Nepal Archives - Wayfaring Humans

The Annapurna Circuit can take about 1-3 weeks to complete, depending how much time you take to rest along the way and how many side treks you decide to do. We trekked as a couple (a fun experience you can read more about here), and planned our own 11-day itinerary without a tour company, guides, or porters. For able-bodied relatively healthy people, this is very doable. The total cost of our trek (for TWO PEOPLE) including our Nepalese visas, all transportation within Nepal (from Kathmandu), trekking permits, accommodation, food, and extra expenses was 70,709 NPR (Nepalese Rupee) or approximately $637.70. This is much cheaper than the organized tours we saw going for $800-$1500 USD per PERSON! Our total price above excludes our international flights into Kathmandu. Below we have outlined our 11-day itinerary and cost breakdown for each day of the trek—including the preliminary costs before the trek began, such as the cost of our 30-day visas at the airport in Kathmandu. We planned everything ourselves, so of course many of the prices are flexible and/or optional (depending on the food you choose to buy, etc.). All prices shown are the TOTAL PRICE for us as a COUPLE. If you’re traveling solo, just… cut everything in half I guess! A PDF download of this cost breakdown, without the photos, can be found at the end of this article. We hope it helps you in your planning! 11-day Itinerary Cost Breakdown (total prices for 2 people) Day 0 – Costs before the trek begins! Total = 33,540 NPR or approximately $300 USD We already had most of the equipment we needed—backpacks, boots, warm clothes (for the most part), so we didn’t need to buy or rent these items. There's no need to pack tents or sleeping bags/mats because you can stay in comfortable (and free!) guesthouses all along the trek. We packed light and left most of our stuff at our hotel in Pokhara. Prices are shown in Nepalese Rupee (NPR). Here is our cost breakdown for items before starting the trek: 30-day visas at the airport in Kathmandu NPR 8400.00 Phil – bought a winter jacket in Kathmandu NPR 1800.00 Bus tickets from Kathmandu to Pokhara NPR 1400.00 2 Coffees NPR 185.00 1 Coke and 1 masala tea NPR 190.00 Taxi ride from bus station to hotel NPR 300.00 Breakfast in Pokhara NPR 160.00 Lunch in Pokhara NPR 365.00 Photos taken for our trekking permits in Pokhara NPR 600.00 Beer and wine NPR 810.00 Annapurna Circuit permit fees NPR 8000.00 Trekking poles – bought in Pokhara NPR 700.00 2 Coffees NPR 500.00 2 Curries NPR 750.00 North Face Inn (hotel) & laundry NPR 3630.00 Dinner NPR 1850.00 Bus tickets Pokhara to Besisahar NPR 900.00 Lunch NPR 500.00 Pick up truck ride from Besisahar to the trailhead NPR 2400.00 Snack NPR 100.00 Cramped pickup truck ride from Besisahar to wherever you want to start trekking! Day 1 – Jumping out of the Pickup truck and trekking to Syange Total = 4060 NPR or approximately $37 USD Ahh, the crowded pickup truck option! If you're interested, you can learn more about our pickup truck adventure in this other Annapurna post. We found that all guesthouses were free on the Annapurna Circuit, with the expectation that we would eat and drink there. So, all guesthouse costs mentioned here are really the price of dinner + any drinks and snacks we bought there. The food on the Annapurna Circuit is really good and varied. During the day, we stopped in villages along the way for lunch and snacks, the prices of which are noted on each day. We started our trek on the Tihar holiday in the fall, which we would really recommend because the trail was empty and we had our choice of guesthouses in every town! Food at Guesthouse in Syange NPR 2455.00 Coffee break NPR 180.00 Lunch NPR 1425.00 View from our first guesthouse! Day 2 – Syange to Dharapani Total = 3730 NPR or approximately $34 USD The first couple of days of the Annapurna Circuit are almost tropical! We saw lots of green, lush scenery and even waterfalls. The weather was warm, so our puffy jackets stayed in our bags at the beginning of the trek! Food at Guesthouse in Dharapani NPR 1940.00 Coffee NPR 120.00 Lunch NPR 920.00 Hat for Britt NPR 450.00 Noodles NPR 300.00 Simple, clean, cozy guesthouse rooms Day 3 – Dharapani to Chame Total = 3205 NPR or approximately $29 USD Walking through the villages during the Tihar holiday was really cool at the beginning of our trek. We saw kids in the villages singing, and people giving out flowers (and blessing us!). There was also a shack along this leg of the circuit that sold apple-flavored products (cider, pie...yum!). Food at Guesthouse in Chame NPR 2170.00 Apple flavored snacks NPR 335.00 Lunch NPR 700.00 Trekking through the villages Day 4 – Chame to Upper Pisang Total = 3720 NPR or approximately $34 USD My favorite guesthouse on all of the Annapurna Circuit was in Upper Pisang. We chose one way up on a hill with an amazing viewpoint. There we sat, in the sun, looking at the mountains and drinking masala chai tea! At this point, the weather started getting colder and we would be cold for the next few days! Food at Guesthouse in Upper Pisang NPR 1760.00 Viewpoint snack NPR 450.00 Another snack NPR 200.00 Tea NPR 50.00 Bhraka snacks NPR 230.00 Wifi NPR 200.00 Breakfast NPR 350.00 Chapstick NPR 120.00 Gloves NPR 300.00 Kleenex NPR 60.00 Obligatory jumping pick Day 5-6 – Upper Pisang to Manang (stayed in Manang 2 nights) We stayed in Manang for two nights to acclimatize and have a rest day, although Phil took the "rest day" to do an additional ice lake hike! Manang felt to me like an old western town. It's really beautiful and so, so different (as really all of the towns are along this Circuit) from every other village we had passed. Total = 4405 NPR or approximately $40 USD Food at Guesthouse in Manang NPR 4275.00 Croissant NPR 130.00 Probably the most amazing view of any hotel in my life (Upper Pisang) Day 7 – Manang to Yak Kharka Total = 2410 NPR or approximately $22 USD This day's expenses are pretty simple - just one item! After Manang, the trail gets colder, steeper and you get more tired! It's harder to breathe and you have a week of trekking weighing on you. Despite this, the excitement of heading toward the highest point of the trek (Thorong La Pass at over 5400 meters) drives you forward! Food at Guesthouse in Yak Kharka NPR 2410.00 Playing cards with friends made on the trail, enjoying the views, and drinking CHAI! Day 8 – Yak Kharka to Thorong Phedi Total = 4740 NPR or approximately $43 USD The night before trekking up to Thorong La Pass was FREEZING. We had heavy blankets in our guesthouse room, and a common area to hang out in with a fire. When we finally did "summit" the pass, the feeling was incredible and I celebrated by buying a way-too-expensive Snickers bar from the little shack (the only structure) on top of the Pass. IT WAS DELICIOUS. Food at Guesthouse in Thorong Phedi NPR 3600.00 Snickers on top of Thorong La Pass! NPR 400.00 Lunch NPR 740.00 Phil's ice lake excursion - he takes no days off! Day 9 – Thorong Phedi to Muktinath Total = 2740 NPR or approximately $25 USD Coming down from the Pass can be a bit sad because you've already achieved what you set out to do. However, the views continue to stun and amaze on the other side of the Annapurna Circuit. We couldn't believe the diversity in the shifting landscapes on this trek. Food at Guesthouse in Muktinath NPR 1940.00 Lunch in Lubra NPR 800.00 You'll find piles of prayer flags everywhere... Day 10 – Muktinath to Marpha Total = 8159 NPR or approximately $74 USD Definitely check out some of these beautiful little villages - Marpha was awesome, even though we were exhausted and probably didn't explore the area as much as we should have. We hitched a ride part of the way on the road to Marpha with a school bus full of kids. I know many people complain about this road they've built on the Circuit, and it IS very dusty, but man - so convenient for moments like this when you feel like fast-forwarding to warmth and cheating on your hiking a little bit (sorry, hardcore trekkers!). Food at Guesthouse in Marpha NPR 2310.00 Chips NPR 140.00 Chowmein NPR 350.00 Bus from Marpha to Ghasa NPR 1500.00 Bus from Ghasa to Phokara NPR 2200.00 Breakfast NPR 1186.00 Coffee NPR 473.00 THE BEST! How much money should you carry with you? There aren’t any ATMs on the Annapurna Circuit, so you should withdraw cash in Pokhara or Kathmandu before getting on the bus to Besisahar. Looking at our expenses, if you’re thrifty like us—you probably don’t need any more than $500 USD per person, and that’s playing it really safe. It’s good to have extra cash for emergencies or unexpected expenses. I carried a money belt to keep my cash in throughout the trek as well as my trekking permits. HOWEVER, I stupidly put it against my skin while trekking and my permits disintegrated a little bit from my sweat… ew, so I don’t know if that was the BEST method. Maybe carrying a money belt on the outer layer of your clothes is a better option! That's our itinerary and cost breakdown! Like we said, there are other ways to customize this trek if you plan it yourselves. You can take buses from other villages back to Pokhara, or even fly there! We planned this as we went because we wanted the flexibility, but it's up to you! Hope this breakdown gives you a rough idea of what it costs to trek the Annapurna Circuit as a couple! It's one of the most amazing treks in the WORLD and we'll definitely do it again someday :) Here is a downloadable PDF version of our 11-day itinerary and cost breakdown, without the photos. Happy trekking!