From a city tour of ancient Kathmandu to game viewing in Chitwan, this trip showcases the best of Nepal. The highlight is a short trek in the Annapurna foothills, surrounded by magnificent Himalayan mountain views and passing through traditional villages. Using luxury lodges, we offer a higher standard of comfort than is normally available on trek, and this premium tour also includes upgraded accommodation in Kathmandu, Pokhara and Chitwan. With comfort in mind, we fly back from Chitwan to Kathmandu.
The tour starts at our hotel in Kathmandu this afternoon. Free arrival transfers are available for any flight, provided you have supplied Exodus with your flight details in advance and have requested one. The group flights are scheduled to arrive in the mid-afternoon. This evening there will be a full trip briefing.
Hotel Yak & Yeti, or similar
For those who wish, there is the chance to do an optional Everest sightseeing flight early this morning; this can be booked locally through your leader on day 1.
We will leave the hotel late morning for our Kathmandu sightseeing tour. First, we drive to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Boudhanath to see the famous Buddhist stupa with its huge mandala; one of the largest spherical stupas in Nepal and indeed in the world. We have lunch nearby and then continue to Kathmandu Durbar Square (which also has UNESCO status), one of three royal palace squares in the Kathmandu Valley. Although the Kathmandu Durbar Square was heavily damaged in the 2015 earthquake the many palaces, temples and courtyards in the Newari style are interesting. There will be a full trip briefing today.
Hotel Yak & Yeti, or similar
We leave Kathmandu early this morning and drive to Pokhara - traffic leaving Kathmandu can prolong the journey but once out of Kathmandu city, the journey usually takes around 6 hours depending on the road and traffic conditions. In the afternoon your leader will take you for an orientation walk along the shore of Phewa Lake. Pokhara is a pretty lakeside resort at the foot of the Annapurna range.
Temple Tree Resort & Spa, Pokhara
We have a short drive to our trek start point, from where we follow a ridgeline in the lower foothills of the Annapurnas with surrounding views of the Pokhara Valley. This route then drops to the Modi River Valley, where Ker & Downey's Sanctuary Lodge is located. The lodge has magnificent views of the sacred and unclimbed Fishtail Mountain, or Machhapuchhare, as it is locally known. A picnic lunch is provided today.
Ker and Downey Lodge (Sanctuary Lodge, 1,025m)
After breakfast, you will leave the lodge to start the trek through the scattered small farms. Following the Modi Khola and with constant views of Mt. Machhapuchhre ahead, you will soon climb the valley towards the mountains. It is quite a long climb up stone steps passing through the rice fields and forest, but we take plenty of stops. Finally, we arrive at Himalaya Lodge in Ghandruk in the early afternoon to a late lunch that is served on arrival as you enjoy the spectacular views of Annapurna Massif.Ker and Downey Lodge (Himalaya Lodge, 2,012m)
Although we can see Landruk across the valley we have to descend to the river and climb up the other side to get there! Leaving the Ghandruk village, the trek descends steeply to the banks of Modi River. Crossing the suspension bridge, we trek up a stone staircase to Landruk village, enjoying the views of the Annapurna Range and passing under the cliffs where honey hunters climb up on the ropes to harvest the wild bee honey. Lunch will be ready as we arrive at our lodge. After lunch, you may either rest and enjoy the spectacular views of the mountains, or go on a sightseeing tour in the village with your guide.
Ker and Downey Lodge (La Bee Lodge, 1,565m)
You will start your trek passing through the village and farmlands with views of the Annapurnas behind. Today is an easier walk to Majgaon with no steep up or downhills. We will arrive at the lodge by lunchtime and in the afternoon you can enjoy the views of the mountains from your room itself or spend time in the garden. There is also the option of a guided village walk.
Ker and Downey Lodge (Gurung / Mala Lodge, 1,400m)
Starting your trek today, you continue trekking towards Patlekhet, a small village on the way towards Pothana. Pothana is used by Tibetan traders to sell their souvenirs and gifts to the tourist trekking up and down the trails to Annapurna Base Camp. As you reach your lodge in Dhampus, you get the spectacular views of the entire Annapurna range. Once at the lodge you will be served hot lunch after which you can take a short walk into Dhampus village.
On the Christmas departure (18 December 2021) a cultural performance at Basanta Lodge is included to celebrate.
Ker and Downey Lodge (Basanta Lodge, 1,525m)
After breakfast, we depart along the ridge & descend on a stone staircase through the wooded hillside and terraced farmland to the valley floor. Trek time 1.5-2hrs hours. We then transfer by vehicle to the hotel in Pokhara (1hr). The afternoon is free to explore Pokhara. You may want to visit the interesting mountain museum or you can go for a boat ride on Phewa Lake or hire a bike for a cycle along the lakeshore. Or you may simply want to relax by the hotel pool or wander along the lakeside browsing in the shops. Your leader will brief you on the various options available.
Temple Tree Resort & Spa, Pokhara
On the Christmas departure (17 December 2020) a special dinner is included in Pokhara to celebrate.
We drive from Pokhara to Chitwan, which will take about 4 hours. On a clear day look to the left as we leave Pokhara for the magnificent panoramic views of the Annapurna Range. The road takes us back to Mugling, from where we turn south to the lowlands of Nepal and our jungle lodge in Chitwan. We should arrive by lunchtime and after lunch we’ll meet our naturalist guide who will go over the programme of activities. In the late afternoon we take an ox-cart ride around Tharu village and witness a traditional Tharu dance.
The knowledgeable staff from the lodge will accompany us on all the excursions. Kasara Lodge
Activities may be offered in a different order but usually, the programme will include an early morning bird watching walk before breakfast. Before lunch there will be another activity, normally a trip along the Rapti River in a dugout canoe, looking for crocodile and observing the many birds. Then before dinner, we set out on a jeep safari. If we are lucky we may encounter the Indian one-horned rhinoceros or some of the several species of deer found here.
Kasara Lodge
For those who wish, there is a bird-watching walk early this morning. We then transfer to Bharatpur airport and catch a flight to Kathmandu.
Hotel Yak & Yeti, or similar
The trip finishes after breakfast. Those travelling on the group flights to London will transfer to the airport for their flight back to the UK.
During your holiday you stay at the following hotels. If you'd like to extend your time at any of these or, if you'd like to enhance your stay with an upgraded room, just let us know at the time of booking.
To find out more call our sales team on 1-800-267-3347, use our live webchat or email usa@exodustravels.com
Our aim is to provide holidays that are unbeatable for choice and flexibility. We've listed our most popular travel options below, however you aren't limited to these - we can tailor-make virtually any holiday to suit.
To find out more about the travel options available call our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or email usa@exodustravels.com
Here at Headwater we thrive on feedback from our customers. It's the only way we can continue to develop, and where necessary improve, our services and ensure our holidays continue to be the best they can be. As this is a relatively new holiday, we don't yet have any customer reviews available from our customers, but here are the comments that have been received from previous Exodus travellers.
Can highly recommend this trip, it was absolutely amazing from start to finish. It provides a fantastic insight into Nepal and you will see a lot in a short space of time, it far exceed my expectations and is worth the money. It is fast paced but a good mix of city/history and cultural introduction of the country to start with in Kathmandu followed by the excellent walking, and finishing in Chitwan before going back to Kathmandu. I agree that Kathmandu was not the highlight and in my view could of easily been missed altogether, or only covered at the end of the trip for half a day, it was very polluted and dirty, the hotel was a good standard for Nepal but not amazing, but fine for a few nights and comfortable. Definitely would recommend flying straight into Pokhara when the airport is open to International carriers in the near future. I could easily have spent more time in Pokhara and Chitwan. The walking was amazing, you do need a good level of fitness there are one or two steep ascents, poles are a good item to bring with you in your kit bag, the porters carry your bags for you as you walk, my recommendation is to pack light for the walking! Lodges were very comfortable and the people very friendly food very god standard and plenty of it! Cold at night but good hot showers and nice bathrooms, I loved that you were delivered a hot water bottle every night. Food in the lodges was amazing and catered for everyone. The walking thought the unspoilt and at times completely isolated parts of the countryside will be something that will stay with me for a long time, that was truly unique and in complete contrast to Kathmandu. We saw hardly any tourists and saw farmers at work and people living in the countryside, it was peaceful and you truly could appreciate this amazing country. Pokhara was fantastic and is an amazing city, with a lot to do, I would definitely go back there. Chitwan Safari was truly unique and the hotel was absolutely outstanding and luxury. A few opportunities in Pokhara, Chitwan and Kathmandu to have massages to ease away the aches of the walking. Our guide Keshar was fantastic, extremely knowledgeable about Nepal, the flora, fauna and history, there was nothing he could of done to make our trip any better. Going in December meant we had very clear views of all the spectacular mountain ranges and I would definitely recommend this time of year, albeit it is cold in the evenings. Each trip I do with exodus just gets better and better!
Booked this as wanted to see Nepal without roughing it. Far exceeded my expectations. A great taster of several regions, the culture, fabulous scenery and wildlife of this incredible country. It may not be heavy trekking, but you still need to have a good fitness level for all the uneven steps and relentless ups and downs. It is pretty full on if you make use of the optional trips in free time, but there is so much to see. Kathmandhu is pretty much as you imagine, and as little time spent there as possible is probably a good plan, it was the least impressive hotel, dirty, crowded and polluted, but still has areas of culture and history worth a look. When the new airport in Pokhara opens, that might mean you can fly there which would reduce the long and 'exciting' road trip. Pokhara was a much nicer place all round and could have spent longer there. Chitwans wildlife was also amazing, we just skimmed the surface on this trip, could have easily spent longer there. The lodges are of a great standard, although unheated, so you need to dress accordingly. The food was far better than I anticipated, and with happy hour, I failed to lose weight or detox on this trip! The trekking was mainly off the main paths and as it was end of season, we saw very few other tourists either on the paths or in the lodges. It was only a group of 7 and felt like a very personal trip.
Great trip fulfilled all our expectations. The trekking was hard work but the scenery made it all worth while. The guide was excellent as were all the porters and local guides. And really appreciated the comfort of the lodges and the good, varied foods they provided.
A wonderful trip - this was out first visit to Nepal, and we were definitely able to experience a lot within the time. From the bustle of Kathmandu (which while manic, was really enjoyable) to the calm of the trekking, walking through the rural villages and seeing how they live. Everyone is so friendly - we Namaste'd a lot! We spent the last night of the trek with our porters where they sang, played drums and danced - we also attempted the dancing! And did a rendition of 'Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes' and 'If You're Happy & You Know It' for them - was good to see them joining in with the moves too! It was a lovely night, full of laughs and big smiles from everyone. In Chitwan we were lucky enough to see 2 Indian one-horned rhinos when we were on the jeep safari. It does get quite busy with other jeeps following similar trails, but definitely worth it.
A wonderfully varied holiday, with city visits, trekking in the foothills of the Himalayas and a jungle safari to see the rhino.
My wife & I went to Nepal with Exodus in March this year & had a fantastic time! As the 'Annapurna in Luxury' group tour didn't exactly meet our needs -we wanted to do water rafting & an elephant experience in Chitwan - SHARMIL at Exodus created a personal itinerary for us. The holiday was great - superb trekking in the Annapurna region, water rafting down the SETI river , various activities in the Chitwan National Park plus a fascinating day in Kathmandu! All Exodus staff were excellent but a special mention to BIKASH - our guide for 5 days of trekking. BIKASH was an outstanding guide/walk leader - he took us on less obvious/well known routes, adjusted the pace to suit our needs (not fast but not slow - taking account of my 'dodgy knee' etc) & encouraged us when we got a bit tired. A very talented Guide/Trekking Leader that we highly recommend ! Thanks for a superb experience ! Steve & Suzanne Marsh
Excellent holiday in Nepal but the level 2 grading is misleading as the walks on two of the days are far harder than level 2. This point has been raised in several reviews by previous travellers and should be picked up by Exodus. The trip code TNX includes a really good mix with trekking, rafting and wildlife. Accommodation was of a really good standard - trekking lodges, Pokhara and Kasara Lodge (Chitwan). The hotel at Kathmandu was perfectly OK but £11 for a beer and soft drink was excessive even for hotel prices.
I would not hesitate to recommend this holiday. The steep ascents of the treks were tough going but the routes through the villages at harvest time and the 'Namaste's of the local children kept me going. Arriving at the beautiful mountain lodges to such wonderful hospitality made it all worth while and the sunrise and sunsets were stunning (we were lucky in having clear skies every day). The rafting was fast enough to be fun and exciting but not scary, and the river camp felt like a real story book adventure. The activities at Chitwan were well planned and allowed for some time to relax by the pool.
Another great trip and an enjoyable diverse itinerary from, temples to trekking, to white water rafting, to safari. Some long days transferring between sites, but well worth it in the end. Great company, excellent leader and a wonderful, friendly country well worth visiting.
You can be confident that our pricing includes all the standard requirements of your holiday and many additional extras. Always ensure that you are comparing like for like when booking your holiday.
This 12 night guided walking holiday includes:
All breakfasts, 8 lunches, 7 dinners
Happy hour drinks in the K&D lodges
All accommodation
All listed transport and activities
One internal flight
Tour leader throughout
Flights from London (if booking incl. flights)
Arrival and departure transfers
Trek Pack including a daypack, walking stick, rain poncho, sun hat and scarf
How to book:
For further details, or to check availability, speak to our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or click on the 'check availability' links below to complete our holiday enquiry form (we'll contact you at a time that's most convenient for you).
To enquire about this holiday, or for further information, call our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or click on the 'Check availability' links below to complete our holiday enquiry form.
We do not currently have departure dates and prices available on-line. The season may have ended for this tour, or we are still in the process of adding these details to our website. Please contact us for further details.
This holiday is operated by our sister company, Exodus
5 nights premium hotels, 5 nights luxury Ker & Downey mountain lodges and 2 nights premium jungle lodge
6 days point-to-point walking with full porterage
Small group size (max. 16 clients)
Min. age 16 yrsLow altitude throughout
Good introductory Himalayan walking
