Pamir Highway

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
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matt2matt2002
Posts: 1126
Joined: 25 Oct 2009, 7:45pm
Location: Aberdeen Scotland UK

Pamir Highway

Post by matt2matt2002 »

I am considering 3 months next year cycling along the Pamir Highway in Kyrgistan and Tajikistan.
I have been looking at flights and would appreciate advice.
Anyone had good experiences of ebooker or other 'cheap' airfare sites?

I live in Aberdeen. UK.
I have priced a flight from Heathrow to Bishkek at £450.
But booking a flight from Edinburgh to Istanbul and a second from Istanbul to Bishkek is half the price.
These flights are all Turkish airlines.
The second flight in each case is the same flight.
The stop over is 4 hours.
Bike is 60 Euro. Not sure if that is per flight but even so it looks like option 2 will be cheaper.

Am I missing something?

Any views on these options or suggestions on alternatives?
Thanks
Matt
2017 Ethiopia.5 weeks.
2018 Marrakech 2 weeks.
2023 Thailand 8 weeks.
Always on a Thorn Raven/Rohloff hub.
pq
Posts: 1294
Joined: 12 Nov 2007, 11:41pm
Location: St Antonin Noble Val, France
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Re: Pamir Highway

Post by pq »

I flew to Van with a stopover in Istanbul with my bike on Turkish Airlines and had no problem at all, so I doubt you'd have any issues to Bishkek.

I've also ridden quite a chunk of the Pamir Highway, written up here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/standiet

To be honest, the Kyrgyz part is nowhere near as good to ride as the Tajik part. There's too much traffic, there are some quite boring stretches and it can be terribly hot. My advice is to get to the Tajik Pamir as quickly as you can and explore the area in depth - it's very very rewarding, especially around Khorog. The best bits are, as you might expect, away from the Pamir Highway but you have to be prepared for appalling roads and no supplies.

If I was to go there again I'd fly into Dushanbe, not Bishkek.
One link to your website is enough. G
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