Uzbekistan Travel Guide

Entry requirements

Citizens of most western countries (including the United States since January 2026), as well as CIS countries, China, and various others, can visit the country without a visa.

The currency of the country is the Uzbekistani so‘m, denoted in Cyrillic as "сўм" (ISO code: UZS). There is no longer a need for black market currency exchange. The official rate is the same as the real rate.

Maps

If you prefer a paper map, look in your home country for one made by Reise Know-How or Gizi Map. Yandex Maps is superior to Google Maps in this part of the world. OpenStreetMap (with various apps) is also better than Google Maps here.

The official state language of Uzbekistan is Uzbek, a Turkic language. The majority of citizens (over 85%) are ethnic Uzbeks and speak it as their native language, although due to its history as part of the Soviet Union, many (especially in Tashkent) also speak Russian, which is still a mandatory second language in all schools, and is the de facto second official language and used for interethnic communication. Local Russian has been strongly influenced by Uzbek, and many Uzbek speakers often us…

Uzbekistan is generally safe for visitors. Normal precautions should be taken, as one would in virtually any country. Don't walk alone in dimly-lit areas of cities at night. Refrain from displaying large amounts of cash in public. To dissuade pickpockets, particularly in the bazaars, men should keep wallets in a front pocket and women should keep purses in front of them with a strap around an arm. Avoid wearing flashy or valuable jewellery which can easily be snatched.

Uzbekistan's health care is not up to Western standards. There is often a shortage of medicines and medical supplies. Travellers should take the necessary medicines (including prescriptions, see section on laws and practices) and supplies with them. Local hospitals should be used with caution.

Mobile connection works in most parts of Uzbekistan and the services are cheap. The mobile service providers are Beeline, Mobiuz, Ucell, UzTelecom (a.k.a. UzMobile). Also Perfectum, which mostly uses CDMA technology, useless for visitors as of March 2026. In Tashkent only, they have 5G.

In Uzbekistan, and in Central Asia in general, elderly people are greatly respected. Always treat the elderly with great respect and be deferent to them in all situations. Also be polite with females. Traditionally it is not welcomed to flirt openly with women. If you are a male and there is an option to address a male with the question instead of female, choose it. But likewise use caution if seeking out a same-sex conversation on a romantic level, as LGBT rights aren't a thing in Uzbekistan but rather still criminalized.

Holidays in accordance with the lunar year: the dates of these holidays vary according to the lunar calendar.