Hi Everyone,
I'm thinking to start an ATV adventure tour company mainly targeting foreign tourists. I've never ridden on a ATV but have a lot of experience of off road on a bike. I've absolutely no idea what kind of ATV would be suitable and what could be the cost and the brand. It will be a Jungle safari and siteseeing tour . Also going to the hills. In the jungle you might need to go in the mud/cross small streams and obviously trees. So guys I would be glad to hear from you. Please mention if you ever ridden ATV beyond your country by a tour operator and the price.
Cheers

 

For tourists that aren't experienced riders automatic transmissions would be best and it sounds like a 4x4 would be your best choice. All the big brands have automatics with 4x4 so you have lots of choices. Are there any dealers near you? I wouldn't want to buy one that I can't take in for service.

 

Sounds like you might end up buying a small fleet of ATVs......6, maybe 8 of them. In reality, and in my opinion, you could be opening up yourself to possible client incidents/accidents. Inexperienced ATV riders can get into trouble...and fast. In my area, there are some "mini safari's", meaning many acres of land that have wildlife roaming free ( to a degree ) and what the owners use is 4X4 tractors and specially built wagons to accomplish the touring task.

 

I applaud your enthusiasm to start a new business opportunity but as Fasteratv said, even one major accident could be devastating. If the terrain is difficult, even an experienced rider can get in trouble. Put someone on a quad that has very little experience riding one and they will panic when the going gets tough. And some people will react the complete opposite, thinking the 4x4 quad can conquer anything, those are the kind of clients that are maybe even more likely to get hurt. They don't use caution or common sense. Perhaps buying a few Jeeps or similar full-size 4x4 vehicles and simply allowing your clients to be passengers would be a better solution. You pick the drivers so you can be assured you have someone capable and safe in the kind of conditions you will encounter. The 4 seat utvs would be good as well as you can haul multiple people in each one but they are quite expensive.

 

Very good points greg and.....well said!

 

Thanks fasteratv for your opinion. There are other tour operators who operate Jeep and elephants in the area but I want to introduce something new for the tourists+locals. It will be an adventure tour so I want to put everyone on the driver/rider seat. It will be 2-3 hours tour. Many accidents occurr due to carelessness. There is risk in every single step but it can be prevented. Anyway Your concern cannot be ignored. I'll try my best to minimise accidents and find out the way to mitigate risks. I'm thinking to start the business with few (as you said) possibly 5/6 ATVs.

 

Thanks for your opinion. There are other tour companies who operate Jeeps and similar vehicles but I'm not going to copy the same. I want to do totally different from others. My targeted clients will be adventure seekers. Initially I'm thinking to start this on a plain area but extend it to rough and hilly mountains in coming future. And yes I can add 1 or 2 UTVs for families or small group.

 

I think the utvs overall would be safer than atvs. Rollcage, seatbelts, physically larger size not to mention most have doors or can be added for side protection as well. Yes they are more expensive on average but there are some that would perform well that don't cost 20 grand. Something like a Kymco 450i or Polaris Ranger ETX both are 2 seat versions that cost about the same or less than many utility 4x4 atvs. The added cargo carrying capacity of a utility utv would most likely be appreciated by your clients as well. On rides like these, a high top speed would not be a requirement, either of these machines can easily do 40 mph which would most likely be more than sufficient. The Honda Pioneer 500 would be another one in this price range and similar in power. Its unique in that it has a semi-auto 5 speed transmission controlled by paddle shifters on the steering wheel. Its a little smaller in size as well, being a 50" wide model.

 

Plus one that has enough speed that could out run anything that might decide to chase you either because you made em mad or because they were hungry..

 

^^^^^^ but a hungry Cheeta can run 60mph....