merv, herat
 

hi,
i want to plan a loop from meshed(Iran) to herat afghanistan then merv turkenistan and back to iran
how is the safety ? did someone do this route?
thanks

I drove Merv - Herat - Iran in 2010. I have not heard of anyone else doing it since, I think.

Try to ask someone who lives in Herat. In 2010 the road was not particularly safe - I was escorted in an Army convoy who stopped in a village and deployed with guns and told me to get out of there. There is a strong Taliban presence in the area.

Between Mashhad and Herat is, at least during the day, safe as far as I know.

Do you already have a Turkmenistan transit visa? Because they are unlikely to give you one to transit from Afghanistan to Iran, as those two countries have a border.

As you cannot get a double / multiple entry tourist visa for Iran, I assume you are planning on picking another one up in Herat? Unless you have a nationality which does not need a visa for Iran.

Good luck

EO