Annapurna Circuit Tour - 14 Days

Once you exit the arrival terminal in Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, you will see a representative from Himalayan Trekkers with a banner with your name. He will then greet you and escort you to the designated hotel in the Thamel area or near its proximity. After check-in formalities, you can rest and freshen up. Later, we will have a short discussion session regarding our Annapurna Circuit Tour, either in our office or in your hotel lobby. 

In the evening, you can stroll around the streets of the Thamel area. Thamel is the commercial capital or the tourist district in the Kathmandu valley. Thamel's tiny alleyways lined with a variety of local stores and restaurants and numerous small temples and monuments lining the streets are a pretty good sight to see for the first-timers. 

Note: If your arrival makes on time, i.e., in the morning time, we will go sightseeing in two UNESCO World Heritage Sites out of the total 7 inside the Kathmandu Valley. 
First, we visit the Buddhist Pilgrimage site, Boudhanath Stupa in the northeast of Kathmandu. It is one of the largest stupas in the world and represents Tibetan/Mahayana Buddhism. As soon as we enter the Boudha gate, we will be greeted by the giant white dome in the center or the big mandala. Pilgrims and visitors making a kora (circumambulation), colorful Thanka shops, Himalayan Incense vendors, and monks in red robes can be seen in the peaceful stupa complex. 

After spending an ample amount of time at Boudhanath, we will drive to Pashupatinath Temple. It is one of the 4 significant Hindu sites in the world dedicated to Lord Shiva. Built-in pagoda style, the main temple is closed to non-Hindus. But, there is plenty to see in the temple that represents the Nepali culture, art as well as architecture. One of the main reasons to visit the temple in the evening is to witness the evening aarti ceremony where Hindu priests offer the lights with ghee-soaked wicks to the deities. 
After enjoying the time at these sites, we will drive back to the hotel. 

Start the day with a delicious hotel breakfast. Then we will start the whole day Kathmandu city-guided sightseeing tour. We will visit Budhanilkantha Temple, Patan Durbar Square, and Swoyambhunath Temple today. 

Budhanilkantha Temple is a prominent Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu located at the lap of the Shivapuri Hill. The temple is famous for the giant statue of sleeping Vishnu on the pond. The temple is worshipped by both Hindu and Buddhist devotees. 

Patan Durbar Square is one of the three durbar squares in the Kathmandu Valley that transparently show the beauty of Nepali and Newari craftsmanship. The durbar square complex in Newari town is beautiful and is located in the city of Patan/Lalitpur district. The durbar square complex also houses many Hindu and Buddhist temples and monuments. Patan Museum, Krishna Mandir, Golden Temple, etc. are the must-see attractions here. 

Swoyambhunath Stupa is also popular as “Monkey Temple” because of the excessive numbers of monkeys living here. It is one of the oldest temples in the country that has a history related to the formation of the Kathmandu Valley itself. With a similar figure as the Boudhanath’s white dome but in a smaller version sits atop a hill with many other smaller monuments and temples. The temple is worshipped by both Hindu and Buddhist pilgrims which again shows the religious harmony in the country. 
Note: Kathmandu Durbar Square and Bhaktapur Durbar Square are also on the list for sightseeing. We will cover 3-4 places out of these 5 places today depending upon the time limitation and visitors’ preferences. 

We board a bus from Kathmandu to Besishar after breakfast. The path takes us out of the Kathmandu valley, through Bandipur and eventually Besisahar, along the scenic Trishuli River. The ride will take us past terraced farmland, ancient villages, and the Ganesh and Manaslu mountain peaks.
Once we reach today’s final destination, Besisahar which lies in the Lamjung district, we will check in and rest. We will spend the remainder of the day exploring the town, its Bazar, and its surroundings. 

Besisahar is the starting point for the famous Annapurna Range trip and Lamjung's district headquarters. The name Besisahar translates to “city at the foot of a hill”. And as the name suggests, it sits at the foot of the lush green hills along the Marshyangdi River. The town also offers jaw-dropping views of Annapurna, Machhapurchhre, and Lamjung Himal. 

Note: Without halting in Besisahar for the night, we can directly drive to Pisang too. However, because we will be gaining a lot of altitude in a day if we drive to Pisang, we will stop at Besisahar for the night to acclimate. We will, however, proceed up to Pisang if you only have a limited amount of time for the journey and is willing to go further. And for this, we will have to start quite early in the morning. 

Soon after breakfast in Besisahar, we start our drive along the Marshyangdi River to reach Pisang, the final destination of the day. Along the route, we will enjoy spectacular landscape views, farms, and small villages. We will take short breaks in the tea shops en route, enjoy the surroundings, and take plenty of pictures while slowly driving to Pisang. 
After arriving in Pisang, we will check-in for the night and rest. Later, we will explore the village and its surroundings. 
Note: If you have an extra or spare day and are interested we can add a day side trip to the ice lake close to Pisang. 

The town of Pisang marks the beginning of the Manang district's higher section. Leaving Pisang, we will start the trekking journey today to Manang through Upper Pisang via Geru along with spectacular views of Annapurna II, III, IV, Gangapurna, Tilicho, and Pisang Peak. As we progress up the trail, the air becomes drier, and you'll almost certainly see local farmers herding yaks.
The trail takes us through Tibetan settlements, giving us the opportunity to learn about Buddhist culture. We shall not miss a visit to Barge Monastery, Manang's largest monastery. As we pass through additional monasteries and eventually arrive at Manang market, you will see that the path is studded with Buddhist shrines. Manang is a hamlet of approximately 500 flat-roofed buildings with good views of Annapurna II, Annapurna III, Gangapurna, and Chulu East. We arrive in Manang after a time, refresh up, and stay the night.
Note: The jeep can go all the way to Manang except during the monsoon months but we prefer trekking for acclimatization purposes. 

We keep ourselves occupied today with a short climb to either Bhojo Gumba or Gangapurna Lake in order to stay fit for the trails ahead. If we have enough stamina, we can go to Vraga Village and visit the Himalayan Rescue Association, which will provide us with information about Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS). By the evening, we return to Manang for the night. 
Note: If you got 2 extra days or can manage 2 extra days in this journey, a trip to Tilicho Lake would be outstanding as well as fruitful because it is a great opportunity to visit one of the best places in the region saving time, cost and energy when you are already in the region. 

We leave Manang after breakfast and continue our journey feeling refreshed. We will pass through the big trees and enter into the alpine grass and junipers and come to meadows where a few horses and yaks are grazing. This grazing meadow called Yak Kharka will be our home for the night. 
Note: We could alternatively walk for an hour to go to Letdar and spend the night there.

Soon after breakfast, we leave Yak Kharka for Thorong Phedi. We will trek up to a ridge from Yak Kharka, then descend and cross the Marsyangdi River on a wooden bridge and arrive in Letdar village. We continue ascending and pass past cliffs with spectacular views until arriving at Thorang Phedi, a grassland surrounded by towering cliffs. Once we get to Phedi, we will have plenty of time to recover and acclimate to the higher elevations before continuing on to the Thorung La Pass, the highest point on the Annapurna Explorer. We get one of the best views of Mt. Gudang, Mt. Syagang, Thorung Peak, and Mt. Khatungkan during today’s journey. 

Today, we set out early in the morning for the Thorong La Pass crossing at 5416 meters sea level. The trail is steep but simple to follow and we will reach one of the highest passes in the world after around 6 hours of leaving the Phedi. The Pass is which is decked with prayer flags, a traditional stupa (chorten), and stone cairns created by tourists. We are treated to stunning vistas from the snow-capped mountains above to the head of the Kali Gandaki valley below and the brown and purple hills of Mustang that stretch out before us. We will see a panorama of spectacular Himalayan peaks to the north, towards Tibet, and the Annapurna range to the back.
We then make our way to Muktinath, a Hindu and Buddhist pilgrimage site. Muktinath is known to Buddhists as Chumig Gyatsa, which means Hundred Waters in Tibetan. Muktinath Temple is famous for its 108 stone sprouts that sprout water from the Kaligandaki River. You can also view the 2,000-year-old perpetual flame that has been blazing there.
The descent to Muktinath is 1600 meters long. However, the spectacular views of Dhaulagiri provide a welcome diversion.
 

As our trekking days end with the arrival in Muktinath on the previous day, we will again resume the driving journey today. After visiting the Muktinath temple in the morning and having breakfast, we will hop on the jeep and start driving on the trail that used to be a trekking trail back in the days. 

We will pass by many villages Ranipauwa, Jomsom, and Marpha along the deepest gorge in the world, the Kali Gandaki. We will make brief stops on the way to admire nature and click some pictures for memories. We will also meet some locals of the villages we stop by, look into their lifestyle, and also might get a taste of their hospitality. You may visit the apple orchid in Marpha village, pluck the fruit straight from the trees in the right season and get the taste of the apples grown in the Himalayas. Ruptse waterfall, one of the highest waterfalls in the country is another highlight of today’s execution. 

We will reach Tatopani in the late evening. Tatopani means hot water and the place is named Tatopani because there is a natural hot spring to relax. You can spend a couple of hours in that natural hot spring water to unwind from the long journey. 

Note: You can directly drive to Jomsom from Muktinath skipping Tatopani and take a 25 minutes flight from Jomsom to Pokhara today if you are short on time. 

You can take a dunk in the hot spring one more time in the morning. And after breakfast, we will leave Tatopani and drive towards Pokhara. We will follow a slow dirt road to Beni and from here we further drive to Sarangkot (1600M).

Sarangkot is usually famous for its sunrise views but the sunset view is also glorious from here. We will watch the sun setting view along with the panoramic Himalayas, Pokhara valley, and Phewa Lakes from this popular hill station.

Then we will drive further for 1 hour to reach Pokhara. Once in Pokhara, we check-in, rest, and might take a walk around the lakeside. 

We will go on a sightseeing tour of Pokhara city after breakfast. In this magnificent city of lakes, there are many locations to explore and things to see and do. There are ten lakes in the city of lakes, with Phewa, Begnas, and Rupa being the most notable. These magnificent lakes are flanked by massive hills with a Himalayan backdrop.

We'll go to one of these three lakes today, as well as other well-known places including Davis' Falls, Gupteshwor Mahadev Temple, Mahendra Cave, Bindabasini Temple, Shanti Stupa (World Peace Pagoda), Seti River Gorge, International Mountain Museum, Tibetan Refugee Camp, and so on.

Or you can opt. to hike to Pumdikot, a recently opened themed park with one of the biggest Lord Shiva statues. Pumdikot is located in the Pumdi Bhumdi village on the edges of the valley, about 13 kilometers from Pokhara. This is one of the most stunning vantage points in the Pokhara area, with spectacular Himalayan views, valley and lake views, and some incredible locations to explore. In fact, it is believed to be better than the Sarangkot hill station for surrounding views. 

After breakfast, we pack our bags, bid goodbye to the Himalayas and Pokhara, and drive back to Kathmandu along the Prithivi Highway. Enjoying the massive landscape scenery, the cool breeze, the view of the gushing Trishuli River, terraced fields, smiling locals, and small colorful towns and villages, we reach Kathmandu city in approximately 7 hours. 
After check-in at the hotel, you are on leisure. You can rest for the remainder of the day or go shopping, take a walk in the Thamel market, or visit the busy ancient markets of Ason and Indrachowk. 

In the evening, we will have our final meal together at a traditional Nepalese restaurant where we will get to enjoy an authentic Nepalese meal and a cultural program and share our experiences. 

Today marks the end of the lovely Kathmandu Pokhara Annapurna Circuit Tour.
After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport 3 hours prior to your scheduled flight back to your home or onward destination. 
However, if your flight is scheduled in the evening or late afternoon, you will have leisure after breakfast to get some souvenirs for friends and family or you could also opt to visit the nearest place of your choice.