Overview
The short Annapurna Base Camp trek from Kathmandu is a seven-day teahouse trek that uses jeep transfers to reach base camp at 4,130 metres without the extra walking days of the classic route. After the drive to lakeside Pokhara you are driven up to Jhinu, trek in via Chhomrong, Sinuwa and Himalaya, and reach the Annapurna Sanctuary for a dawn that lights up Annapurna I, Machhapuchhre and Hiunchuli in a single glacial amphitheatre. It is graded moderate, walked on well-worn trails with comfortable lodges each night, and the road head at Jhinu cuts a full day off each end of the walk. This from-Kathmandu version includes the transfers both ways, so it suits trekkers on a tight schedule who are basing themselves in the capital.
The itinerary
- Scenic 6 to 7 hour drive through river valleys and hills
- Check in at lakeside Pokhara and relax
- Optional 30-minute flight in place of the drive
- Around 3 hours by jeep up scenic hill roads to Jhinu Danda
- Trek up through Chhomrong (2,170 m) with views of Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre
- Continue uphill to overnight at Lower Sinuwa (2,360 m)
- Walk through bamboo and rhododendron forest along the Modi Khola
- Quiet trail past waterfalls and narrow valleys, deeper into the region
- Overnight at Himalaya (2,920 m)
- Climb via Deurali and Machhapuchhre Base Camp into the glacial basin
- Reach Annapurna Base Camp at 4,130 m
- A 360-degree amphitheatre of Annapurna I, Machhapuchhre and Hiunchuli
- Dawn over the Annapurna range from base camp
- Long descent down through alpine terrain into forest
- Overnight at Bamboo (2,310 m)
- Descend forest trails to Jhinu Danda (1,780 m) and the riverside hot springs
- Drive back to Pokhara in the afternoon
- Evening free around Lakeside
- Return drive to Kathmandu, or an optional 30-minute flight
- The trek concludes on arrival
What the price covers
Things to carry
- Layered clothing including a warm down jacket for base camp
- Broken-in trekking boots and warm socks
- A sleeping-bag liner, hat, gloves and a buff
- Sunglasses, sun hat, high-factor sunscreen and lip balm
- A refillable water bottle with purification, a daypack and a power bank
Good to know
Complete guide
Annapurna Base Camp is the trek most people picture when they imagine walking in Nepal: villages, forest and river valley that end inside a ring of 7,000 and 8,000 metre peaks. This version squeezes it into a week by driving to the trailhead at Jhinu and back, so trekkers short on time can still reach the Sanctuary from Kathmandu. Here is how the trek works and what to know.
What the short Annapurna Base Camp trek from Kathmandu covers
The route runs Kathmandu to Pokhara, then a jeep up to Jhinu, and in on foot through Chhomrong, Sinuwa and Himalaya to base camp at 4,130 metres, returning to a road head at Jhinu before the drive home. The transfers replace the two lower walking days of the classic trip, so you reach the same amphitheatre with less time on the trail. If you would rather add those days back and walk in gradually, the budget Annapurna Base Camp trek covers similar ground at an easier pace.
How hard it is and how the altitude feels
This is a moderate trek, not a technical one, but the shorter schedule makes the days honest: long stone staircases, steady climbs and a top night at 4,130 metres reached in fewer stages. The quicker height gain means you are a little more likely to feel the thinner air near base camp, so walk slowly, hydrate well, and treat any headache seriously. A few weeks of hill walking before you come makes the biggest difference to how much you enjoy it.
Permits, guides and teahouses
You need the Annapurna Conservation Area permit and a trekkers' information card, and since April 2023 a licensed guide is mandatory in the region; we arrange all of this. Nights are spent in teahouses, family-run lodges with simple twin rooms and a warm dining room, so you carry only a daypack. Bring a sleeping-bag liner, a power bank and small cash for charging, Wi-Fi and hot showers.
A gentler alternative
If base camp feels like a lot to reach in a week, the same region has an easier introduction. The Ghorepani Poon Hill trek reaches a famous sunrise viewpoint over Annapurna and Dhaulagiri in a fraction of the days, on shorter walking hours and lower altitude, with none of the fast height gain.
