Tajikistan Expedition: Pamir Highway & beyond

The Pamir Highway: Central Asia’s greatest road adventure. Travelling in 4x4s, we follow this rugged mountainous route through the remote Pamir range, discovering an area along the Afghan border, much of the time alongside the Panj River, that only the most adventurous ever explore. On the way, we visit the ruins of Zoroastrian castles and shrines, see a Buddhist stupa and meet the skeleton of a Sogdian princess. We also head off the main highway to go even deeper into the country, encountering lands where the language changes from one valley to the next. To make sure we see as much as possible, we’ve designed our tour to roughly follow a figure of eight, meaning we mostly avoid retracing our steps.

Most of the accommodation on this trip is in simple homestays (seven nights) and guesthouses (two nights). The remaining six nights are in hotels.



Homestays are basic (see Essential Information for more detail) but are the only option in many places and are the best way to gain an insight into life in this region and meet local people. Some homestays have the option of sleeping on a tapchan (a large platform/bed) outside.







Some homestays are in traditional Pamiri houses called chids. These have philosophical and religious significance. The main room is divided into a few sections, such as a cooking and sleeping area, a place to study or keep clothes, and has only one window called a ravzana. The ceiling symbolises four elements of the universe: fire, earth, air and water.











Dinner in a homestay usually consists of two courses: a bowl of soup and a main dish with sides, homemade bread and jam. Usually, it is noodles or rice soup with or without meat, stewed or fried potatoes, plov, and fried vegetables with beef. Expect jam, sweets, biscuits and jurgot, a local Greek yoghurt made from yak or cow milk. For breakfast, a traditional meal is shirchoy, a mixture of milk, butter and salt boiled with black tea leaves. Pieces of bread and a little pepper can be added.



In Dushanbe, we stay in a four-star hotel (local rating). We pass through Kalai Khumb twice. On our outbound journey, we use a homestay, on the return journey we stay in a three-star (local rating) hotel, which will be welcome after several nights in homestays. In Khorog, we stay in a pleasant local-style hotel. In Murghab, we stay in a very simple hotel.



Atlas Hotel Dushanbe:







Karon Hotel, Kalai Khumb:







Lal Inn, Khorog:











Jarty Gumbez guesthouse:











Pamir Hotel, Murghab: