Upper Mustang Trek

Duration: 17 Days(5)of 21 reviews

Overview

  • Duration 17 Days
  • Difficulty Level Strenuous
  • Max. Altitude 3,810 m | 12,500 ft.
  • Trip Start and End Kathmandu
  • Trip Area Kathmandu - Pokhara - Jomsom - Kagbeni - Chaile - Syangboche - Ghami - Charang - Lo Manthang - Drakmar - Geling - Chhuksang - Jomsom - Pokhara - Kathmandu
  • Best Season March – November

Highlights

  • Adventure trekking in the Upper Mustang
  • Cultural sightseeing tour of Kathmandu
  • Cross several Himalayan passes
  • Buddhist Spiritual immersion
  • Wonderful culture and simple life style experience of Upper Mustang
  • Incredible landscape unlike anywhere

If you want to experience the Remote Himalayan Trekking, you must trek to Upper Mustang. It is the most adventurous and beautiful region which is explored by far fewer trekkers than any other trekking destination. The experience of incredible landscapes and sceneries, Tibetan Buddhist cultures, and wonderful mountains makes this trip iconic. Exceptionally less explored but the superbly wonderful region, Upper Mustang is a region that simply overwhelms travelers with its magnificent simplicity.

Walking on the rugged and coarse trail along the incredible landscape and beautiful villages is a pure mixture of adventure and culture. As a restricted region, Upper Mustang charges a high royalty but the money is highly worth paying. The experience is something that money can’t buy. It’s the real adventure of a lifetime that takes you to a civilization that is completely untouched by modernism. You will traverse the trail up and down the hills and passes that challenges your stamina, endurance, and enthusiasm.

Take yourself on a journey that brings you an inspiring lesson for the life. The spiritual and cultural adventure in the Upper Mustang region is simply an iconic trip that truly resonates with the spirit of adventurers with the taste of culture and spirituality.

NOTE:It is recommended that you should arrive in Kathmandu a day earlier before you start your trek (if you do not have a day tour of Kathmandu scheduled). And If you have scheduled a Kathmandu day tour you should arrive two days prior to the actual day of trekking.

If you are able to arrive a day earlier, it will be best for you as you will get some time to rest, know about the trekking you are doing, get info about the trekking routes, and get time to buy trekking equipment if necessary. Adding some extra days besides actual trekking days will help you enjoy your trip to Nepal to the fullest without having to worry about any preparations, flight delays, and missing international flights.

Itinerary

Show Detail ItineraryClose Detail Itinerary

In accordance with your flight schedule, we will be at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu to extend a warm welcome to you in our beautiful country for the beautiful trip. After exchanging warm welcome greetings at the arrival section, we will lead you to our vehicle to drop you off at our trip hotel. It’s a day at complete leisure, you will be on your own and you can do whatever you want to do for refreshment. But we definitely will be happy to guide you around the city.

On the second day of arrival, we will be interacting with each other. After early breakfast, every guest needs to arrive at the Company to review their trip so that they can buy and manage the required stuff for their trips. After talking about the trip we will be taking our guests for a cultural sightseeing tour around Kathmandu valley.

The destination for sightseeing includes Swoyambhunath - the oldest monument in Kathmandu valley, Kathmandu Durbar Square – to see the temple of Living Goddess and other medieval architectural wonders, Pashupatinath – to immerse into Hindu death rites on the bank of a holy river, and Boudhanath – a massive Buddhist shrine considered as the biggest in the world.

We will head to Pokhara (900 m) today on an overland journey. The road journey of about 6 hours starts after breakfast and heads towards the west of Kathmandu valley past Swoyambhunath aka monkey temple. As soon as we get outside Kathmandu valley from the western ridge, we can immediately experience the charm of rural Nepal. The drive has beautiful views of Himalayan peaks and countryside hills. The highway runs through small towns, river banks,s and winding curl exposing rural Nepalese wonders to us.

After reaching Pokhara we can feel the welcome of this beautiful lake city. We will stay overnight at Lakeside. We will have free time to wander around the lakeside on our own once we check in to the hotel. 

From the fourth day onward we will organize official trekking. We will question and check up on guests if they are okay and if their physical condition is at the top-notch condition for trekking or not. Once the health check-up is completed we will set off on the first day of trekking today but before we have to take a scenic flight to Jomsom. We will drive to the airport for our morning flight to the beautiful headquarters of Mustang, Jomsom. We will fly closely past the spectacular Annapurna range and enter the Kali Gandaki valley overlooking the Dhaulagiri range in the Himalayas.

A memorable twenty minutes of flight lands at Jomsom (2,700 m) where we meet our complete trekking crew. We will then prepare for the walk of the day to Kagbeni, a beautiful village on the bank of the Kali Gandaki River. The sandy trail goes along the river bank and gets windy in the afternoon. Despite the windy condition on the trail, the stretch is scenic and we enjoy walking on it.

Our trek continues on the deserted, sandy trail up towards the Upper Mustang. The destination of our trek for the day is Chaile, a beautiful village in the region. We will continue our trek along the Kali Gandaki River and enjoy the charm that the river valley has to offer.

After a while, our trail will ascend to Tangbe, a local village that comes along the trail today. The uniqueness of the village in its formation is so wonderful that we keep admiring its beauty. We walk further towards the destination and eventually reach Chaile after about 6 hours of walk. Chaile is another wonderful village that bears the unique cultural riches of the region. 

We will walk over two passes on our trek today. We cross Taklam La 3,624m and Dorje La 3,735m before reaching the destination today. As the stretch today involves lots of uphill and downhill walking at a high altitude, it’s going to be a challenging day for us. But the challenge is well worth it as we can enjoy a spectacular view that is unlike from anywhere. We walk past Samar village and continue the trek to Syangboche village for an overnight stay.

The stretch of the walk today has another high pass for us to cross. We cross Yamda La at the elevation of 3,850 meters and Nyi La at the elevation of 4,010 meters above sea level on our trek to Ghami today. These two passes bring some spectacular views of the mountains and a uniquely different landscape. We walk up and down the passes and eventually reach Ghami village after about six hours of challenging walk. Ghami village is a village with fascinating culture and surrounding to explore and enjoy.

We will slowly gain elevation for our overnight places each day although we walk past high passes on our walk on the previous days. The challenging day involves a walk over another pass called Charing La at the elevation of 3,870 meters above sea level. The ascents and descents on the stretch today bring some majestic views, Mani walls, and wonderful landscapes to our site. The beautiful Charing village offers a rich cultural and spiritual immersion that we can explore as soon as we reach there.

After early morning breakfast, we begin our trek to Lo Manthang. As we leave Charang and descend around 125 meters from Charang, we cross the Tsarang Chu. After crossing the Tsarang Chu, our trail leads us to the track full of stones lying just opposite the village at 3580m entering the Tholung Village. Then the trail further ascends to the windy pass of Lo (3850m) and from there you will get the first glimpse of the walled city Lo-Manthang at 3700m. A short descent from there leads to the plain of aspiration and then the trail crosses a stream and climbs up onto the plateau of Lo-Manthang.

We will spend an extra day here at Lo Manthang exploring the wonders this place has to offer to the modern world. The simplicity in lifestyle and devotion to their faith is what people in this walled city have been living for ages. We go to explore beautiful monasteries and other areas in Lo Manthang. A full day is well spent exploring the wonders of the Upper Mustang that brought us here. The day is surely full of inspiring experiences.

We will set off on our return trip early today and trek to Drakmar. Drakmar will be the highest overnight place of the trip. On the trail to the destination, we can explore an ancient Buddhist monastery and rock paintings. We can make a wish here as people believe that the wish made here comes true. After making our wish at the monastery, we trek further to Drakmar, our destination of the day.

The walk on this day starts really early to make it easier for the day as the trail can get as windy as anything in the afternoon. The sooner we start the better for us. Although the walk itself is not that challenging, the atmospheric condition can create a little trouble. Sandy terrain and the strong gust of wind don’t go well along. Traversing the dry trail down the sandy landscape, we finally reach Geling (3,805 m) for our overnight stay.

We will start early and walk to Chhuksang. We will cover a huge drop in the elevation so the trail will mostly descend toward the destination. The stretch today brings fabulous views of the snow-capped mountains in addition to the wonderful landscape that the region has. We reach Chhuksang after about six hours of trekking. Chhuksang (3,050 m) is a small village in the region with great cultural wonders.

It’s the final day of the walk today. We will trek all the way down to Jomsom today and finish the walking part of the Upper Mustang trip. The trail descends to Kagbeni and goes along the Kali Gandaki River to Jomsom (2,700 m). Then we will celebrate the end of the trekking part; express our hearty thanks to the crew members who made this trip possible by being with us throughout to help. 

A short but overwhelming flight to Pokhara across the mountains is due morning on this day. We board the plane and fly southward from Jomsom passing through several gigantic snow-capped mountains. It’s an incredible mountain flight experience of about 20 minutes.

Once in Pokhara, we have leisurely time on our own to go explore the town. We can find massage to relieve the tiredness of trekking or simply walk around the lakeside. There are options of going for some adventure activities like paragliding, zip flying, bungee jumping, and ultra-light flight, etc.

We will take a drive back to Kathmandu via the same highway we took earlier to go there.

Once in Kathmandu, we spend leisurely time back in the chaos of the city after so many days of serene mountain air and incredible adventure.

    On the last day of this trip, we drive you to the airport as per your flight schedule back to home or onward destination.

    We definitely hope that you enjoyed the Upper Mustang Trek and hope to see you for another adventure soon.

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    Cost Details

    Included

    • 3-star hotel accommodation in Kathmandu and Pokhara with breakfast
    • Teahouse accommodation during the trek
    • All meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) during the trek
    • Farewell dinners
    • All ground transportation on a comfortable private vehicle as per the itinerary
    • Domestic flights (Pokhara-Jomsom-Pokhara)
    • Guided city tour in Kathmandu by private vehicle
    • Entrance fees for sightseeing/monument visits as per the itinerary
    • An experienced, English-speaking, and government-licensed trek leader and assistant trek leader
    • Porter service
    • Staff costs including their salary, insurance, equipment, domestic airfare, food, and accommodation
    • Himalayan scenery's trekking bag/duffel bag, t-shirt, and trekking map are yours to take
    • All necessary paperwork and trekking permits (National Park Permit, TIMS)
    • Medical kit (carried by your trek leader)
    • All government and local taxes

    Excluded

    • Nepalese visa fee 
    • Excess baggage charge(s)
    • Extra night accommodation in Kathmandu and Pokhara because of early arrival, late departure, early return from mountain (due to any reason) than the scheduled itinerary
    • International flights
    • Travel and rescue insurance
    • Personal expenses (phone calls, internet, laundry, bar bills, battery recharge, extra porters, bottled or boiled water, shower, etc.)

    Useful Info

    In Himalayan Scenery Treks and Expedition, your safety precedes every other thing. As this adventure entrails travelling in the remote mountainous region, we are always at mercy of nature. During the trip, the factors such as weather, natural disaster or a multitude of other factors which are beyond our control can subsequently bring the changes in the itinerary. Although all the itinerary we provide to you is guided and standard; please note that your team leader has the authority to alter or even drop the planned itinerary of any part if it is necessary due to safety concern. All the alternations or changes of the standard itinerary are made by the leader by taking into consideration the best interest of the whole group. We give our best effort to stick with the above-mentioned itinerary; however, in case of any unpredicted event which is beyond our control, you need to be flexible and take after the guideline as instructed by your leader.

    Note that the company won’t be responsible for any result of alterations on itineraries or any delays due to unforeseen circumstances.

    Hotel and Accommodation:

    Trek to the Himalayas is one of the favourite destinations for the travel enthusiast and adventure seekers all around the globe. Although the Himalayan region of Nepal is the most popular trekking destination in the world; there are a lot of things people don’t have a clue. While trekking to the high mountain region, you will not find the hotels and accommodation as you see in the city areas. The hotels and accommodation around the high Himalayan have fewer services and facilities. The hot shower may turn out to be simply a bucket of lukewarm water and the toilet may be a latrine behind the hotel. The private room can be a wooden cell with no furniture except a bed, mattress, and curtain in place of the door.  So, while trekking to the mountainous region of Nepal, you need to be ready to stay in the less fancy and minimum facilitated hotels.

    We provide you with the 2 to 3-star standard hotel while you are at Kathmandu (i.e. for 3 Nights). During your Mustang Trek, we provide you with the standard lodges and tea houses for your accommodation. The room of these lodges and tea houses are less fancier with just a bed, a pillow, foam mattress and a blanket. We will do everything in our power to make your trek as cosy as possible. However, you need to stay flexible in some cases. We will accommodate the groups in local lodge available each day. We send the porters ahead of us to pre-book the room for the next day (rooms cannot be pre-booked on all places). 

    For a lone traveller, you may have to share the room with the same gender. If you don’t like to share the room then you can have a single room, by paying single supplement USD 290. However, you need to keep in mind that, while traversing through remote areas of Nepal, a single room may not always be feasible.

    In Kathmandu beside the 2 / 3 stars hotel, some 4 / 5 - star luxury accommodation is also available. If you want to change the accommodation plan to the luxury, please do let us know so that we can arrange and book the hotel for you for your Kathmandu stay.

    Food and Beverages:

    All the food and Beverages included on the package of Mustang Trek are provided by the company itself. The foods are provided in the tea houses or lodges on the trail. We will have the breakfast and dinner at the lodge where we stay overnight. On the everyday trek, our guide will decide the available place and stop for the lunch. We highly recommend you bring the water purification pills, to cleanse the water and drink during the trek. During the trek, there are options for buying the bottled water and boiled water as well.

    Upon your arrival at Kathmandu after the successful trekking journey, we will provide farewell dinner consisting of authentic Nepalese cuisines and live cultural music.

    Transportation:

    We at Himalayan Scenery Treks and Expedition provide all the necessary transportation facilities for your trip. We provide private vehicles for airport pick up and sightseeing tour around Kathmandu. Likewise, we provide tourist bus transportation for your trip. However, you have the other options as the direct flight to Pokhara or travelling through private vehicles such as cars or van.

    You need to pay additional for the transportation which is excluded from our package. You can send us an enquiry for the latest price details for the private transportation and flight tickets.

    Luggage and Backpack:

    The main luggage of your will be carried by your porters during the trek. For your personal things, we highly recommend you, to carry a small handbag containing water bottles, cameras, sunscreen and other things which you require daily during the trip. Making the backpack small and lighter will unquestionably assist you to enjoy the trip to its fullest. You should simply convey the thing which is basic for your outing and the rest of the garments and different things can be left in the locker room/safe store of hotels. The hotels provide the locker room / safe deposit for free. So, don’t hesitate to leave the things which are redundant. While making the backpack or luggage for your trip to ensure that the luggage doesn’t exceed more than 15 Kg. Weight allowance at Nepal’s domestic airlines is 15 Kg including your handbag. Excess weight is chargeable of USD 1.5 or more which will be the additional cost of our trip.

    Guide and Porters on Trek:

    We provide you with the well trained and experienced guide and porter for your trek.  Our guide will assist you in every possible way to make your trips remarkable and memorable. Talking about the porter, we provide one porter for 2 trekkers each. The porters carry 20 Kg of total luggage (10 Kg form each trekker). We provide the one guide for the smaller groups and if the group size surpasses 10 individuals; we will provide the additional guide for your trip.

    Personnel Expenses:

    Personnel Expenses largely influenced upon your habit of expenditure. We provide you with all the necessary food and accommodation facilities inside the cost of your Mustang Trek. So, you only need money to pay for your drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages) and snacks while strolling on the trail. You will get the significant number of smaller shops on the trail to buy the drinks and snacks. Likewise, you can also use the money to buy you souvenirs of the trip, entrance tickets, hot showers, tips and many more. Note that, tips and gratuities are not mandatory, but it is fine if you wish to. If you feel like the service provided to you is excellent, then you can tip directly to staffs. Of course, there is no obligation to tip if you are disappointed with the service you receive. As a suggestion, we advise you to allocate an amount of 5 - 10% of the total package price for tips. The amount you give depends on your budget and appreciation of their work.

    Rescue and Evacuation:

    Nepal is the country full of heart-warming natural beauty and a magnificent travel destination for the thrill and adventure seeker all around the globe. In spite of the fact that, Nepal is an adventure paradise for the nature lover, thrill seeker. But in some cases, the thrilling experience comes up with the serious hazard. The most exciting, and the joyful trip may backfire on us and we may have to be the victim of nature. Not only that while trekking in the high altitude rough terrains may also occur afflictions like the sprained ankle or even broken leg, appendix ruptures, hypothermia, skin infection and respiratory infection. If any of this misfortune happens to you, then it should be treated on time. If left untreated then you may even lose your life. If any of the above-mentioned affliction happens during your trip, we at Himalayan scenery treks and expedition will do everything to transfer you to the nearest hospital ASAP. All the expenses made to rescue and evacuate you, are entirely liable to us. So, before departing off to your trip, make sure that your travel insurance company has the policy to cover up all the expenses in case of any misfortune arises during the trip so that you can enjoy the trip to the utmost. If not, be ready to pay on your own once you arrive at the Kathmandu. To learn more about the Travel Insurance for the Trip in Nepal, please do visit Travel Insurance page in Nepal Travel Guide.  

    Join a fixed date group trek or private departure:

    The Mustang Trek is available on both fixed departure and private basis, If you are looking for a group to join then please check our fixed departures dates and ask for availability or if you would like to travel independently, or with your friends, families & colleagues then you are invited to choose any date at your convenient timeframe for any number of people.

    Booking Requirements

    Please provide us your full credentials or a copy of your passport. Give your weight so that preplan your group’s trips for proper weight distribution. You may deposit 20 to 30 percent advance of the total package amount while booking. You may pay rest of the amount before the trip. You can also pay us by card, bank transfer or online. Please visit here for payment details.

    Cancellation Policy

    If you are unable to make your trip, let us know in advance. We will refund you as per our booking terms and conditions and available time frame. At times, there might be delays or cancellation of flights due to weather and unforeseeable reasons. In such cases, we will make our best effort to adjust your bookings and rearranging the schedule.

    Still Need Help!

    Please feel free to contact us. We will get back to you with 1-2 business days. Or just call us now

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    +977 9851083619

    Email:

    [email protected]

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