The second active local synagogue, built in the late 19th century and being rebuilt as of 2026 to include a mikvah, a Jewish Center, and classrooms.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
The main Orthodox church, although slightly smaller than the cathedral mentioned above, and since the rector of this particular church is the main Orthodox priest in Samarkand. It was built in 1903, in the Russian style, originally for the Russian Empire's rifle regiment. After the establishment of Soviet power, the church was closed in 1930 and reopened in 1998, under the current name, in honor of the Feast of the Protection of the Holy Virgin (Intercession of the Theotokos). During its construction and until its closure, it was known as the Church of the Ascension of the Lord. According to some sources, during the Soviet era, this was the only active Orthodox church in the city, apart from a small chapel inside the Bratskoe cemetery. By 1998, the church had been reopened after restoration.
The main football club in Samarkand is Dinamo Samarkand, which participates in the Uzbekistan Super League (the highest level of the country's leagues). The season runs from March to November. You can find the match schedule on the official website of the Uzbekistan PFL. Matches are played in the evening and tickets for matches are affordable. The stadium is located near the historical center of the city, and there is a so-called "Pub Street" (officialy Davlatabad Street) near the stadium, as well as the Samarkand Brewery, where you can try local (and non-local) beers and enjoy snacks. Local fans are not aggressive and are friendly to foreigners.
The place's only Armenian Church, built in 1903 by local Armenian residents with the permission of the Russian Imperial authorities. Samarkand is home to the second-largest Armenian diaspora in Uzbekistan, after Tashkent. Armenians have been living in Central Asia since the late 14th century, and their population increased during the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. After the collapse of the USSR, most of the local Armenians remained in independent Uzbekistan and obtained local citizenship, while a small number of them moved to Armenia, Russia, Europe, and the United States. Local Armenians belong to the category of so-called Eastern Armenians. In Samarkand, they have shashlik (barbecue) bars where you can try pork shashlik, as well as local homemade wine and cognac.
It houses a Museum of Religious and National Tolerance, as well as an art gallery. The building was constructed in 1882. During the Soviet era, the large bell tower and domes on the roof of the church were destroyed by communists and atheists. A small airplane was placed in place of the bell tower, and the building was used for various purposes, such as housing the paramilitary organization DOSAAF. After the collapse of the USSR, the church was no longer suitable for worship due to its destroyed bell tower, and was therefore turned into a museum. This is one of the 3-4 inactive former churches in Samarkand.
The main concert hall of Samarkand is located near the Dinamo Stadium, where not only singers from Uzbekistan, but also from neighboring countries (such as Tajikistan) and other countries of the former USSR (such as Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and Georgia), and also, for example, from Turkey perform concerts.
The city's only Catholic Church. It was built in 1916 in the neo-Gothic style by Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war brought here by the Russian Empire during World War I. Most of the priests in this church are Polish. In Samarkand, Catholics include local Poles, local Ukrainians with roots in Western Ukraine, and expats from Catholic countries. The church is part of the Apostolic Administration of Uzbekistan, which is subordinate to the Vatican. Services are held in Russian and English.