Going on a 15-day trip to a faraway place called Upper Mustang in the Himalayas is super exciting! The trip ends with a cool celebration called the Tiji festival in Lo Manthang. During this festival, people dress up, dance, and play music—it’s a big deal for them. Before that, we’ll also visit interesting spots in two lively cities in Nepal called Kathmandu and Pokhara. It’s going to be a fun adventure!
Overview
Ready for an awesome adventure in Upper Mustang?
Join us on a journey!
In Upper Mustang, something really special happens during the Tiji Festival. It’s like entering a different world! This festival is all about celebrating good winning over evil. Long ago, there was a demon causing trouble in Mustang, but a powerful Buddha, Dorje Jono, defeated the demon.
During the festival, people wear cool Tibetan clothes, dance, sing, and pray. The folks in the Lo Manthang region even say special words called mantras. It’s a super fun and exciting time!
Trip Highlights for Tiji Festival Trek
- Cultural Extravaganza: There's a super fun Tiji Festival showing off cool Tibetan Buddhist traditions!
- Religious Significance: People do special rituals to show that good always beats the bad stuff.
- Breathtaking Scenery: Take a walk through Mustang's amazing places with big, snowy mountains.
- Ancient Monasteries: Visit really old Thubchen and Jampa Gompas in Lo Manthang—it's like time-travel!
- City Exploration: Check out the ancient capital, Lo Manthang, with its cool and different buildings.
- Local Interaction: People here are super nice! Learn about how they live and what they do.
- Restricted Area: This area is extra special, and not many people can go there, so it stays awesome.
- Photography Opportunities: Snap pics of the colorful clothes, dances, and the big, beautiful Himalayan mountains.
- Adventure on Scenic Trails: Walk through cool canyons and beautiful villages for a bunch of different adventures!
Itinerary
Yay, you're in Nepal!
When you arrive at the airport in Kathmandu, a friendly person from our team will be there to meet you. They'll take you to a comfy hotel in Thamel. In the evening, you can take a walk and see lots of exciting things or have a yummy dinner at a nearby restaurant in this busy, touristy place.
The next day, you'll wake up to the sound of bells from nearby temples. After breakfast, a leader will take you to some cool and special places in the city. These places are super important and are like treasures, so they're on a special list called UNESCO World Heritage List.
First, you'll see famous spots like Syambhunath Stupa, Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square, and Bhaktapur Durbar Square. You'll also check out Changu Narayan Temple, Pashupatinath Temple, and the big Boudhanath Stupa. You can eat lunch wherever you like during our adventure. After seeing all these amazing places, we'll talk about our trek and get ready for the next big part of our journey!
On this day, we'll travel to Pokhara by bus. Or, if you like, we can also go on a special tourist bus. Either way, you'll have time to have fun at the beautiful Phewa Lake. You can walk around the lake or take a boat to the other side. At night, we'll stay in a really nice hotel in the city, and you can see all the exciting things happening around Lakeside.
The next morning, we wake up super early and take a short flight to Jomsom. It's only 20 minutes, but you get to see amazing mountains and a cool gorge from above! In Jomsom, it's time to start our real adventure! We walk for about 3 to 4 hours next to a big river called Kali Gandaki until we reach a special place called Kagbeni. This village is like a time machine because it has a lifestyle that's just like Tibet. We'll spend the night in Kagbeni, looking at old forts and houses with flat roofs. It's going to be a great day!
Today, we're going to Upper Mustang! We start from Kagbeni, walk by the Kali Gandaki river, and see cool things like fields with buckwheat and apples. After crossing a big bridge, we climb up to Chele village. We'll stay there overnight. The whole trek takes about 6 to 7 hours. It's going to be a super fun day!
Waking up in Chele, a small village, we hike up and down hills through villages and canyons. We pass by Samar and walk through a forest to Bhena for a tea stop and a great view. Then, we go up and down more hills until we reach Syangbochen, a village with cool artwork. After 6 hours of trekking, we rest there and get ready for more fun!
This day is a bit long but not too hard. We start with a light breakfast in Syangboche and walk through a big empty land with a nice breeze. After a short walk, we reach Ghiling, where we'll have a big lunch to get strong. From Ghiling, we go up and down to Jaite, then walk next to a lowland to reach Nyi La and a turn. That's when we start seeing plants in Ghami. After about 5 hours of walking, we will reach Ghami—a small village by a stream from the big Dhaulagiri mountains. We get there early, so we can enjoy the view of Nilgiri, Annapurna, and other mountains. This is where we rest for the day.
Leaving Ghami, we cross a big steel bridge over Tangmar Chu river and walk on a criss-cross road. We will climb a plateau and see some plants. After a bit, we will find the Mani Wall, the longest prayer wall in Nepal! We keep going until we reach a narrow path and climb up to a pass. We won't see many plants for a while. After a few hours of walking up and down on empty land, we start seeing the Kali Gandaki river again. Following the river, we reach Charang village. There, we can check out old monasteries and palaces, which are cool to see. We're getting closer to our final stop. Tomorrow, we'll reach Lo Manthang for the Tiji Festival!
Today, we're going to Lo Manthang village!
We go down into a canyon and then up to a tall place called Lo La Pass, which is 3950m high. From there, we can see the beautiful Lo Manthang village. It takes a few hours to reach this amazing place, and there's only one way to get in. Once we rest a bit, we can see the Tiji Festival starting at 3 pm. It's a cool celebration with local monks, and we can join in the fun! We'll stay in Lo Manthang for the next two nights. It's going to be a great time!
Today, we got to dance with the local people at the Mustang Royal Palace in Lo Manthang. But before that, let's explore the village! There are cool places like Tall Champa Lakhang, the Red Dzogchen Gompa, Chiyoda Palace, and the Raja’s Palace. Near Lo Manthang, there are villages called Tingkah and Chhosar. They have many stupas and look really pretty. Chhosar is famous for a super old Jhong Sky Cave with 44 compartments that are 2500 years old! Later, we'll go back to the Mustang Royal Palace and watch experts do a special dance wearing masks. It's going to be so much fun!
Today is the last day of the Tiji Festival and our time in Lo Manthang. We'll begin by checking out the famous Summer Palace in Tingkhar, even though it's empty now. Or, we can climb up a hill in the North of the village to see a great view of the valley and snowy mountains far away. Later, we'll watch the last day of the Tiji Festival. After all the fun, it's time to go back to where we started our trip. It's been an awesome adventure!
Today, we're taking a different way back from Lo Manthang. We'll walk to a special monastery called Ghar Gompa, built a long time ago. After lunch, we'll go downhill to Dhakmar village. It's a bit of a long walk, about 9 hours. We'll stay there for the night and get ready to go back where we started our trip. It's been an amazing adventure!
Today, we're waking up and walking down to Samar. It will take us about 6 hours. First, we'll go to Ghami, where we'll spend the night on our way back. We can eat our lunch in Ghami. The path from Ghami is the same one we took when going up. We'll see lots of cool things on the way, like monasteries and stupas. After passing the Nyi La pass, we'll keep walking to the South until we reach Samar.
Today, we're walking back to Chhusang and then down to Kagbeni. We go down a steep path, cross Chele, and use the Kali Gandaki Bridge. We'll see the river again and follow the road next to it until we take a plane back to Pokhara. We'll eat our lunch and keep walking until we reach Kagbeni. The whole walk will take about 7 hours. We might see local friends again!
Today, we're going back to Jomsom village, the main place in the Mustang district. It only takes us four hours to walk next to the big Kali Gandaki river and get there. In Jomsom, we can try the delicious apples that this place is famous for. The village is also known for its strong winds in the middle of the day. It's going to be a short and fun walk!
Today, we're taking an early flight from Jomsom to Pokhara. On the way, we can see the Kali Gandaki Gorge, which is the deepest gorge in the world.
Once we're back in Pokhara, we can visit some cool places. Later, we have to go back to Kathmandu, either by flight, which only takes about 20 minutes and is a scenic ride where you can see mountains from the window.
Once we land in Kathmandu, our ride will be waiting to take us from the airport to the hotel. After coming back to Kathmandu, you can relax, walk around Thamel, go to clubs, or even enjoy a massage at a spa.
The Trip Cost Includes
- Pick up and drop off at the airport in a private car.
- Stay in a nice hotel in Kathmandu for three nights with breakfast.
- Three meals a day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) during the trek.
- Fresh fruit after dinner every night.
- Accommodation in trekking lodges (like tea houses) during the trek.
- Special permits for the trek, like the Upper Mustang permit.
- Bus ride to Pokhara and a flight from Pokhara to Kathmandu, including transfers.
- Flight tickets for Pokhara to Jomsom and back, with airport transfers and taxes.
- A super knowledgeable and friendly guide with all expenses covered.
- A strong porter with the right gear (one porter for every two people).
- Medical supplies, including a first aid kit.
- Emergency helicopter service arrangement (paid by your travel insurance).
- Sleeping bags, a down jacket, a duffel bag, and walking poles if needed (to be returned after the trip).
- Use of sleeping bag, down jacket, and walking poles (if you don't have your own, with a $10 USD charge for maintenance and washing).
- A cool t-shirt and cap from Nepal Eco Adventure.
- Government taxes, service charges, and official expenses.
- Two nights in a nice hotel in Pokhara with breakfast.
- A guided tour of Kathmandu with a private vehicle.
- Oximeter to check your pulse, oxygen saturation, and heart rate twice a day for safety.
- Assistant guide for groups with six or more people.
The Trip Cost Excludes
- Meals in Kathmandu for lunch and dinner.
- Meals in Pokhara.
- The cost of getting a visa for Nepal, which is $50 USD for 30 days.
- Your travel and medical insurance.
- Plane tickets to Nepal from other countries.
- Your personal expenses.
- Drinks on the trek, like soda or hot drinks in the evenings at the tea houses.
- Sweets and desserts, like chocolate, cake, pie, or pudding.
- Hot showers and charging your devices at the tea houses.
- Tips for the guide, porter, and driver (though it's expected).
- Fees to enter monuments during the Kathmandu sightseeing tour, which is $30 USD per person.
- Extra charges for baggage over 15kg on the Jomsom flight.
FAQs
- The Upper Mustang Tiji Festival Trek is a journey to a faraway place in Nepal called Upper Mustang. People go there to see the Tiji Festival, a special celebration about good winning against bad things.
- The Tiji Festival happens every year in a place called Upper Mustang in Nepal. It’s a big party where people celebrate that good things are stronger than bad things. During the festival, the locals do special dances and rituals, making it a really important cultural event.
- The Tiji Festival usually happens in May, and that’s the best time to go on a trek to Upper Mustang because the festival is the most exciting part of the trip.
- The Upper Mustang Tiji Festival Trek usually takes about 10 to 14 days. That includes the time it takes to walk to where the festival is happening and then walk back.
- During the Upper Mustang Tiji Festival Trek, we stay in simple places called lodges or guesthouses. These are like basic hotels with simple facilities.
- Yes, you need a special paper called the “Upper Mustang Trekking Permit” to go to the Upper Mustang region.Â
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