Travel information
To enter Turkmenistan all travelers are required to have a transit or tourist visa. The tourist visas are delivered on the basis of an issued visa support letter, also referred to as a Letter of Invitation (LOI). OWADAN Tourism is a licensed travel agency in Turkmenistan that can provide you with the Letter of Invitation. The LOI requires usually 5-6 working days to process. Once the LOI is has been issued/approved, we will send a scanned copy of it to you by fax or email.
With an approved LOI you can apply for your visa at a Turkmen embassy or consulate abroad, or obtain it directly at the Turkmen land border at Gaudan (Bajgiran/Mashad, Iran), Farab (Bukhara, Uzbekistan), Shavat (Khiva, Uzbekistan), Khojeyli (Nukus, Uzbekistan); at the sea port in Turkmenbashi, or at the international airport in Ashgabat upon arrival.
The LOI is arranged along with an Entry Travel Pass and country registration. OWADAN Tourism can provide you with these kinds of services if you order a tour, or if you book as a minimum all transport and accommodation services through our agency for the full duration of your stay in Turkmenistan. For the registration procedure we need two (color) pass photos, which ideally you bring with you from home.
What we need to start the visa support procedure:
1. A good quality scanned copy of the photo page of your passport, sent by email. Be sure that your passport is valid for at least six months from the date of arrival in Turkmenistan 2. Occupation and place of work 3. The chosen dates and places of entry and departure into/out of Turkmenistan 4. Itinerary (travel route) inside Turkmenistan 5. Place where you plan to receive your Turkmen visa
As we submit the LOI documentation in advance of your arrival we need this information preferably 8 weeks, but at least 3 weeks prior to your arrival date in Turkmenistan. This extended period allows us time to complete your itinerary and site visits, and to determine your type of transport and accommodation en route. If we do not have this information by this time we will not be able to supply you with the LOI for your visa. Urgent LOI requests are twice as expensive as regular requests. You do not need to wait at home for the mail to arrive with your LOI; we will send you a scanned copy to your email address, so all you need is a place with access to Internet and a printer, in order to arrive at the Turkmen border with a printed LOI copy.
Transit visas are issued only directly at Turkmen embassies abroad. Please contact the relevant embassy directly for detailed information about prices and procedures.
Turkmen Embassies can be found in Armenia, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Austria, Belgium, Belarus, Germany, France, China, India, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, UK, USA, UAE, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
Check the Internet (for example at www.turkmenistanembassy.org) for the most recent information, and contact the embassies prior to arriving there to collect your Turkmen visa, as there may be differences between various embassies in terms of visa cost and duration, and processing requirements and their duration.
The international airport of Ashgabat is one of Turkmenistan’s major gateways. The National Airline of Turkmenistan operates regular flights to Frankfurt, Moscow, Kiev, Almaty, London, Birmingham, Istanbul, Abu Dhabi, Delhi, Peking, Urumqi, Amritsar and Bangkok. Since independence the national airline of Turkmenistan has completely replenished its fleet with Boeing aircrafts.
Several foreign air-carriers operate flights to Ashgabat: Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines and Uzbekistan Airlines and S7/Siberia Airlines. Turkish Airlines has daily flights between Istanbul and Ashgabat, and is most frequently used by travelers coming from Europe. Lufthansa has four flights from Frankfurt, with a stop-over in Baku (Azerbaijan), and Uzbekistan Airlines flies once a week Tashkent to/from Ashgabat, on Wednesdays.
Tourists coming from Nukus, Khiva, Bukhara or Iran can reach Turkmenistan over land: from Khiva to Dashoguz (Shavat crossing), from Nukus to Kunya Urgench (Khojeyli crossing), from Bukhara to Turkmenabad (Farab crossing), and from Mashad to Ashgabat (Gaudan/Bajgiran crossing).
Turkmenbashi port is the sea gate to Central Asia. Tourists coming from Baku in Azerbaijan can reach Turkmenistan by crossing the Caspian Sea by ferry. The drawback of the ferry is that it has an irregular timetable, so you will have to have a flexible travel itinerary and spare time built in.
By air
Domestic flights are inexpensive. Flights are serviced by 717 Boeing aircrafts. Air tickets can be purchased through our company. Turkmenistan Airlines authorities set up a maximum baggage allowance of 20 kg (this is including hand luggage).
By rail
By road
Owadan Tourism owns a vehicle fleet that is made up of several comfortable air-conditioned city cars, four-wheel drives, minibuses and buses. These are based in Ashgabat. Several additional city cars, four-wheel drives and buses are based in other large cities in the country, for easy response to last-minute travel changes, airport-hotel transfers, or border transfers.
Spring (April-June) and autumn (August-October) are the best seasons to visit Turkmenistan.
When entering the country all you need to do is fill in the type and amount of foreign currency you carry with you on the custom’s declaration form. Excess Turkmen currency can be exchanged for foreign currency at the currency exchange bureaus in major hotels, banks and at the international airport upon departure. When departing from the country you then fill out the custom’s declaration form with your remaining type and amount of foreign currency you have on you.
Turkmens adhere to a moderate form of Islam, and are respectful to people of other religions. Local traditions and customs continue to play an important role in the lives of the people. Many Turkmen women wear a large variety of colorful headscarves of their own choice and long colorful, embroidered dresses. Western dress is equally widely accepted.
Tourists intending to travel to Turkmenistan using their own means of transport (vehicle or motor bicycle) are recommended to contact our company directly for details about the related customs procedures, and about the specifics of road rules in the country.
The Turkmen diet is varied, and includes both meat dishes and soups, and as well as plenty of fruits and vegetables. However, it is advisable to bring sachets of ORS, travel tablets and anti-diarrhea tablets with you.
In Turkmenistan there are plenty of pharmacies, and many are open 24/7. Yet, for particular personal health matters, it is better to bring your own medication from home. In case you are carrying medication on prescription, it is recommended that you bring a copy of your doctor’s prescription, in case customs officials request to see such.
International telephone calls can be made from hotels, although prices are very high in comparison to public Call Centers. A better option is to use the Internet, which is usually available at all hotels with three stars or higher. In several hotels WiFi Internet is available, but it is best to inform at our travel agency if the hotel you select has WiFi Internet, prior to bringing a laptop with you.
The national language spoken in Turkmenistan is Turkmen, which is a language from the family of Turkic languages. Widely used as a second language is Russian (a Slavic language). While the post-independence generation is increasingly speaking other foreign languages such as English, French and Turkish, you will still find it difficult to travel and communicate without the assistance of a translator/guide.
While the National History and Ethnography Museum in Ashgabat offers excursions/museum tours in a variety of languages, and the staff of most hotels with three stars and up will speak some English, most other sites of interest in the country do not offer extensive information in foreign languages.
It is for this reason that OWADAN Tourism employs a team of guides/translators that can accompany you on your tour through Turkmenistan and that will be able to bring alive the country’s sites and help meet its friendly people. | ||||||
Turkmenistan airlines operate regular air connections from Ashgabat to five other major Turkmenistan cities (Turkmenabat, Mary, Dashoguz, Turkmenbashi, and Balkanabat). Infrequent flights operate between some of these cities as well. Flight and time tables are regularly updated; when composing itineraries our team will be able to suggest to you the use the most optimal air connections.
These same five major Turkmenistan cities are also easily accessible by rail from Ashgabat. Turkmen State Railways has recently obtained new train compartments and locomotives, which allows for comfortable travel conditions in both summer heat and winter cold. Most trains operate night services. Tickets can be purchased through our company. 
The Turkmenistan road network is relatively well-developed. Motorists have at their disposal a extensive network of fuel stations run by the Turkmen National Oil Company. Most stations, especially those on intercity routes, are open 24 hours. Almost all fuel stations sell a range of fuel, including standard (92 octane) and super (95 octane) as well as diesel and car accessories.
Turkmenistan’s climate is extremely continental with hot, dry summers. Midsummer temperature can reach 45 °C. However, such temperatures are quite bearable because of the very low humidity. Winter is mild with average temperatures below freezing for only a few days in January and February. However in the north of the country winter is severe. January temperatures in Dashoguz average - 23 degrees Celsius. Most rainfall occurs in March and April.
The national currency is the Turkmen manat. One manat is divided into100 tenge. Notes come in 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 500 denominations, coins in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50. You can exchange US Dollars (preferably 
Travel in Turkmenistan is entirely safe. 
Sun stroke and dehydration are the two main risks to your health in the Turkmen sunshine. A head cover and drinking sufficient fluids (water, juice, soda, tea, soup, etc) will largely protect you against these risks.
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