Day 1
Arrival into Kathmandu
Arrive into Kathmandu. You will be met by our staff at the airport and transfer to the hotel. Depending on your arrival time you can relax or explore Kathmandu.
Upper Mustang Trek Guided Itinerary
The Upper Mustang trek in the remote Himalayan region offers an adventurous 14 day itinerary with spectacular trekking through striking semi-arid desert with colourful rock formations, deep ravines and snow-capped peaks surrounding you. It is also possible to amend your itinerary to descend via a different route to that used on the ascent. It is also possible to bolt this itinerary onto a longer Annapurna Circuit trek as after the Circuit crosses the Thorong La Pass it also reaches Kagbeni, the point at which you enter into the Upper Mustang. It is also possible to forgo internal flights and travel by road from / to Kathmandu, Pokhara and Jomsom. Please fee free to contact us with any personalised requests.
Route mini map
Trip snapshot
Days14
Distance120 km
Total climb4010 m
High point4020 m
What this trip is like
The Upper Mustang trek in the remote Himalayan region offers an adventurous 14 day itinerary with spectacular trekking through striking semi-arid desert with colourful rock formations, deep ravines and snow-capped peaks surrounding you. It is also possible to amend your itinerary to descend via a different route to that used on the ascent. It is also possible to bolt this itinerary onto a longer Annapurna Circuit trek as after the Circuit crosses the Thorong La Pass it also reaches Kagbeni, the point at which you enter into the Upper Mustang. It is also possible to forgo internal flights and travel by road from / to Kathmandu, Pokhara and Jomsom. Please fee free to contact us with any personalised requests.
Stay style: Operator-led Nepal lodge or expedition itinerary.
Food and support: Operator-managed meals and trekking-day food pattern.
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 2
Rest day and sightseeing
Rest, briefing, see Kathmandu and gain permit
Day 3
Fly to Pokhara and spend the afternoon exploring the vibrant town
Flight to Pokhara and overnight at hotel. Afternoon to explore Pokhara.
Day 4
Fly to Jomsom and start trek ascending to Kagbeni
Spectacular morning flight to Jomsom and trek to Kagbeni along the bank of the Kali Gandaki river, through the small settlement of Eklo Bhatti (2740m) and across a number of bridges over tributaries to reach our lunch spot at Kagbeni (2810m), from here there are excellent views north to the Kingdom of Mustang. It’s quite a long day but easy and flat. After lunch we trek on to Chuksang and the days trek will take about 7 hours in total. During the day we’ll walk following the Kaligandaki river and pass through Kagbeni, Yekle Batti and Tangbe villages. The views are very beautiful, stunning in fact, throughout the trek and in particular this first day. Jomsom is at 2780m and Chuksang is 3250m.
Day 5
Cross the Kaligandagi River
Today we’ll cross the Kaligandagi river and climb up to Chele village and continue onto Samar village, where we’ll enjoy a relaxed lunch. Afterwards we drop down for about 30 minutes before starting our climb up (about 2 hours) to reach our destination of Syangboche village which is at 3800m. This day is a bit tougher and we’ll walk for around 6-7 hours.
Day 6
Geling and Charang
After a couple of longer days today is a shorter day coming in around 4 – 5hrs walk. We start down towards Geling for about 1:30 hours then climb up for about another 2 hours to our lunch spot which is then follows another 1 – 1.5hrs to Charang (Tsarang) at 3570m.
Day 7
Lo Pass and Lo Manthang
Our fourth trek day is again quite easy and straightforward. We trek up to 3750m high and followed by a drop down again of about 125 m which is then followed by mostly flat terrain. We then go over a small pass (3950m) called Lo pass, from where we have views of the walled capital of Lo Manthang (3840m) and it’s a short descent to reach this fascinating city and start exploring. The days is about 4-5 hours in total and we should reach our destination by lunch time.
Day 8
Namgyal Village and Milarepa Caves
Today we explore the area and hire horses and go to Namgyal village where we enjoy the views, visit the monastery and the Milarepa Caves, which is fascinating and shrouded in myth. Travel time is around 2 hours going up and 1 hour back.
Day 9
Ghar Gompa, Dakmar, and Ghami
Todays trek starts with about 2.5hrs climb and then a drop again to reach Ghar Gompa (3920m). After a visit to the Gompa we then climb up again for around 2 hours to Dakmar (3820m) for lunch and then on to Ghami (3470m). Today is little harder and finishes at 3200m.
Day 10
Ghami to Chele
The following days route rejoins the familiar trail to Jomsom, which left on the 9th trek day. Today we cover Ghami to Chele
Day 11
Chele to Kagbeni
Day 12
Kagbeni to Jomsom
Day 13
Flight back to Pokhara, hotel
Day 14
Flight back to Kathmandu, hotel
Day 15
Depart for home
Depart for home / onward travel or additional trek