Transportation to Langar (Kuhistoni Mastchoh District)

Be careful, Langar is a common place name in the region for old caravan stops, and there are many Langars in Tajikistan, three of which are the start/end points for trekking (one in the Wakhan Corridor, one on the Khingob river near Tavildara, and one in the upper Zeravshan valley). This article is for getting to the Langar in the Kuhistoni Mastchoh district of the upper Zarafshon (Zeravshan) Valley, specifically to Ustod Fayzullo’s Guesthouse.

Route: Dushanbe/Khujand/Panjakent/Samarkand >>>> Ayni >>>> Langar

From Dushanbe, Panjakent or Khujand you will need to get to the crossroads town of Ayni. Specifically to the roundabout just south of Ayni, and just north of the southern-most bridge over the Zarafshon river (there are three main bridges in the area). 700 meters to the east of the roundabout is the place where you can find shared taxis driving up the Zarafshon river valley. It is marked on any map app that uses Open Street Map data as “Shared taxis to Upper Zarafshon Valley.” Google Maps link here (no label). The nearest village to search on the map is “Sangiston” (“Sangistan” on Google Maps).

From Khujand to Ayni, you will likely need to pay the full Khujand-Dushanbe price. Instructions here on Caravanistan. For Panjakent to Ayni, you may also need to pay the full Panjakent-Dushanbe price if you can’t find an Ayni driver. More Caravanistan instructions.

From Dushanbe: In late June 2022 paid 100 Somoni ($10 in 2022) to get from Dushanbe to Sangiston/Ayni (in a shared taxi). The starting point in Dushanbe is the “Tsement Zavod” car station on the north side of the city (on OSM-based maps as “Shared taxi station to Khujand, Panjakent”). Google Maps link here. Tell Dushanbe taxi drivers “Tsement Zavod Avtovokzal” (literally “Cement Factory Car Station”).

Very aggressive drivers on their way to Khujand or Panjakent will offer the full Khujand/Panjakent price to drop you off halfway in Ayni. Ignore them and search the carpark for an Ayni driver.  When I was there they were parked towards the back and weren’t near the front looking for passengers.

I arrived shared taxi stop near the Ayni crossroads at about 13:00 (1pm). Most Ayni drivers will want to drop you off here and continue on to Ayni, but the other passengers in the car were also going the same direction as me so the driver took as to the taxi stop (saving me a 750 meter walk).

I quickly found a taxi. I got a seat in a shared car for 80 Somoni, a whole 10 Somoni above the going local rate. There were numerous cars here waiting for passengers, but not all the cars were going as far as Langar. Many were going to large villages far downriver from Langar. I had missed the drivers who go all the way to the top of the valley (they leave earlier), but I was able to find a driver going to the village of Mehron. Everybody referred to it as “Rayon tsentr” (“district center” in Russian).

The driver left after the vehicle filled up. We left at 2pm and arrived at our destination at 6pm (including 1 hour worth of stops and delays). From here I walked but was quickly picked up by local people who dropped me off in Langar and refused any payment.

Don’t think you can make it all the way to Langar in one day? Then you should leave from Dushanbe before breakfast. Or you can go part way up the Zarafshon river road to the village of Veshab where there are two guesthouses for tourists. There is only one Veshab on the map, and the guesthouses there are labelled only on offline maps that use Open Street Map data. The guesthouse names are “Sari Osiyo Homestay“ and “Chormavze Homestay.“