2,685off-highway vehicle deaths · USA 2020–2022
1,759 on quads (ATVs), 707 on side-by-sides, the rest on utility vehicles; 81 % of the dead were male. Overturning was a primary hazard in about 42 % of the deaths, collisions in about 27 %.
Guide · 15 grounds · 15 operators · their own rules
Quad biking, ATV and buggy tours: licence, age, weight, cost and safety
The licence depends on the road, not the quad.
And the risk is the rollover.
A quad tour is the adventure with the lowest entry bar on these grounds – no fitness, no head for heights, an automatic gearbox and a guide in front – and the one with the most confusing rules. The same ride needs a full car licence on Mallorca and nothing but a passport in the Mojave; the driving age runs from 12 in Perthshire to 25 in Alcúdia. The reason is almost always the road: where the tour touches public roads, the quad is a registered vehicle and road law applies. Below: the licence, age and weight rules of fifteen operators word for word, the cheapest bookable ride on each ground, and what the American and German crash statistics say about machines that are easy to drive and easy to roll.
Who can go
Operators' own limits on 15 grounds
Whether you need a driving licence depends on the road, not the quad. Where the tour uses public roads – Mallorca, the Canary Islands, Makarska – the quads and buggies are road-registered and you need a full car licence (class B), and the original card: Randa refuses photos, copies, learner and probationary licences, Alcúdia refuses digital ones, Lanzarote wants it held for two years. Where the ride stays on private land or in the desert – Las Vegas, Phoenix, Marrakech, Dubai, Bali, Cusco – the operators ask for ID and a waiver, not a licence. Kualoa Ranch and Cancun Adventures ask for one anyway.
The driving age follows the same split: 18 where a licence is needed (20 in Lanzarote, 21 at Kualoa, 25 at Alcúdia), 16 on most desert tracks (Marrakech, Dubai's buggies, Phoenix, Cusco with a waiver), 13 on the Atlantis dunes and at Kuber in Bali, 12 on Perthshire's farm trails. Children ride as passengers from 4 to 10 depending on the operator. Weight is set per vehicle rather than per rider: 135 kg at Corralejo, 150 kg for a double quad at Randa, 260 lb in Cancún, 400 lb per seat in Phoenix. Almost every operator excludes pregnancy, and most back problems – the tracks are bumpy by design.
| Ground | Stop | Licence | Age | Also |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Las Vegas | ATV · Nellis Dunes & the Mojave | none – photo ID or passport | 18+ to drive | passengers: the Viator listings allow one rider per ATV and no minors, the operator's FAQ takes 6–18-year-olds as UTV passengers; helmet and closed shoes; off-road only |
| Canary Islands: Lanzarote, Fuerteventura & Gran Canaria | Off-road buggy · Lanzarote's lava tracks, Corralejo's dunes, Gran Canaria's canyons | full car licence, original card; Lanzarote: held 2 years | 18+ to drive (20+ in Lanzarote); passengers from 4 at Corralejo, from 1.35 m in the front seat | Corralejo: max. 135 kg; Lanzarote: “no weight restrictions”; roads plus tracks |
| Mallorca | Quad · the tracks of Randa and the roads of Alcúdia, Pollença and Formentor | class B, original card – no photos, copies or probationary licences | 18+ at Randa, 25+ at Alcúdia (21–25 on request); passengers 6–7+ | public roads through the villages; double quads max. 150 kg (Randa), 160–170 kg (Magaluf) |
| Morocco | Quads & camels · Agafay stone desert | none – “you do not need a driver's license” | 16+ to drive; passengers from 6 with an adult | automatic quads, off-road in the Palmeraie and the Agafay stone desert; not when pregnant or with back problems |
| Cusco, Huacachina & Lima: Peru | Dune buggy & sandboarding · the dunes around the Huacachina oasis, Ica | none – a professional driver | passengers 8+ on the GetYourGuide tour; Viator lets infants ride on laps | you ride, the arenero drives; not when pregnant or with back problems – the dunes jolt hard |
| Cusco, Huacachina & Lima: Peru | ATV · Cruzpata to Moray and the Maras salt pans, Sacred Valley | none – “national or international” | 16+ with a parent's signed waiver; younger ride behind an adult | dirt roads and farm tracks at about 3,500 m; a weight limit exists per quad – ask when booking |
| Cancún & the Riviera Maya | ATV, ziplines & cenote swim · Ruta de los Cenotes, Puerto Morelos | none inside the park (Extreme Adventure); a valid licence at Cancun Adventures | 18+ to drive alone, 16–17 on a shared quad with an adult; passengers from 4 (min. 1 m tall) | max. 130 kg at Extreme Adventure, 260 lb at Cancun Adventures; not with pregnancy, back or heart problems |
| Oahu | Ziplines, UTVs & horses · Kualoa Ranch, Kaʻaʻawa Valley | valid driver's licence | 21+ to drive; passengers 5+ | UTV Raptor tour on the private ranch; up to 6 people and 2 drivers per vehicle; not advised when pregnant |
| Dubai & the Emirates | Dune buggies and quad bikes | none – “not required” for buggies; quads need “basic driving knowledge” | buggies 16+ (18+ for high-power models); quads over 14 on Viator, 16–55 on the operator's site | private desert; you pay for any damage; not with pregnancy or serious back or neck problems |
| Dalmatia: Split to Dubrovnik | Quads and buggies on Biokovo and above Dubrovnik | class B at Makarska; a valid licence in Dubrovnik | 18+ to drive in Dubrovnik; passengers 10+ | Makarska: “2 people on 1 quad (strictly)”, no driver swap for the inexperienced; Skywalk entry €15 extra |
| Bali | ATV through jungle, tunnels and rice fields | none – driving skill tested before the start | 13+ alone; 6–12 in tandem with a parent (Kuber) | mud, rivers and tunnels, mostly off-road; Bali Quad Discovery's quads carry two adults up to 250 kg |
| Phoenix & the Sonoran Desert | ATVs in the Sonoran Desert | “not required” – valid ID only | 16+ to drive, 18+ to rent; passengers 4+ with their own car seat | 400 lb per ATV and per UTV seat; no insurance offered; no skirts or dresses on ATVs |
| Highlands & Scotland | Quads in Perthshire, kayaks at Glencoe | not published – private trails | 12+, and big enough to reach the brakes | every rider drives their own quad on a purpose-built farm trail; helmets must be CE-approved |
| Cape Town | Atlantis Dunes: quads and sandboards | not published – passport or ID for the indemnity form | 13+ to ride alone; 4–12 only as passengers with an adult | Cape Xtreme: 130–150 kg per quad; nature-reserve permit R300 payable on arrival |
| Madeira | Off-road buggy | a driving licence for one person per buggy | 18+ to drive (Funadventures); passengers over 7 | off-road tracks near Cabo Girão and in the laurel forest; price per buggy for two |
What it costs
Cheapest bookable offer per ground, as retrieved Sept 29, 2026
Quads are the cheapest adrenaline on Thrillgrounds wherever labour is cheap: under €30 for an hour or two in Marrakech (from €12), Bali, Huacachina, Dubai, Cusco and on the Atlantis dunes – often with lunch, a camel ride or a sandboard thrown in. On Mallorca, the Canary Islands, in Cancún, Makarska and Perthshire a half day costs €35–75 per person; in the American West $100–160 (Las Vegas, Phoenix, Kualoa's UTV). Watch the unit: many buggy prices are per vehicle for two (Lanzarote €150, Madeira €135), and a double quad costs less per head than a single. The table lists the cheapest bookable ride per ground.
How dangerous is it
The best data come from the United States, where the Consumer Product Safety Commission counts every off-highway vehicle – quads, side-by-sides and utility vehicles. Its 2025 report records 2,685 deaths in 2020–2022, 1,759 of them on quads, and on average about 115,700 emergency-room visits a year in 2020–2024; 15 % of the dead and 28 % of the injured were under 16. The pattern is the same year after year: the vehicle rolls over and the rider is thrown off. In the CPSC's 2024 injury study the vehicle had overturned in 68 % of cases and the victim was ejected in 83 %; only 23 % of the injured had worn a helmet, and in at least 38 % of the fatal crashes the driver had been drinking. These are mostly private riders on their own machines, not guided tours – but the physics are the same.
Germany's insurers found road-registered quads in Bavaria more than twice as likely as cars to be in an injury crash and ten times as likely to leave someone dead or seriously injured; 40 % were single-vehicle crashes (UDV). For holiday rides there is little: a study of 226 quad riders brought in by Dubai's ambulance service found older tourists and expatriates the largest group, mostly daytime rollovers with milder injuries (BMJ Public Health 2025). And the UK travel association ABTA warns that many standard travel-insurance policies exclude quad biking (ABTA). A guided tour in single file behind a guide, at a set pace, with a helmet and sober, is the version that avoids most of what these numbers count.
115,700ER visits a year · USA 2020–2024
An estimated 578,700 emergency-department-treated injuries in five years, 28 % of them under 16. In the 2024 special study the vehicle overturned in 68 % of injuries and the victim was ejected in 83 %; a helmet was worn in 23 % of cases where it was known.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 2025 OHV Report
10×risk of death or serious injury vs. a car · Germany
Analysis of 488 quad crashes in Bavaria, 2009–2012: the risk of an injury crash more than twice a car's, the risk of death or serious injury ten times higher. 40 % were single-vehicle crashes, causing about half of the dead and seriously injured.
Source: UDV – German Insurers Accident Research, Quads im Unfallgeschehen (2013)
What to wear
- Closed shoes, always. Every operator here says so; Arizona Outdoor Fun bans sandals, flip-flops and Crocs, Cape Xtreme calls closed toes “strictly required”.
- Long trousers – against thorny scrub and a hot engine, as the Las Vegas operators put it. Arizona Outdoor Fun allows no skirts or dresses on its ATVs.
- The helmet is provided and not optional; in Spain it has been law on quads since 2006. Hair goes in a low ponytail so it fits.
- A scarf or bandana and sunglasses for the dust. Marrakech operators hand out head scarves and goggles, Lanzarote a windbreaker and goggles.
- Clothes you can throw away for Bali and Perthshire – the mud is part of the tour. Scottish Quads suggests old clothes, gloves and wellies.
Source: Operators: Arizona Outdoor Fun, Cape Xtreme, Best ATV Tours LV, Scottish Quads; helmet law: DGT
First time
- Bring the licence card itself if the tour touches roads. Randa, Alcúdia and Corralejo refuse photos, copies and digital licences, and nobody refunds you at the gate.
- There is a test lap. Las Vegas ATV's disqualifies anyone who fails the orientation; Bali Quad Discovery tests your driving before the start, according to its reseller. The tour quads are automatics: thumb throttle, brakes, no gears.
- Lean into the bend and uphill on a slope. A quad rolls when the weight is on the wrong side – that is the mechanism behind most of the statistics.
- Keep your distance. In a column the dust from the quad in front hides the ruts; the guide sets the pace and the line.
- Read the damage clause. In Dubai and Phoenix you pay for any damage, and many travel policies exclude quad biking – check yours before you ride.
Before you go
Do you need a driving licence to ride a quad?
Only where the tour uses public roads. On Mallorca, the Canary Islands and at Makarska you need a full car licence (class B), as the original card; Lanzarote wants it held for two years. In the Mojave, the Sonoran Desert, Marrakech, Dubai, Bali and Cusco the operators ask only for ID and a waiver. Kualoa Ranch in Hawaii asks for a valid licence for its UTVs anyway.
How old do you have to be to drive a quad?
18 wherever a licence is needed – 20 in Lanzarote, 21 at Kualoa Ranch, 25 on the Alcúdia tour on Mallorca. Off-road the minimum is usually 16 (Marrakech, Phoenix, Dubai's buggies, Cusco with a parent's waiver), 13 on Cape Town's Atlantis dunes and at Kuber in Bali, 12 on Scottish Quads' farm trails.
Can children ride?
As passengers, yes: from 4 in Cancún, Phoenix, Corralejo and on the Atlantis dunes, from 6 in Marrakech and Bali (tandem), 7 on Mallorca and Madeira, 8 in the Huacachina buggies, 10 in Dubrovnik. The Viator-listed Las Vegas desert tours take no minors at all.
Is there a weight limit?
Usually per vehicle, not per rider: 135 kg at Corralejo, 150 kg for a double quad on Mallorca's Randa tour (160–170 kg at Magaluf), 130 kg or 260 lb in Cancún, 400 lb per seat in Phoenix, 130–150 kg per quad in Cape Town. Many operators publish none – Lanzarote says there is no weight restriction.
How much does a quad tour cost?
Under €30 in Marrakech, Bali, Huacachina, Dubai, Cusco and Cape Town; €35–75 per person on Mallorca, the Canary Islands, in Cancún, Makarska and Perthshire; $100–160 in Las Vegas, Phoenix and at Kualoa Ranch. Buggies are often priced per vehicle for two.
Are quads dangerous?
They have real numbers: 2,685 off-highway-vehicle deaths in the United States in 2020–2022 and about 115,700 emergency-room visits a year, most after a rollover in which the rider is thrown off. Germany's insurers put the risk of death or serious injury on a road quad at ten times a car's. Those figures are mostly private riders; a guided tour at a set pace with a helmet is a different exposure, but the rollover is the risk to respect.
What should I wear?
Closed shoes, long trousers, a scarf or bandana and sunglasses for the dust, and clothes you don't mind getting muddy. The helmet is provided everywhere. No skirts or dresses on an ATV.
Can I ride a quad when pregnant?
No. Almost every operator on this list excludes pregnancy – Las Vegas ATV's, Cape Xtreme and Stellar Adventures explicitly – and most also exclude back problems, because the tracks jolt hard.