Khunjerab Pass and the China border
Overview
A four-day trip from Hunza to the Khunjerab Pass at 4,693 m on the China border, inside Khunjerab National Park. The highest paved border crossing in the world, reached in a morning from Gojal and returned from the same day.
Why a short trip rather than a long one
The pass is a day’s drive up and back. What decides whether that day works is the two before it, spent in Hunza and Gojal getting used to the altitude, because the gain from around 2,500 m to 4,693 m in a morning is steep by any standard. Selling Khunjerab as a bolt-on to an arrival day is how people end up unwell at the top — our acclimatisation criteria are published before you pay.
The park
Khunjerab National Park holds one of the highest densities of snow leopard anywhere, along with Himalayan ibex and blue sheep. You are far more likely to see ibex than anything else, and the valley below is where the rest of the trip happens, and on the pass road in the early morning that is a reasonable expectation rather than a promise.
The border itself
Closed to tourists. The pass is the destination, the marker and the gate are what you photograph, and nobody crosses. We say so before you book because the question comes up on the drive and the answer disappoints people who assumed otherwise.
When it runs
May to October. The road closes for winter and the opening date moves with the snow.
What is inside the price
Park fees, our own 4x4s and drivers, hotels in Gojal, all meals, a guide on our payroll, oxygen carried on the pass day, satellite comms where the signal stops and a written evacuation plan — which from the pass is a long drive in one direction only — the procedure is published. For the full road from Islamabad see the Karakoram Highway journey. The rest of Gojal and Khunjerab and our other jeep safaris.
- Duration
- 3 – 4 days
- Trek days
- 0
- Maximum altitude
- 4,693 m
- Grade
- Easy
- Group size
- Max 10
- Guides
- 2 certified, 1 WFR
- Season
- May – October
- Starts / ends
- Gilgit / Gilgit
- Accommodation
- Hotels in Hunza and Gojal
- The highest paved border crossing in the world, at 4,693 m
- Two acclimatisation nights before the pass day, which is what makes the day work
- Khunjerab National Park — ibex most mornings, snow leopard country, no promises
- Oxygen carried on the pass day as standard, not on request
- The Pak-China gate, which is the destination because nobody crosses it
Private departures and group pricing
Your party, your dates. The per-person figure falls as the party grows, because the guides, the vehicles and the camp cost the same split more ways. Everything in the inclusions list applies, and the safety standard is the one published above.
| Party size | Price per person | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | USD 1,500 | A full crew for two people |
| 3 – 4 | USD 1,250 | |
| 5 – 8 | USD 1,050 | Second guide joins at six |
Deposit is 25% of the trip price. The payment schedule and the cancellation terms are published and sent with every quote, before you pay anything.
Day by day
Buffer days are built in, not padding. If the weather takes them, nothing downstream collapses and you are not charged twice.
01 Gilgit to Hunza Hotel · 2,400 m
Up the Karakoram Highway to Karimabad. The first night of the acclimatisation, whether it feels like it or not.
02 Hunza to Gojal Hotel
Attabad, Passu and the cones on the way up to Gojal. A gentle day by design.
03 Khunjerab Pass and back Hotel · 4,693 m
Early up through the park to the border gate, a short time at the top, and down. Oxygen carried.
04 Gojal to Gilgit —
Down the valley with stops you choose, and on to whatever comes next.
What is included
- Visa sponsor letter
- All permits, park fees and NOCs
- Met inside the terminal, all transfers
- Our own 4x4s and drivers
- Certified guides and insured crew
- All meals and accommodation throughout
- Medical kit, oxygen where the route calls for it
- Satellite comms and a daily message home
- International flights
- Visa fee itself
- Travel insurance covering evacuation and repatriation
- Personal equipment
- Tips
If our price is wrong for you we will move you to a lower tier or remove a named inclusion. We do not discount a published price, and we do not cut the crew.
Fitness and difficulty — read this honestly
No fitness requirement and no walking beyond the few hundred metres from the vehicle to the marker — which at 4,693 m is further than it sounds and leaves most people breathing hard.
Altitude is the whole medical consideration. You go from around 2,500 m to 4,693 m in a morning, which is a steep gain, and most people feel it as a headache and breathlessness. If you have any history of altitude illness, heart or lung disease, declare it at enquiry. We carry oxygen as standard, we go up, stop and come back down rather than lingering, and we will plan the day differently for you rather than hoping.
Kit list
The full list with quantities is sent with your quote. Rental is available in Skardu for most of it, priced separately. Your kit is checked item by item in Islamabad, not the night before the trek.
Group — we provide
- All vehicles, drivers and fuel
- Group first aid
- Satellite phone where there is no mobile signal
Personal — yours
- Layers for a wide temperature range; valley heat and pass cold on the same day
- Comfortable walking shoes for short walks off the road
- Sun hat, sunglasses and sunscreen
- Power bank; mains power is intermittent outside the towns
- Personal medication and a declared medical history
Safety, evacuation and insurance
Helicopter rescue in the Karakoram is not guaranteed. Weather, altitude, daylight and clearance all decide whether a helicopter flies, so every stage carries a named drive-out or walk-out plan. Your insurance must cover helicopter evacuation and repatriation to the maximum altitude on your itinerary, and we verify the certificate before the trip starts.
A graded medical kit sized to the trip, oxygen, a portable altitude chamber, a satellite phone and a messenger, and a wilderness first responder in the crew.
The lead guide’s decision to turn back is final. Not a guest, not an agent, not this office — whatever has been paid.
Getting there
Islamabad
Met inside the terminal. Briefing the same evening, SIM and cash sorted.
Islamabad to Gilgit
By air when the weather allows, or by road up the Karakoram Highway when it does not. A buffer day either way.
On the ground
Our own vehicles and our own drivers from Gilgit onward.
Questions people actually ask
Can we cross into China?
No. The border is closed to tourists. The pass itself is the destination — the marker, the gate and the park around them. We say so before you book because the question always comes up on the drive.
How high is it, and will I feel it?
4,693 m, reached in a morning from around 2,500 m. Most people get a headache and find themselves breathing hard walking to the marker. We carry oxygen, and we stop and come back down rather than lingering.
How many days do I need?
Four, with two nights in Hunza and Gojal before the pass day. It can be done as a single day from Hunza and that is how people end up unwell at the top.
How fit do I need to be?
Not at all. There is no walking beyond a few hundred metres from the vehicle, though at that altitude even that leaves most people out of breath.
Will we see wildlife?
Ibex most mornings on the pass road, which is a reasonable expectation rather than a promise. Khunjerab has one of the highest snow leopard densities anywhere and you will almost certainly not see one.
Do I need a permit?
Khunjerab National Park charges an entry fee, which we pay as part of the trip. There is no separate permit for the pass road. Your Pakistan visa is the paperwork that matters and we send a sponsor letter for it.
What does it cost and what moves the price?
Party size and hotel standard. This is a short trip with a vehicle, a guide and three nights in it, so the per-person figure falls steeply with each extra seat filled. Deposit is 25 per cent.
When is the road open?
May to October. It closes for winter and the opening date moves with the snow, so we confirm it rather than publishing a fixed date.
If this one is not quite right
The commonest reason a trip is wrong is that it is too hard or too easy, not that it is in the wrong place.
- A step harder Deosai plateau and Sheosar Lake
You have already chosen the region, which is the harder decision. These run from the same roadhead.
- Gojal & Khunjerab · Day excursion Duikar, Eagle’s Nest and Borith
- Gojal & Khunjerab · Riding & cycling Cycling the KKH — Gilgit to Khunjerab
- Gojal & Khunjerab · Trek Patundas
If this one is not right
Naltar valley
Phander and Ghizer
Babusar Pass
Easy
Shigar & Braldu · Jeep safari