Annapurna-basiskampstaptog via Poon Hill

On this is  first day of the Annapurna Base Camp trek begins in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, and the city of temples. There are over 3000 temples within Kathmandu Valley gaining it the aforementioned nickname. In addition, Kathmandu is historically rich and traditionally driven, you might just find festivals happening on the streets. If you are up for it, you might as well take part in the event.

As your flight gets close to the Kathmandu Valley, you can actually see a bunch of peaks up north. Peaks such as Manaslu, Langtang, Sisa Pangma, Himal Chuli, Ganesh II, Gang Chenpo, Ganesh V, Jugal, Pabil GIV, and more can be seen from your flight window.

After your flight lands at the Kathmandu airport, you will be directed to the immigration desk for your tourist visa approval. For this, you must have your passport, 2 passport-sized photos, bank receipt of visa fees, and a correctly filled visa application. You can ask for a visa application form at the immigration booth and you can pay the fees at a nearby bank counter within the terminal.

The bank counter accepts international modes of payment such as VISA, MasterCard, and others but sometimes technical issues might hold you from making the payment. It’s better to be ready for the unforeseen hurdles, so, we recommend you bring some cash with you.

On the second day of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek, we will get you on a bus to the most beautiful city of the country, Pokhara. The city in itself is a destination to be explored, if you wish so, we can arrange a couple of days of exploration. From Kathmandu, we will get on a morning tourist bus to Pokhara since the ride takes around 7 to 8 hours to complete.

The highway to Pokhara follows the Trishuli River with green hills on both sides making for a scenic ride. On the way, we will stop for lunch and bathroom breaks and the ride itself will be comfortable as we will be traveling by a tourist bus that is spacious and sofa-seated.

After we reach Pokhara, we will first get to our hotel and organize our bags. You can stroll around the lake at night as we will be staying at Lakeside, the tourist center of the city. The nightlife there is vibrant and lively, if you have no idea where to start, you can ask the guide for recommendations. We recommend not buying souvenirs and street food from random vendors on the street as you can be charged double or triple the actual price.

You are free to enjoy the night but be sure that you get enough sleep as being well-rested is important for the Annapurna Base Camp Trek.

On the third day of the trek, we will get on a ride to Tikhedhunga from Pokhara. We will move after lunch as today’s ride lasts for only 4 to 5 hours. With a lovely breakfast by the lake, you can explore the morning view of Lakeside before having lunch and getting on the road. We will travel on a jeep as tourist buses are not available to the countryside of Nepal.

After about 5 hours of Jeep ride, we will finally arrive at Nayapul after which our trekking starts. From Nayapul, it takes about 3 hours to reach the village of Tikhedhunga. Once we reach our destination of the day, we will first check-in at our lodge before heading out to check out the village. From this day forward, we will be staying in lodges, inns, and homestays since hotels are not a thing in the countryside.

On this four day  is the beginning of the highgland trekking days for our Annapurna Base Camp Trek. On this day, we will begin our trek from Tikhedhunga to Ghorepani following a tasty and locally sourced breakfast. From Tikhedhunga, we will first reach the beautiful Magar village of Ulleri which is well-known for its stone steps. It’s one of the difficult parts of the trek but you will certainly be refreshed by the views of the Himalayas on the way up.

From Ulleri, we will next reach the village of Banthanti which is located at an altitude of 2210 meters above sea level. Banthanti is known as a charming and peaceful village with captivating views of the high Himalayas, hills, and the river basin below. Continuing the trek, we will follow the Bhurungdi River to reach Nangge Thanti. Located 2430 meters above sea level, this village can get quite chilly so be prepared when the cold wind blows.

From Nangge Thanti, it will take us about an hour and a half to reach Ghorepani, our final destination of the day. This village is one of the most popular destinations in the Annapurna region, sitting at 2860 meters of altitude, Ghorepani is famous for its one-of-a-kind wide view of the Annapurna region.

Today’s trek is about 13 kilometers long but since we will be trekking uphill most of the time, it will take us about 7 hours to call it a day.

on this day 5 of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek is one of the major days of the journey as we will be hiking to Poonhill, a great viewpoint from which you can see the surreal beauty of the Annapurna hills and Himalayas. From Ghorepani, our last night stay, Poonhill is just an hour of slight uphill hiking.

We will begin our hike before the break of dawn to see the majestic sunrise which is sure to leave you stunned. When the first rays of the sun hit the snow-covered Himalayas, the radiant glow of the peaks is worth every step you have taken up to that point. After enjoying the ethereal beauty, we will slowly make our way to Ghorepani for a meal. After that, we will get on the trail to Tadapani.

From Ghorepani, we will cover around 10 kilometers of distance to reach Tadapani which will take us about 6 hours since the route is rugged.

Tadapani is the starting point of the Annapurna Sanctuary trek, this charming little village is culturally rich and you will see a lot of Gurung culture during your stay there. Starting off, the route leads ur down the valley and to a suspension bridge. You will come across many of these during your Annapurna Base Camp Trek. You will also go through sets of stone steps like you did in Ulleri.

The total distance of today’s trek is 8.7 kilometers but since we will be trekking uphill through stone steps, it will take a toll on our thighs. Passing Chuile, Siprong, and Gurjung, we will reach the village of Taulung, the final village before Chhomrong. As you reach Chhomrong, you will find that this village is a bit more modern than the others and has a couple of bakeries, cafes, and restaurants.

Chhomrong is the perfect village to explore, as it sits on a slope and there are interesting things on every level. Before you begin your strolling, we will check in at a local lodge first.

From Chhomrong to Dovan, we will trek a total of 10 kilometers over a period of 6 hours. Following the Chhomrong River, we will begin our day trek after breakfast at our last night’s accommodation. Walking downhill on stone steps, we will make it to a suspension bridge that leads us to the river bed. Following the trial, we will reach Tilche and make our way up to Bhanuwa village which is yet another great viewpoint.

From there, we will make our way to Sinuwa, and eventually reach Bamboo following a forested downhill section. We will take a short lunch break there before heading deep into the valley. Walking alongside the Modi Khola, we will reach Dovan in about an hour and a half from Bamboo.

The village of Dovan houses the Modi River and is located at the bottom of the valley which makes it a pretty cold place, thanks to the breeze from the river and hills. Since it’s cold there, you can just spend the evening in the communal kitchen by the fireplace, talking with other trekkers and/or the lodge owners.

On the 8th day of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek, we will leave the low-level forest behind and enter the high Himalayas region. On today’s trek, you will be able to see Mt. Fishtail for the most part. Covering a little over 6 kilometers, today’s trek will be anything but dull given the views you will be rewarded with.

You will also pass through a couple of avalanche-prone area so it’s always best to know what season is ideal for any trek you are eyeing. For this Annapurna Base Camp Trek, you can hit the road around the year, but we recommend you avoid winter and monsoon.

Even if you do not see avalanches with your own eyes, you might just be able to see the damages it brings to the trekking trail as every year, the trail gets covered by avalanches and have to be dug through.

Once you reach Deurali, the tiny bit of cell network you had will perish as we are now at the Himalayan level. WiFi connectivity is not available as well since no service providers cater to such high and remote area.

After spending a chilly night at Deurali, the following day is the climax of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek. You might have to pass through some temporary bridges and walkways if damages have been caused by an avalanche prior to your visit. From Deurali we will first visit the Hinko cave. The name Hinko Cave might have you expecting to see a Himalayan cave but in reality, it is just a massive rock on the foot of a steep slope.

Slowing proceeding on the trail, you will definitely feel the decrement in oxygen level which is why the guides always carry an oxygen meter to check up on trekkers in the group. As the oxygen level goes down, breathing becomes heavy and more frequent as you have to take in more breaths to replenish your blood of oxygen. Once you make it to the Machhapuchhre Base Camp, you will be rewarded with a panoramic view of Mt. Fishtail (Machhapuchhre) itself along with Mt. Fang and Mt. Gangapurna.

From the Machhapuchhre Base Camp, our ultimate destination is almost 3 kilometers away, which should take about 3 hours to reach. If it was plain land, it would take an hour to cover but since we are walking on snow-covered tracks and extremely cold climate with decreased oxygen content, it will take us a minimum of 3 hours.

This is also the part where trekkers are prone to altitude sickness; we recommend you drink plenty of water and do not rush to higher elevations, follow the pace of the guide.

The closer we get to the Annapurna Base Camp, the views become more apparent and the peaks grow in size with every step. Mt. Fishtail also looks impressive from the Annapurna Base Camp. From the base camp, you will see the entire Annapurna Himalayan range including peaks like Fishtail, Lamjung Himal, Annapurna I, Annapurna South, Annapurna South, Barah Shikhar, and Hiunchuli Peak.

You can spend the rest of the day exploring the base camp, enjoying the views while it lasts as afternoon winds bring in clouds that completely cover the sky.

The 10th day of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek will drop us down to 2500 meters altitude from over 4000 meters altitude at Annapurna Base Camp. Since it’s mostly downhill trek today, we will be able to cover a lot more distance compared to the uphill days of the trek. On the way, you will cross an old suspension bridge which is not a welcoming sight for people with a fear of heights.

Once you reach Bamboo, you might be able to get a couple of lines of network on your cellular device. You will finally be able to enjoy uniterrupted the internet connection! Trekking downhill might sound like a piece of cake but you have to be really careful as you can slip or place your foot on loose rock.

Since you are returning from experiencing the climax of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek, you might be somewhat unmotivated for the rest of the way back but the hot springs at Jhinu Danda are worth the walk down. Basically, it’s a big natural hot spring that can fit in 20 people at once. There are 2 hot springs in the village which is enough to accommodate the number of daily trekkers.

Spending the night in Jinhu Danda will be the last night in the hills of Annapurna. Following a delicious morning meal, we will shortly begin our trek to Naya Pul. We will hike down along the Modi Khola River to reach Landruk, Siwai, and ultimately Naya Pul via Birethanti. This section of the journey will take us about 4 hours and it’s a relatively easy walk.

From Naya Pul, we will get on a jeep to Pokhara which should take around 2 hours. After you reach Pokhara, you once again have plenty of time to explore the amazing city.

The following morning, we will prepare to leave for Kathmandu, you will have your last breakfast in Pokhara, taking in the breeze of the lake for one last time before leaving the city. We will arrange a tourist bus for transportation as they are the best bus you can get.

Day 14 is the final day of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek. We will sort out all the things that have to be done before we drop you off at the international airport as per you flight schedule.