The information that we provide is for UK passport holders. A passport with 6 months remaining validity at the end of your stay is generally required, and you should have at least 2 blank pages for each country that you visit.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the correct travel documents and visas for your holiday. Please ensure that you check for the latest advice before travel. For the most up to date information on entry requirements, please visit the UK Government website.

If you have a UK passport you can enter Uzbekistan as a visitor for stays of up to 30 days without a visa. For stays longer than 30 days you can apply for an e-visa via the Uzbekistan e-visa Portal

Other nationalities, should check entry requirements with the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in their own country.

Visa Tajikistan

UK, US, Australian, New Zealand, Irish, and Canadian passport holders can apply for a Single Entry visa via the Tajikistan e-visa Portal: https://www.evisa.tj/index.evisa.html

Our agent in Tajikistan has offered to expedite Tajikistan e-visas for KE customers. Please contact KE if you would like to take advantage of this service. We will require a single scan of both pages that face each other in the passport, not just a scan of the information page of your passport. There will be a fee of $60 in total ($30 Tajikistan e-visa fee + $30 admin fee). The $60 fee will be converted into the currency you are paying KE at the prevailing exchange rate. We will e-mail your Tajik e-visa to you once it has been issued. Please ensure you cross-check ALL details on your Visa prior and inform us of any errors immediately.

The e-visa is valid for a period of up to 90 days from the date specified in your application, although you can spend no more than 60 days within the country.

If you are arranging your own visa, the Tajikistan e-visa portal recommend applying for the e-visa at least 2 weeks ahead of travel, however we have found these timings can sometimes be quite tight and would recommend applying 4 weeks ahead of travel to allow for any unexpected delays. * Please note that recent Tajik Visa applications have required a letter of invitation and we will be sending these out to any customers applying for their own visa.

The information you provide for the e-visa needs to exactly match your travel documents or you may be refused entry to the country.

Please enter the following on the application form:

Where asked if you need a GBAO Permit tick - NO
Group identifier – KE Adventure Travel / Paramount Journey
Address in Tajikistan - Shumon Hotel, Niyozi 34, Dushanbe 734000

You will be asked to upload a copy of your passport. Please use a scanner, rather than a phone camera, and make a single scan of both pages that face each other in the passport, not just a scan of the information page of your passport. Only use the supported formats listed for your passport scan and ensure the file size is less than 1MB.

Important: if your occupation is in journalism or government service such as the military or police, please contact the KE office before making your application.
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If you have a severe allergy please inform the KE office before you travel. We will do all we can to help, but we cannot guarantee an allergy free environment on KE trips. You will need to carry your own treatment for the allergy with you, as 'adrenaline auto-injectors' are not carried as standard by KE leaders and staff. You should inform your leader on arrival of your allergy, and let them know where you keep your adrenaline pen.

VACCINATIONS

You should contact your doctor or travel clinic to check whether you require any specific vaccinations or other preventive measures. You should be up to date with routine courses and boosters as recommended in the UK e.g. diphtheria-tetanus-polio and measles-mumps-rubella, along with hepatitis A and typhoid. A good online resource is Travel Health Pro.

Getting some additional exercise before coming on an active holiday makes a lot of sense. The fitter you are, after all, the more enjoyable you will find the experience.

You should be aerobically fit and comfortable with walking for up to 8 hours for consecutive days. Hill walking, with a good amount of ascent and descent, is the best training, and we would suggest that you try to fit in a number of long weekend walks before you depart. Running, cycling and swimming are also good for developing cardio vascular fitness and stamina. 

There is little you can do to prepare for the altitude but if you have an excellent level of fitness this can help.

In Dushanbe, Tashkent and Samarkand, the temperatures in July and August will be hot, with daytime temperatures of 30 to 35 degrees Centigrade. Once we get up into the mountains, it will be much cooler, with average daytime temperatures of 20 to 25 degrees Centigrade and night-time temperatures at our highest camps falling to freezing - 0 degrees Centigrade. The weather is generally excellent throughout the summer, with clear skies and little rain or snow. However, weather in mountainous areas is notoriously difficult to predict, and short-lived storms can occur at any time of the year.

As a reputable tour operator, KE supports the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's ‘Travel Aware’ campaign to enable British citizens to prepare for their journeys overseas. The 'Travel Aware' website provides a single, authoritative source of advice for all kinds of travellers and we recommend that before travel, all KE clients visit the official UK Government website at travelaware.campaign.gov.uk and read the FCDO Travel Advice for their chosen destination. North Americans can also check out the U.S. Department of State website: www.travel.state.gov for essential travel advice and tips.

KE treat the safety and security of all clients as the most important aspect of any trip we organise. We would not run any trip that we did not consider reasonably safe.  Should the FCDO advise against travel for any reason, we will contact everyone booked to travel to discuss the situation.  We receive regular updates directly from the FCDO and are in constant touch with our contacts on the ground.  If you have any questions about government travel advice, please call our office.

KE do not encourage the use of single use plastic items. We are ensuring that our agents all over the world are working together to reduce the problem and educate those around them. We are leading by example in our KE office by reducing our plastic use.

• Tajikistan. Bradt (2013 edition)

• Uzbekistan. Bradt (2013 edition)

• Central Asia. Lonely Planet

• The Lost Heart of Asia. Colin Thubron

• The Golden Road to Samarkand. Odyssey Guides

• Foreign Devils on the Silk Road. Peter Hopkirk

• The Great Game. Peter Hopkirk

• Xinjiang, the Silk Road. Islam’s Overland Route to China. Peter Yung

EWP Fann Mountains Map and Guide

1:100,000 Topographical Map plus Central Asia Ridge map and Fann Mountains location map

It is an essential condition of joining a holiday with KE Adventure Travel that you have a valid travel insurance policy to cover the cost of medical treatment and to protect the value of your holiday in the event of cancellation.  When taking out insurance please ensure the policy you choose covers you for the activities and altitude included in your itinerary.

For appropriate insurance cover we recommend Campbell Irvine Direct.  Please go to our Travel Insurance page for further information and to get a quote.

Please try to keep the weight of your baggage to a minimum. See the ‘baggage allowance’ section for further details.

The packed weight of your kit bag whilst trekking should be no more than 15 kgs.

You must bring the following items:

• Hiking boots

• Trainers / sandals for river crossings

• Sleeping bag (comfort rated -5°C)

• Thermarest or similar sleeping mat (please note that thin sleeping mats are provided)

• Socks

• Underwear

• Trekking trousers

• Waterproof overtrousers

• Waterproof jacket

• Thermal underwear

• Thermal baselayer shirts (2 short sleeve, 2 long sleeve)

• T-shirts

• Shorts and/or swimwear

• Fleece jacket or warm jumper

• Warm jacket (down)

• Sunhat

• Warm hat

• Sunglasses

• Warm gloves

• Buff/scarf (to protect against dust)

• Small padlock (to lock your KE kit bag)

• Selection of dry bags (to keep kit bag contents dry)

• Daypack 30 to 40 litres

• Headtorch and  spare batteries

• Sun protection (including total bloc for lips, nose etc.)

• Water bottles 1 litre (x2) (we encourage re-filling water bottles rather than single use plastic)

• Water purification tablets

• Washbag and toiletries

• Antibacterial handwash

• Small towel

• Basic First Aid Kit including: antiseptic and antihistamine cream, throat lozenges, diarrhoea treatment (Imodium), painkillers, plasters and blister treatment, Insect repellent, and re-hydration salts (Dioralite).

The following items are optional:

• Trekking poles (optional, but highly recommended)

• Swimwear (we will be camping near mountain lakes on several nights)

• Sleeping bag liner

• Pen-knife (remember to pack sharp objects in hold baggage)

• Repair kit – (eg. needle, thread, duct tape)

• Camera

• Travel clothes

• Reusable cloth bag for shopping (to avoid plastic bags)

Notes:

Every night camping you are usually beside a lake or river, so it is possible to wash yourself and your clothes providing you bring biodegradable soap.

Many of the equipment items listed above are available from Cotswold Outdoor - our 'Official Recommended Outdoor Retailer'. When you book a holiday with KE you will receive a 12.5% discount with Cotswold Outdoor, Snow+Rock and Runners Need. The discount code can be downloaded from your MyKE account and you can use this code at the checkout, either in store or online.