One week itinerary for Nepal
Nepal is three times smaller than California, USA and two times smaller than Italy. However the country is jagged with world’s highest mountains and deep valleys making the landscape adventurous to traverse. Eight out of the ten highest mountains including Mt Everest falls in Nepal. 414 peaks between 5,500 m – 8000 m are available for climbing including 72 above 7,000 m. The historic trans-Himalayan trade routes offer adventurous trekking from a week to month. Nepal is almost rectangular shape with 800 km stretch of the Himalayas towards north and 200 km width descending from the top of the world to the tropical jungle 100 m above sea level. The high current rivers cut deep valleys providing world class White water rafting and kayaking adventure. This is the only country which provides ultimate adventures of multi days trekking and rafting of all levels. The diverse ecosystem and landscape make it a rich place for wildlife and culture as well. While the Himalayas of Nepal offers the challenging mountaineering and trekking adventures, there are also gentle treks and tours. With extension of dirt roads and development of air strips, it is possible to shorten many Nepal treks and tours to a week or less. Here are some of the one week Nepal trek and tour itineraries
1. Kathmadu Chitwan Pokhara Tour
Tour of Kathmandu, Chitwan and Pokhara represent best of Nepal’s culture, nature and wildlife without strenuous trekking. Kathmandu in the juxtaposition of trans-Himalayan trade route was famed for its marvelous art, architecture and culture. The valley also nourished Buddhism, Tantrism and other exquisite practices from the Indian subcontinent during the crises. Chitwan is home to some of the last species of Royal Bengal Tiger and Asian single horned Rhinos. Pokhara on the other hand, exhibits the natural beauty of the Himalayas. This one week tour is also known as the 'Golden Triangle of Nepal'.
2. Spiritual Tour of Nepal
In the citadel of mountains, Nepal sheltered different religions, culture and practices in its intact form. This is the land where Buddha was born and many spiritual masters came to the foothills of the Himalayas to retreat. Several rare spiritual practices from the sub-convenient lived in harmony and are being practices until recently. Nepal is the best place for those into spiritual quest.
7 days spiritual trip of Nepal visits Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha and meditation caves of Guru Rinpoche (Padmashambhava) and other medieval and ancient sites important for Hindus, Buddhists and Tantrics. The spiritual tour also introduces the animistic and Shamanistic practices mixed with Hinduism and Buddhism.
3. One week treks
Many popular treks which used to take over two weeks could be done in as less as one week these days. The extension of dirt roads and air strips made it possible to drive or fly further into the valley and do only the core part of the trek. Here are some of the popular treks that could be done within a week from Kathmandu to Kathmandu.
Ghorepani Poon Hill Trek
Poon Hill at 3,200 m in the foothills of Annapurna is the most popular Himalayan view point. A trek to Ghorepani Poon Hill is a 4 days short trek in Annapurna conservation area. The trek begins and ends in Pokhara. The trail continuously climbs for two days gaining the altitude of 1,700 m and then winds along the ridge of Rhododendron forest. The self sufficient remote villages of Magar and Gurung also offers close cultural encounters with Nepal's country side lifestyle.
Even though the trek is just about 4 days, it is the best one week itinerary as travelers need to fly or drive to Pokhara and back from Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.
Short Everest Trek
One week is enough to experience the trekking in Everest national park. Short cultural trek to Namche Bazaar only takes about a week. Namche Bazaar at 3,440 m is a tourist hub with trinket shops, restaurants and bars and nice and cozy hotels. The horse shoe shaped village is perched high up on the mountain flank offering spectacular view of Mt Thamsherku, Kongde, Ama dablam, Lhotse and Everest. The region have been inhabited by Sherpa people for over 400 years.The cultural trek allows one to stay with Sherpa family home and visit their monasteries and farm. The trails through the villages often passes by Buddhist Stupas, Mane walls, monasteries and prayer flags.
The one week Everest trek starts and end with Lukla flight from Kathmandu.
Gosaikunda Lake Trek
If you don't want to fly and start a trek right from Kathmandu, Gosainkunda Lake trek is the best choice. The holy Lake of Gosaikunda at 4,380 m is in Langtang National park that is just about 18 km from Kathmandu. The week's trek to Gosaikunda Lake begins right from Shivapuri national park in the outskirt of Kathmandu. The trail mostly follows the forested ridge and climbs on rocky alpine terrain to the Gosainkunda Lake. From the ridge above, one can see the wide range of the Himalayas including Ganesh Himal, Langtang and Jugal Himal. In a week long itinerary, trekker descend down to Dhunche from the Gosaikunda Lake and drive back to Kathmandu.
While these are the most popular one week itinerary for Nepal, there are several other options of short trek or tour of Nepal for a week. If you are a fit person, it is also possible to do Annapurna base camp trek in a week flying back by helicopter. Similarly, it is possible to do wildlife and bird watching in Chitwan national park and Bardia national park.