Khunjerab Pass
The highest paved border crossing in the world, at 4,693 metres
Altitude
4,693 m
Worth going
May–Oct
How long to stay
1–1 nights
Getting a signal
No signal. Plan for it.
The top of the Karakoram Highway, where Pakistan meets China at 4,693 metres. It is a long day up from Hunza and back, through Passu and Sost and the Khunjerab National Park, and the last stretch above 4,000 metres is properly thin air. Open roughly May to October, weather permitting.
- Standing at the border marker at 4,693 metres
- Khunjerab National Park — ibex, and if you are extraordinarily lucky, snow leopard
- The Passu Cones and Batura glacier on the way up
- Sost, the last town, and the dry-port crossing
The honest downsides
- Closed by snow from roughly November to April, and can shut at short notice in either shoulder month.
- A 4,700-metre day trip from 2,400 metres. Altitude headaches are common.
- It is a long day in a vehicle for a photograph and a border post.
Trips that go to Khunjerab Pass
MotorcycleKarakoram Highway Motorcycle Expedition
Twelve nights riding from Islamabad to the Chinese border and back
12 nightsJun–Sepchallenging
from $2,180ppSee the trip →
PhotographyGrand North: Hunza & Skardu
Fourteen nights covering both great valleys properly
14 nightsMay–Sepmoderate
from $2,540ppSee the trip →
PhotographyHunza & Khunjerab Pass
Nine nights, taking the Karakoram Highway all the way to the Chinese border
9 nightsMay–Octmoderate
from $1,480ppSee the trip →