What to Pack for a Motorcycle Trip in Northern Argentina

What's already
in the price

This comes with the motorcycle. You don't bring it or rent it separately.

Included

6items, at no charge

Unlimited mileage
Third-party liability insurance
Helmet and gloves
24/7 technical support
Route advice
Pre-trip training, if you need it

If you ride your own motorcycle on an expedition, you bring the helmet and gloves. Everything else, guide, support vehicle and luggage transfer, is the same.

See the rental terms

Your list
to pack your bag

Tick off what you already have. It's saved in this browser, so you can come back tomorrow and pick up where you left off.

Without these you don't ride

These are the rental contract requirements. If one is missing, the motorcycle doesn't leave the base, and it's the one part of this page that isn't a judgement call.

A national ID or passportThe ID you sign the contract with. If you're from abroad, your passport.
A valid driver's licenseValid for the engine size of the motorcycle you're taking. An international permit helps if you're from abroad, but the one that counts is your own country's.
Travel insurance or medical coverageIf you're coming from abroad. In the Puna the nearest health centre can be two hours away.
A card for the security depositA security deposit is held per motorcycle, refundable at the end. It has to be in your name.

What the north will ask of you

This is the difference between a good trip and one that falls apart on the first afternoon. It isn't riding gear: it's clothing and care, and it's what nobody packs the first time.

−6 °C

That's the average July low in San Antonio de los Cobres, at 3,775 m. From April to October it freezes every night.

A ten-year average. See the month-by-month weather

A proper thermal layerAt 3,775 m the average low is −6 °C in July and it freezes every night from April to October. Even if it's 20 °C in the day, the sun goes and twenty minutes later everything changes.
A windbreaker or waterproof jacketIn summer it rains almost twenty days a month in Salta, and almost always in the afternoon. It isn't all-day rain: it's a short, hard storm.
Strong sunscreen and lip balmAt 4,000 m the sun hits far harder than at sea level, and with a cold wind you don't notice until it's too late.
SunglassesAt the Salinas Grandes the white bounces everything back. Without sunglasses you can't look at it.
Water, more than you thinkThe air in the Puna is very dry. You get dehydrated without feeling thirsty.
Your medication, on the motorcycleNot in the bag that rides in the truck. And if you've never been above 3,000 m, check with your doctor before you travel.

What almost nobody ends up using

Said plainly so you don't overpack: the motorcycle has the space it has, and anything you don't use is something that gets in your way at every stop.

Clothes for each dayIt's three or four days. Two changes of clothes and something for the evening is enough.
ToolsIf something happens on the road, we deal with it: there's 24-hour support and, on expeditions, a support vehicle.
A fuel canThe routes are built around where the fuel is. The roadbook marks it.
Dress shoesThere's nowhere to wear them.

Missing something
you'd rather not buy?

Ask us before you travel with extra luggage. Several things can be bought in Salta and some we have ourselves.

Ask on WhatsApp

What's alreadyin the price