Tour itinerary: Ashgabat – Mary – Darvaza – Kunya-Urgench – Dashoguz – Ashgabat
Season: April – October
Days: 5 | Nights: 4
A short tour to Turkmenistan for 5 days will let you dive into ancient Turkmen culture and traditions.
Arrival in Ashgabat in the morning.
Leave the terminal and meet the driver at the meeting zone.
Transfer to the hotel. Early check-in. Short time to rest after the flight.
Breakfast at the hotel.
After breakfast - meet with a guide.
Meet with your guide & driver at the hotel's lobby and start excursion in Ashgabat:
- Ertogrul Gazy Mosque,
- Independence Park with Monument of Independence (it's a 118 m column that considers the highest building in the country),
- Neutrality Arch - an unique composition that rotates slowly after the sun.
- National Museum, where you can see more than 166 unique expositions from - ----- Ancient Merv and Nisa.
A trip to ancient Nisa (18km from Ashgabat) that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visit the ruins of the ancient city (the date of foundation of the I millennium BC - I millennium BC).
Return to Ashgabat.
- Visit en-route Turkmenbashi Mosque-Mausoleum. It's considered the biggest in Central Asia (10 thousand people). There're beautiful gardens and fountains near the mosque.
Transfer to the hotel.
Overnight in the hotel.
Breakfast in the hotel.
Transfer to the airport.
10:00 Depart to Mary by morning flight "T5-125".
10:40 Arrival in Mary. Meet your driver in the terminal. Transfer to the excursion.
Excursion to Ancient Merv (UNESCO). Discover the historical park with:
- Sultan Sanjar Mausoleum - The best remaining testimony to Seljuk power at Merv is the 38 m-high Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar, located in what was the center of Sultan Kala. The building was restored with Turkish aid and rises dramatically in the open plain. Sanjar, the grandson of Alp-Arslan, died in 1157, reputedly of a broken heart when, after escaping from captivity in Khiva, he came home to find that his beloved Merv had been pillaged by Turkic nomads.
- Mohammed bin Said Mausoleum, medieval castles – “Kesk” fortresses (6-7 centuries) and others.
Return to Mary.
Visit the History Museum of the Merv region.
Transfer to the airport.
19:20 Evening flight "T5-136" to Ashgabat.
20:00 Arrival in Ashgabat.
Meet your driver in the terminal.
Transfer to the hotel
Overnight.
Breakfast at the hotel.
Transfer to Darwaza with sightseeing en-route:
- Anau Mosque Ruins,
- Akhal-Teke horse stables and Sunday Bazaar;
- 2 small craters with mud and water.
Continue to Darwaza crater and change from the asphalt road to the Karakum desert track, continue 10 km deep inside.
In 1971 geologists accidentally found an underground cavern filled with natural gas. To avoid poisonous gas discharge, it was decided to burn the gas. Geologists hoped the fire would go out in a few days but it has been burning ever since. Locals have named the cavern The Gate - Darwaza. The views are impressive, especially in sunset and night when the mild sunlight and burning crater evoke incredible and ambiguous feelings.
BBQ dinner and overnight.
Breakfast in the hotel.
In the morning transfer to Kunya-Urgench.
Start sightseeing tour with visiting: the founder mausoleum of Sufi sects:
- Najmuddin Kubro (Persian) - (Shaykh Ab al-Jann b Ahmad ibn 'Umar) was a 13th-century Persian Sufi from Khwarezmia, the founder of the Kubrawiyya or Kibruyeh Sufi order, influential in the Ilkhanid and Timurid. His method, exemplary of a "golden age" of sufi metaphysics, was related to the Illuminism of Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi as well as to Rumi's Shams Tabrizi;
- The mausoleum of Mongolian princess Torebeg-Hanym (XII-XIV centuries);
- Minaret Mamun (X-XI centuries);
- Minaret Kutlug-Timur (XII-XIV c, the highest minaret in Central Asia - 67m height);
- Mausoleum Kyrkmolla (II in BC - III A.D.) - The sacred hill Kyrk Molla, “40 mullahs” in Turkic, is found in Kunya-Urgench. According to a local legend, during the Mongol invasion, 40 scholars who lived in the library began to pray for the salvation of the priceless manuscripts, stored there. When the enemy approached, the library tipped over and went underground;
- Mausoleum Arslan II (the oldest building in the city - date of its bookmark is roughly estimated by XI century).
Moving to Dashoguz.
Transfer to the airport.
20:45 Flight "T5-114" to Ashgabat
21:35 Arrival in Ashgabat
Meet your driver in the terminal. Transfer to the hotel
Overnight at the hotel.
Transfer to the airport.
The morning departure flight from Ashgabat
End of the tour.
- Turkmenistan Visa support (Letter of Invitation, State Registration, Travel Pass);
- All entrance fees to the monuments and museums;
- Accommodation in standard twin- shared rooms a/c;
- Accommodation based on shared yurt (incl. sleeping mat, sleeping bag, and pillow);
- Meals: breakfast at hotels; camp-style breakfast and BBQ dinner in Darwaza camp;
- All transfers as per program by comfortable tourist class transport as per road conditions including transfers to- from airports, train stations, and borders
- English speaking escorting guide in Turkmenistan;
- Single entry tickets to the sites, museums, mausoleums as per program;
- Tourist tax in the hotels per person;
- International flights;
- Turkmenistan tourist visa from 85+4 USD per person (subject to change; nationality dependent) and migration tax 10+4 USD per person (subject to change; nationality dependent);
- Photo/video fees (professional camera);
- Meals: lunches and dinners; breakfast during night train trip/s;
- Personal travel/medical insurance, portage, tips, personal expenses and other services not specified under “Tour Price Includes”
- Turkmenistan: tourist fee 2 USD per person per night (obligatory) charged in the hotels;
Accommodation
