# Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace, Bukhara > Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa is the summer palace of Bukhara's last emir, 4–6 km north of the old town and now a museum of decorative arts. Foreign visitors pay **about 60,000 UZS** (unofficial); it opens daily, roughly 9:00–18:00. A taxi takes 15–25 minutes; allow 1–1.5 hours for the palace, the harem and the gardens. Web page: https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/sitorai-mokhi-khosa - City: [Bukhara](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara), Uzbekistan - YesGo score: 32/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 1 h 30 min - Entry: ≈ 60,000 UZS for foreign visitors - With kids: Fine with kids - Entrance (foreign visitors): ≈ 60,000 UZS; a 2025 source gave 25,000 UZS - Hours: Daily ≈ 9:00–18:00, no closing day - Children: Under 7 free - Payment: Cash in som at the ticket desk; foreign cards are unreliable here - Photos: Some rooms may restrict photos or charge a camera fee - Getting there: Yandex Go taxi from Po-i-Kalyan, 15–25 min - Location: Shifokorlar, 4–6 km north of the old town - Coordinates: 39.81278, 64.44139 - Facts checked: 30.10.2026 ## Key facts - **1912–1918** — the present palace built for the last emir, Alim Khan (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Advantour (Orexca gives 1911–1918)) - **1927** — the palace became a museum (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Advantour) - **White Hall** — carved ganch laid over mirrored walls, led by master Shirin Muradov (source: Advantour; Orexca; Marcopolo.uz) - **“Star like the Moon”** — the usual translation of the name (source: Advantour; English Wikipedia (“Palace Like the Stars and the Moon”)) - **Margulis and Sakovich** — the two Russian engineers at the emir's court who worked on it (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Advantour) - **4–6 km** — north of the old town, on the road to Gijduvan (source: Advantour, Orexca, Marcopolo.uz (4 km); Wikivoyage (6 km from the centre)) - **Museum** — of decorative and applied arts: furniture, Chinese and Japanese porcelain, gold embroidery (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Advantour) - **Two halves** — men's and women's quarters, as in a Bukharan house — European outside, Central Asian inside (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Orexca) - **19th century** — the first buildings of the country residence — none survive (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Advantour; Marcopolo.uz) - **1954** — part of the complex became a rest house; the museum shrank to nine halls (source: English and Russian Wikipedia) ## Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa tickets and entrance fee Foreign visitors pay **about 60,000 UZS** — an unofficial figure given by Wikivoyage and by a travel writer who visited in May 2026. A Sputnik8 listing marked “2025” gives around 25,000 UZS. The museum publishes no official price list, so treat the fee as unconfirmed and expect it to sit near the higher number. You buy the ticket at the gate; there is nothing to book ahead. **Bring cash in som.** Visa and Mastercard issued abroad work in many Bukhara hotels and bigger restaurants, but small museum desks like this one are often cash-only. Bank ATMs and exchange offices in the old town around Lyabi-Hauz dispense som and change US dollars and euros. Children under 7 are reportedly free. Some rooms may limit photography or ask for a small camera fee — ask when you buy your ticket. On a guided countryside tour, check whether the entrance is included; it varies by operator. > **It's out of town — plan a taxi both ways** The palace is 4–6 km from the old town — well over an hour on foot each way. Allow 2–2.5 hours for the whole trip, and carry som in cash for the ticket desk. ## Opening hours The palace opens **daily, roughly 9:00–18:00**, with no weekly closing day, according to Wikivoyage, Sputnik8 and a 2026 trip report. None of these is official, and hours can shift outside the summer season — check the listing in the Yandex Go or Yandex Maps app, or ask your guesthouse, before you set off. Go early. The gardens are cooler at opening time, and there are fewer groups, especially on weekdays. Much of the visit is outdoors, walking between pavilions, so take water and a hat in summer. ## How to get to Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace 1. Start at Po-i-Kalyan square by the Kalyan Minaret. From Lyabi-Hauz it is a 10-minute walk through the trading domes. 2. Order a Yandex Go taxi to “Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa”. The old town is pedestrian, so your pickup will be at its edge — by the Ark or by Lyabi-Hauz. Yandex Go is the easiest way to avoid haggling over the fare. 3. The ride north to the Shifokorlar district takes 15–25 minutes depending on traffic. City buses do head that way, but sources disagree on the route numbers, so a taxi is the reliable choice. 4. Buy your ticket at the gate, in cash, before 18:00 — ideally with 90 minutes to spare. 5. Order the return taxi from the gate. On the way back you can stop at [Chor Minor](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/chor-minor), on the north side of the old town. ## Is Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa worth visiting? **Yes, if you have two or more days in Bukhara.** It's the one place in town that shows how the emirs actually lived in the early 20th century: the mirrored White Hall, European furniture against Central Asian ornament, the harem, the pool and the garden. After the dense old town it feels open and calm. With only one day, skip it. The trip eats half a day, and in that time you can see the [Ark](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/ark-of-bukhara), the [Kalyan Minaret](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/kalyan-minaret) and [Lyabi-Hauz](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/lyabi-hauz) on foot. The museum itself is compact: if interiors and textiles aren't your thing, an hour is plenty. ## What to see at the Emir's Summer Palace - **The White Hall** — the showpiece of the main building, with carved ganch plaster laid over mirrored walls. The work was led by master Shirin Muradov, who has a monument in the grounds. - The state rooms of the main building: European furniture, chandeliers, Venetian mirrors and Chinese and Japanese porcelain. - The summer tea room, decorated with geometric patterns and coloured glass rather than the floral motifs of the other rooms. - The guest pavilion with a display of a Bukharan townsman's clothes — gold-embroidered robes, belts, scarves and shoes. - The former harem, now housing suzani and regional embroidery from across Uzbekistan. - The pool behind the harem and the pavilion mirrored in it — the classic photo on a still day. - The garden with roses and peacocks, some free-roaming, some in aviaries. ## A short history Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa was the **summer country residence of the emirs of Bukhara**. Its first buildings went up in the 19th century and have not survived. The palace you see now was built in 1912–1918 for the last emir, Alim Khan. Bukharan craftsmen were sent to Russia to study country palaces, and two Russian engineers at court, Margulis and Sakovich, worked on the project. The result is a hybrid: European façades and furniture, but a Bukharan layout with separate men's and women's quarters and local decoration inside. Legend says the site of the first residence was chosen by hanging sheep carcasses around the oasis and building where the meat stayed fresh longest — proof of the healthiest air. After the emirate fell, the palace opened as a museum in 1927. From 1954 part of the complex served as a rest house and the museum was cut to nine halls. Today it is the **Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts**, with 19th–20th-century furniture, porcelain, jewellery and gold embroidery. ## Before you go: checklist - [ ] Som in cash for the ticket - [ ] Yandex Go installed and working - [ ] Leaving early enough to reach the gate by 16:30 - [ ] Allowed 1–1.5 hours for the palace, harem and garden - [ ] Water and a hat — much of the visit is outdoors - [ ] Ask at the desk whether photos are allowed inside ## Summer Palace vs the Ark | | Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa | Ark of Bukhara | Chor-Bakr | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | What it is | 1910s summer palace | The emirs' citadel in town | Sufi necropolis outside town | | Where | 4–6 km north | Old town, Registan square | Outside town, to the west | | Foreign visitor ticket | ≈ 60,000 UZS | ≈ 60,000 UZS | Own ticket | | Getting there | Taxi, 15–25 min | On foot | Taxi | | Time needed | 1–1.5 h + travel | 1–1.5 h | ≈ 1 h + travel | | Highlights | Interiors, harem, garden | Walls, throne court, views | Quiet courtyards and mausoleums | The Ark belongs in any Bukhara day. The Summer Palace is for day two, once the old town is done. Prices are unofficial. ## Bukhara's palaces and citadels compared Every Bukhara place with an emir's palace or residence rated by YesGo. - [Ark of Bukhara](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/ark-of-bukhara) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ 60,000 UZS for foreigners - [Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/sitorai-mokhi-khosa) — YesGo score 32/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ 60,000 UZS for foreign visitors ## Palace in the morning, old town by evening The palace at opening time, Chor Minor on the way back, then Lyabi-Hauz and the trading domes. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers. 1. [Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/sitorai-mokhi-khosa) — YesGo score 32/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ 60,000 UZS for foreign visitors 2. [Chor Minor](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/chor-minor) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 20 min · Free from outside 3. [Lyabi-Hauz](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/lyabi-hauz) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Free 4. [Trading Domes](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/bukhara-trading-domes) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free > **Combine it with the other out-of-town sights** The palace is usually paired with the Bahauddin Naqshband complex and the [Chor-Bakr necropolis](https://yesgo.io/uzbekistan/bukhara/chor-bakr). One taxi or one guided tour covers Bukhara's outskirts in half a day. ## Don't confuse it with The “Sitorai Mokhi Khosa” sanatorium in Bukhara is a separate health facility, not the museum, and hotels and restaurants using the name are unrelated. It is also not the emir's palace in Kagan, a different building in the neighbouring town by the railway station. ## Tips - Come at opening time or on a weekday: the garden is cooler and there are fewer groups. - The best photo is the pavilion reflected in the pool behind the harem on a windless day. - Peacock feed is reportedly sold at the entrance — children often like it more than the halls. - Carry small som notes for the ticket and any camera fee. - On the way back, stop at Chor Minor, on the north side of the old town. - Got a second day? Book one taxi for the palace, the Bahauddin Naqshband complex and Chor-Bakr. ## Questions ### How much is the Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa entrance fee? About 60,000 UZS for foreign visitors — an unofficial figure; a 2025 source gave around 25,000 UZS. Pay in cash, in som. ### What are the Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa opening hours? Daily, roughly 9:00–18:00, with no closing day. These hours are unofficial — check before you go outside the summer season. ### How do I get to the Summer Palace from Bukhara old town? Take a Yandex Go taxi — 15–25 minutes. It is too far to walk, and bus route numbers vary between sources. ### How far is the Summer Palace from Bukhara? About 4 km north of the city's edge and 6 km from the centre, on the road to Gijduvan. ### Is Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa worth visiting? Yes, on a second day in Bukhara: it's the only place that shows the emirs' early-20th-century lifestyle. On a one-day visit, stay in the old town. ### How long do you need at the Summer Palace? 1–1.5 hours for the main building, harem and garden, or about 2–2.5 hours including the taxi from the old town. ### Can I pay by card at Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa? Don't count on it. The ticket desk is reported to take cash only, so bring som from an ATM or exchange office in the old town. ### What does Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa mean? It is usually translated as “Star like the Moon” or “Palace like the stars and the moon”. ### Who built the Summer Palace in Bukhara? The last emir, Alim Khan, in 1912–1918, with Bukharan master craftsmen and the Russian engineers Margulis and Sakovich. ## How we checked We found no official price list or schedule from the museum, so the fee and hours are marked unofficial. Prices differ: Wikivoyage and an Eternal Arrival trip report from May 2026 give 60,000 UZS for adults, Sputnik8 gives about 25,000 UZS for 2025; we show the newer figure and mention the older one. Three sources agree on 9:00–18:00 daily. Free entry for under-7s, cash-only payment and photo restrictions come from Sputnik8 alone and are marked unofficial. Construction dates vary: 1912–1918 in both Wikipedias and Advantour, 1911–1918 at Orexca, 1912–1920 in the Russian Wikipedia text; we show 1912–1918. Distances range from 4 km (Advantour, Orexca, Marcopolo.uz, measured from the city's edge) to 6 km (Wikivoyage, from the centre), hence 4–6 km. Sources describe the guest pavilion as octagonal or hexagonal, so we leave the shape out. The site-choosing legend follows Advantour and is presented as legend. Sources disagree on bus numbers, so we don't give any. ## Sources - English and Russian Wikipedia: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa; Wikidata Q4421152 - Advantour: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace - Orexca: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace, outskirts of Bukhara - Marcopolo.uz: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa Palace - Wikivoyage: Bukhara — fee, hours and location - Eternal Arrival: Summer Palace trip report, visit in May 2026 - Sputnik8: Sitorai Mokhi-Khosa visitor notes, 2025 data --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.