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The Atlas Obscura Guide To Ashgabat

7 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Updated June 3, 2019

Unusual Attractions in Ashgabat

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Wedding Palace

If you want to get married in the White Marble City of Ashgabat, you should do it in this surreal disco ball building.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

The Walk of Health

This harsh mountain path was built as a strange attempt to improve the health of Turkmen citizens.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Turkmenbashi's Land of Fairy Tales

An eccentric dictator's take on a Turkmen version of Disneyland.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Arch of Neutrality

A dictator's gold statue once rotated to face the sun on a 75-meter high marble tower.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Giant Ruhnama

A huge monument to a bizarre book written by Turkmenistan’s longstanding dictator.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Independence Monument of Turkmenistan

Sumptous memorial to a controversial independence.

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Türkmenbaşy Ruhy Mosque

The controversial final resting place of the equally controversial first president of Turkmenistan.

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Turkmenistan and the Gates of Hell

On this sweeping, eclectic adventure through Turkmenistan, marvel at the towering white-marble structures of Ashgabat, roam through barren deserts and a world-class canyon, and spend the night camped out beside the flaming Gates of Hell.

Explore Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

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