Pakistan motorcycle tour: biking off the beaten track
On our Pakistan motorcycle tour, you’ll ride between some of the world’s highest mountains on the famed Karakoram Highway. Maneuver switchbacks on mountain passes more than 3,500m above sea level. Follow glacial rivers to hidden valleys.
And then some.
In two weeks of riding on our Pakistan motorcycle tour, you’ll encounter more landscapes, cultures, and questionable roads than you ever thought possible in such a short time span. Trust us: there are few road trips in the world that can compare. Join our Pakistan motorcycle tour and see for yourself!
Tour gallery
Tour itinerary
When traveling in Pakistan, things don’t always go according to plan. From spontaneous chai invites to landslides blocking whole highways, delays can happen anywhere. Flexibility is key. If we have to make changes to our Pakistan motorcycle tour on the fly, don’t fret; we’ll still try to do everything mentioned.
Spring and late autumn: We’ll head directly toward Besham and the start of the famous Karakoram Highway. It’s the only route north open at the time!
Summer (July – September): Strike out into the foothills of the Himalayas, dipping into Pakistan-controlled Kashmir before following the river to Naran, a town tucked between green, forested mountains.
No matter the time of year or which route we take, we’ll spend the night in Chilas, a key stopover point on the banks of the famed Indus River.
The last day of the long drive up! We’ll rest our heads in peaceful Minapin, at an organic guesthouse surrounded by fruit trees at the base of the towering Rakaposhi mountain (7,778m).
Time for a touristy day! We’ll visit the famous Hunza valley, with a stop at a royal hilltop fort to get an introduction to the region. After lunch at a women-owned cafe, we’ll ride up the Karakoram Highway to Gulmit, one of the most liberal villages in Hunza.
We’ll stay in Gulmit, but roam around in Upper Hunza (Gojal) with stops at a brilliant white glacier and a nerve-wracking suspension bridge.
Time to start moving in a new direction! We’ll head back down the Karakoram Highway towards Gilgit, the bustling capital of Gilgit-Baltistan.
To Baltistan we go! We’ll head along the relatively new road to Skardu: lots of twisting turns past picturesque villages hanging on the sides of the Karakoram mountains over the banks of the roaring Indus River.
No long ride today! We’ll roam around in Shigar, checking out a beautifully restored fortress and learning about farming in the area from a local woman who runs her own guesthouse.
Further east we roll toward Khaplu, the last proper town on the way to the border with India. It was from here that Islam entered the northern mountain regions of Pakistan, and it’s easy to see in all the ancient wooden mosques scattered throughout the area.
Today is all about savoring the quiet life at the edge of Pakistan. We’ll visit the most picture-perfect fort in the region, nibble trout fresh from mountain stream water, and wander up to an ancient mosque (or… temple?) for views over the whole valley.
Back west we go – it’s time to start making our way back to Islamabad. We’ll break up the journey in Skardu, the capital of Baltistan.
A night of rest and relaxation in the rose garden before we say our goodbyes to mountainous Gilgit-Baltistan.
You’ve been here before – you know the drill!
The final long ride on our Pakistan motorcycle tour! We’ll head down through the windy ways in Mansehra and Abbottabad to the uncannily calm streets of Islamabad.
A bit of rest on the final tour day! We’ll spend the day going around the calm and quiet Islamabad, getting any last minute souvenir shopping done, and, if everyone is up for it, take a trip to visit the truck artists who decorated your motorcycles!
Testimonials
Tour organizers
Sanaullah Marwat (Local)
Sanaullah (Sana) is from western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. He’s biked literally all the way from one end of the country to the other in between working as a security expert for the UN and British High Commission. These days, he heads his own adventure tour company, Coyote Trail. He knows everything there is to know about Pakistan, has a devious sense of humor, and is a menace on a motorcycle. In a good way. Usually.
Alex Reynolds (Foreign)
Alexandra (Alex) is a solo female traveler, writer, and photographer from the United States. She began traveling Pakistan in 2016, and started leading tours in 2019. Despite how unusual it is for women in Pakistan to ride bikes, she went on the first of many motorcycle trips in Pakistan in 2018, and has since been asked if she’s a man more times than she can count.
Pricing
US$2750
per person
Includes everything: motorcycle, helmet, safety gear, and all the basic tour stuff.
US$4950
for two people
Want to ride together on one bike? No problem! +1s can also ride in the backup vehicle if desired. This price covers two people, two sets of safety gear, and one bike.
Inclusions
Included
- Motorcycle rental
- Accommodation during the tour (twin sharing)
- 3x meals daily during the tour
- Drinking water
- Entry fees
- Letter of invitation for your visa
- Airport transfer
- Mechanic and backup vehicle
- Body armor rental (optional)
- Helmet rental (optional)
Not included
- Motorcycle and travel insurance
- Damages to the motorcycle
- Plane tickets
- Visa fees
- Comms devices
- Snacks
- Alcohol
- Souvenirs
- Tips for guides and drivers (optional)
Payment and cancellations
To secure your spot on our Pakistan motorcycle tour, all you have to do is pay a $750 deposit via bank transfer, Wise (all major cards and most currencies), or credit card (Pakistani rupees). A deposit of $750 is required to secure your position on the tour.
Tour cancellation policy
If you need to cancel your tour for some reason, our cancellation policy is:
- 2+ months in advance: Full refund minus deposit
- 1-2 months in advance: 50% refund minus deposit
- < 1 month in advance: 25% refund minus deposit
- < 2 weeks in advance: Too last minute! No refunds, but we can move your payment (minus deposit) to another tour.
FAQ
Our Pakistan motorcycle tour will take you to the most popular tourist sights and go off the beaten track, well beyond what most first-time tourists see. You’ll visit the Pakistani side of the disputed Kashmir region, experience peaceful Ismaili communities in the villages of Hunza, bike past shepherds and their flocks in the Hindu Kush mountains, meet the (literally) colorful and unique Kalasha people in their secreted valleys, and weave through streets crowded with rickshaws and vendors in Mardan.
Beyond that, you also get…
- Fresh bikes: You’ll be on a Suzuki GS 150. The small but sturdy local favorite is, in our opinion and experience, the best motorcycle for motorcycle travel in Pakistan.
- Small group: Group size is purposefully small for a more intimate experience… and less chaos on the road.
- Group mechanic: A mechanic and backup truck will come with us the whole way. No need to worry about breakdowns or loading luggage (unless you want to). Plus, if your butt/back/belly/soul isn’t feeling it for a day the passenger seat is yours.
Smaller groups are better for everyone, so we cap our motorcycle tours at 6 bikes. If riders want to bring a passenger along that’s totally fine, and we have 1-2 spots for non-bikers to sit in the recovery vehicle if desired.
We use Suzuki GS 150 motorcycles for our tours. They’re small but incredibly hardy; we would know as we’ve driven them all over Pakistan ourselves! Easy enough for riders of any level, common enough to be easily serviced, and low-key enough to keep onlookers at bay, they’re the ideal motorcycle for touring around Pakistan.
For future tours, we may offer larger bikes upon request. Feel free to ask and see what’s possible.
If you don’t feel like transporting your safety gear over to Pakistan, no problem! We can provide:
- Body armor that goes on over your clothes. It protects your chest, back, elbows, shoulders, and knees.
- Gloves to protect your hands.
- Helmet certified by DOT. No hack helmets with us!
We can provide all of this so long as you let us know in advance and provide us with your (estimated) size.
Note that we cannot offer riding boots on rent – it’s too complicated to have all the different sizes ready for everyone!
Packing for trips to Pakistan’s mountains is tricky: you need to be prepared with clothes for both warm weather and cold weather. We recommend at the very least:
- Thermal and lightweight base layers
- Rain layers – getting wet is no fun!
- Windbreaker
- Gloves and hat
- Sunglasses
- Camera
- Buff or similar necktube to protect from dust
- Reusable water bottle – we’ll provide clean drinking water
We don’t require motorcycle licenses to join the tour (we’ve never been asked for ours!). However, we do require that you have experience and are comfortable riding a motorcycle. Our group will be riding on all kinds of roads, so it’s not the most ideal time to learn to ride!
Riding a motorcycle in Pakistan can be a bit more hectic than riding in other countries. If you’ve traveled anywhere in South Asia (such as India) you can get an idea of what traffic could be like.
That’s not to say that it’s impossible! The majority of our tour goes through Pakistan’s mountains, meaning roads are more quiet… if more broken at times.
Here’s a video we put together to give you an idea of what you can expect. (Note that we won’t be taking the most challenging roads at the end!)
Altitude sickness is always a risk when going more than 2,000 meters (6,500′) above sea level… which we will! The highest altitude we’ll be traveling to is Khunjerab Pass at 4,693m (15,397 ft)—weather permitting—and our accommodations will be in the 2,000m+ range.
However, we’ve never had any guests have serious issues with altitude, aside from minor head=aches and some nausea. If you’re concerned about altitude on the trip, we recommend talking to your doctor before leaving to see if they advise you to travel with Diamox, a common altitude sickness prevention drug.
Weather is varied. Islamabad will be hot (up to 40°C or so, depending on if it’s rained), while mountains will be warm during the day and chilly at night (sometimes 20-30°C during the day and 10°C at night). Rain is unpredictable and can be hard when it falls. Pack both light clothes, warm layers, and a raincoat.
Laundry services are offered by some hotels… but don’t count on it. You’ll be able to wash clothes in sinks or buckets and hang them out to dry when we’re in the mountains.
Yes, the tour price is based on shared twin rooms. That means you’ll be sharing a room with another guest on the tour. If you’re coming with a friend we’ll make sure you’re in the same room, of course. Depending on who’s signed up, men and women do have to share rooms sometimes.
If you’re not comfortable sharing a room with another guest for any reason, you can also pay an extra $500 to have a private room for yourself throughout the whole trip.
We always giggle when people ask us about offroad – even the main roads in Pakistan can feel like offroad at times!
Jokes aside, the main roads we take on the tour (the Karakoram Highway, Skardu road, etc.) are paved in most places and generally in good condition. However, landslides are frequent occurrences in high mountains, and so there are short sections of the road that can be quite broken and rough. That being said, all of our guests have handled these sections well, and we don’t rush through them. No pressure!
Of course, we know some of you are eager to put your skills to the test. If everyone in the group is a strong rider, we can always add a bit of… extra adventure into the mix. There’s no shortage of it in Pakistan 😉
