The Best Long Distance Trek In The World | Annapurna Circuit Trek

  • Nov 24, 2019
  • High Camp Adventure
  • 2221

Annapurna Circuit Trek is one of the longest treks in Nepal, and the longest one in the Annapurna region. It allows you to explore most parts of the region in one go, and provided that you have time, you could actually cover the entire region. Annapurna Circuit trek offers you wonderful experiences. If you’re a trekking enthusiast, and have never trekked on this route, you’re missing out on a lot of fun.

Table of Contents

Annapurna Circuit Trek

Annapurna Circuit trek is probably one of the most popular treks in Nepal, and the best way to cover the entire Annapurna region. It is a complete trek consisting of all the kinds of attractions from natural to religious and so on. One of the prominent attractions of the trek is Muktinath Temple, which is dedicated to the Hindu God Lord Shiva. It is a significant Hindu pilgrimage site. Muktinath temple is also considered significant by the followers of Buddhism.

In the same way, Thorung La pass is another attraction, and probably, the most difficult section to cross on the route. It’s possible to cross Thorung La only during certain months. Altogether, the journey is 18 days long, and the trekkers hike for a duration of 13 days altogether.

The major places covered in the journey are Dharapani, Yak Kharka, Sikha, Pisang, Tadapani, and so on. While on the trek, you get to enjoy fantastic mountain views of peaks such as Machapuchhre, Dhaulagiri, Manaslu, numerous summits of Annapurna massif, and so on. You also get to interact with the locals and get to know about their cultures and traditions overall.

annapurna circuit trek

Annapurna Circuit Trek Map

When you’re going on the Annapurna Circuit trek, it’s quite crucial to have an Annapurna Circuit trek map in your possession. Annapurna Circuit trek map has all the details that you’d need to finish the journey on your own. All the attractions and all the challenges that would come your way are graphed on the trek map so that you can anticipate them and be prepared for them respectively.

Annapurna Circuit trek is a journey that is full of side trips. These side treks offer you access to hidden treasures of the Annapurna region. Generally, trekkers are able to hike to these places only with the help of an experienced guide. However, if you have a map in your possession, you would no longer need the help of a guide. You would be able to trek independently to these places and return to the spot where you started. In case of you get separated from your group, chances of which is highly unlikely, with the help of the map, you can find you way to the next destination.

With the help of the Annapurna Circuit trek map, you could also prepare for the journey, and even plan your own trek. However, for that to happen, you need to own the map way ahead of your trip. Get your hands on the map, and you’d love studying it.

Annapurna Circuit Trek Guide

Annapurna Circuit trek is a journey that has so many things to explore and witness. You could get hold of a map, and you might be able to figure things out on your own, but still, for most parts of the journey, you’d feel as if you’re walking in the darkness.

An Annapurna Circuit trek guide makes everything easy for you. You want to know the name of a mountain, you could ask the guide; you want to know the significant of a heritage, you ask a guide; you want to communicate with the people, you ask the guide for help.

An Annapurna Circuit trek guide won’t just assist you with everything; he would motivate you when the times are tough. A lot of times during the trek things get so tough that a lot of trekkers wish to leave the journey in the middle. In times as such, your trekking guide will motivate you to continue walking and moving forward. And you’ll realize that you’re getting motivated, and you are feeling better, and in no time, you’d have stood up on your feet. That’s the difference a good guide brings to your trip.

Annapurna Circuit Trek Cost

Annapurna Circuit Trek Cost depends on a lot of different factors. Few of them are – the length of the journey, the places covered, the level of luxury, the travel company you’re going with, the route you’re trekking upon, and so on. Before you choose a particular package, you need to ensure that you look into all the features, the facilities that you’re being offered, and accordingly the Annapurna Circuit trek cost, and so on. Don’t believe in the thought that the higher the price, the better the facilities.

When it comes to trekking, a lot of times, you can get your hands on amazing facilities at a very reasonable price. To find the right company that offers you the best Annapurna Circuit Trek Cost, all you need to do is look out. Don’t go for the one that’s offering you the package whose price is affordable beyond belief, and at the same time, don’t go for the one that’s charging insane amount of money.

Look for a balance between the services offered and the cost. Also, never be afraid to talk with the company representative if you have any doubts regarding the price fixed. You could always ask for offers and special discounts.

Annapurna Circuit Trek Difficulty

Quite like the cost, the difficulty level of a journey depends on various factors like altitude covered, the length of the journey, the terrain and landscape, and so on. Annapurna Circuit trek difficulty level can be marked at challenging because it is one of the longest journeys in the Annapurna region, it covers few of the highest altitude places in the country, makes you walk through rough terrain and experience extreme climate, and so on.

One of the places that you’d cover during the journey is Thorung La, which is a mountain pass situated at an altitude of 5416 m. Crossing it may not be such a big deal during the trekking season, but trying to do the same at other times can invite deadly consequences.

One of the factors that contribute up to a great extent to Annapurna Circuit trek difficulty is altitude sickness. Almost two-thirds of the route is located at an altitude above 3000 m, and it is beyond the same altitude where the risk of altitude sickness increases. Make sure that you’re careful about your health. Even if things don’t go that bad in your case, the journey might still land up becoming quite tough for you.

Annapurna Circuit Weather

Annapurna Circuit trek route passes through different places and covers varied altitude. There is no constant weather on the entire route. The path covers places that are extremely cold even during summer, and on the other hand, few places on the route remain warm even during winter. Annapurna Circuit Trek Weather also depends greatly on what part of the day it is.

The mornings and evenings are quite cold, whereas the afternoons are pretty warm and sometimes hot. When you go higher, you can feel the rays of the sun getting more intense and scorching. It is therefore recommended that you put on sunscreen, full body clothes, a pair of glass and hat if you don’t want to get sun burns. In the region that is higher than 4000 m in altitude received heavy snowfall.

While it’s easy to walk on them during the peak season, and during summer, during winters, inches deep ice cover the route, making it tough for anyone to trek. Annapurna Circuit trek is a journey that you should embark upon only when the weather is decent, and the weather is in its best form during the trekking seasons. There are two overall.

Best Time to Hike Annapurna Circuit

The best time to hike Annapurna Circuit is between the months of September and November. During this time, the weather is pleasant, neither too hot nor too cold, bright and clear. There are very little clouds in the sky, allowing the trekkers to have the most amazing mountain views from various viewpoints during the trek. However, there is a downside to this season.

Since this is the best time to hike Annapurna Circuit, the majority of people go for the trek during this time, resulting in the route getting quite crowded and populated. If you’re someone who seeks peace and serenity in their trekking journey, well, this may not be the appropriate time for you to trek here. Another best time to hike Annapurna Circuit is between the months of April and June as well as May.

Most of the features of this season resembles that of the earlier one, except the clarity in weather factor. During this time, though the day is bright, the skies are full of clouds, and so, you may not be able to enjoy the mountain views. But there is peace, as comparatively few trekkers tend to hike on the Annapurna Circuit during these months.

Annapurna Base Camp Trek

annapurna base camp trek

Annapurna Base Camp trek is yet another popular trek in the Annapurna Region. The journey takes you to the base camp of Mount Annapurna and Mount Machapuchhre. While the first one is appropriate only for a day hike, the second one also offers you accommodation facilities. Needless to say, they offer amazing up close mountain views.

Altogether, Annapurna Base Camp trek is a 13 days long journey, however, the trekkers spend only a period of 9 days walking on the route. The rest of the time is spent acclimatizing on the route, traveling from one place to another in a vehicle, sightseeing in Pokhara and Kathmandu, and so on. The different places that you’ll cover during the trek are Sinuwa, Ulleri, Deurali, Tadapani, Nayapul, and so on.

On the trek you’ll also get to visit two popular villages of the Annapurna Region – Ghorepani and Ghandruk. These along with others are probably few of the most serene places that you would ever visit in your life. Yet another significant attraction of the trek is Poon Hill, a 3210 m tall hill, which serves as one of the best viewpoints in the region, offering great sunrise and sunset views.

Nar Phu Valley Trek

Nar Phu Valley trek is an exciting trekking journey that occurs in the Annapurna region. It could be considered as a side trek to the Annapurna Circuit trek route, or, provided that you don’t have enough time, you could go straight for the Nar Phu Valley trek as an independent journey. Altogether, it’s a 19 days long journey, and the core trekking duration lasts for a period of only 11 days.

The trek starts from Chamje, which is the same place where Annapurna Circuit trek starts. As a matter of fact, around two thirds of Nar Phu Valley trek route is actually a part of Annapurna Circuit trek route. The places that are unique to the journey are the villages of Koto, Meta, Nar and Phu.

Apart from these places, you also get to cross three passes that go by the name Nar, Phu and Kang La. Their elevations are 5400 m, 5050 m and 5306 m respectively. The journey also covers a few religiously significant places like Tashi Lakhang Monastery, Satek Monastery, along with numerous other Buddhist relics like chortens, mani walls, and so on. Quite obviously, you also get to explore the attractions of the Annapurna Circuit trek route.

narphu valley trek

Mustang Trek

There are two Mustang treks, and they are known as Upper Mustang trek and Lower Mustang trek. You can also combine Upper Mustang Trek with Saribung Peak climbing. While the Lower Mustang trek covers the villages that are located south from the Himalayas, the Upper Mustang trek covers the villages that are situated north from the Himalayas. It is for this reason that Upper Mustang is known as the Land beyond the Himalayas.

Both the regions are parts of Mustang District. The villages in the district are often referred as Mustang villages. They are beautiful aesthetically, and are deeply influenced religiously. You will see the remnants of both Tibetan Buddhism and Bon Po culture there, since the region is attached with Tibet.

mustang village

The Mustang Villages that are parts of Upper Mustang trek are Syangboche, Ghami, Tsarang, Lo Manthang, and so on. In the same way, the ones that are parts of Lower Mustang are Kagbeni, Jomsom, Marpha, and so on. Not a very long time ago, Mustang was a separate kingdom, with its capital being Lo Manthang. It was only a couple of decades ago that the King of Mustang stepped down, and since then, the region has officially been a part of Nepal.

Tilicho Lake Trek

Quite like Nar Phu Valley trek, Tilicho Lake trek can either be considered as a side trek to Annapurna Circuit, provided that you could extend your Annapurna Circuit trek by a couple of days, or it can be treated as an individual journey. The starting point of Tilicho Lake trek is also Chame, and more than two thirds of its route is a part of Annapurna Circuit trek. The journey takes you to the amazing Tilicho Lake, which is a controversial lake, mainly because of its status.

Many people and organizations consider it to be the highest lake in the world, whereas there are many who don’t. The truth is that there are so many lakes that are higher in altitude than Tilicho Lake. These are situated in Tibet, and some of them in Nepal.

Regardless of everything, it is a beautiful mountain lake. The places that are unique to this trek are Khangsar and Tilicho Base Camp. The altitude of the lake is 4919 m, and it has a natural blue color. It offers beautiful views of the peaks in the region. The route leading the trekkers to the lake deviates from Manang, which is yet another beautiful and scenic village in the Annapurna Circuit trek route.

From certain angles, there’s no other trek that can be compared to this one. Everything that you can expect to have in a great trekking journey is there in Annapurna Circuit. The only downside to this trek is the fact that it’s challenging, and therefore, not appropriate for everyone. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t at all give it a try. But make sure that you consult your doctor before you do so.

High Camp Adventure offers you exciting holiday packages featuring the most preferred holiday destinations in countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet. They specialize in trekking and expedition, and are able to offer memorable trips thanks to their experienced team of guides and travel experts. High Camp Adventure is a reliable travel company. They provide you the packages in the most affordable price, and make sure that they’re catered to your needs so that the journey is much more personal and memorable. If you’re looking for an ideal holiday destination for your upcoming holidays, but aren’t quite sure where to go, you could contact High Camp Adventure for consultation. Choose High Camp Adventure for all your travel needs. You’re going to love your holidays with them by your side.

Send an Enquiry