Located in the northern parts of Uzbekistan, the Republic of Karakalpakstan’s history dates back to Palaeolithic times, its arid landscape offering thousands of stories. From the ill-fated Aral Sea, nomadic burial grounds, yurt camps and rock fortresses, here are some of the best things to do in Karakalpakstan.
Fast facts:
What: Officially the Republic of Karakalpakstan is an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan
Where: Northwestern Uzbekistan
Inhabitants: Almost 2 million
Capital: Nukus, 329 000 inhabitants
Ethnic groups: Uzbeks, Karakalpaks, Kazakhs, Turkmens and others
Languages: Karakalpak, Uzbek, Russian
Currency: Uzbek som (UZS)
Climate: extreme continental with very little rainfall
The best things to do in Karakalpakstan
1. Aral Sea: a lesson in eco-disasters
Once a shimmering oasis nestled in the Central Asian landscape, this inland sea was a bustling maritime hub, sustaining local communities for centuries. However, the 20th century brought forth a human-induced ecological catastrophe as Soviet irrigation projects diverted the rivers that fed the Aral. Over the years, the mighty sea quickly transformed into a desolate, salty graveyard. The impact on the scenery is stark, the formerly vibrant shorelines now revealing a haunting moonscape, a landscape scarred by the consequences of shortsighted decisions.
As the waters retreated, so did the prosperity of the local economy. Fishing dwindled to a mere memory, leaving communities in economic disarray.
Today, as you stand on the shores of the Aral Sea, you witness the delicate dance between man and nature. The struggle for revival persists, with conservation efforts and international collaboration.
2. Ships Graveyard: rusty relics in Muynak
In Muynak, at the heart of the desolation of the Aral Sea, lies a nautical necropolis where vessels are scattered, abandoned by the vanished waters — a maritime requiem echoing the cost of human hubris. You can view the ships from above, on a platform adjacent to the Aral Sea Memorial and the Museum of the Aral Sea, and then descend for a closer look. The ships, collected from the surrounding area, attract both international and local visitors, including daring kids exploring the rusty relics inside.
With the Aral Sea itself, I think the Ships Graveyard is no doubt on top of the list of the most fascinating sights in Karakalpakstan.
3. Bes Qala Yurt Camp: best base to explore Karakalpakstan
Located near the shores of the Aral Sea, Bes Qala Yurt Camp provides a glimpse of the area’s nomadic past. Here, you can stay in a yurt, dine in the restaurant, or enjoy the shaded outdoor terrace, all with a view of the Aral Sea. Showers (with no heated water) and toilets are shared among all guests and are located behind the restaurant building. The yurts vary in size and can accommodate 1–8 people. There is a small stove to heat the yurts in the winter.
Read more about my visit to Bes Qala Yurt Camp at this link!
4. The salt flats: white horizons
From a distance, Barsakelmes appears as if a delicate blanket of snow has covered the arid ground of the Ustyurt Plateau. Venture closer, and the illusion dissolves, revealing an expansive crust of salt beneath your feet. The salt flats are located a few hours’ drive away from Nukus. You have to park on a little hill next to the flats and walk down; it’s only about fifteen minutes. I visited in June, and wearing sunglasses, sun lotion, and a cap for shade was paramount, even for this little hike. Barsakelmes means ‘a place of no return,’ and indeed, the location seems desolate enough to earn the title. This was the first time I saw any type of salt flat, and it easily ranks among the best sights in Karakalpakstan.
5. Nukus: capital of Karakalpakstan
The capital of Karakalpakstan, Nukus, serves as a convenient base for exploring the surrounding areas, including the Lower Amudarya State Biosphere Reserve. In Nukus, you’ll find hotels, cafes, restaurants and museums, providing ample entertainment for a few days. Despite spending only one night in Nukus during my Karakalpakstan trip, the city’s lively atmosphere, fuelled by International Children’s Day celebrations, left a lasting impression. Originally a small village in the early 20th century, Nukus has since evolved into a capital city with a population of 330,000.
6. Savitsky Museum: Louvre of Uzbekistan
Founded in 1966 by Igor Savitsky, a Kyiv-born painter, archeologist, and collector, The Savitsky Museum is a pilgrimage site for art lovers from around the world. Its journey began as a sanctuary for Russian avant-garde art, once shunned as decadent by Stalin’s regime, challenging the boundaries of socialist realism.
The museum, set to unveil a new chapter in 2024 with an expanded building, not only showcases the revolutionary Russian avant-garde but also pays homage to Karakalpak folk art. Igor Savitsky’s audacious pursuit of marginalized artists and their forbidden works defied the political landscape of the time. Fearing denouncement as an “enemy of the people,” he amassed a treasure trove of avant-garde and post-avant-garde paintings, making the museum home to the world’s second-largest collection of Russian avant-garde art. In fact, I enjoyed learning about Savitsky as much as seeing the collection when I visited.
7. Ayaz Kala: hilltops and ancient fortresses
Located between Urgench and Nukus, Ayaz Kala is one of the most-visited archaeological sites in Karakalpakstan. There are, in fact, three fortresses – Ayaz Kala 1, 2 and 3 – and you can drive or walk between them.
Ayaz Kala 1 is the oldest, dating from the late 4th century BC. This rectangular hilltop fortress, measuring 182m by 152m, reveals the architectural prowess of its creators, the Kushans. The fortress once stood as a formidable defense, with archers positioned to shoot through two storeys of slits. Despite the passage of time, Ayaz Kala 1 endures, its walls and towers still standing, albeit weathered and diminished from their original grandeur.
Ayaz Kala 2 is on a hill to the southwest of Ayaz Kala 1 and was also originally built by the Kushans, but reconstructed by the Afrigids in the 6th to 8th centuries. Inside the complex was a columned hall and residential quarters. A 4th-century fire temple predates the construction of the fortress – these structures are now beneath the visitors’ feet, so tread carefully.
Ayaz Kala 3 dates from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD and may have been a garrison to Ayaz Kala 1. There is also some evidence that Kushan rulers may have lived here.
If you are into history, as I am, visiting any of the multiple Kalas in the republic is one of the best things you can experience in Karakalpakstan.
8. Sudochye Lake: home to flamingoes
Lake Sudochye was once the largest lake in Uzbekistan but the drying up of the Aral Sea and the cessation of the flow of river water into Lake Sudochye led to the fact that it disintegrated into separate small lakes and caused its salinisation by the 1970s. In fact, before the ecological disaster, Lake Sudochye was a real oasis in the middle of the desert. Today, it is home to several endangered species, and a total of 117 bird species nest in the area, including pink flamingoes.
9. Old Urga: a ghost town
Near Lake Sudochye is Old Urga, a ghost town of ruins where fish production once flourished. In the late 18th and during the first half of the 19th century, Old Believers, Ural Cossacks resistant to Russian Orthodox Church reforms, were banished to Urga by Tsar Nicholas I.
Under Stalin, more immigrants were sent to Old Urga during World War II. Despite being labeled war evacuees, most were forcibly relocated ethnic Poles and Ukrainians. In 1941, nearly 1,000 Poles arrived in harsh winter conditions, lacking proper attire. Karakalpaks and Kazakhs, the local community, aided their survival. Post-Stalin, residents left as quickly as they could, leaving the village abandoned, with only ruins and an Orthodox cemetery as poignant reminders of those forced to live and die there.
The village brought to mind a forgotten set of an old Western film: there were a few dumbling down buildings, rusty buckets and even a rugged armchair. But somehow Old Urga stuck in my mind, and I think it was one of the best sights in Karakalpakstan – if you are into abandoned places.
10. Resurrection island: see the haunting harbour
Joseph Stalin’s Five Year Plan brought unwelcome changes to Karakalpakstan, forcing nomadic populations into settled lifestyles. Those who resisted were sent to a gulag on an island in the Aral Sea, known as Vozrozhdeniya or ‘Resurrection.’ Resurrection Island, now part of the 2022-established Aralkum National Nature Park, was a secret testing site for biological weapons from the late 1930s. Despite the Biological Weapons Convention in the 1970s, testing continued until Uzbekistan’s independence in 1991. Visiting in June 2023, visiting the island wasn’t possible, but the eerie remnants of a bombed harbour, left behind by the departure of Russian personnel, made a haunting impact.
11. Mizdakhan Necropolis: hear the tick-tock of the Apocalypse
Mizdakhan is a necropolis adjacent to the remnants of the Gyaur-Kala fortress. Originating in the 4th century BC, Gyaur-Kala, meaning “fortress of disbelievers,” was once a stronghold of Zoroastrians before succumbing to Arab conquest.
Gyaur-Kala’s ten-meter-thick walls guard the ruins of two city citadels, one presumed to be a palace and the other a Fire Temple. Across from the fortress lies a Zoroastrian cemetery, evident from discovered ossuaries and dakhma — a tower where the dead were left for birds to consume, with remains then collected in ossuaries.
Following the Arab conquest in the 8th century, Zoroastrianism yielded to Muslim rites. Legends suggest that Mizdakhan houses Adam’s grave, transforming the necropolis into a sacred site. The mausoleum, built over Adam’s grave, features the Apocalypse Clock: Each year bricks fall from the mausoleum, and it is believed that the world will meet its end upon the descent of the final brick. To delay the impending apocalypse, pilgrims diligently engage in the ritual of restoring fallen bricks to the structure during their visits to this sacred site – hoping to postpone the inevitable doom.
12. Landscape: flat horizons and arid ground
Lastly, apart from the best sights in Karakalpakstan, I have to mention the extraordinary landscape, varying from barren, arid and even dystopian (think of an endless desert landscape, punctuated with gas factories with their barracks for the employees) to Lake Sudochye, dotted with small islands and pink flamingoes (in April and May). And then, there is also the Aral Sea, drastically shrunk yet still a magnificent sight.
History of Karakalpakstan in short
Karakalpakstan, a landlocked region in Central Asia, features the arid scrublands of the Ustyurt Plateau to the west and the former Aral Sea basin to the northeast. The eastern part encompasses the Uzbek section of Kyzylkum, known for its red sand dunes, extending to the Zarafshan Mountains on the Uzbekistan-Tajikistan border. Southward lies fertile agricultural lands on the river delta of Amu Darya, once known as the legendary Oxus River. In fact, from about 500 BC to 500 AD Karakalpakstan was a thriving agricultural area and strategically important territory located on the frontier of Central Asian and Persian empires.
The nomadic herders and fishers Karakalpaks were first recorded by foreigners in the 16th century. Karakalpakstan was ceded to the Russian Empire by the Khanate of Khiva in 1873. Under Soviet rule, it was an autonomous area within the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic before becoming part of Uzbekistan. The region was at its most prosperous in the 1960s and 1970s when irrigation from the Amu Darya was expanded. Today, the Soviet-era irrigation system has led to the evaporation of the Aral Sea, rendering Karakalpakstan one of Uzbekistan’s poorest regions. When you travel to the area, don’t expect glitzy resorts and fine-dining restaurants. Here, it’s all about the arid nature and historic landmarks, with a touch of Soviet-era horror stories.
My trip: I toured Karakalpakstan on a press trip in June 2023 organised by Maximum Exposure PR. Our tour operator in Uzbekistan was BesQala, also known as Aral Sea Discovery. There is only one guidebook to the region, Sophie Ibbotson‘s and Stephanie Adams‘s Karakalpakstan, published by Bradt Guides.
After the trip, I travelled by train across Uzbekistan’s Silk Road cities to the capital, Tashkent. You can read more about my train adventure here, a piece I penned for Lonely Planet.