Annapurna Sanctuary Trek

• Accommodation: 4 Classic nights (hotels), 10 Simple nights (teahouses/mountain lodges)
• 11 days point-to-point walking with full porterage
• Group normally 4 to 16, plus leader and local staff. Minimum age: 16
• Altitude maximum: 13,550ft (4,130m); average: 8,005ft (2,440m)
• Travel by private bus and one internal flight
• Between five and eight hours of walking per day
• Numerous stone steps
• 9 November 2024 departure led by Valerie Parkinson, Wanderlust World Guide Awards Winner 2021

Breakfast is included throughout the trip. The breakfasts on trek are fixed set menus, usually porridge or muesli with either toast, chapatti or pancake, plus an egg or omelette and a cup of tea/coffee. You may also be able to supplement your included breakfast with additional items on the teahouse menu should you wish. Items not included should be ordered and paid for separately. Please note, some more remote teahouses/lodges are unable to provide an extensive menu due to irregular delivery schedules and during periods of bad weather or a high volume of trekkers, there may be a more limited menu choice. Also, the higher altitude the more expenses the menus and extras generally are. We do not include lunch and dinner on trek allowing you to choose what you want to eat. Lunch will be taken at a teahouse en route – sometimes one of your guides will go ahead with the group’s order to make it more expedient. Dinner will be in the same teahouse that you sleep at (this is custom in Nepal as teahouses base their room rate on it). The menus in the lodges are almost identical to one another but offer a varied choice, ranging from traditional Nepalese dhal bhat to pizza and apple pie. Dhal bhat is the staple diet in Nepal and comes in many different forms but generally comprises curried lentils and meat or vegetables, rice, and a pickle/chutney. Another popular snack is momos, a type of Nepalese dumpling, fried or steamed and filled with meat or vegetables. Meat is available in the teahouses but we advise against eating it on trek. The meat has often been carried in the heat from lower altitudes for several days before reaching the lodges and can cause stomach upsets or illness. Germs can also be spread by handling dirty money – we recommend using hand sanitiser. If you have a gluten-free diet, we strongly recommend you bring extra food and snacks with you to supplement the food on trek as there will be little variety available to you, particularly for breakfast. Even many of the soups are from powder/packets and contain gluten. If you buy imported food and drink on trek you will spend more than the suggested amount. Drinking water Staying hydrated is important when undertaking any physical activity but particularly so at altitude where it is generally recommended to drink at least 100floz to 135floz (three litres to four litres) per person per day. However, we strongly encourage you not to buy bottled water on trek as this contributes to the growing problem of plastic pollution in the trekking areas of Nepal. A few villages along the Annapurna Sanctuary route have safe drinking water stations selling UV-treated water for about 50 rupees (US$0.40) per litre but these are not always open. The teahouses also sell boiled water for approximately 150-300 rupees (US$1.15-US$2.30) per litre (the price increases the higher you trek) which should not require treating. This is also perfect for a bedtime refill as it can double up as a hot-water bottle. Alternatively, all teahouses provide free cold water. Although this should not be drunk untreated, we recommend you bring a reusable bottle/water bladder/Camelpak (ideally two) and use an effective form of water treatment. There are a wide range of products available including Steripens or purification tablets, which are the quickest and easiest options to use on trek – we recommend talking to an outdoor retailer for the latest advice as technologies are improving all the time. Make sure to check the product’s performance in cold/freezing conditions and consider battery life (lithium batteries are best in cold conditions). Exodus has partnered with Water-to-Go, a filtration system that eliminates more than 99.99 percent of all microbiological contaminants from any non-saltwater source – visit Water-to-Go for more information. Exodus customers can claim 15 percent off their first order and, better still, 15 percent of the purchase value will be donated to the Exodus Travels Foundation. These bottles filter the water as you drink through the spout may not be the most efficient while on the go on a trek. Please note, if the water freezes it will clog up the filter. In this event, defrost before use by sitting the filter in lukewarm water for 10-15 minutes.

The main trekking season in Nepal is from October to mid-May when daytime temperatures at most altitudes are generally comfortable for walking, the sky is clear much of the time, and rain and snow are occasional occurrences. Daytime temperatures will vary from 15C to 30C (59F to 86F) in the Kathmandu Valley to around 10C (50F) at 11,800ft (3,600m) and progressively lower the higher we go. Different seasons offer different advantages for trekking. There can be snow in Annapurna Base Camp at any time of year.

Post monsoon/autumn (Mid-September to November): This is the main trekking season in Nepal. Day temperatures in Kathmandu are typically above 20C (68F). Skies are usually clear and days on trek are sunny and mild with clear mountain views. Nights will be colder with temperatures dropping as low as -5C (23F) at higher altitudes.

Winter (December to end of February): An ideal time to trek in Nepal, despite the colder conditions. Skies are usually very clear, especially in December, and the mountain views are at their best. Nights will be very cold with temperatures down to -10C (14F) at Annapurna Base Camp, but days are pleasant and sunny. The trails are also much less busy at this time of year. In Kathmandu, maximum daytime temperatures are 19C (66F).

Pre-monsoon/spring (March to May): Both day and night temperatures will be warmer in general, but haze will often build up in the afternoons and there can be rain. It is very hot in the lowlands and temperatures rise to 30C (86F) in Kathmandu. Flowers, particularly rhododendrons, bloom in this season and this is one of the reasons people chose to trek in spring. Expect snow on the way to and at basecamp.

Please remember that in any mountain area the weather is never wholly predictable, and you should be prepared and equipped to deal with any differences in weather beyond the conditions described above.

This trek has been graded Activity Level 4 (Moderate & Challenging). It comprises 11 days point-to-point walking with full porterage throughout. For more information on our trip gradings please visit the Activity Level Guidelines page. If you have any queries about the difficulty of the trip please do not hesitate to contact us.  

Altitude: The maximum altitude is 13,550ft (4,130m) and the average is 8,005ft (2,440m) – we ask you to refer to the Altitude Warning within the Trip Notes. This is one of the best-paced trekking routes in Nepal for acclimatisation. The ascent is gradual; most nights are spent at low to medium altitudes (below 9,840ft/3,000m) with only two nights at high altitude (over 11,480ft/3,500m).

Fitness and ability: This is an ideal trek for those confident of their physical fitness; most of the more challenging walking is on the last approach to the Sanctuary itself. Some previous trekking experience and physical preparation, such as hill walking, is recommended.

On most days, we walk for approximately five to seven hours, although there are some shorter and longer days. There are numerous stone staircases to climb and descend and we would not recommend this trek to anyone with weak knees. There are prolonged ascents and descents on some days (more than 3,280ft/1,000m). We highly recommend using trekking poles.

This trek is at the more difficult end of an Activity Level 4 (Moderate/Challenging) trip due to the ascents and descents and the stone staircases. However, it is graded Activity Level 4 and therefore is a lower Activity Level than our Everest Base Camp Trek (as it does not go above 16,400ft/5,000m).

Heights: The trail crosses approximately five modern suspension bridges; all have mesh sides, and none are particularly long or high; however, anyone with a strong fear of heights or vertigo may find them difficult.

Leech socks: After rain, especially in spring, leeches may be present on short parts of the trek, particularly on the Day 11 optional walk to the thermal springs. You may wish to bring leech socks or wear long socks to prevent bites.

Walking hours: Those stated within the itinerary are given as approximates only. Timings stated exclude lunch stops and will vary depending on the pace of your group.

Nepal flight safety

Many of our treks in Nepal use domestic flights to reach the trekking areas. The mountainous Nepalese terrain is subject to changeable weather, which makes flying conditions complex and challenging, and unfortunately there are significantly more incidents here than in other countries, including fatalities. The EU highlighted the poor safety record in Nepal in 2013 by including all Nepalese-registered airlines on the EU banned list, which prevents them from flying in EU airspace. While no Nepalese-registered airlines currently fly within the EU, the EU instigated this ban to highlight the risk of flying in Nepal to EU citizens. These airlines are unlikely to be members of any internationally recognised safety audit systems and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Nepal does not operate to the same standards as those of Western nations.

Flying within Nepal is therefore a known risk, and we strongly encourage you to consider this carefully before booking. We suggest you refer to the following sources:

The current travel advice for Nepal issued by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

The Air Safety Network entry for Nepal

In response to concerns over this safety record, Exodus arranges for independent air-safety auditors to visit Nepal annually to assess the suitability of the available carriers. We then restrict our use to only those approved as part of this audit. In emergency situations, we will need to use helicopters, so we also have a list of approved helicopter carriers. Should concerns arise regarding the safety of an airline on our approved list, we will remove the carrier from the list immediately, and it would only be reinstated once our air-safety auditors are confident the airline meets acceptable safety standards.

We appreciate that you may have concerns about flying within Nepal, so we ask that you please consider all the information above when deciding to book this trip.