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Today's update is all about itinerary changes and new dates for our long Central Asia trans-continental trip.
We ran our first trips after the Covid pandemic on this route this year, and the eastbound group finished a few days ago in Singapore. Well done to all of them, and their crews (Dawso & Al on the truck to Kyrgyzstan, and Alexis through China and South East Asia) for completing such an epic trip!
There will be various minor tweaks to places we stay and daily itineraries as normal, based on our crew's experience this year. We're also adjusting some of the train journeys and routing through China.
However, more major adjustments for 2025 onwards include:
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Extra day in Samarkand
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Extra time in the Fann Mountains in Tajikistan
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More than an extra week added to drive the spectacular Pamir Highway from Dushanbe in Tajikistan to Osh in Kyrgyzstan. The Pamir Highway is one of the world's great overland journeys and we're delighted to be adding it into the trip. You climb from 706m altitude in Dushanbe, right up to 4,655m at the Akbaital Pass on the way to Karakul Lake before crossing the border into Kyrgyzstan and descending again. The road parallels the Afghanistan border closely for some time, and the mountain scenery and high lakes are beautiful to behold.
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An extra day in Beijing
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New start point in Beijing, for trips from there to Ho Chi Minh, Penang or Singapore
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Addition of Khao Sok National Park in Thailand
The full trip starts in Istanbul on 7th April 2025 and travels by truck as far as Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan. We then do a loop through Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, around Lake Issyk Kul, returning to Bishkek. Those continuing to China will leave part way through this and cross the Torugart Pass to Kashgar where we switch to local transport, trains and buses for the journey through China and South East Asia.
The full trip from Istanbul to Singapore is now 26 weeks long, but you can do shorter sections of this if you wish. We set start and finish dates in Istanbul, Tbilisi, Ashgabat, Bishkek, Beijing, Ho Chi Minh and Penang, before getting to Singapore. So, you can start and finish at any of those. We have a selection of combinations listed on the website, but others are available on request.
The truck will then return back from Bishkek back to Istanbul, including the Pamir Highway again, with starts in Bishkek on 11th and 25th August, getting back to Istanbul at the end of October.
EASTBOUND CENTRAL ASIA TRIPS