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Central Asia is one of the world’s lesser-visited regions, though some countries are busier than ever. This September, I’m spending 3.5 weeks across Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. As I write, I’m nearing the end of my trip. I must say, this part of the world is truly unlike any of the other 50+ countries I’ve been to.
An Intro to Central Asia
I don’t normally write an introduction, but Central Asia might be a part of the map you’ve never looked twice at. With a rather extreme climate of hot summers and cold winters, Central Asia sits between China, Russia, and Europe.
The timing of this trip wasn’t entirely coincidental. Also in September 2026, Kyrgyzstan hosted the World Nomad Games, a celebration of nomadic sports and culture. Kok-Boru is Kyrgyzstan’s national sport and involves players on horses fighting to pick up a 30-40kg headless goat carcass (“ulak”) with the goal of riding down the arena and tossing the carcass into their opponent’s large cauldron (the “goal”, also called “kazan”). Watching the crowds come alive during the finale between Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan is a feeling I’ll never forget.
To score, players throw the headless goat carcass into the opponent’s cauldron
After my three-and-a-half weeks, I thought it’d feel like a comprehensive dive, but my trip felt more like a teaser, and I’m already planning another visit to the region, perhaps to visit Osh and drive down the Pamir Highway.
Flights
From North America to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Unsurprisingly, the best ways to fly from North America to Central Asia are via Turkey or the Middle East. Almaty, Kazakhstan, has by far the most flights and the most sophisticated air network, but I needed to fly to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, to start my trip.
I set a bunch of seats.aero alerts last year around the one-year mark hoping to book Turkish Airlines. Turkish availability is finicky, especially on Aeroplan, but my back-up plan was to book any flight into Europe and then book a cash ticket connecting in Istanbul to Bishkek.
Luckily, 11 months out, Turkish Airlines had a big seat availability drop across all of North America, and I snagged Boston (BOS)–Istanbul (IST)–Bishkek (BSZ) for 90,000 Aeroplan points plus $90.10 CAD (by phone). I later tried to change my ticket to add a stopover in Istanbul, but discovered my segments had married after booking, even though they were available independently to begin with.
Unfortunately, my ex-Aeroflot Turkish A350 did get swapped to their regular A350 the day of departure, but the new Turkish Airlines business seat was still more than comfortable for the 8.5-hour transatlantic hop.
Turkish Airlines A350 business class
After the Nomad Games, I’d booked a small group tour of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan with G Adventures that goes from Bishkek to Almaty.
From Almaty, Kazakhstan to Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Then I booked a cash flight from Almaty to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, for $154.50 CAD, booked through Expedia for TD and offset with TD Rewards points earned from my TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card.
From Tashkent, Uzbekistan Back to North America
Finally, to get home, I was keen to fly Qatar. It’s been nearly two years since I’d been on Qsuites, and I’m looking forward to excellent catering, watching my own shows on the HDMI-supported in-flight entertainment screen, Starlink Wi-Fi, and visiting Qatar’s ever-excellent Garden Lounge.
Qatar reliably releases award space a year out, but after missing that window, I was lucky to still find a business-class seat between Doha and Montreal at the saver rate of 70,000 Avios plus $328.40 CAD. I booked through British Airways since it’s the same price as Qatar, but British Airways lets me use my family Avios pool balance.
Qatar Qsuites
To connect in Doha, I booked a separate Qatar Airways business-class ticket from Tashkent to Doha for 15,000 Atmos Rewards points plus $31.05 USD. I couldn’t find a perfectly timed connection, so I will be spending a night in Doha on a 26-hour layover.
Hotels
Kyrgyzstan
Nothing too exciting to report here, unfortunately, as the Nomad Games take place in a smaller town near Issyk-Kul called Cholpon-Ata. I booked a family suite at Golden Street (because standard rooms sold out during the Games) for $108 USD a night on Expedia for TD, and offset the cost with TD Rewards points.
In Bishkek, I’m spending one night at the Sheraton Bishkek before my tour starts at an industry rate of $98.04 USD per night, all-in.
Sheraton Bishkek
The rest of my nights in the country are included in my group tour and are mostly basic guesthouses in small villages.
Kazakhstan
I’m only spending three nights in the country total, visiting Almaty and the surrounding nature sites. All hotel nights are included on the group tour, but I couldn’t help myself and booked one night to check out the Ritz-Carlton Almaty.
This might be one of the best Marriott Bonvoy redemptions I’ve seen in recent years, as I redeemed a 35,000-point Free Night Award, topped up with 19,000 points (total 54,000 points), for my one-night stay instead of a $1,233 CAD cash rate. The cent per point (CPP) value isn’t the be-all and end-all, but 2.28 CPP is certainly satisfying in a world where I rarely redeem hotel points anymore.
Ritz-Carlton Almaty
Luckily, my Nightly Upgrade Award did clear into a Junior Suite despite the hotel being sold out and the Junior Suite was very spacious, featuring a fully separate living room and bedroom.
Uzbekistan
You already know the gist of it: chain hotels are scarce in this region, so it is mostly independent boutiques and guesthouses. In Tashkent, I booked one night at the Courtyard Tashkent for 25,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, since it’s close to the train station.
We spent little time in Tashkent, mostly using it as a transit hub between flying in and taking the train out the next day. If you’re actually visiting the city, I highly recommend the JW Marriott Hotel Tashkent instead, as it offers a much better location and is a nicer property overall. If you’re looking to save points/cash, though, the Courtyard is more than adequate and proactively offered me an upgrade to the Family Suite and brought a bottle of local Uzbek red wine as my welcome gift.
Samarkand has a couple of Hilton hotels, but none are in the historic centre, and both were quite pricey in points and cash. I opted to book Altair Boutique Hotel in Samarkand and will be offsetting the $365 CAD charge with CIBC Aventura points.
In Bukhara, my friend and I booked an Airbnb for more space and, more importantly, easy access to laundry facilities. Our spacious one-bedroom apartment, a 15-minute walk from the historic area, cost $216 CAD for two nights.
Our final city is Khiva, and while we initially booked something on Booking.com, a friend I met travelling in Kyrgyzstan told me she had negotiated an excellent rate at a newly opened property. I cancelled our original booking and moved over to Karim Premium Hotel, where we negotiated an all-in rate of $75 USD per night for the largest Family Room.
Central Asia Travel Logistics
Despite having an organized tour for half the trip, I will say travelling around Central Asia is challenging. Independent travel in Kyrgyzstan involves shared minivans (called marshrutka), followed by arranging private drivers/taxis to tourist spots. In Almaty, Kazakhstan, you can either rent a car or book (multiple) day tours.
Uzbekistan is the easiest to self-travel in, with excellent high-speed infrastructure. My only feedback is to book your trains and accommodation as early as possible, especially during peak tourist seasons in March–May and September–November. Uzbekistan is very much on the beaten path, so don’t expect bargain accommodation rates.
The high-speed rail works excellently, and every one I’ve taken has run on time.
The new Jaloliddin Manguberdi high-speed train opened in May 2026 and cuts the travel time from Bukhara–Khiva from 6.5 to 3.5 hours
After securing accommodations, you’ll want to do the typical tourist thing and reserve high-demand restaurants with nice rooftop terraces asap, especially to secure the side seats facing the famous madrassah facades.
The most important app in all three countries is Yandex, the local Uber equivalent. Set it up once you arrive (international phone numbers work) and link your credit card.
Credit cards are more widely accepted than I expected, particularly in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, but you’ll still want cash on hand for smaller restaurants, bazaars, and even some guesthouses. Across hospitality establishments (restaurants, cafes, even bazaars), English is widely spoken, but don’t expect everyone to speak it, especially in smaller towns like Karakol or Saty. Google Translate is your friend; Russian is the most common in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, while Uzbek is the main language in Uzbekistan.
If you’re thinking about travelling in the region, feel free to email me at rachel@pointsmilesandbling.com or comment under this post.
Takeaway
I write this on my final night in Khiva, before I embark on an overnight train back to Tashkent (ask me later if I regret not taking a cheap flight instead). I’ve never been on an overnight train, and I thought booking my friend and me into a 4-person compartment might be an interesting cultural experience.
On the Miles & Points front, I’m overall quite pleased with how this trip came together. I managed to secure saver business class rates on Turkish Airlines and Qatar using Aeroplan and Avios, both of which are easy to accrue and replenish. I also stumbled into one of my best Marriott Bonvoy redemptions in recent memory, using a 35,000-point Free Night Award plus 19,000 points for a $1,233 CAD night at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty.
As with every trip, I learned a few lessons along the way. Turkish Airlines is extremely prone to married segment logic, so search for flights using your final destination rather than segment by segment.
Also, it’s worth Frankenstein-ing together a series of flights if you can’t find one smooth journey, especially when you can take advantage of multiple award program sweet spots. Booking a single ticket from Tashkent to Montreal on Qatar is much harder to find than booking both segments separately, and booking Qatar on the Tashkent–Doha leg cost just 15,000 Atmos Rewards points—half the number of points I’d have paid using Avios.
Central Asia isn’t necessarily the easiest part of the world to reach with Miles & Points, but between Aeroplan, Avios, Atmos Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy, and good old-fashioned cash (TD Rewards and CIBC Aventura come in handy), I was able to put together a pretty decent 3.5-week trip.
