Ashgabat Tours and Trips

This was an outstanding explore trip. The combination of both Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and the fascinating differences between the two countries and the places visited made it a varied and interesting trip. A friendly group and the camaraderie definitely added to the trip. We had excellent leaders in both countries. Jenny / Yevgemina in Turkmenistan ensured everything ran smoothly and was so organised and helpful, even translating a whole menu for us on one occasion. Visiting the local bazaar on Sunday was really interesting. Ashgabat unlike anywhere I’ve ever visited, the buildings and their scale, and image projected, really fascinating. She really went the extra mile literally to help us negotiate the intricacies of the border crossing. She took us to an amazing variety of restaurants so we could experience the local cuisine and was really knowledgeable at all the historical sites visited. We visited some really interesting ancient Silk Road cities Merv and Abiverd. Shokrat was equally helpful in Uzbekistan and gave us excellent insights to the history of his home town Samarkand. Again all the arrangements ran smoothly and he gave us lots of insights into the history of his country and its culture as well as current life in the country. He took us to a plov restaurant specialising in the National dish and accompaniments which only a local would know. The overnight train journey was an interesting and enjoyable experience. The sights in Uzbekistan are amazing, difficult to name highlights but I really enjoyed Uleg Beg observatory and the mausoleums in Samarkand. I really enjoyed Bukhara and Khiva as cities as they had distinct older city areas and it might have been nice to have a bit more time in Khiva to explore. I really enjoyed the dancing and music show in Bukhara and would highly recommend this. The accommodation was excellent, staying in a caravanserai (modernised) in Bukhara and a madrasah in Khiva and staff at all the hotels were so friendly and helpful. My only comment is that whilst the local guides in Uzbekistan were really knowledgeable and passionate about their country’s history, some of the explanations could have been a bit shorter as there was a lot to take in. Tashkent was a vibrant, modern city and has excellent museums. The local guide here was the best on tour in terms of his succinct and clear explanations and information provided. We enjoyed visiting the bazaar and travelling on the metro. I was pleased I stayed an extra day to explore the city and museums and would recommend adding this on. Some of the journeys are long and the road to the border is really bumpy but the buses were all really comfortable. This trip had been on my list for years and it didn’t disappoint.

The trip to Turmenistan and Uzbeckistan was well organised, exciting and informative. The guides were knowledgeable and very approachable. The accommodation was good and the wonders seen were amazing. Would highly recommend this trip.

There were 12 of us on this journey. All were experienced travellers: curious, well-informed, energetic, good-humoured and punctual. Many of them kept detailed photo records and journal accounts of what they were seeing. We came from very different backgrounds, but all managed to get on well together which greatly enhanced the trip. We appreciated each other. Our Tour Director, Begaim, was managing her first Explore journey, and gained in assurance with every day that passed as she settled into her job; she ended up being very popular and highly valued. One of our local guides, Bekhruz, also stood out for his knowledge and his skill in communicating it. He asked us to submit questions that he could discuss during long bus journeys; these were penetrating and challenging but he handled them all with aplomb. The organization of this complex journey was a logistical tour de force. It used buses, an aeroplane and cars to cover terrain that was often very rough — many roads were not made up and were full of ruts or potholes. Towards the end, Explore provided FIVE vehicles with FIVE different drivers to get us across the desert: very good drivers they were too. Hotels were mostly of very good quality. The final one was decorated in white and gold which was the pervasive colour scheme of Ashgabat: positively luxurious and certainly beautiful. One hotel did not have enough furniture to satisfy this particular traveller (the present reviewer) who would have liked a table in her room. However, all were clean and safe. We stayed in 2 yurts: one was very comfortable with toilets and washroom beside each installation and a well-equipped central module where food was served and songs were sung. The other, near Darvaza, the “gate to hell”, was much simpler, with two shared toilets quite far away from the yurts. These were difficult to visit at night. Some of our group were “under-whelmed” with Darvaza where the fire is slowly abating, but remains a tourist magnet. The journey was on the whole well-structured. Explore supported us in procuring visas for Turkmenistan though the local guide there made a mistake in charging the same amount of entrance money for EU and UK passport holders. The UK is charged more! This matter was rectified. An irritant was that Mastercard was often declined and sometimes this was in places where there were no exchange offices. People borrowed money from each other. Explore may wish to suggest in future that VISA cards might be more widely accepted as a supplement to Mastercards. I have already said that the roads were very rough. The journey to the seven lakes followed a bone-shaking trip the previous day with yet more bone-shaking to get to lakes 6 and 7. More of the same. The village of Erbent turned out to be almost totally devoid of interest, except for a statue. Some changes could be envisaged here. Explore is becoming ever more inventive in finding interesting things for us to do. We saw how eagles were trained, how felt was made and embroidered & how yurts were assembled. We saw how “the best paper in the world” was made at Konigil, Samarkand, how the horses performed (including Przewalski’s which have a museum dedicated to them); how men kidnapped women on horseback in order to avoid paying the bride price; how a small band of musicians could make music from almost any domestic implement. I was even asked to dance with one of the troupe. We saw some of the best architecture in the world. One of my favourites was a building that I had seen during my first visit to Uzbekistan: the Ismail Samani Mausoleum which was completed in AD 905. I was able to compare it with a little picture that I have cherished ever since my first visit. This was a powerful journey that gave us indelible impressions. We all appreciated it greatly.

Rifa our leader was great over Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan. The over all trip gave a great insight to Central Asia. A number of the countries it would be great to explore them further. As they had so much to offer.

Excellent holiday, fascinating destinations. Group was very friendly and we laughed a lot. I would have liked an extra day in Tashkent not necessarily part of the tour as both countries felt very safe but maybe as a suggestion at the time of booking.

I'm finally writing my review after being home for a month. What an interesting trip. Great people along the way, marvelous scenery in both the cities and the countryside. The accommodation ranged from 5 star to quirky and the hosts were always warm and welcoming. The homestays were a highlight with lovely people in stunning settings. All the guides (and drivers) were knowledgeable and ready to share their knowledge of the sites around us. The trip was a great highlight of central Asia and I would go back in a shot.