Hi Doogle, yes its me. Still riding every day. Hope you did not do South Africa on a push bike


China. Read this fantastic ride report for the China part they did.

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...r-a-wave-82280

Forget about tour operators for China, if you want to do it without a guide. I had only the help of a tour operator in Kashgar because I had problems to leave China with the bike and he would do phone calls for me and help me with translations and in the end I hired a car and a guide from him to do the Torugat pass. But as TBR China said, a tour operator wont do anything that is not 100 percent according to what he is permited to do ... as most people in China, they are also scared of the police state.

enjoy China, it is a fantastic place to travel and explore on your own.

all the best and hope to meet you again soon
mika from Bolivia

No pedaling this time.
I would prefer to buy a bike in China and ride about 3 weeks-then sell. I don't know about riding a 48cc bike for 3 weeks though. And they rode 2 up?

So Bolivia is home now? And you now have a DR350?

Hi Doogle, yes Bolivia is home now ... the small mountain village of Samaipata. Yuhmak (the DR350) is here, but I was ripped off badly shipping to Valparaiso. All the best for your China adventure. mika

respect.

I know it has been 5 months since I responded to this thread. But I had given up on China. But it won't go away. Where there's a will (not the end of life document) there's a way.

TBR, are you suggesting to buy/rent a bike in Thailand and ride it into China? Would that be easier than buying in China?

My wife has now declined to visit Asia. So now I would like to visit all the mentioned countries by motorcycle. And I think I would have about 2 months.

August 2016, well ~ what do I know, CHINA is a very fascinating country with great regions to explore, the HUBB / WWW has many China experts that know everything better and in more details. To my limited knowledge you still need a government approved guide for CHINA to ride / drive legally coming from another country by motor-vehicle as a non China resident. Do a google search on CHINA tour operators ($$$$'s), they should be able to assist with all necessary documentation (visa, temporary registration, temporary driving license, etc.etc.). Few China tour operators got told seriously to refrain from illegal doings (temporary vehicle import / travel permits) and some got shut down by the government over the last years, lets not forget quite a few CHINA tour operators promise a lot but in the end are just full of sh#t.... spent your $$$$' wisely ~ nuff' said...

ps: plan your Asia trip as many threads all over the internet about Asian countries restricting access by motor-vehicles now (advanced permits required) and seems they all follow CHINA now somehow as the PRC has restrictions in place for decades ~ unfortunately...

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

I found this blog from Laura recently. It seems to have a lot of good info. And I hope it is accurate. I haven't messaged her yet. But she says a guide is only needed in 2 of the 22 provinces-currently Xinjiang and Tibet. And when they went through they didn't need an official guide. Only a national Chinese person escort. And it sounds like a permit is needed for each province that is entered. Almost like a separate country with their own laws. Even though there is no border/check point.

I still want more info on what it takes to get a temporary drivers license. She didn't indicate that it was a big problem.


Overlanding China: what you need to know BEFORE you go | Laura’s Travel Tales

Mate, sorry to burst your bubble once again but you might not be aware about them provincial vehicle checkpoints all over China (usually located at the tollgates crossing from one China province or municipality over into another China province / municipality).
Some of the China info available all over the internet is unfortunately outdated and hate to repeat myself ~ during recent years a few China travel agencies involved in international motor-vehicle tourism (China international border entry / exit) got shut down (gettin’ the drift / hint here).

Anyhow ~ enough on the ongoing China travel discussion from my end as not my line of business and not a free China consultant, great weather ~ going ridin’ …. good luck with your PRC travels in the future ~ stay safe!

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Very interesting.
I am from England, and married to a wonderful Chinese girl in China..
Heilongjiang is her home province, from Harbin
Lucky we both have full legal Chinese driving licences.

I would also like to contact Rustram if you would be so kind.

vette

Sorry for the late answer, but did not see your post earlier.

Rustam does not live in Heihe anymore, he lives now somewhere South of Shanghai. Pls send me a private message if you still want his email address.

Harbin was the first big Chinese city that i rode into, it was fun ... I ignored all the no motorcycle signs and rode next to a police car for a few minutes with the police just staring at me. Enjoyed Harbin very much, as I had a nice woman showing me around and taking me for dinner. The Suzuki dealer let me use his workshop for some needed maintenance. But one thing is for sure, I dont want to be in Harbin in winter

Greetings from Bolivia
mika

PM Sent

vette

Hi, I have been living in China 9 years, and the last 2 years, I had no job anymore, so no nice company car. I purchased a ChanYang 750 sidecar and rode this one 4000km around ShangHai.
I purchased it "new" from a bike dealer in ShangHai, it had the number plate of a remote province with a Chinese name on the license. I bought an insurance very cheap as well and no problem (almost: it burnt only once and a tyre blowed up). Of course, this kind of bike has no break, you have to anticipate a lot, and it's trikky when speeding up and down. But it's a lot of fun. Costed me about 2000€, sold it 900 at the end. I had the Chinese driving license (it's a specific one for 3 wheels).
Unless you do something really wrong (going through at red light is a piece of cake, something tougher than that), you can ride unstopped. All people are thumb up, and some even stop you to ask you where to buy or if you want to sell. Beware of parking on restricted places though, they are quick at towing away...(picture)

Concerning the regulation, I can say that most of you are right, the law (decree Nb 90 of the Public Security Law, dated from Dec. 2006, and decree Nb 212 of the Customs Law) doesn't specify that foreign drivers with their own vehicule must have a guide on board. BUT there is a strong connection between Travel Agencies and Tourism Offices... It's difficult to introduce your finger in-between. They all make money on this. And the few who would like to raise their heads get hit.
XinJiang is a special part of China as well as Tibet and Yunnan to some extend. If you enter presently in XinJiang, it's difficult to get the permit. And impossible to obtain a permit with a guide only in XinJiang and on my way for the rest. Torugart pass is a military area, and the army people are not fun at all. I believe it's impossible to go through presently without the guide, even if you seat down there (3775m high...) for a week. It's easier through Irkestam pass.

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I appreciate this is old, having just joined the forum and looking for info on China this has been a great find! Thanks Mika!

I rode through China a few years ago. My RR starts for China about 2/3 down this page:
https://advrider.com/f/threads/renti...1208680/page-4


Great trip and people. I didn't go to the forbidden areas. But it was all good.

We were back in China in September 2019
Me and my wife both have full legal Chinese car licences, mine is also for big motorbikes.
We borrowed my wife's sisters car.
I drove from Beijing to Zhangiakou, Hebei, north of Beijing, to Yantai, Shandong, then to Weihai also Shandong, then to Zibo, Shandong, then to Beijing.
This is about 2500km.
We seen a few police, but none ever stopped us to ask anything.
We got some surprised looks when we pulled up at some of the motorway services.
China is a very easy place to drive in, and I imagine, also easy to ride in.

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