Poon Hill in three days, a good first trek in Nepal
Three thousand stone steps, a village ringed by rhododendron, and a sunrise that has been photographed a million times and still works. Who it suits, and who should skip it.
By the Lakeshore team · 7 min read · Updated 5 October 2026
More people do their first Himalayan trek on Poon Hill than on any other route in Nepal, and it has held that position for forty years. It tops out at 3,210 m, so altitude isn't really a factor. The teahouses are warm, the food is good, and you're never more than a day from a road.
On an October morning it's also extremely popular. If your picture of trekking is solitude in the mountains, know that you'll share that sunrise with a few hundred people and a lot of tripods.
We tell first-timers to come for the walking, the villages and the forest, and to treat the sunrise as a bonus. Judged that way, it's close to a perfect three days.
The three thousand steps
Day one is mostly the climb from Tikhedhunga to Ulleri, a stone staircase that goes up for around two hours with very little relief. Locals put it at 3,300 steps. Nobody has checked, and after the climb nobody wants to.
It's hard if you haven't trained and fine if you go slowly. The mistake is to attack it. We walk it at a pace that feels almost silly for the first twenty minutes and then feels right for the next hundred. After Ulleri the gradient eases and the forest takes over, oak first, then rhododendron, with moss on everything and langur monkeys if you're lucky and quiet. Ghorepani, at 2,874 m, is a village strung along a saddle, with blue roofs, wood smoke and your first clear view of Dhaulagiri.
The sunrise itself
Headtorches go on at about half past four. Then it's forty-five minutes uphill in the dark, and a spell of standing around getting cold while the sky turns from grey to orange. Dhaulagiri catches the light first, then the whole Annapurna wall, then Machhapuchhre off to the right.
The show lasts about twenty minutes and it's excellent, crowd or no crowd. There's also a tea shop at the top selling hot lemon at Himalayan prices, and every rupee is well spent.
In peak season, leave ten minutes before your guide suggests. The viewing platform fills up, and getting there early instead of on time is what buys you a clear foreground.
If you want the same trek with fewer people
Muldai View Point gives you a similar panorama with a fraction of the crowd, for the price of one more day. Khopra Ridge goes further and higher again, into quiet country, and it's our pick for anyone who asks for somewhere empty and means it.
The other option is Ghandruk on its own, a three-day loop through what we think is the most photogenic Gurung village in the region, with no pre-dawn alarm. For travellers who want culture more than summits, it's often the better trip. Tell us crowds bother you and we'll steer you toward one of these. It costs us nothing to send you somewhere quieter, and you come back happier.
Season notes
Late March into April is rhododendron season and our favourite time on this route, with whole hillsides in red and pink, especially between Ulleri and Ghorepani.
October and November bring the sharpest mountain views and the biggest crowds. December to February is cold, clear and quiet. Ghorepani sometimes gets snow, which is lovely and makes the steps slippery.
In the monsoon the forest is deep green and dripping, and the mountains stay behind cloud. The leeches are out from June to August. Bring salt and a sense of humour.
Walk it with us
Private departures on your dates, guided by the people who wrote this page.
Questions we get asked
Is Poon Hill suitable for children?
Yes. We take families regularly, and kids from about eight upward handle it well, often better than their parents. The stairs are the hard part, and a porter for the family's bags, which comes with the trip, makes the whole day easier.
Will I get altitude sickness at 3,210 m?
Very unlikely. Some people feel a little breathless on the sunrise climb. That's normal, and it passes as soon as you stop going uphill.
Can it be done in two days?
You can force it into two with a long drive and a very long first day, but we don't recommend it. The three-day version is the one people enjoy.
How crowded is it, really?
In peak October, expect a couple of hundred people at the viewpoint at sunrise. In February or late May, expect twenty.
I have never trekked before and I am nervous. Is this the one?
Almost certainly yes. The altitude is low, the days are short, the lodges are warm and a road is never far away. The hard part is the Ulleri staircase on day one, and walked slowly it's fine. Most people finish this trek and ask straight away what the next one is.
Is it safe for a woman trekking alone?
Yes, and it's the route we most often suggest to people travelling alone for the first time. The trail is busy, the lodges are family-run and your guide is with you the whole way. Ask in advance and we'll do our best to arrange a female guide.
Still deciding?
Tell us your dates and how much walking you've done, and we'll tell you whether Poon Hill Sunrise Trek is right for you. If it isn't, we'll say so.
Nothing to pay online. We confirm your dates first.
Or call the office +977 61-457830