Turkmenistan Tour time! Ever since I first visited Turkmenistan, and made a very shaky youtube video about the Gates of Hell, I've had people email me asking if I could finally organise a onestep4ward trip there, so after waiting for them to be the LAST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD to finally open after COVID, I did just that, in 2023. And it was f*cking amazing! What can I say? These kinda cool countries attract epic groups of people. So yeah, burning craters, night trains, cheap Russian cognacs, and the trip of a lifetime.

When I did my 'every country in the world' trip, I got rejected multiple times from Turkmenistan. FINALLY, I met a legend who had some contacts and he got me in. I stayed in contact with him, and now we organised a couple of group trips there. And he had a 100% success rate for our visas! So, we're going back, this time for the September 2024 Turkmenistan tour. JOIN ME!

For hardcore travelers, there are 2 main reasons.

It's one of the least visited countries in the world, which is already pretty cool.
And then of course, Turkmenistan is famous for their Gates of Hell. So my Turkmenistan tour, of course, focuses on that. But that's not the only reason to visit Turkmenistan. For me there are 3 epic places to visit in this secretive central Asian nation.

The Gates of Hell. Come and see them soon! The rumours are that they're due to close it any time!
Ashgabat, the futuristic capital city. One of the strangest cities in the world. Just wait and see.
Yangy Kala Canyon. Central Asia's answer to the grand canyon, and including a very, very cool old soviet sleeper train overnight, traversing the country (and possibly accompanied by some cheap booze), to the coast of the Caspian Sea, to reach it!

There are some other spots around the country that are historic, and hold cultural significance too. But my trips are more focused on crazy adventures so I've tailored this tour to include the 3 coolest places and try to keep the cost, and time, down. I know a lot of the people who travel with me have the same outlook, so I hope this works for all you guys too!

The Dervaza gas crater, also known as the Door to Hell or Gates of Hell, is a natural gas field in Turkmenistan that collapsed into an underground cavern in 1971, creating a large crater approximately 70 meters in diameter and 20 meters deep.

In an effort to prevent the release of toxic gases, Soviet scientists set the crater on fire, hoping that the gas would burn off within a few weeks. However, the fire has been burning continuously for over 50 years, creating a spectacular and eerie sight that draws visitors from around the world.

The area around the crater is now a popular tourist attraction and has been dubbed the "Gates of Hell" due to the infernal flames that never go out.

Don't worry, it's easy.

You can fly via Istanbul or Dubai (maybe there'll be more options by September 2024, but right now, that's it). They all land at horrible hours, between 2am and 4am (similar to my Mauritania tours).

This makes the itinerary sound a little confusing, but bear with me, it's honestly not! Check our the Turkmenistan Itinerary below to make sense of it all.

Also, don't worry, my team will be there with airport pick-ups, regardless what time you arrive!

Safe doesn't even come close. One of the safest countries in the world. Perhaps even THE safest country in the world.

I'll avoid getting political as the permits are hard enough to get, but let's just say everyone obeys the law in Turkmenistan, and leave it at that. As we say in Ireland, "safe as houses"

Letter of Invitation
And all help with the visa, so you can get it when you land in the airport. THIS IS THE REAL VALUE OF THE WHOLE TRIP to be honest
All transport
Includes buses, over night trains, and even a domestic flight!
Local guide
Artem or Aziz, my buddy from my first time here
Western Guide
Me!
Night train
Ashgabat to Turkmenabashi sleeper train
Domestic flight
The train one-way will be enough, we're cheating on the way back and flying to Ashgabat (it's included too!)
All accomodation
3* hotels in Ashgabat and Turkmenibashi
Camping
One night by the crater (tents and sleeping bags provided)

Single Supplement

$399

If you don't want to share a room, you can choose this option

Hotel on 14th night

$99

Remember, if you land on 15th in the early hours, like 2am or something like that - YOU NEED A HOTEL FOR THE 14TH NIGHT

Hotel on 15th night

$99

Remember, if you land on 16th in the early hours, like 2am or something like that - YOU NEED A HOTEL FOR THE 15TH NIGHT

Hotel on 21st night

$99

This is optional. If you leave on the 22nd (like me) at 4am and you want a room to chill, shower, whatever. You can get this.

If you're happy just going to the bar/restaurant etc and not take a room, that's ok too.

DAY 1 (September 16th)
DAY 1 (September 16th)
Arrive in Turkmenistan
Ok, due to the weird flight arrivals times (at 3am) this can get a little confusing, so here we go.

Even thought DAY 1 OF THE TOUR IS OFFICIALLY SEPTEMBER 16TH (we have a hotel booked for SEP 16TH night as part of the trip), YOU WANT TO BOOK THE FLIGHTS THAT LAND ON SEPTEMBER 17TH, AROUND 2AM. If, by a miracle, more flights become available, by all means land anytime on the 16th if you wish.

My team will pick you up from the airport, and you'll be in the hotel by 4am. 6 hours sleep. And then the tour starts properly on the morning of September 17th.
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DAY 2
DAY 2
The Gates of Hell!
Wakey wakey. After 5/6 hours sleep, we have a morning briefing in our hotel in Ashgabat where you can here my drone on about toilets, health and safety and money for 20 minutes.

Then we have a quick morning Ashgabat city tour, before we transfer to the main event the Darvaza Crater AKA the Gates of Hell!

250KM through the Turkmeni desert, the Central Karakum Sands, in our private 4WD vehicles. We will arrive at the ancient Inguz line of the desert where we'll explore the various craters. One full of water, one full of mud, then we'll make our way before sunset to the fiery crater.

We'll pitch up, maybe have smuggled a bottle or 2 to share, and enjoy sunset at one of the world's most unique destinations, the Gates to Hell. We'll camp here all night, so bring warm clothes!
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DAY 3
DAY 3
Soviet night trains and night caps
Brekkie in the desert. Then we drive back to Ashgabat. We'll head back to our hotel where they kindly allow us to shower (they even have an old school sauna and gym). We'll take a shower here after a night by the crater, have a spot of lunch in a fancy Ashgabat cafe.

We then head to the train station for one of my favourite things to do in unique countries, an overnight train across the whole country towards Turkmenbashi in an ancient Soviet train. God this is fun. Alcohol is illegal on the trains (cough, cough).
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DAY 4
DAY 4
Yangy Kala Canyon
We'll wake up in Turkmenbashi and have a short sightseeing tour where you'll get a chance to have your first sight of the Caspian Sea.

We'll then hop back in 4WD vehicles and make our way to Central Asia's proud answer to the Grand Canyon, Yangy Kala. This canyon was the former floor of the Tethys sea, and over time, millions of years created the current 'design' of unusual forms and multicolor pictures.

We'll chill here for a bit, soak up just where in the world we are, before we head back to Turkmenbashi to overnight in our Caspian Sea resort.
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DAY 5
DAY 5
Ashgabat by night
Back to the airport folks (god it feels like we live in these places!).

We fly back to Ashgabat, check out the UNESCO world heritage site of Nisa Fortress, and the world famous Turkmen horses, then we check into our hotels once more. We have a free afternoon to explore the city, or recover from a fast paced few days.

Then this evening we'll have dinner in Ashgabat's fanciest restaurant (don't worry, due to the black market, this will cost about $10!).

Overnight at our Ashgabat hotel.
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DAY 6 (SEPTEMBER 21ST)
DAY 6 (SEPTEMBER 21ST)
Done and dusted.
We're out of here. Or more probably, we all left at 2am the day before! We'll be in touch about plans for that.

Now... who's coming with me to Mongolia in a week or so?!
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DAY 1 (September 16th)

Arrive in Turkmenistan

Ok, due to the weird flight arrivals times (at 3am) this can get a little confusing, so here we go.

Even thought DAY 1 OF THE TOUR IS OFFICIALLY SEPTEMBER 16TH (we have a hotel booked for SEP 16TH night as part of the trip), YOU WANT TO BOOK THE FLIGHTS THAT LAND ON SEPTEMBER 17TH, AROUND 2AM. If, by a miracle, more flights become available, by all means land anytime on the 16th if you wish.

My team will pick you up from the airport, and you'll be in the hotel by 4am. 6 hours sleep. And then the tour starts properly on the morning of September 17th.

Such a blast! Johnny’s trips never disappoint! Loved the overnight camping on a gorgeous island in the Red Sea! Asmara and Massawa were also incredible. Missing those views already. As always, the memories and friendships made during trip will last a lifetime.

By Courtney J for Eritrea on Mar 23, 2025

This was an incredible trip from start to finish! Excellent food, awesome accommodations, and the most kind and welcoming people I’ve ever encountered. Seeing their happiness at having tourists again after so much turmoil at home was something truly special. Witnessing war torn towns and cities and then the beauty of Old Damascus has left me without words.

By Courtney J for Silk Road Trip on Mar 17, 2025

The itenary was great, even without Keren. Actually might have been that having Keren in it would have left too little time to Asmara and Massawa. Lunches on the road could maybe have been included as paying for them as such a mess most of the time. The bus was a bit small, but the group consisted of so nice people that I got more space for my legs when I needed it. For a first-timer the communication in the WhatsApp group especially before trip was a bit overwhelming and contained both important things and people just saying hi to each other. Most important things came however also as emails, appreciated. Would participate again to another trip if the destination would be one I'd wish to do.

By Pirkko S for Eritrea on Mar 16, 2025

Thank you for another fantastic experience Johnny. Eritrea was on the list for a while and we got to see it like few other do. The warmth of every Eritrean we met, the incredible Art Deco architecture and the general safety of the country made this one for the books. Onto the next one!

By Aavishkar M for Eritrea on Mar 16, 2025

Third trip with Johnny, won’t be the last. The group culture he creates is really uniquely special in addition to the fun and adrenaline on the itinerary.