Adventure

Chiang Mai to the Great Wall of China

China, Thailand

25 daysModerate

Overview

This is Bike Tour Asia's long haul north, a twenty five day expedition that crosses three countries and climbs from tropical northern Thailand onto the Tibetan plateau before descending into the Chinese heartland. Daily legs are substantial, frequently 300 to 400 kilometres and reaching 510 on the run to Pingyao, and the operator builds in three rest days at Lijiang, Danba, Labrang and Xian to absorb the altitude and the distance. The route leaves Chiang Mai for Chiang Khong on the Mekong, stopping at the White Temple at Wat Rong Khun, crosses to Boten in Laos and then enters China at Mohan the following day. Yunnan supplies the first stretch of Chinese riding through Jinghong, Jingdong, Dali and Lijiang, the last two both UNESCO listed old towns on the historic Tea Horse Road. Beyond Tiger Leaping Gorge the road climbs to Shangri-La and then onto the Tibetan plateau proper, running through Daocheng, Yajiang, Danba, Hongyuan and Langmusi to the great monastery town of Labrang. The last week is the cultural one. Tianshui and the Maijishan Grottoes come first, then Xian with its Terracotta Warriors and intact city wall, the Ming era walled town of Pingyao, and Datong's Yungang Grottoes, before the group finally reaches the Great Wall and rides on into Beijing. Bike Tour Asia is direct about the demands: the roads are mostly easy to ride but there are steep and technically demanding stretches, and this is not a tour on which to learn. Participants on Chinese itineraries must be under seventy on the final riding day, and five riders are needed to confirm a departure. The price covers twenty four nights, breakfast daily, seventeen lunches and twelve dinners, motorcycle rental with unlimited mileage, navigation files, luggage transport, a support vehicle with driver and licensed guide, a Bike Tour Asia leader on his own bike, all Lao, Chinese and Tibetan permits and their associated costs, and the freight of the motorcycles back from Beijing to Chiang Mai. Notably, fuel and national park entrance fees are not included on this tour, nor are visas, flights or alcohol.

Twenty five days take this Bike Tour Asia expedition from Chiang Mai to Beijing through Laos and the length of western China. The opening legs run north to Chiang Khong and the Mekong, cross into Laos at Boten and enter China at Mohan, reaching Jinghong in Xishuangbanna on day four. From there the route climbs steadily: Dali and Lijiang on the old Tea Horse Road, Shangri-La by way of Tiger Leaping Gorge, then the high Tibetan plateau towns of Daocheng, Yajiang, Danba, Hongyuan and Labrang with its monastery. The final week drops east to Tianshui and the Maijishan Grottoes, Xian and the Terracotta Warriors, the walled city of Pingyao and Datong's Yungang Grottoes, before reaching the Great Wall itself and finishing in Beijing. Three rest days break up the riding.

Overview

Itinerary

Chiang Mai

Arrival day in Chiang Mai. The team hands over the motorcycles, fits luggage and runs the route and border briefing for what is a twenty five day international expedition with a great deal of paperwork behind it. No riding is scheduled.

Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong

North out of Chiang Mai with a stop at Wat Rong Khun, the white temple outside Chiang Rai, then on to Chiang Khong on the bank of the Mekong facing Laos. Around three hundred kilometres and the last full day inside Thailand.

Chiang Khong to Boten

The Thai and Lao border formalities take up part of the morning before the group rides northeast through the hills of northern Laos to Boten, the town sitting immediately on the Chinese frontier. Around two hundred and forty kilometres.

Boten to Jinghong

A short riding day dominated by the Boten and Mohan border crossing into China, with customs procedures for both riders and motorcycles. Beyond it lies Xishuangbanna and the city of Jinghong on the Mekong. Around one hundred and eighty kilometres.

Jinghong to Jingdong

The first long Chinese leg, climbing north out of the subtropical Mekong lowlands into the hill country of southern Yunnan, with the vegetation and the temperature changing as the road gains height. Around three hundred and eighty kilometres to Jingdong.

Jingdong to Dali

Continuing north through Yunnan to Dali, the old walled town beside Erhai Lake and beneath the Cangshan range, and one of the two UNESCO listed towns on this section of the route. Around two hundred and twenty kilometres.

Dali to Lijiang

A shorter day following the line of the historic Tea Horse Road to Lijiang, the canal laced old town at the foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, where the group stops for two nights. Around two hundred and twenty kilometres.

Rest day in Lijiang

A day off the bikes in Lijiang before the route commits to the high country. The old town, its canals and the surrounding Naxi villages are the obvious use of the time, and it is also the last easy chance for maintenance and laundry.

Lijiang to Shangri-La

One of the signature days, riding through Tiger Leaping Gorge where the Yangtze runs between walls thousands of metres high, then climbing to Shangri-La on the edge of the Tibetan plateau. Around three hundred and fifty kilometres.

Shangri-La to Daocheng

The plateau proper begins here, with the road crossing high passes and open grassland into western Sichuan and the Tibetan town of Daocheng. Altitude becomes a genuine factor from this point onward. Around three hundred kilometres.

Daocheng to Yajiang

Another full day of high altitude riding through Tibetan country, with prayer flags on the passes and long empty stretches between settlements, before dropping to Yajiang on the Yalong river. Around three hundred and ten kilometres.

Yajiang to Danba

A shorter leg through the valleys of western Sichuan to Danba, known for its clustered stone watchtowers and Tibetan hillside villages, where the group stops for a second night. Around two hundred and ten kilometres.

Rest day in Danba

The second scheduled rest day of the expedition. Danba sits at the meeting of several valleys and the day is unstructured, giving riders time to walk to the watchtower villages, rest at altitude or work on the bikes before the long legs that follow.

Danba to Hongyuan

Back onto the grasslands, riding north across the high plateau of northern Sichuan to Hongyuan, a Tibetan pastoral town surrounded by open rangeland and yak herds. A long day at consistently high elevation. Around three hundred and seventy kilometres.

Hongyuan to Labrang

North through Langmusi, a monastery town straddling the Sichuan and Gansu border, and on to Labrang, one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastic centres outside Tibet itself. Around three hundred and eighty kilometres.

Rest day in Labrang

A full day at Labrang, built around its monastery and the pilgrim circuit of prayer wheels that runs around it. This is the last rest day before the route leaves the plateau and turns east into the Chinese heartland.

Labrang to Tianshui

A long descent east out of the Tibetan borderlands into the loess country of Gansu, losing altitude steadily through the day and finishing at Tianshui. Around four hundred and thirty kilometres and a noticeable change in landscape.

Tianshui to Xian

The longest day so far, calling at the Maijishan Grottoes with their cliff carved Buddhist caves before continuing east into Shaanxi and the old imperial capital of Xian, where the group stops for two nights. Around four hundred and fifty kilometres.

Rest day in Xian

A cultural day off the bikes. The Terracotta Warriors outside the city and the intact Ming dynasty city wall are the headline sights, and Xian is also the easiest place on the route to deal with any mechanical issues before the final run north.

Xian to Pingyao

The longest leg of the entire expedition, riding north across Shanxi province to the walled merchant town of Pingyao, whose Ming and Qing era streets survive largely intact. Around five hundred and ten kilometres.

Pingyao to Datong

North again through Shanxi to Datong, close to the Inner Mongolian border, where the Yungang Grottoes hold thousands of Buddhist statues carved into sandstone cliffs from the fifth century onward. The riding is faster and more open than on the plateau. Around four hundred kilometres.

Datong to the Great Wall

The day the tour is named for. The route runs east towards the mountains north of Beijing and reaches the Great Wall itself, the objective the group has been riding towards since Chiang Mai. Around three hundred and forty kilometres.

To Beijing

A short final riding leg from the Wall into Beijing, where the motorcycles are handed back to the team for freighting home to Chiang Mai and the riding part of the expedition formally ends.

Rest and cultural day in Beijing

A full day in Beijing with no riding, given over to the city rather than the road. It also provides a buffer against delays earlier in the route and time to repack for international flights the following morning.

Departure from Beijing

The expedition ends in Beijing. Riders make their own way home from the city, with the motorcycles already in the hands of Bike Tour Asia for the return freight to Thailand. No riding is scheduled.

Chiang Mai to the Great Wall of China

Overview

Chiang Mai to the Great Wall of China

Overview

Tour Route

Itinerary

Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong

Chiang Khong to Boten

Boten to Jinghong

Jinghong to Jingdong

Jingdong to Dali

Dali to Lijiang

Rest day in Lijiang

Lijiang to Shangri-La

Shangri-La to Daocheng

Daocheng to Yajiang

Yajiang to Danba

Rest day in Danba

Danba to Hongyuan

Hongyuan to Labrang

Rest day in Labrang

Labrang to Tianshui

Tianshui to Xian

Rest day in Xian

Xian to Pingyao

Pingyao to Datong

Datong to the Great Wall

To Beijing

Rest and cultural day in Beijing

Departure from Beijing

What's Included

What's Not Included

Available Motorcycles

Tour Operator