Country
Fossil hunting in Turkmenistan
About 2,500 Late Jurassic dinosaur tracks cover a limestone plateau in the far east of Turkmenistan. The largest measure 70 by 60 centimeters. Reaching them needs a border-zone permit and an eight-hour drive, and both are part of the trip.
Khodjapil Dinosaur Plateau lies inside the Koytendag State Nature Reserve, near the Afghan and Uzbek borders. Soviet palaeontologists first reported the tracks in the 1950s and studied them from 1980. The village name Khodja Pil means holy elephants, which is what local tradition made of the prints.
Access is the hard part. Travel to the border region requires a permit. From Ashgabat the route runs by air to Turkmenabat and then about 450 kilometers south by road, which takes roughly eight hours. Arrange the permit before you plan anything else.
1 fossil site
Updated 12 September 2026
Frequently asked questions
- Do you need a permit to visit the Dinosaur Plateau in Turkmenistan?
- Yes. The plateau sits in a border zone near Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, and travel there requires a permit. Arrange it first, before you book the rest of the trip.
- How do you get to Khodjapil Dinosaur Plateau?
- Fly from Ashgabat to Turkmenabat, then drive 400 to 450 kilometers south, which takes six to eleven hours. Flights to Kerki shorten the drive. The plateau is in the Koytendag State Nature Reserve.