{"id":822,"date":"2025-04-22T10:27:07","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T10:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/?p=822"},"modified":"2025-04-22T11:59:55","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T11:59:55","slug":"it-just-got-easier-for-brits-to-visit-this-secretive-country-home-to-the-door-to-hell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/22\/it-just-got-easier-for-brits-to-visit-this-secretive-country-home-to-the-door-to-hell\/","title":{"rendered":"It just got easier for Brits to visit this secretive country home to the \u2018Door to Hell\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Turkmenistan is shrouded in mystery (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Imagine living in a country where Whatsapp<\/a> is banned, the internet and Wi-Fi are virtually non-existent, and you can drive any car you want \u2014 as long as it\u2019s white. That\u2019s exactly how life is for the citizens of Turkmenistan, one of the most secretive countries in the world.<\/p>\n

The Central Asian country is also one of the least visited, with just 15,000 tourists travelling there each year \u2014 but that could all be about to change.<\/p>\n

For years, Turkmenistan has been notoriously difficult to visit. Travellers from the UK needed a visa<\/a>, as well as a letter of invitation to support the application (or a letter from relevant companies or ministries if you were going there on business).<\/p>\n

Even then, the decision on whether a visa would be granted could take up to a month, and were often rejected with little explanation.<\/p>\n

But now, a new law has been introduced that will make it easier for foreigners to enter the country. Tourists can fill in a simplified online visa form, and the letter of invitation has been scrapped. <\/p>\n

The new electronic visa could be a game-changer for Turkmenistan\u2019s tourism industry, one of the most sparsely populated nations on the continent.<\/p>\n

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Is there anything for tourists to see in Turkmenistan?<\/h2>\n

Turkmenistan is bordered by Kazakhstan<\/a>, Uzbekistan<\/a>, Afghanistan<\/a> and Iran<\/a>. Once part of the Soviet Union, becoming independent after its dissolution in 1991, the country has a population of 6.5 million, making it the 35th most populated nation in Asia.<\/p>\n

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Merv is the oldest and best preserved cities along the Silk road route (Picture: Getty Images\/iStockphoto)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The city of Merv, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, is considered one of the great cities of the Islamic world \u2013 and once was an important stop on the Silk Road, a caravan route which was used for trade with China until the mid-15th Century.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s history stretches much further than that. In 1972, archaeologists discovered the fortress town of Gonur Depe, which date back to the Bronze Age. It was thought that it was abandoned after the nearby Margab River naturally changed course. The settlement continues to be excavated to do this day, as experts work to uncover its secrets.<\/p>\n

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Kipchak mosque is one of the largest in central Asia (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The capital city, Ashgabat, also holds the oddly-specific Guinness World Record for the place with the \u2018highest density of white marble-clad buildings\u2019. <\/p>\n

Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, Chairman Of The People\u2019s Council of Turkmenistan, and president of Turkmenistan until 2022, lives in a white palace and travels around town in a white limousine. It\u2019s no surprise then that the capital is known as the \u2018City of White Marble\u2019. It\u2019s mosque, Kipchak mosque, one of the largest in Central Asia, is also white.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most famous site in Turkmenistan thought is the Darvaza gas crater, often dubbed \u2018The Door to Hell\u2019<\/a>, which has been burning continuously since 1968.<\/p>\n

No one knows how the pit was first formed before it was set aflame by Soviet engineers. Perhaps there was simply no one around \u2014 or maybe its classified.<\/p>\n

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However many of the sights, such as the Darvaza gas crater, are stunning (Picture: Getty Images\/iStockphoto)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Some believe engineers were drilling for oil when a rig gave way and punched into a massive underground natural gas cavern, forming the huge crater, 70 metres wide and 30 metres deep.<\/p>\n

One person who has experienced Turkmenistan for himself is a content creator named Chris, who is on a mission to visit every country in the world for his YouTube channel Authentic Traveling. Speaking about his visit to the crater, he said: \u2018It is amazing, it is so hot. <\/p>\n

\u2018You can feel these waves of massive heat coming<\/a>. Sometimes the wind blows it away, it gets your face so incredibly hot. It\u2019s absolutely amazing to come here to see this really, really cool wonder.\u2019<\/p>\n

Unusual rules and laws in Turkmenistan<\/h2>\n

If you decide to head to Turkmenistan, you might want to take note of some rather unusual rules in place in the country.<\/p>\n

If you head to Ashgabat, it won\u2019t take long to notice that all the cars on the streets are either white or silver \u2013 and it\u2019s completely deliberate.<\/p>\n

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Cars of all colours other than white or silver were banned in 2018 \u2013 with black cars and those of other colours needing to be repainted (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The car rule has come to the country of Berdimuhamedow, who reportedly made the rule after ordering the impounding of all black cars in the capital in 2018.<\/p>\n

Police were said to have subsequently seized black cars and told the owners they had to pay to have them repainted white or silver. The ban was later extended to vehicles of all other colours.<\/p>\n

No official reason was given for the directive, although it\u2019s known that Mr Berdimuhamedow is a fan of the colour white (hence the aforementioned white palace and limo), believing it to be lucky.<\/p>\n

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Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow is the man behind the white car ruling (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Not only do cars have to conform to the colour rules, but they also have to be sparkling clean. In fact, visitors report that driving with a dirty car can land you in trouble with the police, who strictly enforce the rules.<\/p>\n

But the bizarre rules in Turkmenistan don\u2019t end there. <\/p>\n

For example, don\u2019t expect to be able to freely use the internet if you visit as you can in other parts of the world. <\/p>\n

Access to the Internet is heavily regulated there and only a small fraction of the population can access it, with most websites banned other than local ones accessible via the Turkmenet, a censored version of the web available only in Turkmen.<\/p>\n

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Capital city Ashgabat is also decked in white (Picture: Getty Images\/iStockphoto)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And you won\u2019t be able to drop your friends back a home a message telling them about the visually breathtaking sights of the capital. <\/p>\n

Most social media apps, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are blocked in Turkmenistan, along with WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube. While many get round the ban by using VPNs, these are frequently shut down by the authorities. <\/p>\n

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