About TibetMoto Tours
Driven by Passion, Guided by Experience
Since 2010, TibetMoto has specialised in premium guided motorcycle tours and overland expeditions across Tibet, the Himalayas, China and Central Asia, creating unforgettable adventure travel experiences for riders from around the world. Our roots remain especially strong in Tibet and China. On our iconic tours, riders can experience remote high-altitude routes including the eastern Himalayan range to Tibet on the East Tibet Motorcycle Tour, ride across the Tibetan Plateau to Mount Kailash in Tibet’s remote west region on Kailash Calling, experience all the main highlights of Tibet including Mount Everest Base Camp on the Trans-Tibet Tour, or explore the mountain roads and Tibetan-influenced regions of Yunnan on the South of the Clouds Yunnan Motorcycle Tour. These journeys combine thrilling riding, dramatic landscapes, cultural encounters and experienced local support.
Over the years, our vision has grown into an international touring company that offers unique riding experiences across the greater Himalayan region and beyond. From our TibetMoto European office in Cyprus, we operate with a European company structure and strong customer protection, while our Shangri-La base and regional teams allow us to manage expeditions directly in Tibet, China and other remote regions of Asia. Unlike many tour companies, we are not a reseller or intermediary. We directly operate and manage our tours and destinations ourselves, working with long-standing local teams and regional offices throughout Asia. In most destinations, we operate our own motorcycle fleets and support vehicles directly or through exclusive long-term partnerships, allowing us to maintain consistent standards, reliable logistics and a high level of operational control even in remote expedition regions.
Our Motorcycle Bases
A Team of Seasoned Professionals
Behind every adventure stands a highly experienced operations and support team coordinating the countless details required for complex international motorcycle expeditions. While our groups are on the road, our office staff, regional partners and local ground teams remain available to assist with permits, logistics, accommodation, route coordination and operational support across multiple countries.
Operating in remote mountain regions and across international borders requires calm decision-making, strong local networks and years of practical experience. Our tour leaders and local guides combine riding expertise with deep regional knowledge and cultural understanding, ensuring that challenges on the road are handled professionally and efficiently.
Many riders choose TibetMoto because our tours combine genuine adventure with a high level of organisation and reliability. Our support vehicles carry mechanics, luggage and first-aid equipment, our itineraries are carefully designed for both riding enjoyment and comfort, and our motorcycles are well suited for high-altitude terrain and demanding mountain roads.
This attention to detail, together with years of operational experience and a strong understanding of local regulations, allows our riders to focus fully on the landscapes, the riding experience and the cultural journey itself.
Key People Behind TibetMoto
Hendrik Heyne
Founder / General Manager / Road CaptainHendrik Heyne
Hendrik Heyne studied Policy Management before becoming an adventure motorcycle road captain. Originally from Münster, Germany, he first travelled to China and Tibet in 2007. After completing his Policy Management degree in 2010, he founded TibetMoto in Yunnan and has since led the company as General Manager. Hendrik develops new adventure concepts, guides motorcycle tours in China and abroad, and works closely with BMW in a variety of fields as a certified BMW Motorrad Tourguide. He lives between Chiang Mai, Thailand, and Shangri-La, China, where his Tibetan wife is from.
Tenzin Choetso
Co-Founder / Operations & PermitsTenzin Choetso
Tenzin was born in Deqen, around 200 km from Shangri-La near the Mekong River. She is the co-founder of TibetMoto and plays a central role in coordinating hotel and flight bookings, local partners and guides, and permit applications including Tibet Travel Permits and Aliens’ Travel Permits. Tenzin also joins pilot tours and scouting trips, takes photos and set up the TibetMoto homestay in her hometown, which guests visit on selected tours.
Tashi Dorjie
Road Captain / Tour Guide / Fleet ManagerTashi Dorjie
Tashi is from Shangri-La and is an experienced motorcycle tour guide and road manager. He has led tours across Yunnan, Sichuan, Qinghai and Tibet, including the challenging Munich to Lhasa overland route, as well as tours in Central Asia, Nepal, and Indochina. Tashi speaks English, Chinese, Tibetan and local dialects, making him highly effective in communication on the road. He is a valued road captain and also manages the vehicle fleet and motorcycle base in Shangri-La.
Partnering with the Best: Classic Bike Adventure
In 2019, TibetMoto joined forces with Classic Bike Adventure, a renowned motorcycle tour operator founded in 1989. This partnership enables us to expand our portfolio into destinations such as India, Nepal, Bhutan, Southeast Asia and Mongolia, while also operating complex overland expeditions across regions such as South America and Africa. Today, we operate these journeys as sister companies, pooling decades of expertise to deliver unparalleled experiences.
Trusted by Riders, Partners and Media
For more than a decade, we have been the trusted partner of the MOTORRAD action team, the travel division of Europe’s largest motorcycle magazine, as well as a reliable expedition partner for events organised by Auto Motor & Sport Events. Their editors and readers value our ability to operate complex car and motorcycle expeditions on some of the most challenging and spectacular roads in Asia and beyond.
This cooperation with respected names in the motorcycle and automotive travel industry reflects the professional standards behind every TibetMoto tour.
What We Stand For
Long-Term Regional Experience
Since 2010, we have been operating motorcycle tours across Tibet, the Himalayas, Central Asia and beyond. Operating in these regions requires far more than simply designing scenic itineraries. High altitude, remote infrastructure, changing local regulations and complex logistics demand long-term regional knowledge, strong local networks and the ability to make calm operational decisions on the ground.
An All-Inclusive Travel Experience
We believe riders should be able to arrive and fully focus on the riding experience, scenery and cultural aspects of the journey rather than constantly thinking about organisational details or additional costs along the way. Depending on the destination and itinerary, our tours generally include the prepared motorcycle for the journey, experienced tour leaders, support and service vehicles, fuel, accommodation, meals, permits, entrance fees and domestic flights. Our all-inclusive travel philosophy is designed to create journeys that feel smooth, professionally organised and easy to enjoy from beginning to end.
Professional Equipment, Logistics & Support Infrastructure
Overland and adventure tours require reliable equipment and strong logistical infrastructure behind the scenes. We operate professionally maintained motorcycle fleets together with dedicated support and service vehicles, including Ford Transit vans and Ford Ranger pickup trucks prepared specifically for remote expedition travel. Our support vehicles carry tools, spare parts, luggage and safety equipment, allowing journeys to operate smoothly even in remote regions far away from larger cities or workshops.
In addition, we operate our own two-level motorcycle transport truck, allowing us to independently move and position our fleets across different regions and countries when required. This logistical independence gives us far greater flexibility and operational control compared to relying entirely on external transport providers.
Experienced Teams On and Off the Road
Behind every expedition stands an experienced operational team coordinating logistics, permits, accommodation, route planning and local support across multiple countries. At the same time, our road captains, local guides and mechanics have spent years operating motorcycle journeys through some of the world’s most remote mountain regions. Their riding experience, cultural understanding and practical knowledge form an essential part of every expedition we organise.
Direct Operations With Our Own Teams
We are not a reseller. All of our tours are operated directly together with our own regional teams and long-term local partners rather than being outsourced to third-party operators. In almost all destinations, we also operate and manage our own motorcycle fleets, support vehicles and logistical infrastructure on the ground.
In addition, our tours are accompanied by our experienced international tour leaders working closely with local guides, mechanics and support crews. This direct operational structure allows us to maintain consistent quality standards, reliable communication, strong operational control and far greater flexibility throughout the journey, especially in remote regions where experience and local coordination matter most.
Safety, Experience & Pragmatic Decision Making
Remote travel requires flexibility, contingency planning and the ability to adapt to changing conditions on the ground. Our teams continuously monitor weather, road, political and local conditions and adjust routes or logistics whenever necessary. Riders are never left alone to deal with difficult situations by themselves, and there is always a structured support network and contingency plan operating behind the scenes throughout the journey.
Safety always comes first. In the rare event that unexpected situations arise, our teams are experienced in coordinating local medical assistance, evacuation support and communication with insurance providers while making calm and pragmatic decisions based on the realities on the ground.
Cultural Understanding Beyond Tourism
Our journeys are designed not only around riding, but also around understanding the regions and communities we travel through. Through our local teams, guides and long-term regional networks, riders gain access to monasteries, local communities, remote settlements and cultural experiences that often remain inaccessible to regular tourism.
We are also strong believers in curated homestay experiences and staying with local families whenever possible. In our view, one of the best ways to truly understand a culture or community is to spend time living alongside the people themselves rather than only observing them from the outside. We even operate our own homestay near Shangri-La in the Tibetan Eastern Himalayas, allowing riders to experience daily life, hospitality and local culture in a far more authentic and personal way.
European Structure, Regional Roots
Our European office in Cyprus serves as the legal and administrative foundation for our operations. For our guests, this offers the advantage of dealing with a European-based tour operator operating under strong consumer protection and legal frameworks.
At the same time, we work closely together with our regional offices, local teams and long-term partners across Asia. This structure allows us to combine professional organisation, reliable communication and European business standards with deep on-the-ground experience and local operational knowledge in the regions where we travel.
Journeys That Stay With You
Whether it is riding across the Tibetan Plateau to Everest Base Camp, circling Mount Kailash, crossing the Pamir Mountains, exploring the Himalayas or joining one of our longer overland adventure tours through Eurasia or South America, we focus on journeys that leave a lasting impression long after the riding itself has ended.
TibetMoto is more than simply a motorcycle tour operator. It is a long-term adventure project built around experience, logistics, regional expertise and a shared passion for exploring some of the world’s most extraordinary roads and landscapes.
Geographical Expertise: From Tibet to the Silk Road & Beyond
We began with a focus on Tibet and China and have since expanded into several of the world’s most iconic routes. Our guiding portfolio includes:
- Tibet & China Motorcycle Tours: Exploring Lhasa, riding to Mount Everest Base Camp, travelling across the Tibetan high plateau to Mount Kailash, and discovering the ancient towns of Yunnan and Sichuan.
- North India & Ladakh: Crossing the highest motorable passes in the world, visiting Buddhist monasteries and navigating the remote Nubra and Zanskar valleys.
- Bhutan: Riding through the world’s happiest country, famous for its mountain passes, Gross National Happiness philosophy and remarkable dzongs.
- Central Asia & Mongolia: Following segments of the Silk Road through Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia, combining off-road adventure with nomadic culture.
- Panamericana & Overland Expeditions: Driving from Colombia to Tierra del Fuego or from Europe to Asia, including the EurAsia overland journey from Germany to Thailand through Central Asia and China.
- South-East Asia: Exploring the mountain roads and cultural landscapes of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, from remote jungle routes and limestone karsts to historic trading towns, Mekong river valleys and some of the most scenic riding roads in Asia.
By pairing local knowledge with logistical expertise, we cover regions where other tour operators rarely venture, from the high-altitude deserts of the Pamirs to the lush green valleys of northern Thailand. This broad scope has earned us a reputation for overland travel mastery, with journalists and experienced riders regularly joining our journeys. At the end of the day, however, what matters most to us are the people we meet along the road and the shared experiences that emerge during these journeys. Many of our riders return again and again, not only for the destinations themselves, but for the atmosphere, friendships and sense of adventure that develop along the way.
Whether you are dreaming of your first great overland journey or searching for the next remote mountain pass beyond the horizon, we would be happy to welcome you on one of our adventures.