Attractions and Places To See in Turkmenistan - Top 20

Here burns the eternal flame in memory of all those who fell in the Second World War.

The excavation site is not advisable without a guide. The complex has a pentagonal floor plan, unusual for Central Asia, and several luxurious buildings in the Hellenistic style have been discovered. It was built on a natural hill. Eight- to nine-meter-thick walls made of rammed earth surrounded the settlement. To this day, the exact location of the gates is not known. It is still not entirely clear what purpose Nisa was built for. It could have been a necropolis for Parthian kings or a royal residence. While a few years ago, with a great deal of imagination, one could have glimpsed the splendor that unfolded here, now more and more details are coming to light.

Completed in 1998, the mosque is a gift from the Turkish people to the Turkmen people. Both peoples trace their ancestry back to Oghuz Khan and have been friendly since Turkmenistan's independence. The mosque is a copy of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, with one difference: The Blue Mosque in Istanbul has six minarets, while the Ertogul Mosque has only four. The mosque was built in the Ottoman style, and colorful stained-glass windows adorn the facades. The minarets are 63 meters high, representing the years of Muhammad's life. The 40-meter-high dome symbolizes the age at which Muhammad withdrew to a cave in Mount Hira and, over the many years that followed, received messages from God, delivered by the Archangel Gabriel. In the middle of the large interior there is a replica of the Kaaba in Mecca and 5,000 prayer rugs lie on the floor.

Exploration work was carried out here in the 1970s in search of natural gas. The rock at the drilling site was unstable and collapsed during this work. A crater was formed with a diameter of about 200 meters and a depth of around 50 meters. Natural gas is seeping from hundreds of fissures. The escaping gas later ignited, but no one knows exactly why.

Magtymguly Pyragy is a towering figure in Turkmen literature and is widely regarded as the national poet of Turkmenistan. Living during the 18th century, a time of significant political and social upheaval, his poetry became a powerful symbol of the Turkmen people's identity and aspirations for unity. Magtymguly's works are celebrated for their philosophical depth, humanistic ideals, and call for peace and brotherhood among the Turkmen tribes, who were often in conflict during his lifetime. His use of the spoken Turkmen language in his poetry, rather than the more common classical Chagatai, helped to establish it as a literary language and earned him a place of immense reverence. His poetry is a rich tapestry of personal, social, and spiritual themes. Magtymguly wrote with great emotion about his personal life, including the heartbreak of losing his love, and the sorrow over the death of his family. He also used his poetry as a vehicle for social commentary, criticizing injustice and corruption while praising the virtues of truth and honor. His deep Sufi-influenced philosophy is evident in his quest for spiritual enlightenment and his reflections on the nature of life and the divine. The timelessness of his work has ensured that his poems are still quoted as proverbs today, continuing to guide and inspire the Turkmen people. The legacy of Magtymguly Pyragy extends far beyond the borders of Turkmenistan. He is celebrated throughout the Turkic world and his works have been translated into many languages, sharing his message of peace, love, and unity with a global audience. His influence on Turkmen culture and foreign policy is profound, with the country's neutral status seen as a continuation of his philosophical ideas. To truly appreciate his legacy, a journey to Turkmenistan can be a transformative experience. A trip to the country would offer a chance to explore the cultural and historical sites dedicated to his memory, including the impressive monuments and museums in his honor. This is a journey that connects you with the heart of Turkmen identity and the enduring power of poetry to shape a nation.

Legend of the creation of the mausoleum: According to legend, the sultan once fell in love with a magician who only married him on three conditions. He is not allowed to hug her, look at her feet, or watch her brush her hair. Out of curiosity, the sultan broke all three promises and thus discovered their secrets: she had no bones, she didn't walk but flew and she took off her head to groom her hair. When she found out that he knew all this, she turned into a white dove and flew away. However, the sultan begged to be allowed to see her again. Their answer was to build the largest tomb in the world and leave a small opening in the dome. After his death, she will fly by and check on him. And so it happened.

The mausoleum has a square base with a side length of 27 meters. On top of the two-story substructure was a 17-meter-high dome covered with turquoise bricks. The dome, whose outer shell has been destroyed over the centuries, is believed to be the first double-shelled dome in Central Asia. The building rests on a six meter deep foundation that made the building earthquake-proof

While the walk only takes two hours through the dunes, you’ll have to spend the night here, as finding your way back to the road without the reference of a huge burning crater is very hard. Even in daylight you may get lost – it’s much better to pay for a tour. There are no hotels in the area, but most of the chaikhanas that line the main road just north of the turnoff to the crater offer beds for the night, provide meals and even sell petrol. As there are no signposts for either the turnoff or the chaikhanas; look out for the train line crossing the main road. If coming from Ashgabat, the turnoff for the crater is about 1km before the railway line, and the chaikhanas are a few kilometres afterwards.