Exactly seven months ago, we finished the Mongol Rally. Our small and old Lada survived the knee-deep potholes of Turkmenistan, the ultimate test of the Pamir and the river crossings of Mongolia. It was our biggest and best adventure yet, and in just two months of spending time in that little red car, we’ve learned a lot!
Central Asia is often a destination that many people skip when traveling. We think that’s a big shame. We traveled through whole Central Asia by doing The Mongol Rally, and we fell completely in love with it. This part of the world has so much to offer, from the hospitality of the people to the vibrant markets and its beautiful nature. When you like to travel off the beaten path, Central Asia should be on the top of your list! There is still so much to discover. Maybe we can convince you with these awesome things in Central Asia that need to be on everyone’s bucket list.
It is not so easy to visit a country like Turkmenistan. You better not apply for a tourist visa unless you want to book an expensive guide for your whole visit. It’s much better (and easier) to get a transit visa. However, the problem is that this visa is issued for only 5 days. So you don’t have much time to explore the country, especially when you’re backpacking or cycling across Turkmenistan. The country is very different from anything else. The government is in control of everything and they make sure that you don’t do things they don’t want you to do. Random police checks can happen everywhere, and in Ashgabat, the military is on every street corner to watch every step you take. That’s why Turkmenistan is the seventh least visited country in the world, receiving only 7,000 visitors per year. And we were one of them!
As we are writing this, we’re already stuck for more than 12 hours on the Caspian Sea ferry to Turkmenbashi and it hasn’t even left the port yet. Getting from Azerbaijan to Turkmenistan or Kazakhstan isn’t as easy as taking a ferry from Dover to Calais. It takes a lot of patience and time (which you probably don’t have).
Since we’re participating in the Mongol Rally, we have read an overload of information about Central Asia. We didn’t know a lot about these countries and they weren’t really on our travel bucket list yet. But now we absolutely can’t wait to explore these countries and their culture.
Central Asia, also known as the “stans”, named after the countries that make up this region: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. But also Mongolia, Afghanistan and a part of China are within the Central Asian region. These are maybe among the less traveled, but perhaps most intriguing areas of Asia.