Karakoram Highway

Highest paved road in the world

The Karakoram Highway runs between Pakistan and China and is part of the famous Silk Road. It’s the most famous road in the Himalayas and perfect for those who like adventure.

The amazing Karakoram Highway is around 1,200 kilometres long and you’ll frequently drive above 4,000 metres altitude. It’s the ultimate way to see the Himalayas in all their grandeur. And it’s ideal for many stops to do some hiking or climbing. 

The Karakoram Highway (KKH for short) follows one of the ancient routes of the Silk Road. You’ll see a few glaciers on your drive, and also waterfalls, small villages and people who survive in this wilderness with their animals.


Khunjerab Pass

This amazing highway connects the Chinese autonomous region ofXinjiang with Pakistan through the Karakoram Range. This famous road runs through these mountains across the Khunjerab Pass at around 4.693 metre.

Karakul Lake

The sight of Karakul Lake.

Karakul Lake is a lake in the Chinese part of the Karakoram Highway. You'll see meltwater from impressive glaciers that fills the Karakul lake. You can often see yaks walking around. They sit down for a meal at their leisure. This is an incredibly beautiful place to visit.

The beautiful, but dangerous trucks on the road

Along the way you’ll notice beautifully decked-out trucks with lots of colours and often (religious) messages. But, the general rule here is: the strongest, or rather the largest, vehicle has the right of way. Truck drivers often just take the right of way, so be warned.

Vrachtwagens op de Karakoram Highway tussen Pakistan en China.

It’s a very adventurous journey, even if you only follow it for a short distance. There are more and more travel operators who organise trips to this part of the world.