--- description: Find out why Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan is on TIME's list of the world's greatest places of 2022. title: Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan: World's Greatest Places 2022 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5a9a80bd179908ca/698a3386d07533cff7e6d008/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SilkRoadUzbekistan.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Jul 12, 2022 # Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan Walking an ancient path by Michelle Tchea  Tilya-Kori Madrasa in the Silk Road city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Tilya-Kori Madrasa in the Silk Road city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan.Yam G-Jun As Uzbekistan celebrates more than 30 years of independence from the Soviet Union, new projects and openings let international travelers more easily explore the Central Asian country. A [high-speed train network](https://www.silkroadbriefing.com/news/2022/06/07/uzbekistan-the-big-winner-in-chinas-new-central-asian-cku-railway/ "undefined") opened in 2011 and is now being expanded to include the ancient Silk Road stop of Khiva, simplifying travel to UNESCO World Heritage Sites from the capital city, Tashkent. And a new airport terminal in another Silk Road city, [Samarkand](https://www.internationalairportreview.com/news/175337/samarkand-international-airport-celebrates-opening-of-modern-terminal/ "undefined"), opened this year, designed to resemble an open book. The [Silk Road Samarkand complex](https://ftnnews.com/tours/42742-new-tourist-complex-silk-road-samarkand "undefined"), spread over 640 acres and incorporating Samarkand Rowing Canal, opens this fall. It includes the 22-story Samarkand Regency Amir Temur, a member of the Leading Hotels of the World, and seven other hotels. This fall, Uzbekistan will host the first [Silk Road Literary Festival](https://silkroadlitfest.com/ "undefined"). Later, look out for the Tadao Ando–helmed expansion of the [State Museum of Arts of Uzbekistan](http://www.stateartmuseum.uz/home "undefined") in Tashkent. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194617/historic-silk-road-sites-uzbekistan/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194617/historic-silk-road-sites-uzbekistan/"},"headline":"Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan","datePublished":"2022-07-12T11:06:27.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:04:33.321Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194617/historic-silk-road-sites-uzbekistan/","keywords":["franchise","Magazine","World's Greatest Places"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5a9a80bd179908ca/698a3386d07533cff7e6d008/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SilkRoadUzbekistan.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5a9a80bd179908ca/698a3386d07533cff7e6d008/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SilkRoadUzbekistan.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194617/historic-silk-road-sites-uzbekistan/","name":"Historic Silk Road Sites, Uzbekistan"}}]}] ```