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2023 dates are now live for K2 Base Camp Trek. Check them out now.
Since March 2020 – the global travel industry and the concept of going on holidays in general have changed as we know it.
Epic Backpacker Tours and our partners in the countries where we operate have confronted the global crisis by keeping our mindset positive and adapting our trips and policies to this new era of travel. We owe it to our incredible staff and clients for keeping the dream of Epic Backpacker Tours alive in the face of a global health crisis.
As we look ahead to the 2022 season and beyond – there is a whole lot to get excited about and we want to be the ones to get you back out there on the adventure of a lifetime.
Here at Epic Backpacker Tours, we do not sugarcoat things either. While traveling right now is becoming easier by the day as more and more governments ease travel restrictions and the global Covid numbers continue to decline, the idea of planning a holiday right now is stressful and complex – full stop.
For much of the pandemic, travel has been unpredictable and travel logistics have been complicated.
That’s exactly why as of March 2020 we have been offering some of the most flexible booking policies in the adventure travel industry.
We want to remove the anxiety associated with international travel by giving you our Covid Promise; when it comes to your holiday booking; we believe that there should be no uncertainty or anxiety or questions left unanswered.
There are no grey areas in our policy: your booking dollars are 100% covered in the event that Covid-related issues prevent you from coming on the trip OR if we have to cancel a guaranteed trip due to Covid complications, border closures, etc.
We will also never collect a full trip payment from you unless a trip is guaranteed.
If you have already booked or plan to book a trip with Epic Backpacker Tours, please note the following: clients are entitled to have their full trip balance moved to another trip if Covid impacts their travel plans in some tangible way (IE contraction, government travel bans, etc) OR request a FULL REFUND if we cancel the tour due to logistical, safety, and/or travel complications related to Covid-19.
Full refund of balance or full trip credit will be issued for the following reasons:
| Scenario | Refund Option |
|---|---|
| Clients can provide Epic Backpacker Tours with medical proof that they or a family member has Coronavirus. | EPIC Travel Credit equal to total balance paid. |
| There is a government travel ban issued by your home country or we are unable to run our trip due to Covid travel bans. | Full refund or full travel credit towards a future trip. |
| Epic cancels the trip due to minimum numbers not being met. | Full refund or full travel credit towards a future trip. |
If you’d like more detailed information, click here to read our full terms and conditions policy
Group safety – both for our clients – and the people we work with on the ground – are our #1 priority.
Epic Backpacker Tours will never compromise the health or well-being of our clients if the health/Covid situation in a country is deemed to be unreasonable by global health experts.
Here is what we are doing to ensure our trips run responsibly, ethically, and with the intention to minimize health risks associated with Covid 19:
All Epic Backpacker Tours guides have been fully vaccinated against Covid 19.
The local staff in the countries where we operate have also been fully vaccinated against Covid 19.
When flying into a country where a trip is taking place, our staff are tested twice (PCR and Rapid Antigen tests).
The hotels we use during our trips have been selected based on their standard of compliance with Covid sanitary health protocols.
We make sure that all areas of common use including elevators, staircases and public restrooms will be frequently cleaned and disinfected throughout the day.
The vans, jeeps, and shuttles we hire to transport our clients go through a similar protocol as the hotels we use.
Our drivers are vaccinated and the vehicles go through a daily cleaning and disinfectant process.
The group size for our trips remains far below industry averages – you’ll never see a group of 25 people on one of our adventures!
On average our trips have 8 -10 people, with a maximum number being 12 or 14 depending on the trip.
In order to ensure group safety and to promote a positive team mindset, ALL of our clients must be fully vaccinated against Covid 19 to join one of our tours.
Feel free to send us a message using our contact page!
Chat with us now!
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Our flagship Pakistani adventure tour. Road trip with some hiking and cultural immersion.
A trekking-style tour that features some very remote locations, inlcuding a K2 viewpoint.
Adventure Guide
João has born in the mountains of Madeira Islands in Portugal. Nature lover, writer, musician, guide, for him, a day without contact with outdoor vibes is a nightmare.
With a degree in Cultural Studies in Portugal and a Master of Arts in Global Cultures and Creativity in the U.K.
João found out what really matters in life can be found on the trails, and in the contact with people from different backgrounds and cultures.
Guiding, crazy trekking missions, sharing observations about the natural world, – these are some of João’s passions.
After his trek to K2 Base Camp and other adventures in the north of Pakistan, the love of the country and the local people resulted in his desire to share these feelings with world.
When not in Pakistan, João is guiding and exploring in the Madeira Islands trails – discovering some of the hidden treasures on his Portuguese Island.
“
João I can not thank you enough for the off the beaten paths and views you keep giving. Definitely one of the most challenging and amazing hikes we did 1200m meters all the way up to Fanal forest and circling back to the hidden village. Wow!
– Jeffery
Meet him during : Lost World of Europe | Discover the Hunza Valley
Adventure Guide
Sohail is the newest addition to the Epic Backpacker Tours team and we are beyond stoked to have him on board. As a veteran of the Karakoram and a native of Karimabad in Hunza, there is not much Sohail can’t do in the mountains.
Besides having the ability to speak more languages than we can count, Sohail has explored every corner of Gilgit Baltistan and logs more trekking miles
in a year than most people will do in a lifetime. As of the summer of 2022, Sohail has summited Gasherbrum 1, Gasherbrum 2, and K2 – three of Pakistan’s five 8000-meter peaks. Sohail guides several trips including our annual bespoke expeditions but specializes in Hunza Valley tours.
“
Chris and Sohail, and the team at Epic are FANTASTIC! Highly recommend anyone to do a tour with ‘Epic’. They have the perfect balance of fun, excitement and wild adventures, tied in with being super professional and ensuring your safety/health in a foreign environment. Don’t waste a moment and book a tour with these guys as the value for money is UNREAL!
– Borgan
Meet him during : Discover the Hunza Valley
Adventure Guide
Pedro’s been traveling all around the globe since 2009. His keen interests in documentary photography, rural life, and local people from different ethnic groups have been the focus of many of his professional projects.
Since 2012, he has developed his passion for travel and awesome shared experiences into a full-time adventure photography tour leader position.
Pedro has found himself continuously going back to the Middle East, with his likely favorite destination being Iran. Pedro will be leading his 11th tour in Iran with EBT this coming spring 2020
When Pedro’s not traveling the world with Epic Backpacker Tours, you’ll find him based in the western south of Portugal planning he’s next adventure missions, logistics and working out his photos in local exhibitions.
“
I loved the combination of hiking, camping around breathtaking scenery mixed with the cultural aspects. The guide (Pedro) is knowledgeable and work very hard to make the trip as memorable as possible. All in all an epic adventure with some extremely epic individuals! Go for it, you won’t regret it!
– Saisun
“
Touring Iran with EBT in May 2022 was way above our expectation: itineraries well planned and carefully executed, perfect mix of sights and trekking, delicious food, nice accommodation, great guides and wonderful fellow travellers. Trekking can be handled by anyone physically fit. Highly recommended for those who want to experience the real Iran.
– Sumera
Meet him during : The Ultimate Iran Adventure
Adventure Admin / Marketing
After fleeing from the corporate fashion world in Paris towards the start of 2020, Diane has been working as a web developer and graphic designer remotely from various bases across the globe
She brings all of her incredible design and organizational power to Epic Backpacker Tours and is responsible for many of the beautiful behind-the-scenes design elements.
Diane has been to Iran and to Pakistan twice including all over Gilgit Baltistan and KPK.
Head of Operations | Guide
A veteran of Pakistan travel, Ralph is an experienced guide, photographer and writer who specializes in documenting remote locations.
Not one to simply go where everyone else does, he insists on exploring new and lesser-known areas.
Together with Epic Backpacker Tours, he shows people parts of Pakistan that most other operators don’t even know about. He is particularly fond of the village of Barah, which he believes will become just as famous as Hunza one day.
“
Just got back from EBT’s Trekking Amongst Giants 15 day tour. The experience was first class. Ralph, our head guide, ensured that the entire trip ran smoothly and relatively on time (a bonus for anyone travelling in Pakistan). We had so many unforgettable days on the tour and the trekking was well-planned, safe but also a rewarding challenge.
– Calvin
“
Traveling to a non-tourist destination can be a little intimidating but EBT takes all of the worry and trepidation away. From the pre-trip call to meeting the wonderful staff in person you can tell that you are dealing with a company that has a passion for what they do each and every day. Ralph, Zahid, and Khan were supportive, kind, and always willing to go the extra mile to make sure that everyone on the trip was getting what they wanted out of the experience.
– Katrina
Meet him during : Trekking Amongst Giants | Discover the Celestial Mountains | K2 Base Camp Trek
Founder | Adventure Guide | Director
For the last eleven years, Chris has been seeking out every shade of adventure in various parts of the globe and had visited more than 65 countries along the way.
Since 2011, Chris has logged more than 6300 trail miles across five continents and climbed multiple 6000 + 7000 meter peaks in Pakistan and Nepal.
In 2017, a distant dream and a deep passion for the mountains and people of Pakistan led Chris to found Epic Backpacker Tours at a time when foreign adventure tourism in Pakistan was almost nonexistent. Since then, Chris has guided more than 15 expeditions to various parts of Northern Pakistan.
Chris believes in using photography and powerful adventure experiences to dismantle negative stereotypes regarding what mainstream media considers “dangerous” countries while facilitating unique and meaningful memories in the mountains for countless people from around the globe.
Long-distance hiking, learning languages, meaningful conversations, all things Turkish food, mountaineering, and making tasty coffee above 6,000 meters rank among his favorite things in life.
For him, an ideal start to the day begins with a steaming cup of good coffee, the beam of a headlamp, alpine boots, and a camera in hand.
When he is not leading or planning tours, Chris works as a writer and photographer on his blog Off the Atlas – an adventure travel blog all about Pakistan.
“
Chris believes in Pakistan and its people, and he believes in the value of journeys shared with others and family cultivated on the road. Honesty and integrity are at the heart of what he does, and this really shines through in his work as a guide. He also makes great coffee – whether at 5am in an empty guesthouse or half way up a Himalayan peak.”
– Will De Villers
“
Chris believes in Pakistan and its people, and he believes in the value of journeys shared with others and family cultivated on the road. Honesty and integrity are at the heart of what he does, and this really shines through in his work as a guide. He also makes great coffee – whether at 5am in an empty guesthouse or half way up a Himalayan peak.”
– Alicia Anne Bjerkseth
