Yough Pioneer Tours
Turkmenistan Easter Tour
This Turkmenistan Easter tour kicks off in Ashgabat — Turkmenistan’s capital city, described by some as the “Dictator’s Playground”, with its white marble facades, gold monuments, and buildings with titles such as the “Wheel of Enlightenment” and the “Arch of Neutrality”. From there, we head to UNESCO world heritage Nisa and onto our homestay in the village of Nokhur. Next, we’ll take the long drive into the Karakum desert towards futuristic Avaza and Turkmenbashi via Yangykala Canyon. We round off the first part of this tour with a visit the must-see Darvaza gas crater – eternally burning fire crater known as the “Gates of Hell”, where we set up camp for the night.
The LOI application process for Turkmenistan is quite complicated and time-consuming. For the best chance of approval, please get in at least 3 months in advance. Late applications are accepted but the approval rate goes down, in most cases you will get a full refund if the application is rejected.
Saturday 11th April (Easter Saturday) – Ashgabat
- Meet your local and YPT guides at Ashgabat International Airport.
- Driving tour of Ashgabat’s main sites, including Independence Park and Independence Monument, the Monument to the Constitution, the Arch of Neutrality, Lenin Park, Ertogrul Ghazi Mosque, and the Alem Centre, which is the complex that is home to the Wheel of Enlightenment, the largest indoor ferris wheel. And YES, for just $1, you can even take a ride!
- Stop for lunch at Berkarar Shopping Centre, where you can go ice-skating, play in the games centre, ride a miniature double-decker bus, and even have a cappuccino in a hipster face (don’t get your hopes up too much about the cappuccino, it is still from a machine which has a “cappuccino” button) .
- Visit the university bookshop where you can find books written by and about the president of Ashgabat and Turkmenistan in English. They also have postcards and posters, and if you’re lucky, they might even have a copy of the Ruhnama, the book written by Turkmenbashy.
- Dinner and drinks at a pub in the city centre, which serves shashlicks, kebabs, and local draught beer. Approximately $8 pp + drinks.
Sunday 12th April (Easter Sunday) – Ashgabat
- Drive to Nisa, a UNESCO site which was once the capital of the Parthian Empire.
- Visit Anau on the eastern outskirts of Ashgabat, and see the remains of Anau Fortress and Sheikh Jemaladdin Mosque, which was destroyed in the 1948 earthquake.
- Lunch at a local restaurant in Chuli Gorge, with spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. Approximately $8 pp.
- Continue on to Kipchak to see the resplendent Turkmenbashy Mosque, where Turkmenbashy is buried beside his mother, father, and two brothers in their white marble mausoleum.
- Return to Ashgabat.
- Dinner and drinks at a pub in the city centre, which serves shashlicks, kebabs, and local draught beer. Approximately $8 pp + drinks.
Monday 13th April (Easter Monday) – Nokhur
- Drive to the outskirts of Ashgabat to Kow Ata. This natural underground thermal spring is said to have many medical attributes, but is also used by locals as a swimming hole and makes for a very fun and relaxing swim. Admission included.
- After a revitalising swim in the lake, we’ll enjoy lunch at one of the shashlik restaurants just outside the entrance to the cave. Approximately $3 – 6 pp.
- Drive 175km north west into the Kopetdag mountains to Nokhur, a traditional tribal village.
- Visit Nokhur Cemetery, where each grave is adorned with the horns of a mountain goat.
- Relax in the mountains and learn about the culture of the Nokhuris.
- Dinner (included) and overnight in a homestay.
Tuesday 14th April – Turkmenbashy
- Drive 450 km west to Avaza.
- We’ll stop for lunch along the way at a local chaykhana. Approximately $2 – 5 pp.
- Arrive in Turkmenbashy.
- Visit the bazaar to buy snacks and lunch for the following day’s trip to Yangykala Canyon.
- Overnight in Turkmenbashy
Wednesday 15th April – Turkmenbashy
- Yangykala Canyon. Many Turkmens don’t even know that this place exists, but once you’ve been there, you’ll start calling the Grand Canyon the “Pretty Good Canyon”. In 4×4’s, we’ll drive over the canyon walls, through the canyon itself, and up the other side, to an excellent vantage point , from where you will be able to see all the shapes and colours of this spectacular natural phenomenon.
- We will take a packed lunch with us so we can enjoy it at the canyons. You can either buy yourself something at the bazaar on the way, or we can organise a cooked lunch for $10 pp.
- Return to Turkmenbashy.
- Dinner at the hotel. Approximately $8 – 10 pp.
Thursday 16th April – Ashgabat
- Take a small drive around Turkmenbashy before paying a visit to Avaza, a ten-minute drive from Turkmenbashy, and have a driving tour of the beach resort. Although the facilities are extravagant and the buildings futuristic, the town is somehow best described as a ghost town.
- Lunch in one of the glamorous hotels of Avaza. Approximately $10 – 12 pp.
- After lunch, enjoy some free time to explore the amusement parks, beaches, and hotels of Avaza.
- Return to Ashgabat on Turkmenistan Airlines.
- Dinner and drinks at the British Pub. Approximately $10 – 15 pp + drinks.
Friday 17th April – Darvaza
- In the morning, drive to the outskirts of Ashgabat to Serdar Yoly, the “health path”. Stretching 28km along the Kopetdag mountain range, this fitness project was instigated by Turkmenbashy, but being a keen health fanatic himself, Gurbanguly has continued to encourage people to make the trek. You’ll have time to either walk some of the path if you like, or you can just soak in the atmosphere in the park at the bottom.
- Take a ride on the cable car which reaches almost all the way to the Iranian border. At the top you’ll get spectacular views over the city, the health path and the tv tower.
- Lunch at the Russian bazaar, where you can also buy some snacks, drinks, and dinner for camping.
- Drive 250km to Darvaza (The Gates of Hell) in 4WD’s.
- Visit two other craters – one full of mud, one full of water.
- Traverse the sand dunes of the Karakum Desert to get to Darvaza.
- Watch the sunset over the fiery crater and experience dusk turn to dark at this breathtaking site.
- Return to our tents, which have been set up for us near the Gates of Hell and camp near the fiery crater.
Saturday 18th April – Ashgabat
- Drive back towards Ashgabat, stopping at Tolkuchka Bazaar on the way, where you’ll be able to buy lunch, with some time to explore the largest bazaar in Central Asia (by floor size).
- Free time in the afternoon.
- Dinner at the Yyldiz Hotel. Based on the Burj Al Arab and by far the most luxurious hotel in Ashgabat, the restaurant on the 18th floor is the perfect place to look over the city as the sun sets.
- After dinner we’ll take a night tour of Ashgabat. With the white marble buildings lit up by brightly coloured neon lights, Ashgabat is a truly spectacular place after dark.
- We’ll make a stop at the Palace of Happiness in the foothills of the Kopetdag Mountains, from where you can get a fantastic panorama of the whole city.
- Spend the night at the Paytagt Guesthouse.
Sunday 19th April
- Transfers to the airport according to your flight times.
Tour Extensions
Want to extend your YPT adventure? Join one of our great tour extensions
