The Aral Sea from Khiva
Muynak and its ship cemetery are 400 km by road from Khiva. What the 16-hour day trips cover, what they do not, and the two-day trips that reach the shore of the Aral Sea.
The Aral Sea is a long way from Khiva. Muynak, the old port with its cemetery of ships, is 400 km by road by way of Nukus, and Khiva silk road travel’s day trip there takes 16 hours, 9 to 10 of them in the car. The day trips show you the ship cemetery and the museum, not the water: to reach the shore of the sea you need two days, with a night in a yurt camp.
How far it is
The road runs north from Khiva to Nukus, 200 km, and on to Muynak, 400 km by road in all. The day trips do it there and back, and stop on the way.
What a day trip covers
Khiva silk road travel’s Khiva: Muynak Ship Cemetery & Nukus Museum Day Trip takes 16 hours, with about 780 km of driving, 9 to 10 hours of it, and 4 to 5 hours of sightseeing. It stops at Chilpik Kala, the Nukus Art Museum, the Muynak ship cemetery and the Aral Sea history museum, and the Mizdakhan necropolis on the way back. It is US$199 for a car of up to 3; entrance tickets and meals are extra, and an early start, about 6:00 AM, is best.
Asli Travel’s Muynak Ship Cemetery Tour From Khiva goes by way of Nukus, the Mizdakhan complex and Kungrad, for US$230 a car. A guide, lunch and the Aral Sea Museum entrance are extra, and its 32 reviews average 4.0, lower than the other trips here.
Islambek Travel & Hotels’ Daytrip from Khiva to the Muynak Ship Cemetery and Nukus Museum, sold on Viator, covers Chilpik Kala, the Savitsky museum in Nukus, the ship cemetery and the Mizdakhan necropolis in 16 to 17 hours, for US$220 (checked November 2026). Museum tickets are paid on site, and a guide costs US$100 extra.
What you see at Muynak, and what you do not
At Muynak the trips stop at the cemetery of ships, where Amu Transport counts 11 ships and boats left, and at the Aral Sea Museum. What you do not see from Muynak is the sea itself. Amu Transport’s two-day trip goes on from Muynak off-road by 4x4 to reach it.
Two days instead of one
Amu Transport’s From Khiva to the Aral Sea: 2-Day, 1-Night Yurt Stay picks you up in Khiva, Urgench or Nukus, visits the cemetery of ships and the Aral Sea Museum, drives off-road to the sea for a night in a yurt camp, and takes in Kurgancha-Kala and the Mizdakhan necropolis. It is US$680 for a car of up to 3. On top, the yurt stay is USD 55 a person with dinner and breakfast, and the museum ticket USD 3. The driver speaks English, Russian and Uzbek; there is no guide. It is not suitable in pregnancy, and it asks you to dress warmly for the night in the yurt.
One day or two
A day trip to Muynak fills the whole day, most of it in a car. If the Aral Sea is the reason you came this far, give it two days if you can, and you will see the water as well as the ships. If you have one day and want the desert without the long drive, the fortress day takes 6 hours and stays within about 100 km of Khiva by road.
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Two Days to the Aral Sea
Amu Transport's private 2-day trip from Khiva, Urgench or Nukus: Muynak's cemetery of ships and the Aral Sea Museum, then off-road by 4x4 to the sea and a night in a yurt camp. The yurt and the museum ticket are paid separately.
See the 2-day trip