Death Road Tour 2025: Quick Overview

• Starting Point: La Paz, Bolivia

• Getting to La Paz: Fly in with Latam or by land on regular bus services from all five of the countries with which it shares a border – Peru, Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Paraguay

• Top Death Road Tour Company: Gravity Biking Bolivia

• Is the Death Road Tour Safe? Absolutely! Do the trip with a reputable company and follow your guide’s instructions

Death Road Tour Details:

• Skill Level: Suitable for most riders

• Departures: Tours Operate Daily

• Duration: ~ 4 hours riding, ~12+ hours for the whole tour

• Min Pax to Depart: Minimum two riders to begin the tour (private tours are available, please enquire)

• Booking Period: Bookings are accepted right up two days before the ride

• Insurance: As per local security policies, all passengers MUST have Travel Medical Insurance to take the tour (must cover Mountain Biking). 

About the Death Road

Descend 70km and 3048 m in 4 hours as you take in high altitude landscapes on what’s popularly known as The Death Road in La Paz, Bolivia. Also known as the Yungas Road, it got its name from the cars that fall off the cliff taking an average of 200 lives per year. 

While it’s too narrow for buses and cars, it’s plenty wide for bikes and the past 2 decades is a popular biking route. 

Past 22 km on asphalt, you will start riding on the actual World’s Most Dangerous Road - a 44 km dirt and gravel road with drops and sharp corners, until you get to Yolosa (1,100 m). The support vehicle is behind all day. 

About Gravity Biking:

Gravity is chosen for their high quality bikes & equipment as well as excellent standards of safety.

Since 1998, Gravity has been rip-roaring, hoot-hollerin’ and loving the amazing biking trails of the Bolivian Andes. They have taken more than 100,000 rides on once-in-a-lifetime, 2-wheeled adventures in these incredible mountains.

Death Road Tour itinerary

07:00am

The World’s Most Dangerous Road consists of a full day ride that starts at 7 am when you meet your guides at café Del Mundo on Sagarnaga Street (breakfast included).

Start from the city of La Paz, which is at a height of 3,600 meters (11,810 feet), to the foot of the Andes Mountains or Cordillera Real. Towards the summit which is 4,700 m (15,420 feet) out of the city of La Paz, appreciate the desert flora and fauna of the plateau and the snowy mountains of the Cordillera Real.

Here you will take a 45-minute bus ride with one of the Gravity buses to La Cumbre (4,760 m), which is the highest point, where we start riding.

09:00am

Guide briefing and presentation of bikes and gears, which you can try on to make sure you are comfortable with them. La Cumbre is also, where you will get your first set of instructions on the first part of the road, which is 22 kms of asphalt.

10:00am

Bike adventure starts. The first part is asphalt to reach the population Unduavi (narcotics and revision control, motorized transport only). During this first part, you will go through a Police Checkpoint where you must pay a BS. 50 (road tax), that goes to maintaining the road and building some toilets along that road, and that is not included in our price.

10:30am

Once you finish the 22 km, at the mouth of the Bolivian jungle, exactly where the paved road ends, begins the most dangerous road in the world. This dirt road with an amazing view will be an adventure. Along with the guides you will carefully go down going through rivers, waterfalls, along with the wide variety of flora and fauna.

Starting at a height of 2,700 meters (2,953 feet) above sea level, this 44 km dirt and gravel road has with huge drops and sharp corners, which you will ride until you get to Yolosa (1,100 m).

A support vehicle is always shadowing behind the group all day, and you can leave your bags in it.

12:30pm

Time for a break of 20 minutes with some refreshments.

1:45pm

Arrive at the bridge, a place with warm weather and the end of our cycling adventure at 1,200 m ( 3,940 feet ). You will finish your ride at La Senda Verde (LSV), an animal refuge and ecolodge where there will be a cold drink waiting for you, and a salad and pasta lunch. There are showers at LSV as well so we recommend that you take a full change of clothes (including shoes) and they provide towels, shampoo and soap for you.

2:30 - 4:30pm

You can also take a tour at La Senda Verde, to see the animals they rescued. You spend about 2 hours at LSV, with the animal (this extra activity at the end of the ride is not included).

7:30 - 9:30pm

Drop off back to your accomodation - return to the city of La Paz on our new road transport. It is a very safe to 2-lane, downstream and upstream, called Cotapata Santa Barbara.

The price of the bike trip includes:

✓ The bike - Kona with double suspension and hydraulic disk brakes.

✓ The gear (helmet, gloves, jacket & pants windbreak).

✓ Breakfast at Café del Mundo

✓ 2 snacks during the ride with bottle for water that you can refill with a filtered water tank we have on the bus.

✓ Pasta and salad lunch.

✓ 1 cold drink.

✓ Ride back to La Paz.

✓ 1 of our famous Gravity t-shirts and Buff.

✓ A link via Google Drive with pictures of the day trip sent to your email.

PLEASE BRING:

*Warm clothes for the beginning of the ride. Also, do not forget to bring extra clothes and shoes to come back (you will get wet and dirty). We don’t allow you to wear sandals during the ride, but anything from trainers to hiking boots will do.

*Make sure you’ve got a good pair of sporty UVA-UVB sunglasses, both for ray protection and to help keep the dust and grit out of your eyes.

*50 Bolivianos in CORRECT CHANGE on your ride. An official will collect this money and a person from the region during the day, and you will receive a legal receipt/souvenir in exchange. There will be a total of two taxes, 25bs each.

*Bring extra money for extra expenses. There are extra activities that you can do at the end of the tour; you can take a tour at La Senda Verde, to see the animals that they take care (80.-Bs bear tour) (www.sendaverde.com).

A PIONEERING CHALLENGE

Conquer the Namib Desert

• 120km on foot over 5 night/6 days in the desert

• Targeting roughly 20-25km of hiking on sand each day

• Walking across one of the driest regions of Africa, while scaling some of the tallest sand dunes in the world

• The only company operating a full trekking expedition in a desert and the only one in Namibia

DAY 1

DAY 2

As the bush awakens we slowly start our second day in Africa

• After a hearty breakfast we say goodbye to Okapuka and head south on a scenic drive towards the desert

• For the first night of our expedition we will camp on the shores of the dry riverbed of the Kuiseb river

• For dinner we will be invited to their simple farmhouse by the widow of the late Topnar Chief ruling this area

• It is here that we meet the entire team that will be supporting us during our desert crossing, including the desert professionals, the medic as well as the phenomenal kitchen crew

• You will be surprised how comfortable your mattress and sleeping bag are as you lie down in your cosy tent

DAY 3

1st night camping in tents

Day one of our desert crossing starts with a hearty

breakfast to prepare us for the day

• The first kilometres in the desert are especially exciting as we find our rhythm, check our gear and get to know better our travel companions

• As we are go deeper into the desert we start to understand the magnitude of the desert, it's vastness and prehistoric beauty

• En route we have two "pit stops" every day to replenish, eat, drink and have a laugh with the support team

• It is here that we check in with the medic to make sure we are fine - after all, in this extreme terrain it all comes down to prevention

• After an eventful first day we are thrilled about the freshly cooked dinner and the stunning location of our camp
  

2nd night camping in tents

• We proceed further into the Namib desert, deeper into the sea of sands and climb our first big dunes

• The vastness of this place is as impressive as it's solitude, the lack of noise as unreal as the regular change in scenery

• We are taken by so many different things...

DAY 5

3rd night camping in tents

DAY 6

4th night camping in tents

• On we go on our epic quest to cross the oldest sand desert in the world

• Navigating the vast desert and finding the best path across the dunes has almost become a routine, yet something that is carefully monitored as a team, to ensure we safely get to the next stop or the final destination of each day

DAY 7

5th night camping in tents

DAY 8

Overnight at Hotel

DAY 9

Overnight at Penduka Lodge

DAY 10

Included in the expedition

• The unique opportunity to join the exclusive group of female executives and entrepreneurs on a transformative money-can't-buy-experience

• This expedition is developed by Sonja Piontek and will be personally hosted by the German powerhouse

• Monthly virtual prep sessions will be hosted before the start of the expedition by Sonja Piontek

• A private WhatsApp group where all members connect prior to the expedition

• Detailed expedition packing list and recommendation for gear

• Sonja will be supported by Namibia's leading desert expedition team who know the Namib better than anyone else

• Also joining us on this expedition will be one of Namibia's most experienced desert medics/emergency medical team with years of work in and around the Namib

• You will receive a highly emotional expedition video produced by one of Namibia's leading videographers

• Accommodation is in twin rooms for the first and the last two nights and single tents for better comfort while in the desert

• Tents will be equipped with comfortable 'bedroll' mattresses, sleeping bags and pillows

• Breakfast, lunch, dinner and heaps of snacks (special dietary requests like allergies, intolerances, vegetarian, vegan, etc. will of course be catered for despite the fact that we are deep in the Namib desert)

• Water, soft drinks, juices, coffee, tea

• All land transportation during the tour including airport shuttles

• Exclusive program including a safari game drive and overnight stay in one of Namibia's leading safari lodges, the desert expedition with the most experienced team the country has to offer, daily permits for the Namib Naukluft National Park, sleeping bags and pillows to ensure proper sleep at night, camping toilets with a stellar view, a thrilling 4x4 day excursion with off-road cars to get back out of the desert, a lovely stay in Swakopmund and last but not least the visit at Penduka, getting to know and supporting the ladies in the foundation in the country's poorest township

• A personalised certificate stating your achievement

Not Included in the price

Flights to and from Windhoek

Insurances

Visa (if needed)

Alcoholic drinks, tips, souvenirs, etc

Your personal desert gear like poles, drink bladder, electrolytes, etc.

The gifts you are going to bring for the ladies at Penduka

Language Guides : English, Mandarin, Turkish

Gaotai Ancient Homes - A history of 600 years, the housing area is built on a cliff and has nearly 600 households built of mud and poplar.

Ancient Tea House - Have tea in Uygur architectural styled century-old tea house

Abakh khoja Mausoleum (阿巴和加麻札, ئاپاق خوجا مازار) - Built in 1640, buries Abakh Hoja, an Uyghur Leader and 71 other family members in a beautiful green ancient Islamic building, glazed bricks, elegant domes anxd minarets.

Turpan ( 吐鲁番, تۇرپان)

Journey through the Silk Road at the northern rim of the Taklaman Desert whe the merchant traders traversing the Silk Route would avoid the mountains by stopping at oasis towns, such as Gaochang, built on the desert's rim at the foot of the Flaming Mountains.

Huoyan Mountain (火焰山) - Those in Asia might know fo the 16th century novel & Mythology - Journey to the West by Ming dynasty writer, Wu Cheng'en. The novel is an embellished description of the monk Xuanzang who traveled to India in 627 CE to obtain Buddhist scriptures and went through this pass on foot.

Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves (柏孜克里克千佛洞, بزقلیق مىڭ ئۆيى) - Before Islam was introduced, the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves is a complex of Buddhist cave grottos dating from the 5th to 14th century, showing buddhist culture and art. It was once the royal temple of Huihu Kingdom (A.D. 848 - early 13th century) in Gaochang. Later, it was damaged in the pagan conflict, and the eyes of the figures in the murals were all removed.

Xinjiang (新疆, شىنجاڭ ئۇيغۇر ئاپتونوم رايونى)

International Grand Bazaar (乌鲁木齐国际大巴扎, شىنجاڭ خەلقئارا چوڭ بازىرى) - largest bazaar in the world by scale, combining Islamic culture, architecture, ethnic commerce, tourism and entertainment. Dance with the locals as they gather spontaneously every evening over music

We will attempt to time the trip with the Corban Festival - Celebrated by 20 Million people in China, the Uygur, Kazak and Kirgiz people in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region hold activities, such as horse riding and wrestling, among others.

On the morning of Adha, the most famous religious activity is held at Id Kah Mosque. To begin the religious activity, musicians climb to the gate arch and play an iron shell drum and suona horn. At that time, hundred of thousands of people standing in front of the mosque dance the Shaman dance.

Watch the Corban dances here!