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Pokhara
4.9(128)Pokhara Lakeside Experience
Four slow days on Phewa Lake — Gurung home cooking, a Sarangkot sunrise, a paraglide, and a short foothill walk with the Annapurnas in view.
4 days2 – 10 guests
From$359$420
Nine days from Pokhara into the Annapurna Sanctuary — rhododendron forest, Gurung villages and a 360° amphitheatre of peaks at 4,130 m.
The Annapurna Sanctuary is a glacial basin ringed almost completely by peaks over 7,000 m, entered through a single narrow gorge. Standing at Base Camp at 4,130 m, you are surrounded on every side — it is a more enclosed, more theatrical experience than Everest Base Camp, and it takes five fewer days.
The route climbs through terraced Gurung villages and rhododendron forest (spectacular in March and April), with the famous Ghorepani–Poon Hill sunrise detour included. Lower altitude than EBC means acclimatisation is far less of an issue, which makes this the best choice for a first Himalayan trek.
Day by day, as it actually runs.
Drive to the Nayapul trailhead and start walking along the Modi Khola through terraced farmland. An easy first afternoon to Tikhedhunga. 4 hrs, 1,540 m.
The 3,300 stone steps up to Ulleri, which everyone remembers, then a gentler forest climb through Banthanti and Nangethanti to Ghorepani. 6 hrs, 2,860 m.
Up at 4:30 a.m. for the 45-minute climb to Poon Hill and the classic sunrise over Dhaulagiri, Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre. Back for breakfast, then a ridge traverse through rhododendron forest to Tadapani. 6 hrs, 2,630 m.
Descend through dense forest to Kimrong Khola, then climb to Chhomrong — the last permanent village and the gateway to the Sanctuary, with Annapurna South filling the view. 5 hrs, 2,170 m.
Down 2,500 steps to the river and up the other side into the Modi Khola gorge. The valley narrows and the walls close in — this is the Sanctuary entrance. 6 hrs, 2,600 m.
Past Machhapuchhre Base Camp and out of the gorge into the Sanctuary itself. The last hour is a slow walk into a complete ring of peaks. Afternoon at ABC for the light changing on the south face. 6 hrs, 4,130 m.
Sunrise on Annapurna I — the first 8,000 m peak ever climbed — then a long descent back down the gorge to Bamboo. 7 hrs, 2,310 m.
Back through Chhomrong and down to Jhinu Danda, where natural hot springs sit twenty minutes below the village beside the river. Nine days of walking end in a hot pool. 5 hrs, 1,780 m.
A short morning walk out to Siwai and the jeep road, then drive back to Pokhara. Arrive early afternoon. 3 hrs walking.
4.8
Based on 156 reviews
Claire Dubois
25 Apr 2026
Belgium
Went in early April for the rhododendrons and it was every bit as good as promised. Walking into the Sanctuary on day 6 made me stop and just stand there.
Ben Alvarez
11 Mar 2026
Mexico
First Himalayan trek and the right choice. Hard but never frightening. The hot springs on day 8 are a genuinely inspired way to end it.
Ingrid Solberg
16 Feb 2026
Norway
Excellent guiding and organisation. Teahouses above Chhomrong get very cold at night in February — take a warmer bag than you think you need.
Pokhara
4.9(128)Four slow days on Phewa Lake — Gurung home cooking, a Sarangkot sunrise, a paraglide, and a short foothill walk with the Annapurnas in view.
From$359$420
Dubai
4.7(84)A tight three-day weekend: red-dune desert camp, Burj Khalifa at sunset, old Deira souks and a dhow dinner on the creek.
From$690$780
Mustang
4.9(47)Eight days by 4WD into the restricted trans-Himalayan kingdom of Lo — walled Lo Manthang, sky caves and cliff monasteries.
From$1,290$1,450
$985
per person · 9 days