Tajikistan is over ninety percent mountain, and the Pamir Highway running east from Dushanbe toward the Kyrgyz border is the reason most travellers come. The route crosses passes above 4,000 metres through some of the emptiest landscape in Central Asia.
The guides on this page cover Tajikistan as a whole. The Pamir season runs roughly June to September; outside it passes close and conditions become severe. A separate permit is required for the Gorno-Badakhshan region, arranged in advance, and border areas have their own restrictions. Vehicles, fuel and accommodation along the highway are limited enough that the route needs planning rather than improvisation.