Wonders Of The Silk Road

Arrive in Ashgabat, a once prosperous frontier town along the Trans-Caspian railway, which was destroyed by a massive earthquake in 1948, only to rise from its ashes and rubble to become the capital of an independent Turkmenistan in 1991. The city then became the personal project of President Niyazov, who set about forming it in his own unique image, renaming the streets and changing the face of the city on an almost daily basis as he approved the destruction of its suburbs to make way for a number of controversial planning projects. For those arriving on time today our Leader plans to meet you in the hotel reception at 12pm for the welcome meeting and to take us on the afternoon city tour. We have the opportunity to explore the city on a tour that will take in some of the highlights of both the Soviet and Niyazov reigns. We visit Independence Park where we will see the Independence Monument, a large structure designed to resemble traditional Turkmen hats. We will also pay a visit to the Turkmenistan National Museum of History, a rich cache of some 150,000 objects and artefacts that date back to Neolithic times and the Bronze Age era of the Margiana civilisation. If you would like to receive a complimentary airport transfer today, you'll need to arrive into Ashgabat International Airport (ASB), which is 20 minutes from the hotel. For those arriving on flights in the early hours of this morning, we'll arrange for your hotel room to be available immediately upon your arrival. For anyone arriving before today please contact us to book additional nights accommodation. Please note that if you wish to join the afternoon city tour today, you must arrive at the hotel by 12pm. If you are booking your own flights, we recommend giving yourself at least one to two hours to clear the airport. From the airport to the hotel is around 15 minutes' drive, so therefore the latest your flight can arrive is 9am. Should you miss the welcome meeting, your Leader will inform you of any essential information at 6pm.

This morning we aim to visit the city's lively Sunday morning market before driving out to the outskirts of the city to the once mighty fortress of Nissa. Founded in the 3rd century BC as the capital of the 1st Parthian Empire, its walls and towers (43 in total) protected the royal palace, Zoroastrian temples and the power and prestige of successive ruling dynasties until its eventual destruction at the hands of the Mongols in the 13th century.

Our destination today is the town of Mary, our gateway to the ruins of ancient Merv. We travel via the Kaka Oasis and will also stop to view the fortress of Abiverd, the remains of a now long vanished medieval city that once enjoyed a reputation for its superb handicrafts, some samples of which can still be seen littered across the site in the form of broken shards of exquisite pottery