The capital city of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat has been termed as the most expensive city in the world for foreign workers. According to a survey conducted by consultancy firm Mercer, Ashgabat was on top and had the highest cost of living.

After Ashgabat, it was Hong Kong, then Beirut in Lebanon followed by Tokyo in Japan. We will tell you what makes this city so expensive. It is a city of marble buildings and beautiful monuments. It is famous for its market and shopping bazaars. Asia’s biggest and most colourful bazaar, the Tolkuchka Bazaar is found here.

Tourists love visiting this place as their itinerary will be filled with many different spots for sightseeing. It has the National Museum, White Marble, Museum of Fine Arts, Turkmenbashi Cableway, Turkmen Carpet Museum and Alem Cultural and Entertainment Center. These are just a few famous places in Ashgabat. There are more to add.

While the beautiful places in this city that make it a perfect spot for tourists. The city being expensive is not for the tourists to think about but it comes as a matter of concern for the ex-pats. High local inflation is what made this city so expensive. The city is facing a serious crisis. The financial crisis and has up the inflation. Food, travel and other necessities are too costly here. If you look at it in dollars, one gallon of milk here costs $15 (1112 rupees approximately).

People of the country complain about the ruler as he is filled with pride and self-praise. He is a dictator who could have helped Turkmenistan, but instead, he spent all the money building gold statues of himself.

It is sad that their No.1 place in Mercer's 2021 Cost of Living city ranking is not for any good reasons or has anything to do with the city’s beauty. But it is solely because of the socio-economic crisis and inflation. When Covid19 hit the country, they fell deeper into problems. Turkmenistan faced food shortage problems as they had no raw materials. Even with all these issues, when you take a look at pictures of Ashgabat, it paints a completely different scene in your mind.