ChinaV... You resurrected my plans. After communicating with 7-8 travel agencies in China over 2 months, I became highly disappointed. No one arrange tours to go on highway 219 though everyone is pushing to rent a motorbike. I am seeing a small ray of hope in this dark tunnel :-)

For license, what I have gathered so far is that as long you ar eona tourist visa, you can be granted a temporary chinese driving license from 30-60 days. This is arranged by travel agents and there is a probability of sitting for a written test which is translated in english.

Travellign illegally..undocumented and without proper permits is a definite NO NO for this route and I won't be doing that.

So, here is what I am doing.
1. Arrange enter/exit permits and documents required from a contact I made in Lhasa.

2. Apply for temporary chinese driving license.

3. Buy a motorbike which you suggested. BTW, whts the name of the bike that you suggested in above pic.

4. Crash course in motorbike maintenance.

Rest is all Maktub :-)

Ok, where can I find the motorbike you suggested and how did you got it registered and documented?

Cheers,
Imran

would love to follow your adventure in China!!! We hope to do this trip also on our RTW ride Sara & Daniel Pedersen

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HU RR Finding Freedom...World Wide Ride

Excellente' :-) ... You guys made me gogole to check what in RTW :-)

Are you guys already in China or travelling around any other part of the world?

How are your plans looking ?

Any experience of riding in Asia.. You can send me an email as well.. Anyway you like to communicate is fine with me :-)

I purchased the bikes from Galaxy Motorcycles near my home in Guangdong China.

Galaxy Home

Their website isn't so good, but the bike you want is called the XTR250ADV



I'm a full time resident, so it's possible to purchase on my own. Took a bit of paperwork and standing in line, but eventually got it done.

Good luck with your trip, but don't count on any advice you've been given that is more than 6 months old. This is China, and things have changed a lot in the last few years. You can probably get a temp license through an agency, but you will not get onto 219 without an official guide, unless you really blend in, and that's almost impossible.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Best of luck! If you're there September/October and see a black KLR650 whizzing past, give me a wave!

Thanks ChinaV, Your information is spot on and each time your reply elevates my plans to next level.

For license, what I understand is that if you are part of a touring group organized by travel company then no one will ever ask you for license check and temp driving license is done by travel agents only. So, no travel agent has experience on arranging temp driving license for an individual.

Anyone who is reading this post has any information or experience to share of riding in China without a license ???

I think i will open another thread of getting more info. on riding in china without a license.

LesK - Due to the difficulty and remoteness of 219, there is a possibility that I might be stuck on it till September.. so if you see me then please get me to save haven :-)

Hi imraali,

I don't have enough posts on the HUBB so I can't reply to your PM. Sorry to do this in public.

The Galaxy has a 13.5 Liter fuel tank and will easily go 350-400 kilometers. You don't need anything bigger than that.

The dual-sport tires that come on the bike are perfect for the roads you are thinking about. This is China man, be happy with anything you can get.

I might be able to help with the purchase of the bike, but I can only purchase vehicles for 6 months of each year. How's that for a f**'ed up rule.

The HUBB rocks, but mychinamoto.com is also a good source of info for China. I suggest you do some searches there.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Hi ChinaV -
Thanks once again for the detailed information which is again spot on :-)

I am checking out few other forums and still in touch with few travel agents in china. Recently I got in touch with a company in Guangzhou for temp driving license. They were very helpful in providing all information and quoted 5500 chinese yuan for temp driving license but unfortunately that license is only good for driving a car not a motorbike. I found them at this weblink - http://www.guangzhouexpatservicecenter.com. They said they cannot help in arranging a motorbike license.

If you can share infromation about driving license that will be much appreciated. Information as in, the cost, procedure to go through as a foreigner, etc, etc.

Now, few questions that are popping in my head are,

1. Is there anyway to carry fuel on Galaxy motorbike. I am not sure if I will see a petrol pump on the highway or someone selling petrol in glass bottles. What will be the best way to carry extra fuel?

2. The dilemma of driving license, to be or not to be.. that is the question. Due to the sensitivity of the highway I think it's good to have all papers in place. Do you know of anyone who travelled on motorbike with a license and had no bad experience? If there are stories like that then that will be encouraging.

3. Let's say if things work out and motorbike is purchased in Guangdong. How to transfer motorbike to Lhasa or Kashgar? Via train or ride to any one city?

I am still trying to motivate few friends to get on this motorbike tour with me but none seems to be tough enough to take up this challenge and it's a challenge for me to get trip buddies.. so fingers crossed and see whats happens :-)

imraali,

A 350-400 kilometer range is more than enough for anywhere in China. There's plenty of gas everywhere. You might have one or two days in the most remote parts where you just need to plan ahead a little, but no need to carry more fuel. Worst case, you can fill a couple 2 liter water bottles to get you through.

From what I've heard, 7500 Yuan will get you a MC license. You need a visa that is longer than 90 days and it takes 6-8 weeks to process, so you would need to make 2 trips to China to accomplish it. I won't say much about riding without a license, it's your call, you decide what's right for you. People do it, and other people do it, go to jail, and get deported.

You can transfer a bike to almost anywhere in China via the train for 500-1000 Yuan.

You have worked out the issue about having a full time guide? Don't bother trying to sneak through, along the way you will need to buy gas or stay in a hotel and they will most likely report you to the PSB, if they don't they risk fines and big trouble.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Hey boys... you will love it.. one pic from my tibet from 2007

i did xining to lhasa via yushu... almost all of it was illegal.. as was doing it without permits.

let m know if you got any questions that i might answer...!

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just starting.

Amoleji, have you got a blog/website/photo album ??

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www.riding2up.net, blog.riding2up.net

Imraali, ChinaV is one of the members of the forum dedicated to Chinese bikes MyChinaMoto.com - Chinese Community, Forum and News - Front Page He is considered dangerous and crazy and all of his advice should be ignored, and...ok, no he is one of our most knowledgeable members living in China and buying and reporting on the bikes he has purchased. He is our expert and guru!

You should join mychinamoto to let other Chinese-based members chime in, too, so at least you have contacts there if you need them. Another bike to consider might be the Qingqi 250 (ChinaV has one of those, too) at least from a comparison point of view. However, the Galaxy is a top notch bike and ChinaV has extensive experience with his.

Hi,

Me and my partner are driving our 4x4 from Nepal into Tibet and then China and Mongolia.

Our intended dates are as follows: Nepal into Tibet 10 July and then from China into Mongolia - erenhot border on 31 July. We welcome anyone else who may want to join us. We're not the fastest vehicle in the world - speed will be 70kmh and the journey will be a transit - some sights to see in Tibet, but then we're just putting in the miles!

I can send a more detailed route to anyone intersted.

Thanks

Mark

I am back :-)

Hello Everyone... Its been a while and I see few people have taken interest in my post but unfortunately still there is no one willing to join me and travel with me on this journey :-(.. That's a let down!!!

Anyways, I have done more R&D and I was away to NZ for a 10 day Solo motorbike across the whole country. I did 3000 kms in 9 days, this was a test for myself to check if I can pull together my much anticipated China motorbike trip. One thing I learned is that I cannot do the China Trip alone major reason is due to my Shoulder injury which was a bit of problem on my NZ motorbike trip!!!

As per my research for China.. attaining a driving license for motorbike in China seems like a distance dream if you are on a tourist visa. As for the permits, here is the weblink with the best details on what permit I would require if I am travelling solo across sensitive areas of China.. Tibet Train Permit (TTP), Alien's Travel Permit, Military Permit -- Book all the documents from China Train Tickets. Net!.

Thanks to ChinaV, the motorbike is sorted. I know what I need in China to ride and I believe its the best thing to buy your own instead of renting it out.

I am in touch with zillions of chinese tour company's but their price quotes are outrageous.. I am in negotiations these days.. In my kind of situation.. with limited time onHand and wanting to do a closely impossible motorbike ride I think its best to tie myself up with a tour company. However, I am still open if anyone is willing to join me.. the more the merrier and make this happen.. I think this trip will be awesome if done by yourself but if left with no option but to join a tour company then thats what I got to do :-)

I am hoping to here back from enthusiastic adventure bikers or beginners like myself who wants to do something out of ordinary motorbike ride :-)

Maybe if there is a group travelling in a 4WD/Camper Van and I can be on a motorbike and tag along with you guys.. that will work too.. It can work as well.. I can be a great travel companion :-)

Hope to hear back from people who are keen :-)


Fingers crossed :-)

Cheers.

Did you manage to cross Nepal into Tibet. What route did you take, and how much organising was involved with guides etc...

We're hoping to cross by bicycle, but only next year.

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