Uzbekistan has launched a high-speed train service connecting Tashkent to Khiva, cutting journey times between the capital and the ancient Silk Road city from 14 hours to seven hours and 40 minutes, Travel Tomorrow reported on May 2.
The service, which launched on May 2, operates using trains manufactured by South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem, capable of reaching speeds of up to 260 kilometres per hour and specifically designed to function in Uzbekistan’s desert climate. Each trainset consists of seven carriages with a total capacity of around 390 passengers, offering three travel classes: VIP, business and economy. Signatureluxurytravel
Uzbekistan completed the full electrification of the 465-kilometre railway line connecting Bukhara, Urgench and Khiva ahead of the launch, with the project also including 960 kilometres of protective fencing and critical engineering structures along the route. Six high-speed trains were purchased from Hyundai Rotem for the service. The line has been named after the medieval Khwarezmian military commander Jaloliddin Manguberdi.
Freight capacity along the corridor is expected to grow from one million to six million tons per year, while annual passenger traffic may exceed three million people.
The new service gives Khiva its first high-speed rail connection and places the city within reach of a single-day journey from Tashkent for the first time. Khiva, a walled city in western Uzbekistan believed to have been continuously inhabited for more than 2,500 years, has long been considered difficult to reach. Its Itchan Kala inner city was the first site in Central Asia to receive UNESCO World Heritage status. The nearest international airport is in Urgench, 23 miles away, served by Turkish Airlines from Istanbul and Uzbekistan Airways from Paris, Madrid and Rome.
The launch comes as Uzbekistan recorded nearly 11 million international visitors in 2025, with tourism revenues surpassing $4.4bn. International arrivals grew 14% year on year, with the country targeting 12 million foreign visitors in 2026 and 20 million annually by 2030.
By reducing travel times and improving comfort, the Tashkent–Khiva route is expected to encourage visitors to extend their itineraries beyond the traditional hubs of Samarkand and Bukhara.
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said the network would not stop at Khiva. “In the near future, these trains will also reach Nukus,” he said, as reported by Kun.uz.