Spiti Valley Bike Tour

You reserve your spot for free and pay nothing to join. Once enough travellers have signed on, usually around 10, we confirm the departure and email you a confirmation with an invoice for the full trip price. You pay by card or bank transfer within 7 days, in US dollars, pounds, euros, Australian dollars, Canadian dollars, New Zealand dollars or Indian rupees, and the price shown for each date is what you pay.

No. You can book as a pillion passenger with no licence at all, riding behind one of our local rider-guides for the whole trip. To ride yourself, you need a motorcycle licence valid in India plus an International Driving Permit that covers motorcycles. Tell us which option you want when you book, since it decides which bike and rider-guide we assign you.

Yes, for the protected stretch on the Kinnaur side, around Khab, Nako, Sumdo, Dhankar and Tabo, which this route passes through. Whether foreigners need an Inner Line Permit for Kaza itself is disputed: one official district page says no, another lists Kaza as protected but was last updated in 2018. If you're unsure, confirm with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate's office in Kaza. We arrange and pay for the permit as part of the trip, and your Indian e-Visa alone isn't valid in these areas.

Solo travellers aged 18 to 40, most on their own and some with a friend. The maximum for each departure is shown with its dates, split between self-riders, pillion riders and their rider-guides. The Trip Host rides with the group for all 9 days, manages the permit, watches for signs of altitude sickness, and works with local suppliers for the bikes and support. Local guides lead the monastery visits at Key and Tabo.

It starts in Manali on Day 1 and ends in Shimla in the afternoon of Day 9. Spiti has no flights or trains, so fly into Delhi or Chandigarh and take a road transfer or onward flight to Manali, or take an overnight bus from Delhi, which takes about 10 to 12 hours. From Shimla, fly out where flights run, or take a road transfer or an overnight bus to Delhi.

Yes. Most nationalities need an e-Tourist visa for India (30 days, 1 year or 5 years), applied for only on the official site, indianvisaonline.gov.in, and every foreign visitor must file the e-Arrival card, mandatory since 1 April 2026. An e-visa alone isn't valid in Spiti's protected areas, which is why the separate permit above is needed too. Rules change, so read our India visa guide for your passport before you book flights, and check with a travel health clinic or your doctor about vaccinations at least six weeks before you go.

In summer, between about mid-June and late September. Kunzum Pass, on the Manali road, is closed by snow from about November to April and only opens once it's cleared, with regular traffic from around mid-June. Fresh snow can shut it again from late September, so we can't promise the pass is open on a given day. The Kinnaur road stays open for longer but has landslides and monsoon closures, and rockfall at Maling Nala is common after rain.

Comfortable on a mid-size touring motorcycle, including gravel, loose stones and water crossings, since the stretch between Gramphu and Batal on the way into Spiti isn't fully sealed. This isn't a trip to learn to ride on; if that's not you yet, ride pillion instead, and you'll see exactly the same route.

A hotel in Manali, and guesthouses in Kaza, Tabo, Nako and Kalpa. You share a twin room with a traveller of the same gender where rooms allow it. Fuel is available at Kaza and a few other points but not between Manali and Kaza, and Kaza's ATMs are unreliable, so bring enough cash from Manali for the whole trip, including about 250 to 300 rupees for each lunch that isn't included.

A riding jacket, gloves and boots if you have them (or rent them locally), warm layers for every day since nights in Kaza get close to freezing even in summer, a buff or scarf for dust, good sunscreen and sunglasses, and a reusable water bottle. Phone signal is patchy: BSNL has the widest coverage in Spiti, and Jio 4G works in Kaza and Tabo, with none in many villages.

Yes, it's a condition of joining. Most travel insurance excludes riding without a valid licence, and many policies also exclude riding above a stated engine size or altitude, and some exclude pillion passengers. Check the wording covers motorcycling, the altitudes this trip reaches and, if relevant, riding pillion, and ask the insurer in writing before you book. You buy it yourself, and we don't include it.

Day 2's ride into Kaza, at about 3,650 metres, is a big jump in height, so Day 3 is a full rest day before any of the village rides, which go above 4,000 metres. The Trip Host watches for headache, nausea, breathlessness and poor sleep, which are the early signs, and the plan is to rest or descend if anyone's symptoms don't settle. Talk to your doctor before you travel about whether altitude medicine such as Diamox is right for you.