3 Fortresses Day Trip from Khiva: Kyzyl Qala & More

Three thousand years of fortress walls, half-buried in the desert east of Khiva

A 7-hour day trip from Khiva visits three of the region's most intact ancient fortresses: Kyzyl Qala (built 1st–4th centuries AD), Toprak Qala (a 2nd–3rd century palace city 350 by 500 meters), and Ayaz Qala (walls 10 meters high, standing since at least the 4th century BC), with entrance tickets and air-conditioned transport included. The 210 km round trip covers roughly an hour to Kyzyl Qala, ten minutes between Kyzyl Qala and Toprak Qala, 45 minutes to Ayaz Qala, and 1 hour 40 minutes back to Khiva, with a lunch break available.

Step-by-step itinerary

Visit three fortresses near Khiva

• Breakfast in Khiva
• Transfer to Kyzyl Qala fortress
• Explore Kyzyl Qala fortress
• Visit Toprak Qala city ruins
• Explore Toprak Qala palace friezes
• Travel to Ayaz Qala fort
• Tour Ayaz Qala fort
• Transfer back to Khiva
• Check in to hotel in Khiva

The experience

How do you see ruins that most travelers never reach? This tour takes you 210 kilometers into the semi-desert east of Urgench, where the Ellik Qala region (named for the 50 fortresses buried in its sands) holds some of Central Asia's oldest standing structures. You visit three of them: Kyzyl Qala, discovered by Russian archaeologist Tolstov in 1938 after centuries underground; Toprak Qala, once the region's largest city until irrigation canals failed and left it marooned; and Ayaz Qala, where sections of wall still rise 10 meters high from a hilltop platform that has held since at least the 4th century BC.

The day starts with a transfer from your Khiva hotel in an air-conditioned vehicle. The drive to Kyzyl Qala takes less than an hour. From there, you move between sites in short hops (10 minutes to Toprak Qala, then 45 minutes to Ayaz Qala). At each fortress, you walk the ruins themselves: no guide narration, no staged stops. You see the scale of Toprak Qala's palace friezes, dated to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, and stand inside the external walls of Ayaz Qala to understand why a 4th-century fort chose that hilltop. Entrance tickets to all three are included. You can take a lunch break during the day if you want one. The return to Khiva takes 1 hour 40 minutes.

What’s included

• Entrance tickets to all three fortresses.
• air-conditioned vehicle for the entire 210 km round trip.
• hotel pickup from Khiva.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00 and 10:00

Book up to12h before

GroupPrivate

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup is optional; you can also go straight to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.You can choose from 47 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Prices and times updated 14 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortPets welcomePublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Samaria Travel

Is this one for you?This is a self-guided tour, so you explore each fortress on your own rather than following a guide through a scripted narrative: ideal if you want to move at your own pace and spend as much or as little time at each site as you choose. The fixed schedule and shared vehicle work for anyone comfortable with a group departure and a set route, but if you prefer a private driver or a guide's interpretation of the archaeology, a different option would suit you better.

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Top questions

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

What exactly is Kyzyl Qala and why was it buried for so long?

Kyzyl Qala ("Red fortress" in Uzbek) is an ancient fortress built between the 1st and 4th centuries AD in what is now Karakalpakstan. It lay buried in the desert for centuries until Russian archaeologist Tolstov discovered it in 1938, revealing one of Khorazm's oldest surviving structures.

Can I actually walk inside these fortresses or just look at them from a distance?

You walk the ruins themselves at each site. At Ayaz Qala, you can enter the external walls and move through the fortress to see how the 10-meter-high sections have survived since at least the 4th century BC. The same applies to the other two fortresses on the itinerary.

How long is the drive from Khiva, and will I spend most of the day in the vehicle?

The total drive is 210 kilometers round trip, with less than an hour to reach Kyzyl Qala, 10 minutes between Kyzyl Qala and Toprak Qala, and 45 minutes to Ayaz Qala. The return to Khiva takes 1 hour 40 minutes. The 7-hour total includes all driving, fortress time and a lunch break if you take one, so you spend roughly equal time traveling and exploring.

What was Toprak Qala before it became ruins?

Toprak Qala ("Sand" in Uzbek) was the region's largest city, measuring 350 by 500 meters, until the destruction of irrigation canals left it abandoned in the desert. Russian archaeologist Tolstov excavated palace friezes there in 1938, dated to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, which you can see on the site.

Is this tour physically demanding, or can someone with limited mobility do it?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. You walk the fortress ruins at your own pace, and the air-conditioned vehicle handles all transport between sites. Infants can sit on an adult's lap, and service animals are allowed.