Lhasa - Sanya and duty

Hello bretheren

Several of my work mates planning a big bikathon from India up through Nepal, into Tibet and down the west side of China to end up at my place in Hainan. Coupla questions. Is there any specific information to be aware of about the China crossing point with Nepal? Are the crossing police user friendly there? Do you need to give them Budweiser, Pall Mall, and ladies' stockings? How long should it take to clear the customs check point? How long is the bike's visa good for? 1 year? If importing a bike into China to remain, how do they come up with the amount of duty to be paid? Do they have a Kelly's Blue Book for motorcycles? What could be expected for a 2007 KTM 525?

Thanks

Yo Brooder mon,

When you say "bikeathon" do you mean by motorcycle or pedal bicycle? You probably aren't going to get anything in at the border of Nepal and Tibet. Scores of people have long dreamed to making it happen independently but none that I've heard of so far have done it.

Considering the sensitive nature of politics in China this year, it may be worth having a contingency plan other than the areas you are currently planning. Regarding importing your bike, It's also extremely unlikely unless you get it fixed by some folks in HongKong/GuangZhou. Otherwise, unless you're bringing it in for a special event, it's not likely to be imported legally but perhaps some others on here will have different opinions/ideas to offer.

CC

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Originally Posted by CrazyCarl

Yo Brooder mon,

When you say "bikeathon" do you mean by motorcycle or pedal bicycle? You probably aren't going to get anything in at the border of Nepal and Tibet. Scores of people have long dreamed to making it happen independently but none that I've heard of so far have done it.

Considering the sensitive nature of politics in China this year, it may be worth having a contingency plan other than the areas you are currently planning. Regarding importing your bike, It's also extremely unlikely unless you get it fixed by some folks in HongKong/GuangZhou. Otherwise, unless you're bringing it in for a special event, it's not likely to be imported legally but perhaps some others on here will have different opinions/ideas to offer.

CC

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Hi

You've got more or less three options.

One
Entering with your own, foreign registered bike, which is possible but involves miles of red tape and a pile of cash. Most likely it will not work without "tour guide" and some unexpected charges may occur. It has been done many times and there are some agents to deal with. Consider minimum 3 months to get all necessary paperwork. One of these agents is Kashgar New Land Travel reportedly reliable.


Two
Getting your bike into the country without an agent on the back of a truck or sitting it out at a border is very unlikely to work. If you make it in this way, you have to go out the same way.
Although it has been done before, it seems to be out of reach today.


Three
The "get a bike in China" method is more feasible as long as you don't expect to get the bike of your dreams.
Legality of the rider is an issue and there have been many hot discussions about it already. As a visitor (except case One) it is very difficult to almost impossible to get your hands on a driving license. However, many people just bought a bike and rode all over the country without it and they were fine - I personally wouldn't recommend that though.



You don't need a permit to travel between provinces except for teebed and some sensitive places bordering it. Some regions are no-go for foreigners. On some inter-provincial routes you may run into check points.



All the above is based on this:
1 there are no rules
2 there are tons of rules to be followed
3 both, 1 and 2 can be simultaneously applied
4 different village - different rules
5 what worked yesterday, may not work today but may again tomorrow
...

Unftortunately, the politically most sensitive areas also host the most beautiful scenery. The 'sensitive nature of Chinese politics of this year' is most likely to continue for god knows how long.
As ChinaV once said: There aren't many years in 5000 years history they didn't mess up :lol8:

By Bikathon, I mean murdercycles. This is part of a round the world adventure over a few years. Sounds like they will have lots of troubles. They can visit the embassy in Abu Dhabi for further confusion. Thanks Carl

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Originally Posted by chinabiker

Hi


As ChinaV once said: There aren't many years in 5000 years history they didn't mess up :lol8:

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What 5000 year history? I thought they had only a 60 year history.

Thats what i've been told and seen all year.:rolleyes1: