Self-Drive Adventure On Pamir Highway
About this tour
Pamir Highway, Pamir Mountains, Wakhan Corridor, Afghan Border, Bartang Valley, Ak-Baital pass (4655 m), Khaburabot pass
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1: Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Day 1: Dushanbe city tour (by bus or minivan) Your guide will meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel. The entire day is dedicated to a guided city tour by bus or minivans (depend on group size). First of you will visit Rudaki Park, National library, White House, National state seal, House of parliament, etc. After it we will walk in National park to take photos of Ministry of Inner Affairs and the second biggest National Flag in the world – 165 m high pole, 30 m wide, 60 m long. After excursion in Central Museum, you will have lunch. Then you will visit the Gurminj Museum of traditional musical instruments. To feel real life you should visit Asian Bazar. It has colourful goods, fruits and vegetables. We will see today the main highlights of Dushanbe and you will find out many interesting facts about Tajik people. Dinner will be in a traditional restaurant where you try Tajik food. The night is in Asia Grand Hotel 4*.
Day 2: Dushanbe, Tajikistan to Kalaikhum, Tajikistan
Day 2: Dushanbe – Kulob – Kalai Khum (370 km, 7-8 h, 80% asphalt – 20% dirty road) In the morning after breakfast, you will pick up your 4x4 cars from your hotel parking. Today you will drive to Kalai Khum village through Kulob city. You will see the Norak water reservoir that is called Tajik Sea. The highest point of the day is Shurabad pass (2 267 m) and after a drive along Afghanistan border starts. This part will amaze you by its unique mountains – it is already Territory of Pamir Mountains. Over the centuries, the Pamirs have inspired the world’s greatest explorers – Marco Polo, Hsuan Tsang, Mirza Muhammad Haidar. And now you also have a chance to travel here. You will drive along the natural border – Pyanj River. Having visited the Pamirs, many travellers called this giant mountain system the ocean of white and blue mountains. Overnight in “Karon Palace” Hotel 4*.
Day 3: Kalaikhum, Tajikistan to Khorog, Tajikistan
Day 3: Kalai Khum – Khorog (240 km, 6-7 hours, 30% asphalt – 70% dirty road) In the morning we will drive to Khrorog. It is perhaps one of the tiniest cities on the map of the world. It is surrounded by rocky mountains from all four sides. The town was built on the confluence of the 3 rivers where Shokhdara river and Ghund river flow into Pyanj river. On the way to Khorog, you will meet Pamir people. A number of anthropological features set the Pamir people apart from the Tajik people. Among the Pamiris, there is a high percentage of people with blonde hair, fair skin and blue eyes. Pamirs Mountains are the highest mountains in the world with the human population after the Himalayas in Tibet. Life in the mountains made traditions of local people different from Tajik people. Dinner is in a restaurant. The night is in the Lal Hotel 3*.
Day 4: Khorog, Tajikistan to Roshtqala, Tajikistan
Day 4: Khorog – Shokhdara valley – Javshangoz (240 km, 6-7 h, 20% asphalt – 80% dirty road) In the morning we will drive through the Shokhdara valley from where comes one of the sources of Panj river. You will spend the night in Javshangoz village. It is one of the most beautiful valleys in Pamir. You will meet local people living in the mountains. There are a lot of rapids, gorge and waterfalls along the way and hot spring as well. Overnight and dinner are in a homestay.
Day 5: Roshtqala, Tajikistan to Khorog, Tajikistan
Day 5: Jawshangoz – Maysara Pass – Gund Valley – Khorog (200 km, 6-7 h, 70% asphalt – 30% off-road) In the morning you will drive to Gund Valley through Mystara Pass and then continue to drive to Khorog along Pamir Highway, known as M41 Pamir Tract. It is considered the second-highest mountain road after highway of Tibet. The road lies over mountains and passes on the elevations of more than 4 000 meters above sea level. The almost inaccessible landscape and the rocky mountains of this corner of the world have given safe haven to a unique diversity of wildlife. Amongst the most common species of wild mammals are Turkestan rat, tiger-cat, grizzly bear, badger, stoat, fox, grey and red wolves. Pamirs provides a large and thriving population of Marco Polo sheep, the largest sheep in the world, with all year round and a strong population of the highly endangered snow leopard. Dinner is in a restaurant. The night is in the Lal Hotel 3*.
Day 6: Khorog, Tajikistan to Vrang, Tajikistan
Day 6: Khorog – Langar (Vrang) (240 km, 5-6 h, 20 % asphalt – 80% dirty) In the morning you will drive to Langar village. You will have many stops to visit many interesting things along the road. Above the village of Vrang, on a cliff-side pitted with caves, stands a Buddhist complex dating from 4th- 7th centuries. The village is set deep within the gorge, where steep, rocky slopes surround the verdant green valley. Although it's a secluded village, the locals are nonetheless proud of their home; houses are immaculately kept and a diversity of plants and flowers keep it synonymous with the verdant valley. A short walk out of the village will give visitors breathtaking views over the canyon and the azure river. With many years of history in this region, the valley is peppered with archaeological remains, from historical ruins to ancient petroglyphs. It's a seldom-visited village that will take visitors back in time to how the indigenous farmers have lived here for centuries. Through this simple way of life, a pure and natural beauty shines through, where nature's blues and greens shine more brightly and the only sounds that can be heard are the wind rustling through the trees and the gentle gushing of the river. Dinner and night are in a homestay.
Day 7: Vrang, Tajikistan to Bulunkul, Tajikistan
Day 7: Langar – Bulunkul Lake (150 km, 4-5 hours, 100% off-road and dirt road) The most beautiful lakes of the Pamirs are Yashil Kul and Bulunkul (Blue lakes), stretched on the altitude of 3 700 meters above sea level, are situated in the Murghab district. Today we will spend a night near them. The colour of water in Bulunkul is a subtle inter-play of violet and dark-blue in the sunlight. Species of fish like are found in abundance in the lake. There is the opportunity to see yaks, a unique species of domestic animals, sharing features of cow and sheep, traditionally used as a beast of burden apart from giving milk and meat products. On the way to the lake, you will drive over the Khargush pass (4 344 m). Dinner and night are in a homestay.
Day 8: Bulunkul, Tajikistan to Murghab, Tajikistan
Day 8: Bulunkul – Alichur – Murgab detour to Madiayan valley (220 km, 5-6 h, 50% asphalt – 50% dirty road) From Bulunkul you will drive through the off-road along the Alichur river to Raichur village. Upon arrival, you take your yaks and ride around. This is an amazing experience with a beautiful landscape in this area, sometimes if the luck is on your side, you can see Marko Polo sheep. Then you will continue to drive to Murgab. They say in the Pamir: “to arrive here and do not see Murgab is like not visiting the Pamirs at all”. After all, by the Roof of the World, we mean Murgab. In the morning we will drive to this town. On the way, you will drive over Naizatash pass (4 137 m). At the flat landscape of desolate Murgab, there are dozens of peaks with an absolute altitude over 6 000 meters above sea level. Often the landscape of Murgab is compared to the surface of the Moon by visitors, viewing the scene with outsiders’ eyes. Indeed, this comparison speaks to the unrepeatable experience of being in Murgab and the uniqueness of the place. The desolate and high-altitude climate of Murgab is the almost Arctic. Dry air, short and cool summers and almost snowless, severe, freezing winters characterize the weather. You drive in the afternoon to Modiyan valley near Murgab. Dinner and night are in a guesthouse.
Day 9: Murghab, Tajikistan to Karakul Lake, Tajikistan
Day 9: Murgab – Rangkul Lake – Karakul Lake (200 km, 5-6 h, 40% asphalt – 60% dirty road) In the morning you will drive to the largest lake of Tajikistan, Karakul Lake. But before Karakul, you will drive to another beautiful lake, Rangkul Lake. There can be organized camel riding upon your request. Right on the highway of the Pamir Tract is situated the light-blue lake of Karakul (3, 815 m), the name of which can be translated as “The Black Lake”. On the way to the lake, you will drive over the highest Ak Baital pass (4 655 m). Karakul is the highest large mountain lake in the world, excluding those in Tibet and Titicaca. The lake is situated in a meteorite crater and surrounded by swampy and wet meadows and bogs with rich flora and fauna and several endemic species. Flooding, melting permafrost and buried ice sheets shape the landscape with small hillocks and a large variety of small creeks and watercourses between 3 500 and 4 000 m. The rich plant cover is grazed by wild and domestic ungulates. Dinner and night are in a homestay.
Day 10: Karakul Lake, Tajikistan to Bartang Eco-Homestay, Савноб, Tajikistan
Day 10: Karakul Lake – Bartang Valley – Sawnob (160 km, 6-7 h, 100% off-road) Today you will drive through Bartang valley by an off-road. In 2019 the Bartang valley was included in Global Top Green destinations. It is one of the wildest and most memorable valleys in the western Pamirs. The road goes over Kok Jar pass (4000 m) to Sawnob village. You will drive along Tanimas river to Upper Bartang. The river comes from the Tanimas glacier and flows into the Bartang river. Bartang is, therefore, the No. 1 destination for those who wish to observe millennium-old manual agricultural techniques or rituals, which have already been forgotten for generations in other parts of the Pamirs. On the other hand, they are fascinated in the face of the age-old traditions that are still alive in this particularly remote region. Overnight is in a homestay.
Day 11: Bartang Eco-Homestay, Савноб, Tajikistan to Rushon Inn Guesthouse, Rŭshan, Tajikistan
Day 11: Sawnob – Rushan (170 km, 6-7 h, 100% off-road) In the morning you continue your adventure in Bartang valley. You leave Savnob village in the morning and drive uphill by narrow road to the highest village in the area – to Rovshorv village. You drive along the Bartang river from Upper Bartang to the downside of the valley. The Bartang valley still keeps the old traditions of Bartangi people and today you will find it out. Arriving in Rushan you will check-in in your guesthouse.
Day 12: Rushon Inn Guesthouse, Rŭshan, Tajikistan to Kalaikhum, Tajikistan
Day 12: Rushan – Karon Old City - Kalai Khum (180 km, 5-6 h, 20% asphalt-80% dirty road) This part of the road you did before. This area consists of high rocky mountains over 6 000 meters and only 1 road was possible to be built. Passing through the Pamirs, the tourists have the rare opportunity to not only marvel the beauty of the virgin environment but also know more about the ethnography, history and everyday life of mountain dwellers and with this imagine how the history of humanity evolved as in the story of creation. On the way, we will stop in small villages to communicate with local people and to see their life. Human settlements are located on both sides of the river in narrow mountain valleys. On the other side of the river, you will see Afghan stony villages and gardens. You will drive up to see the Old City of Karon located near Kalai Khum. Overnight in Karon Palace Hotel 4*
Day 13: Kalaikhum, Tajikistan to Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Day 13: Kalai Khum – Khoburubot – Dushanbe (290 km, 7-8 hours) In the morning we will drive to Dushanbe via a mountain road. You will drive over high Khoburubot Pass (3 252) known as Western Pamir Tract. The road goes through the most picturesque river valley and amazing gorges in the terrain, where one can stop for rest and shoot photos of the mountain and rivers. On the way you will see small villages and meet local people. Tajiks are by nature hardworking, hospitable, and kind-hearted. This nation greatly respects its traditions and folklore. This trip is attractive for the lovers of exotics, those curious about the ethnic and cultural diversity and captivated by the beauty of wild nature. Overnight is in Asian Grand Hotel 4*. Early morning transfers to the airport.
What's included
Service includes: - Full board - Accommodation: Dushanbe – “Asia Grand” Hotel 4* Kalai Khum – “Karon Palace” Hotel 4* Khorog – “Lal” Hotel 3* Jawshangoz – Home stay Langar – Home stay Bulunkul – Home stay Murgab – “Pamir” Hotel 2* Karakul– Home stay Sawnob – Home stay Rushan – Home stay - Support car - Mechanic - English speaking guide - Entrances to all museums - Drinking water during the tour - Unlimited millage
Service does not include: - Single rooms - Early check-in - Rent of cars of tourists - Fuel for cars of tourists - Visa and GBAO permit - Travel insurance
What to know
Additionally:, Car Rent, Toyota 4Runner – 1300$ per car, Car Rent, Toyota Land Cruiser 105 – 1560$ per car, Fuel – 400$ per car, Guarantee deposit – 800$ per car (we will return it at the end of the tour), Single supplement – 160$, Early check-in – 35$, Single early check-in – 60$,
Route & locations
Dushanbe, Tajikistan