Tour tips

Please see below for travel tips including information on expected standards of behaviour (so not to really annoy or alienate the locals!), a packing list and various facts about the country as well as sources of information that you may find interesting.

• Remember that Turkmenistan is an Islamic country and Turkmen in general are quite socially conservative, being excessively drunk in public (although drinking is a favourite hobby in Turkmenistan), wearing clothes that are too revealing (they are not the Taliban, but bikinis in the middle of town are best avoided), and other such behaviour is frowned upon. Men - talking to Turkmen women is fine, just try not to be too blatantly forward to avoid giving offence.
• Until his death The Turkmenbashi was the elected President for life in Turkmenistan, although he is now gone things change slowly so it is best to remember that under his reign there was no public criticism of him and all people in the country were required to study his works and wisdom, Frankly he never commanded absolute respect and loyalty from all his subjects and many of his more nonsensical edicts were ignored or not treated with the levity that he presumably intended, however you should avoid any outright criticism of him and the policies of the government under him, when in Rome do as the Romans do!
• Smoking in public has been banned ever since the Turkmenbashi himself gave up the habit, if you desperately need a cigarette when outside then stand in a doorway or another secluded space
• Dropping litter is not a great idea in any country but Ashgabat is, perhaps with the exception of Pyongyang, the cleanest city in the world, a dropped candy wrapper would be immediately evident, especially try not to do this in any sensitive place such as in front of the Palace of Turkmenbashi!
• Manat is the official currency of Turkmenistan and is officially valued at around 5000 to one US Dollar, however the black market rate is around 25,000 Manat to the dollar (making anyone with 40 bucks an instant millionaire!) and money changers are so prevalent that many banks wont even change money. It is generally better to pay for things in Manat as this often saves a great deal of money. For example if an international call is made from a hotel and the charge is US$5 then you can choose to pay either 5 dollars or 25,000 Manat, officially 5 dollars but in reality a mere $1. When buying higher value items such as carpets in the bazaar it is often better to offer US Dollars as they are more desirable and you may get a better deal with them
• Getting around in any populated area is reasonably simple; as in the rest of the former Soviet Union 'hailing a cab' basically means hitch-hiking, this is basically risk free and differs from hitching in the west in two ways; One - that you will be picked up probably by the first car going past, and Two - that you are expected to pay for the trip, 5 - 10,000 Manat per journey is about standard in Ashgabat, less in other cities. It is NOT possible to hitch to another city!
• Genuine taxis do exist and they can be ordered or flagged down on the street, they have meters which are generally ignored in favour of the same pricing policy as the regular hitching, use of a taxi for an hour is about 35,000 Manat and drivers will generally happily wait around outside Bazaar's etc for hours as long as you are paying the hourly rate
• At the ruined cities as well as in the modern cities there are many mosques, visitors are generally welcome to enter them but such things as taking photos, speaking too loudly, wearing inappropriate clothes etc really make a bad impression here, likewise in any of the Russian orthodox churches it is best to be quiet (no music in orthodox churches), men - take off hats, women - put a shawl over your head if you have one (a shawl that is!)