Trail guides
What to expect on the trail.
Everything below is written by the people who guide these routes, not copied from brochures. If a trek is harder than it looks on paper, we say so here, before you book it.
20 guides in this section.
Tours & culture
Chitwan, rhinos and a jungle day without the elephant rides
Nepal's lowland national park is a conservation success story and an easy three days from Pokhara, as long as you know how to avoid paying for the bad version.
Read the guide →6 min readOne day in Pokhara, what to see and what to skip
A lake, a waterfall that disappears into a cave, a mountain museum that's better than it sounds, and a couple of stops we'd quietly skip.
Read the guide →8 min readKathmandu's seven UNESCO sites in two days, without rushing them
The durbar squares, the largest stupa in Nepal, a cremation ghat that asks something of you as a visitor, and a valley still rebuilding after 2015.
Read the guide →5 min readBandipur, the Newari hill town the highway passed by
A bazaar street with no cars, on a ridge halfway between Kathmandu and Pokhara. The Himalaya lines up at the end of it, and one of Nepal's biggest caves lies below.
Read the guide →7 min readTrekking in Nepal with children, what works and what to avoid
Kids handle Himalayan trails better than their parents expect and worse than the brochures suggest. The routes we use, the altitude limits we keep and what tends to go wrong.
Read the guide →7 min readPhotographing the Annapurnas, where to stand and when
Two things decide the light here, the hour and the cloud cycle. Get those right and the gear barely matters.
Read the guide →7 min readTwo weeks in Nepal, the itinerary we recommend
See mountains, jungle, a medieval city and a hill town without spending four of your fourteen days in a vehicle.
Read the guide →8 min readNepal's festivals worth planning around, and the ones that close the banks
Dashain, Tihar, Holi, Tiji and Mani Rimdu. What each one looks like for a visitor, and the two that will disrupt your trip if you ignore them.
Read the guide →7 min readWhat to eat in Nepal, and what to order on the trail
Dal bhat twice a day sounds like a sentence until you understand it. We also cover Newari food, Thakali food and the dishes worth going out of your way for.
Read the guide →6 min readMuktinath, where two religions share 108 spouts and an eternal flame
One of the Himalaya's most important pilgrimage sites, sacred to Hindus and Buddhists alike, and now reachable by jeep in a day from Jomsom.
Read the guide →6 min readA honeymoon in Nepal that's more than a trek with better sheets
Mountains, a lake, a medieval town and a jungle, at a pace that leaves time for doing nothing. We also cover the two mistakes couples make.
Read the guide →6 min readLumbini, the Buddha's birthplace, and whether it's worth the detour
A marker stone, a pillar from 249 BC and a monastic park out in the hot plains. Important history, and not for everyone.
Read the guide →6 min readStaying in someone's house, and how homestays work in Nepal
A homestay is simpler than a lodge and warmer than a hotel, and it's the side of Nepal most visitors say afterwards they wish they'd had more of.
Read the guide →7 min readGurung, Tamang, Thakali and Newar country, and why it matters on a trek
Nepal has well over a hundred ethnic groups. You'll meet four of them on the routes we run, and knowing which is which changes what you notice.
Read the guide →6 min readYoga, meditation and doing very little in Nepal
Retreats, courses and quiet places, in a town full of signs offering all three. We don't run any of it. This is how to tell the good from the packaged.
Read the guide →6 min readOne week in Nepal, with three itineraries that fit
Seven days is enough for one thing done properly and two things done briefly. We cover the three combinations that work, and the one everybody tries that doesn't.
Read the guide →6 min readLuxury in Nepal, what money buys and where it stops
Nepal has excellent hotels, but above the road head there's a ceiling no budget can raise.
Read the guide →6 min readEating your way through Kathmandu, starting with Newari food
Newari food is its own cuisine, unlike anything else in Nepal. Most visitors never try it, and the best of it is served in courtyards you'd walk straight past.
Read the guide →5 min readNepal with teenagers, the one trip they won't be bored on
Adrenaline they can't get at home, a trek short enough to stay fun, and enough wifi to keep the peace.
Read the guide →6 min readYour second visit to Nepal, and where to go next
You've done Annapurna Base Camp or Everest and the classics are behind you. We live here, and these are the places we'd send you next.
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