Khiva to Bukhara through Turkmenistan, 6 days
Khiva → Kunya-Urgench → Darvaza gas crater → Ashgabat → Ancient Merv → Bukhara
From €955 per personView tour
Queen of the world · Turkmenistan
Ancient Merv
Layers of cities spanning two thousand years.
Merv was one of the great cities of the Silk Road; in the 12th century, as the Seljuk capital, it may have been the largest city in the world. It was destroyed by the Mongols in 1221.
Today its ruins cover a vast area near the town of Mary: walled cities from different eras sit side by side, crowned by the restored Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar.
- Time needed
- 1 day
- Best time
- April–May and October–November
- Getting there
- Fly or drive from Ashgabat to Mary (about 5–6 hours by road), or continue to Bukhara via Turkmenabat.
- UNESCO World Heritage
- Inscribed 1999
Don’t miss
Highlights
- 01
Sultan Sanjar Mausoleum
A 12th-century mausoleum with a double dome.
- 02
Great and Little Kyz Kala
Corrugated mud-brick fortress-houses.
- 03
Erk Kala
The oldest citadel, from the Achaemenid period.
- 04
Gyaur Kala
The walled city of the Sasanian era.
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