Ayaz-Kala and the Yurt Camp

Ayaz-Kala is the farthest of the three fortress sites from Khiva, 106 km by road from Itchan Kala, and the one the sunset trips end at. It is a group of three fortresses, with a yurt camp close by where you can ride a camel or stay the night. To see it at its best, take Khiva Advanture’s Daytrip to Desert Fortresses with Sunset & Dinner, from US$90 on promotion, usually US$100 for a car of up to 3 (checked November 2026): it reaches Ayaz-Kala for the sunset and stops for dinner near the yurt camp afterwards.

Dinner, the entrance tickets and tips are not in the price. Free cancellation runs until 24 hours before.

Where Ayaz-Kala is

From Itchan Kala, the walled old town of Khiva, the road runs past Urgench to Kyzyl-Kala and Toprak-Kala, about 97 km, and on another 36 km to Ayaz-Kala. Khiva Advanture’s car day allows about an hour and a half for the drive from Khiva.

What you see there

Uzbekistan’s tourism site describes Ayaz-Kala as three settlements on separate hills, the main fortress with an outer wall up to 10 m high and up to 2.5 m thick. Ayaz-Kala is also on Uzbekistan’s Tentative List for World Heritage, in the entries “Desert Castles of Ancient Khorezm” (2008) and “Ancient towns and fortresses of the Aral Sea region” (2025); that makes it a candidate, not a World Heritage Site (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, checked November 2026).

Getting up to the fortress means a short climb: Khiva Advanture’s sunset trip asks for comfortable shoes for “light hiking to Ayaz Kala”. There is no shade at the fortresses, so bring a hat and water.

The sunset trip

Khiva Advanture’s trip leaves Khiva in the afternoon; on 8 December 2026 and 20 April 2027 the calendar offered a start every half hour from 12:00 PM to 4:30 PM. It drives to Toprak-Kala, Kyzyl-Kala and Akchakul Lake, reaches Ayaz-Kala for the sunset and allows an hour there, then stops for dinner near the yurt camp before the 110-minute drive back. It can drop you at Urgench Airport instead of Khiva.

The dinner is not included. One three-star review, from October 2026, says the dinner venue did not take cards although the travellers had been told in writing that it would, so bring cash.

See sunset trip dates

Camels

Camel rides start from the yurt camp beside the ruins. On Islambek Travel & Hotels’ lake and camel day the ride costs extra, and on its transfer to Bukhara the fee is paid in cash to the camel handlers. Uzbekistan’s tourism site lists camel rides among what the camp offers.

A night at the yurt camp

Uzbekistan’s tourism site, in a page from 2022, describes yurts for 2 to 20 people, a separate dining yurt, two showers and toilets, and folklore programmes. Check what your own trip provides; the two overnight trips below each include the yurt, dinner and breakfast.

Islambek Travel & Hotels’ 2-Day Desert Fortress Trip with Yurt Camp Stay & Meals, from US$220, covers Ayaz-Kala, Toprak-Kala, Kizil Kala, Akchakul Lake, cotton fields and a melon market, with the entrance tickets to every fortress on the route included. GLOBAL CONNECT UZBEKISTAN’s Ayaz Kala Yurt Camp Overnight Tour from Khiva, from US$222, adds Janbas Kala, Koy Kyrylgan Kala and Guldursun Kala on the second day; its driver speaks Uzbek and Russian. Both are priced per person, and each had 5 reviews when we read them, so there is little to go on yet.

Choose the Ayaz-Kala you want:

Prices, ratings and review counts from our November 2026 data check; operators use seasonal pricing, so treat them as the shape of the market, not a quote.