BEFORE YOU RIDE

The things worth settling before you book — what you need to bring, what you're covered for, what a drop would cost you, and what happens the day before you leave.

NEVER RIDDEN A MOUNTAIN ROAD?

That's most of the people who ride with us. And being uneasy about it is the right instinct — it means you're thinking about it properly.

So here's what we'd honestly tell you: don't start with the four-day Mae Hong Son Loop. Start with the Samoeng Loop. One day, 147 km, the first proper mountain road most riders here ever meet. It's the ride this whole valley recommends first, and it's where you find out what you actually think of corners.

When you come back for Mae Hong Son, we run it clockwise on purpose. Route 108 out of Chiang Mai is the famous 1,864 curves — long, open, sweeping. The hard 762 are on Route 1095 through Pai, and going clockwise puts them on your last day instead of your first. By day three the corners have stopped being a problem and started being the point.

And no, you won't be slowing anyone down. We ride in groups of about five — there's no pack to keep up with, and nobody is watching the clock.

The road itself — every leg, the fuel gaps, how many days it takes — is in our Mae Hong Son Loop route guide.

YOU'RE COVERED WHILE YOU RIDE

Every rider on an NBT tour is insured under our own Travel Accident policy for tour operators, underwritten by Bangkok Insurance — a Thai insurer since 1947.

  • ✓฿1,000,000 per person — death or permanent disability
  • ✓฿500,000 per person, per accident — medical expenses
  • ✓No exclusion for motorcycling. Every age, every rider.

The policy covers you, not the bike, and it won't cover you if you ride after drinking. We still recommend your own travel insurance — it covers your belongings and your trip, and where you're covered twice, ours pays the difference.

NO SECURITY DEPOSIT. NO PASSPORT HELD.

We don't hold your passport, and we don't take a security deposit before you ride. You ride with our guide, and the bike comes out of our own workshop with our own mechanics behind it — that's our security, not your documents.

And if you'd rather know the worst case before you book than find out after: you can cap it. A damage waiver is optional, added to your booking, and it puts a ceiling on what a drop could cost you.

  • ✓฿50 a day — caps your liability at ฿5,000. Click 125.
  • ✓฿100 a day — caps it at ฿15,000. Click 125 or PCX 160.
  • ✓฿200 a day — caps it at ฿30,000. Any bike 200cc and up.
  • ✓฿400 a day — caps it at ฿50,000. Any bike 200cc and up.

A ฿1,000 excess applies to each claim, and damage above the cover you choose is still yours to make good. The waiver covers our bike — you're already covered yourself, by the tour accident policy above. Not sure which one fits the bike you'll be on? Ask us and we'll tell you which tiers that bike can take.

HOW WE CHOOSE YOUR BIKE

The right bike up here isn't the biggest one. A Click 125 can't climb the Mae Hong Son passes; a CT125 can — and a CT125 doesn't belong in a group of NX500s unless you've booked privately. So we match the bike to the road and to you.

  • ✓Every bike comes out of our own workshop — current models, low mileage, and set up for touring: upgraded rear suspension, hand and engine protection, luggage racks.
  • ✓The biggest bike we run is the Royal Enfield Bear 650 — a 648cc scrambler twin on Showa upside-down forks, 19-inch front wheel, switchable rear ABS. Included at no extra cost, on every tour except the two off-road ones. We have two, so ask early.
  • ✓Lowered and adjusted bikes for shorter riders, down to around 155 cm.
  • ✓Riding your own bike? Ask us — the tour price comes down.
See all twelve, and what each one is for →

BOOKING, PAYING, AND THE DAY BEFORE

A 20% booking deposit reserves your place, and it's fully refundable up to 21 days before departure. The balance is due when you come in the day before your tour — or earlier, if you'd rather have it done.

Come in the day before wherever you can. That's when we fit your jacket and helmet, put your name on the tour insurance, and make sure the bike suits you before it matters. Tours leave the shop at 08:30 sharp — be with us by 08:00.

WHO YOU'RE RIDING WITH

  • ✓We hold our own TAT tourism licence. A registered Thai tour operator — not a rental shop that also runs trips.
  • ✓Groups of around five. Small enough that nobody rides alone and nobody waits.
  • ✓Our own workshop, our own mechanics, our own service vehicle. Not a contractor we called — and on the long tours a mechanic rides with the group.
  • ✓Women ride with us regularly — including groups that book the whole tour as a ladies-only ride.
  • ✓Tours run whatever the numbers. One rider is enough for us to go.

FREQUENTLY ASKED

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Do I need a motorcycle licence?

Yes — bring your motorcycle licence from home. An International Driving Permit is recommended. There's no small-bike exemption: Thailand treats mopeds as motorcycles, so a 110cc scooter needs the same licence as a 650. And if your home licence doesn't already carry motorcycle entitlement, an IDP can't add it. Riding with us, you're with a registered Thai tour operator and a Thai-speaking guide, so checkpoints are routine and we handle them. Not sure your paperwork works here? Message us before you book — it takes five minutes to check, and it's cheaper to find out now.
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What happens if I ride without the right licence?

Two things, and the second is the expensive one. A police check is usually a fine. But most travel insurance policies expect you to hold the correct licence for what you're riding, and not holding it is a standard reason for a claim to be refused — the UK Foreign Office says so in plain words. Around nine in ten standard travel policies exclude motorbikes altogether, and no helmet or any alcohol voids cover as well. A rental shop not asking to see your licence changes none of this — it was never the shop's decision to make. On our tours you're additionally covered by our own Bangkok Insurance accident policy (below). But your personal travel insurance is your own, and we'd rather you knew before you got here than after.
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My home licence doesn't cover motorcycles — what are my options?

An International Driving Permit can't add an entitlement your home licence doesn't have, so a car-only licence stays a car-only licence here. That leaves two honest routes. The clean one is to get the motorcycle entitlement at home before you travel — worth doing anyway if you're going to keep riding. The other is to come as a passenger: the Pillion Tour is a trip in its own right, same route, same stops, same nights, no licence and no experience needed. And if you're somewhere in between — a provisional, a category whose wording you can't read, a licence nobody at a checkpoint will recognise — send us a photo of it before you book and we'll tell you honestly where you stand.
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Am I insured on the tour?

Yes. Every rider is covered by our own Travel Accident policy for tour operators, underwritten by Bangkok Insurance, a Thai insurer since 1947 — ฿1,000,000 per person for death or permanent disability, and ฿500,000 per person for medical expenses per accident, with no exclusion for motorcycling and no age limit. The policy covers you, not the bike, and it won't cover you if you ride after drinking. We still recommend your own travel insurance for your belongings and your trip — where you're covered twice, ours pays the difference.
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What happens if I damage the bike?

Low-speed drops aren't dramatic, and your guide will be right there to help pick the bike up. We don't take a security deposit and we don't hold your passport. If you'd rather know your worst case before you book, you can cap it: an optional damage waiver runs ฿50 a day to cap your liability at ฿5,000 on a Click 125, ฿100 a day for ฿15,000 on a Click 125 or PCX 160, and ฿200 or ฿400 a day to cap it at ฿30,000 or ฿50,000 on any bike from 200cc up. A ฿1,000 excess applies to each claim, and damage above the cover you pick is still yours to make good. The waiver covers our bike — you're covered yourself by our tour accident policy either way.
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Is there a minimum age, and is there an upper one?

Riders need to be 18 or over. That's our rule, not the insurer's — our accident policy has no age limit at all, at either end, so there's no upper age and nobody has ever been too old to ride with us. A younger rider travelling with family is a conversation rather than a no: tell us their age and what they've ridden, and we'll tell you honestly whether the tour you're looking at is the right one. There's no age limit on the Pillion Tour, where you ride as a passenger behind a guide.
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Do I get my own room on a multi-day tour?

Accommodation on the multi-day tours is in twin or double rooms, and that is what the tour price covers. If you'd like a single room to yourself, it's USD 50 per day of the tour on top, subject to availability — tell us when you book and we'll arrange it.
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How much riding experience do I need?

Enough to be comfortable on a bike. You don't need to be an expert, but the mountains aren't the place to learn from scratch. If you're not sure where you sit, start with the Samoeng Loop — one day, 147 km, and the gentlest proper mountain road we run. Tell us what you've ridden before and we'll point you at the tour that fits.
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Do I have to keep up with the guide?

You ride your own ride. A guide leads the way, nobody gets pushed, and on the longer tours a mechanic rides with the group.
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What if something goes wrong with the bike?

The bikes come out of our own workshop and our own mechanics are on hand — it isn't a phone call to somebody else's garage. On the long tours a mechanic rides with the group, so it gets sorted there and then.
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What happens if we're stopped at a checkpoint?

Usually nothing at all. You're riding with a registered Thai tour operator and a Thai-speaking guide, and checkpoints tend to wave a guided group straight through. If anything does need sorting out, your guide sorts it. It's one of the quieter reasons people ride with a company instead of on their own.
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What is the best time of year to come — and is any month worth avoiding?

Mid-November to early February is the best of the year: cool, dry and the longest mountain views. The one window we flag is late February to early April, when farmers burn off their fields and some days the valleys turn hazy, so the big views aren't guaranteed. Riders still come then and have a great trip — we start early, keep the days shorter and pick routes that suit the week. Every other month has its own reasons to ride. Tell us your dates and we'll tell you honestly what that week usually looks like.
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Can someone come who doesn't ride?

Yes. They ride pillion behind one of our guides — same route, same stops, same trip, no handlebars. It's a tour in its own right: the Pillion Tour.

STILL GOT A QUESTION?

Ask us before you book. We'd rather answer it now than have you wonder about it on the road.

Get in Touch

Nine of them

ALL TOURS

One day to eleven, side by side →

Read the roads

ROUTE GUIDES

Measured legs, real fuel stops →

Not riding?

PILLION TOUR

Same route, no licence needed →