Despite having the same last four letters, which actually just means “LAND,” Tajikistan felt radically different than the first two ‘Stans of our journey. It felt much more off-the-beaten-path, the people are radically different in their Persian-feeling look and hospitality, and it allowed us to experience one of the most epic road trips of our lives on the Pamir Highway….
That said, below is our personal list of highlights, stats, money saving tips, and personal upsides and downsides for the country. Please note, we’ve also added “what we did right?” and “what we’d do differently?” to our wrap-up posts.
In Summary
Time Spent: 19 nights
Money Spent: $919.39* or $48.39/day in USD/two people, which breaks down to:
- $608 (Accommodation)
- $164 (Groceries)
- $70 (Restaurants)
- $39 (General)
- $38 (Transport)
*Our actual total was $1919. We also blew our entire annual splurge bucket of $1000 on the Pamir Highway. In reality, the 7 day/6 night experience was $1300…or $610/person + tip, which included everything for those days
Our itinerary:
- (6 nights) Pamir Highway
- (12 nights) Dushanbe
- (1 night) Panjakent
Would we return? It’s doubtful. We feel like we experienced the things we wanted to.
Our favorite place: Zong. We wish we could have spent two nights
Least favorite place: Murghab (where Mandy fell deathly ill)
Our Top Five Highlights
- Panorama Peak hike and all the majestic mountain vistas on Pamir Highway
- Staying in the coldest inhabited place in Central Asia (Bulunkul), totally off the electric grid, and playing with the local children, as well as witnessing the night stars
- Getting a small peak into life in Afghanistan, as we journeyed three days along its border. Also, seeing peaks/peeks of Pakistan.
- Soaking in the sacred Bibi Fatima Zahra Hot Springs
- Exploring the (free!) ruins of Ancient Panjakent
What did we do right?!
- Choosing to splurge on doing, and having a driver, for the Pamir Highway. It’s the best and only way to see the most exquisite nature of the country. We cannot comprehend driving this challenging road on our own, or dealing with all the bribes and military stops and still enjoying it as much as we did.
- Choosing Bartang & Sarez as our tour company
- Choosing to use hotel points for a Hyatt reward after it was over
- The time of year was idyllic, especially for the Pamir (Sept. 8-14) and lower temperatures in Dushanbe.
- Doing the Pamir Highway with friends
- Timing the Pamir to be able to visit a cross-border market
- Loading up on snacks to take on the Pamir.
- Recruiting our driver to help with registration
What would we do differently?
- Take altitude sickness prevention medication before the Pamir
- We may consider doing the Pamir in reverse direction from Dushanbe to Osh, so it’s easier to acclimatize. However, going this direction would make it harder because the accommodations and food would progress from decent to challenging, instead of saving the better options for the end of the trip. Either way seems difficult.
- Make sure all the USD we got from Western Union in Kyrgyzstan were from 2010 and later. Many places do not accept “white dollars” apparently.
- While it was good to have extra rest time, 12 nights in Dushanbe made us a bit claustrophobic
Best Budget Savings Tips
- Planning the Pamir Highway with three of our friends lowered the individual price significantly (and made it more fun!)
- Be prepared to negotiate shared taxi rides
- Exchange Hyatt points for a great deal (5000/night) in Dushanbe
- Shop at local markets
- Use the local bus in Dushanbe. It only costs $.23/ride.
Our Upsides
- The mountain scenery of this country is some of the most extraordinary of our lives.
- The country feels authentic, rugged and like true adventure travel
- You have the opportunity for truly new and unique experiences
- The Tajik people are welcoming and kind. Many speak basic English. In the cities, this is much more abundant.
- Gorgeous sunny skies and not too hot
- Shakarob salad, our favorite vegetarian Tajik dish
- No visa required for US citizens
- Groceries are inexpensive and decent. You can usually pay by credit card at supermarkets. The best value was for the vegetables, cashews, pistachios, and yogurt
- Local taxis are inexpensive (i.e. $3 for a 30 minute ride)
- The currency conversion was easy (about 10 Tajik Somoni for $1).
Our Downsides
- Although we didn’t have to pay for a visa, we did have to pay to register because we stayed more than 10 days ($17/each.) This process was also tedious and annoying. Fortunately, we had our driver’s help.
- Outside of Dushanbe, accommodation options are sparse and basic. This is totally fine, but doesn’t make you want to linger.
- Outside of organized tours, travel infrastructure does not seem very efficient
- It’s a poorer country, which is quite evident in the Pamiri villages. This can be disheartening and sad to see, but makes us glad the road exists to bring some semblance of economic vitality to the communities
- A quite carnivorous country. Especially on the Pamir where nothing grows, it is challenging for strict vegetarians, and punishing for vegans. Fortunately for us, there were usually chicken options, which is usually our go to since we try and avoid red meat.
- The air quality can be horrendous in Dushanbe. We chose to stay inside three days because the AQI was over 200.
- Having to pay for the Pamir in cash was painful. Imagine all the credit card points this could have been!?
- The roads can also be horrendous, as we experienced first-hand on the Pamir.
- Internet can be very spotty, or nonexistent outside of Dushanbe. GigSky worked intermittently.
- The border crossing out of Tajikistan was a chaotic nightmare.
