Choosing a trip
This is the most asked and common question for almost everybody out of Asia, who plan to visit Tajikistan, or Uzbekistan. And we can proudly reply: YES! Even if these countries borders with Afghanistan and have the same “- stan,” suffix at the end, it is completely safe for visitors. We do not have the “dress code” for all –stan countries, except for our Afghan Wakhan trips, where the women have to cover head and legs, but even there, no need for “burqa” – the face cover.
Local hospitality - considered as one of the most important attractions of this country.
We offer quite a variety of tours for all types of travelers. Our tours divided into: Trekking Trips, Horse Riding Trips, Mountaineering Trips, Climbing Trips, Custom Trips and Scheduled Trips.
Pamir Trips offer variety of Family tours to all countries from our list of destinations, except Afghanistan. The remoteness of the region and specificity (no baby food, medical assistance centers, the lack of pediatricians) as well as altitude and harsh climate does not allow us to prove Afghan Wakhan as a perfect place for family vacations with children. As for the other countries, we are happy to organize your holiday in customs manner.
The minimum age of children (in Family tours) depends on destination and style of the planned tour (the presence of active recreation: trekking camping and etc). You can discuss all these details with our sales agents visiting contact page.
Who can travel with Pamir Trips?
Everyone. If your age is 18 or 80, we will find a right trip for you to suite your interests and comfort level. Most of our adventure tours (except mountaineering) do not require any special skills, our sales managers will help you to decide, which trip is right for you. Even most of the treks with camping do not require a previous experience; the tents are easy to set up even for first time campers.
How many people would be on the trip?
We focus on small groups, which allow the guests to explore the sights easier. Our philosophy is an individual approach to each person, taking into account all his needs and interests. In addition, the small groups allow staying flexible during the tours, with lower impact to the nature during camping. The average number of the groups you can join is 6 to 12 people. Our Multi-country Trips mostly designed for off-road vehicles or special-purposed buses, and sometimes, consist of up to 24 people in a group.
Can I just do part of the trip?
According to the Terms and Conditions of our company, you won’t be reimbursed for any parts of the trip unused, but you can stop your travelling if you need to leave some days earlier or by any other personal needs. If you need, an extra day before trip starts, or at the end of your trip, please let us know an advance and we try to accommodate your requirements.
Can I make any changes to the itinerary of my group trip, either before or during the trip?
Before booking of your group trip, please make sure, that the itinerary fully suites your interests, because during the tour we are unable to change the program for individual request. However, if the group knows each other well, if you are a group of friends decided to travel together, you can get in touch with a specialists from our “Custom Trips” and they will tailor a program just for you.
Can I add an extra night on the beginning or end of my group trip, either before or during the trip?
Of course, you can. Just let us know, in order to make a special booking.
All our tours carefully designed by professional international and experienced local guides trained in first aid and basic safety in mountains. We always try to accompany you with your native language speaking guides, this not only for easier communication, but also for more brightly explanation of all the charms of nature and convey of the true essence of the cultural heritage of our country. We follow the “leave no trace” principles during camping and all our tours based on ecologically friendly outlines.
Our trips last from Day-trips to Twenty-eight days combined trekking and starts from $100/person. The cost includes everything from the day of meeting the guests at the airport or the borders of neighborhood countries, except international flights tickets.
If you travelling solo, you have chance to join the groups in Pamir Trips, to find like-minded people and share experiences.
Mostly during our trips, we use shared rooms, but if you feel uncomfortable, you have choice to pay the single supplement (mostly in big hotels)
Usually, we accommodate people of the same genders (signed in passports) in shared rooms. If you do not identify to the gender signed in your passport or feel uncomfortable, please let us know at the time of booking and we arrange the rooming arrangement accordingly.
Can we book a triple room?
During our trips we use Single, Twin, Triple or Multi-share bases rooms. Almost all the bookings are made in advance, so the requests for individual rooms during the ours are not always guaranteed.
Can I book a single room?
Most of our tours offer Single supplement accommodation; however, rooming organized in twin share bases. Please try to ask for a single supplement at the time of booking. During the trips to remote areas and wilderness treks, individual accommodation is limited.
I have special dietary requirements – will they be catered for?
We try our best to adjust all the dietary requirements, but it is hard to guarantee in remote areas and during off the beaten treks. Please let us know an advance, of any food requirements or allergies and we will pass this information to your guides and service providers, to figure out. We would be grateful if you bring the list of your dietary requirements written in local languages, in order if you eat something away from the group.
What is the food like?
All food used during the trips is organic; we provide three meals a day with unlimited snacks. Hot drinks like tea and coffee are an integral part of the food, and filtered water is always available. According to some of our customers, this is the best food they have eaten during camping trips. The Asian kitchen is famous with variety of delicious culinary, so we try to keep you flexible in choosing the food in big cities. You can eat away from the group if you want, according to your own desire and budget.
Can I drink water in countries I visit?
In most of our trips, we provide bottled water about 2 liters per day per person. During the treks, we use the filter to clean water and boiled water. But, to drink water from rivers and springs is not a good idea, Pamir Trips recommends to use the filter or to boil the water from natural sources.
Before departure
Every trip in our website consist of Trip Notes, detailed Itinerary with time and distances and trek levels, if the tour has treks. In Trip Notes you can find specific facts about your planned trip.
To have a travel insurance is very important for the customers interested in tours associated with a certain health risk, political instability of the region visited, for evacuation by helicopter or the provision of emergency medical care. Pamir Trips have agreement with both – private and military Helicopter services in Tajikistan, but we can arrange helicopter evacuation only if you have a travel insurance, able to cover at least US$ 30,000.
Tajikistan Visa
To enter Tajikistan, you need to get Tajik Visa and if you are planning to visit GBAO area (High Pamirs) you need a GBAO permission in addition. To get Tajik Visa is possible
- Online (Electronic Visa or E-Visa)
- from Tajik Embassies or Consulates in your countries
- from Dushanbe airport upon arrival. (After a brief interruption in the summer of 2017, it is possible once again to obtain a visa on arrival in Dushanbe airport.
Online (Electronic Visa or E-Visa)
From June 2016 Electronic Visa system in Tajikistan become active. Now Visa for Tajikistan together with GBAO entrance permit you can get online, just visit www.evisa.tj There are some steps of filling the application form and payment by credit card. The E-visa costs $50 and GBAO permit $20 per person. After your visa application confirmed, you will receive a black & white paper with your Tajik Visa numbers and red stamp of GBAO permission. You can print it and keep it with you till your presence in Tajikistan.
Double Entrance visa
Our Multi-country trips to Afghanistan require Double Entry Tajik visa. To apply for Double Entry visa is impossible via E-visa system, only some Consulates and Embassies can give you Double Entry.
To make the process easier for our customers, Pamir Trips find a fast and effective way to get the Double Entrance visa:
We advise our customers, who is interested in travelling to Afghanistan through Tajikistan and back, to get two Single Entrance visa and use the first one for entrance to Afghanistan and the second one for departure from Afghanistan. Normally if you apply for Tajik e-visa online to www.evisa.tj you will get your visa confirmation within 24 hours. But, please note, that for the second Single Entrance visa you can apply only when the first visa is already active, it means after you cross the border to Tajikistan. So, the best way is apply for the second visa from Dushanbe, till you reach Khorog than Ishkashim in two-three days you will already have your second e-visa ready. All this is against the rules, so keep your second visa at the bottom of your backpack and do not show it at the Tajik-Afghan border pass checkpoint.
Visa-free travel
Citizens of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine (90 days) do not need a visa to visit Tajikistan.
Afghanistan Visa and Wakhan entrance permits
Travelling in Wakhan of Afghanistan requires except Afghanistan Visa to have a special Wakhan entrance permits. For Afghanistan Visa you can apply to Consulate or Embassies in your countries, but the easiest way is to get the Afghan Visa from Khorog – the center of Pamirs in Tajikistan.
Pamir Trips is organizing tours and treks to safe parts of Afghanistan about 10 years, during this period we made friendly relationship with Afghan Consulate based in Khorog of Tajikistan. We can get your Afghan Visa in half an hour!
The cost of Afghan visa is different for different countries: For USA citizens it is about $200 per person, For European countries it various from $130 to $180 per person. And do not forget to bring two 3x4 size (passport size) photos for Visa application. The prices mentioned here relate to 2018, for next year, please contact us to confirm.
The Wakhan Entrance permits we organize for you through our Afghani guide in Sultan Ishkashim town of Afghanistan.
Safety of our customers during the trips is the first priority of Pamir Trips. Before starting the trips, we always try to keep our clients informed about the situation of places, where we plan to go. In case of political instability or conflicts, we urgently evacuate our customers to safe zones. Our guides and tour leaders trained to orient on the spots and can change the program to ensure the safety of the group.
For payment for the tour package or any other services, Pamir Trips accepts only US dollars and Euros. If you want to pay by another currency, you have to change them to USD or EUROs according to the rate of the moment of payment.
ATMs
The ATMs in Tajikistan accept MasterCard and Visa cards. The limit is $200 per one try, if you want to get money in dollars and the same rate for Euros. If you want to get money in local currency – Somoni, there is no limits. Also possible to use the terminals of banks. The limit is the same as from ATMs. We highly recommend to get or change money in big cities, or administrative centers of the regions, in the villages and remote areas there is no ATMs at all or they are empty.
Exchange money
In Tajikistan, we highly recommend to change money in banks or big hotels with three and more starts. To change money in the street or market places (bazaar) is illegal and not safe. Most of the big trading centers have money exchange offices inside.
On your trip
Airport transfers
To Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan you can arrive only by flights or by land from neighboring countries. For Afghanistan and specially for travelling in Wakhan, we recommend entering from Pamirs of Tajikistan. This option brings opportunity to get Afghanistan visa from Consulate in Khorog and get prepared for 10-20 days trekking in remote areas.
We consider your comfort, location, design, character, historical interest and choose the right places to start your vacation from. Our guides and drivers always meet the customers in the airports and land borders, we always let you know an advance about all the changes or innovations in itineraries. Safety of the customers is a first priority.
Are airport transfers included in the trip price? If not, how much will a taxi cost from the airport?
Generally, all our tours include to/from airport transfers. We take care of your luggage transfer to your hotel as well. The cost of the transfer will inevitably be more expensive than a taxi, but it is important to remember that you are paying for a private service and a trusted driver who will offer the security travelers often desire when they arrive into a foreign country.
We have a wide range of campsites during our active tours. The facility of the campsites depends on the geographic characteristics of the region, which we plan to explore. Most of the campsites in remote areas and off the beaten tracks have limited facilities at a minimum. Each client (a couple, the family) will be placed in their own tent and the tour guides and assistants will help to deliver and assemble the tents. For kitchen, we use separate large tents with high ceilings, where the staff prepare the food. Nothing special, we just try to arrange some comfort after a good hike at the end of the day. We provide with three-season tents and mats, but you can bring your own camping equipment, if you feel more comfortable to use your own gear. The customers should note that the treks in remote areas include some inconveniences and limitations, but on the other hand, this is a peace of mind and a life in harmony with nature. Most of our camping tours we support with cook and guides to provide some comfort and save more time for you to enjoy your holiday. More information about the provided and rented camping equipment you can find in Rental List.
What standard of accommodation should I expect?
Normally we provide accommodation in high-standard hotels in big cities, for villages and remote areas we stay in local guesthouses, homestays or yurts. Single supplement is available in hotels and most of the guesthouses can provide this service. In homestays and yurts, the accommodation is mostly basic. Please let us know in advance, if you are interested in single occupancy. Most of homestays and nomads’ yurts with no beds may offer to sleep in bedded mattresses on the floor. During trekking, we also take into account the needs of our customers to place in one local, two-place and three-seat tents. All our equipment we buy from the world’s leading brands who guarantee the reliability and quality of their products. We can provide with two-three season tents, mats and kitchen tents with kitchen facilities, but the sleeping bags you have to bring your own. If you prefer to sleep in your own sleeping bag even in homestays, you are welcome.
What kind of grand transportation is used during the tours?
We focus on small groups, which allow the guests to explore the sights easier. Our philosophy is an individual approach to each person, taking into account all his needs and interests.
We use exceptionally comfortable SUVs for our trips, especially on the secondary roads of the Great and Little Pamirs. Each car is designed for 3-4 people only, including your guide. For city excursions, especially in Uzbekistan, we use minivans and if the group is bigger than 10 people are, we use minibuses. All the cars we use in warmer areas equipped with air conditioners. For multi-country tours, we use the trains and flights as well. For mountaineering expeditions, especially to drop the gear and customers to the base camp of Peak Somoni, Peak Korzhenevskaya, and other peaks we use the helicopter.
For more information, please visit the page Lodging and Transport.
What is the food like?
All food used during the trips is organic; we provide three meals a day with unlimited snacks. Hot drinks like tea and coffee are an integral part of the food, and filtered water is always available. According to some of our customers, this is the best food they have eaten during camping trips. During our multi-country tours you can try the cuisine of the countries we visit by your own choice, we do not include the lunches in price, in order to give you a freedom of tasting the local meals.
What communication facilities will be available?
Communication facilities are always improving globally. Many hotels and public places provide Wi-Fi so it’s getting easier to keep in touch with home every day, if you desire it. During our tours in remote places (like Eastern Pamirs, Wakhan of Afghanistan, Yagnob valley and treks to some remote areas of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan) you will not be able to communicate as readily. Your tour leader will always give you opportunity to send a mail or two before you leave to the places with no acceptation to Internet. In many countries, the cheapest way to make a phone call is from internet cafe.
How can friends and family contact you?
If your family or friends are unable to contact you in an emergency by email or phone, they can contact us directly. You can find our contact details in contact us page.
Will my mobile work?
We can never guarantee your phone will work as desired, as many of our destinations are out of the way and you may have limited coverage. Chat to your phone provider before you leave about global roaming and the costs involved, and get their advice on the coverage you will receive in the places you’re travelling in. Alternatively, you can usually pick up a cheap local SIM card. Just make sure you phone is unlocked!
Will I be able to charge my electrical appliances?
In almost all places, you will be able to recharge your appliances at accommodation places. We recommend you to bring your travel adapter with you. All of our vehicles come with their own power supply and you should be able to recharge onboard. Be sure to bring an extra camera battery just in case.
Other common questions
Our trips last from Day-trips to Twenty-eight days combined trekking and starts from $100/person. The cost includes everything from the day of meeting the guests at the airport or the borders of neighborhood countries, except international flights tickets.
All our tours carefully designed by professional international and experienced local guides trained in first aid and basic safety in mountains. We always try to accompany you with your native language speaking guides, this not only for easier communication, but also for more brightly explanation of all the charms of nature and convey of the true essence of the cultural heritage of our country. We follow the “leave no trace” principles during camping and all our tours based on ecologically friendly outlines.
We focus on small groups, which allow the guests to explore the sights easier. Our philosophy is an individual approach to each person, taking into account all his needs and interests.
We use exceptionally comfortable SUVs for our trips, especially on the secondary roads of the Great and Little Pamirs and each car is designed for 3-4 people only, including your guide.
During trekking, we also take into account the needs of our customers to place in one local, two-place and three-seat tents. All our equipment we buy from the world's leading brands who guarantee the reliability and quality of their products.
Most of our camping trips held in high altitude areas, where the low humidity and constant wind are the main characteristics. The weather in the summer is mostly dry and sunny, but you should be prepared for the rain and sometimes even a little snow, especially during the treks in the Afghan Wakhan. It is important to have a sunscreen, mosquito repellent and sunglasses during camping trips.
Most of our camping trips held in places of absolute wilderness and in high-altitude conditions, so it is highly recommended to be in moderately good physical shape. Guests should be well aware of what they expect from the trip and should remember that, hikes are always associated with a certain risk. The more you are in good shape, the more fun you get in your trip and the more fair it will be with respect to the guides and the attendants. It is not necessary to be an athlete, but to have good cardio capacity and ability to keep the balance of the body at steep descents (especially during passes and mountaineering) is highly recommended. It is desirable to have the previous experience of passing similar routes.
One of the highest priorities of our guides and drivers is to ensure the safety of the guests during the tours. All the things you leave inside the car are under the supervision of the driver, while you are far on excursions, or long trekking. If you plan to leave the unnecessary luggage for storage, please simply notify your guides in advance, and your things will be in reliability during all your stay on camping treks. You can also take the advantage of the storage rooms in many hotels, or just leave your things in our office, but warning an advance the employees about the availability of valuable items (money, jewelry, office equipment) inside your luggage.
Terms and conditions
We always appreciate your time, mood, and we grateful to you for choosing our service. The detailed itinerary is given for your guidance only; it may be altered on the ground and in accordance to the prevailing conditions by our organizing team. Pamir Trips does not give any refunds for unused hotel rooms, meals, sightseeing trips or trek arrangements. Trip price quoted as a package; credits are not given for services not used. We reserve the right to make reasonable changes in the itinerary where deemed necessary or advisable for the comfort and well-being of trip members.