Wilderness Travel 2021 Cultural Cruises Brochure

A Taste of the Silk Road ABOARD THE GOLDEN EAGLE This fascinating rail journey aboard the Golden Eagle retraces one of the most important trading routes of ancient civilization—the legendary Silk Road. For centuries, adventurers and merchants trading silk, spices, and perfumes journeyed to and

DAYS 1-5 ALMATY / TASHKENT / SAMARKAND / BUKHARA After exploring Almaty, board the Golden Eagle and head to Tashkent. Your tour of the city includes the Old Town, and you’ll see one of Islam’s most sacred relics—the world’s oldest Koran. Samarkand instantly conjures up evocative images of the Silk Road, and the city’s Registan Square is one of its most awe-inspiring sites. In Bukhara, visit The Ark, a fortified residence of the Emirs of Bukhara, and the Emir’s enchantingly named Palace of the Moon and Stars. DAYS 6-8 MERV / ASHGABAT / KHIVA Explore the ancient remains of Merv, once an important stopping point on the Silk Road. Ashgabat’s extravagant fountains, golden domes, and towering modern buildings appear strangely incongruous in this desert setting. As one of the Silk Road’s most important trading posts and now a World Heritage Site, Khiva lies at the crossroads of the routes between Mongolia, Russia, China, and Persia, and rises out of the desert to reveal a wealth of impressive architecture. DAYS 9-13 KARA KUM DESERT / VOLGOGRAD / MOSCOW Travel across the vast expanses of the Kara Kum desert to Volgograd, Russia, where the Russians heroically turned back the Nazi advance to alter the course of the war. Your journey ends in Moscow, where you’ll take in the grandeur of the Kremlin, see the treasures of the tsars in the Armory Chamber, and visit Red Square. Depart on Day 13.

from China on ancient routes through some of the world’s most testing landscapes. Following in the footsteps of such celebrated

Moscow

RUSSIA

500 mi

500 km

Volgograd

KAZAKHSTAN

Almaty

U Z B E K I S T A N

CASPIAN SEA

KYRGYSTAN

Tashkent

Khiva

Bukhara

TURKMENISTAN

Samarkand

Ashgabat

Merv

figures as Alexander the Great and Marco Polo, you’ll venture from Almaty through the intriguing “’Stans”—Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, with their glorious outposts of Khiva, Bukhara, and Samarkand—all the way to the spiritual, historical, and political heart of Moscow.

DATES Apr 18-30, 2021 Oct 7-19

TRIP COST From $18,995 Price is per person and depends on cabin type

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