Run & Brew in Turkmenistan

In collaboration with Mikkeller Running Club, Above Borders has arranged this unique tour to Turkmenistan. In addition to cultural impressions, this tour will give you a unique running experience and beer brewing in one of the worlds most isolated destinations.

On this tour you will get to meet the locals and experience the local culture as we will celebrate the national holiday “Akhal Teke”, visit a local brewery and spend the night by “The Gates of Hell”. Last, but not least, you will be able to run up and down the famous “Stairs of Health” at a distance of 8, 16 or 33 km of your choice. Mikkeler and Above Borders are looking forward to give you an extraordinary travel experience for life.

Itinerary

• Dag 1
• Dag 2
• Dag 3
• Dag 4
• Dag 5
• Dag 6
• Dag 7

We will meet in Istanbul Airport. Here, you will meet your tour leader and the other travelers on the tour. After a short information brief, we will together board the flight to Ashgabat.

We will land at 2 am in Ashgabat and will be taken to our hotel.

The program for the tour will already start at 11 am, so we suggest everyone to take a nap when we arrive at the hotel. We will spend the day with a city tour around Ashgabat, where we will see Independence Park, the UNESCO-site Nissa and the largest (indoor) Ferris wheel in the world..

It is a national holiday in Turkmenistan, and today we will celebrate something that the Turkmen people hold dear in their hearts: The horse. This day is also called “Akhal Teke” which is the name of the horse race which is most common in Turkmenistan. We will get up early to go to the horse race. After the race and the celebrations, we will continue to a local brewery, where we will start brewing beer.

The entire day will be spent at the the local brewery, where we will taste and brew beer – something that no foreigners have ever done before.

The first part of the program is the unique running experience on the “Stairs of Health”. You can choose between 8, 16 and 33 km. After the run, we will drive directly to Darwaza / The Gates of Hell, where we will spend the night in traditional yurts.

We start the day with breakfast and a stunning view of “The Gates of Hell”. Hereafter we will drive back to Ashgabat. On the way, we will stop at different craters, that are in the desert. At arrival in the capital we will finish with a small city tour before we end the day at the hotel

We will be taken to the airport, where we will take the plane to Istanbul at 2:55 am. From here, we part with the group, where you either go back to Denmark or continue your travels to another destination. Now, a unique travel experience richer.

Changes in the programme may accure due to local circumstances. Adjustments will be made before and during the trip, but we will do everything we can to update you regularly. In case something is cancelled, we will find an alternative activity.

Tour leader – Jonas Bang Andersen

In 2015 Jonas did an exchange semester in Seoul. During his exchange, Jonas visited North Korea which lead to the beginning of Above Borders. The many contrasting and thought provoking experiences, woke an interest to explore different and isolated destinations around the world. In the beginning of 2019, Jonas visited Turkmenistan, which shortly after became the second destination of Above Borders. Jonas’ great travel experience is now used being a tour leader on our tours to North Korea and Turkmenistan. He loves to share personal anecdotes from his many tours to the worlds most isolated destinations, and he understand to reflect upon his experiences and question the societies he meets.

The run on “Stairs of Health”

Run 8, 16 or 33 km.

As the first ones in the world, we arrange a run on the famous “Stairs of Health”. Every year, the former president Saparmurat Nijasov, commanded his ministry to walk the 8 km up the stairs. He himself took a helicopter to the top, because of his ill heart. We challenge you to do like the ministers and run the 8 km up the stairs. If you are really tough, you can also choose to run 16 or even 33 km.

Important information

Above Borders is a member of the Travel Guarantee Fund (member no: 2943), which is your guarantee that we follow Danish legislation in connection with group travel. We will always be available if you have any questions and make sure you receive material in preparation for our trip to ensure that you are best prepared.