🙂
Uzbekistan is super cheap! A night in a hostel is about 5 euros and you can comfortably travel with €10 to €15 per day (transport included).
I never felt unsafe in any place, I stayed both in hostels and in hotels in places where I couldn’t find any hostel. I prefer hostels as it’s a good place to meet other (solo) travelers.
You can reach remote villages by taxi. You can stay there with locals or camp. Buying a car in Uzbekistan won’t be an option but you could always rent one!
Hope this helped!
You helped a lot! Love to travel to Uzbekistan one day to see & explore their food & culture. Thank you so much for your great information. I love your blog😀
Hi Ujie, thank you so much!
I hope you get the chance to travel to Uzbekistan as well, the architecture there is fantastic!
Amazing! What great information you have shared! I really loved the architectures of these mosques, it reminds me of a lot of what the mosques looked like. I will definitely suggest this place to travel. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I really loved your blog. Keep Posting.
Hi Vijay, Thank you! I’m very glad to hear you loved reading this post! Uzbekistan is a great destination if you love beautiful and colorful architecture!
Such a beautiful account! Im intending to do a similar trip from Almaty to Samarkhand as a solo female too and was wondering what route you took to get there?
Hi Maria, thank you! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed my story! I traveled from Bishkek to Samarkand by shared taxi and train (it was a very long journey :)).
However, if you have the time, you can travel from Almaty (Kazakhstan) to Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) by shared taxi or minibus, then from Bishkek to Osh by shared taxi and have some stops along the way to enjoy the mountainous beauty of Kyrgyzstan. From Osh, you can cross into Uzbekistan by shared taxi and continue your journey to Samarkand by train. If you don’t have that much time, you can travel from Almaty to Shymkent (Kazakhstan) by train and catch a bus from Shymkent to Tashkent. It is safe for a solo female to travel in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan! Can’t tell you about the other Central Asian countries as I haven’t been there yet (going to Tajikistan this summer 🙂 ). Enjoy your journey and let me know if you have more questions!
Love the architecture. It reminds me a lot of what the mosques in Iran looked like. Actually what you said about the Uzbeks sounds a lot like the Iranians as well. Thinking of travelling to Uzbekistan this year so thanks for sharing your experiences.
If you like architecture, you’ll love Uzbekistan! Although I’ve never been to Iran, I think the Iranians and the Uzbeks share a similar culture. I’ve heard many good stories about the Iranian hospitality! Let me know if you’d have more questions about traveling to Uzbekistan!
What a great information u shared!!! I wanted to go alone but wasn’t sure. Can u tell me please about the payment method?? should i bring cash?? or credit its ok???
Hi Martha, I’m happy that this post was useful to you! It’s safe to travel to Uzbekistan by yourself and it’s such a beautiful destination!
You can exchange US dollars for Uzbek Som at any bank in Tashkent. You won’t be able to use your credit card. I wrote a detailed explanation about the money in Uzbekistan here: https://www.journalofnomads.com/need-to-know-backpacking-uzbekistan/ Have a great trip to Uzbekistan Martha!