Annapurna Trekking Packages

Which Annapurna trek matches your time and altitude tolerance?

The Poon Hill trek takes 4 days, tops out at 3,210 m, and suits families and first-time trekkers who want Himalayan sunrises without altitude risk. Annapurna Base Camp climbs to a 4,130 m glacial amphitheatre over 7 days at moderate difficulty. Mardi Himal follows a quieter ridge to a 4,200 m viewpoint over 5 days. The Annapurna Circuit is the long one: 10 days, the 5,416 m Thorong La pass, and a full traverse from Manang to Mustang districts.

Every Annapurna route uses the same two-permit system and starts from a Pokhara road head, so the choice comes down to days available and comfort with altitude. Permit mechanics for all of them sit in the Nepal trekking permits master guide, and altitude planning for the Thorong La is in the altitude sickness prevention guide.

How do the five Annapurna routes compare on cost?

Cost tracks duration closely across these five, since every route shares the same permit pair and none requires a mountain flight, unlike Everest. The Circuit and Tilicho Lake variant cost more mainly because they add days, not because of any extra paperwork; the Tilicho side trip itself adds a genuinely separate high-altitude lake, the highest lake of its size in the world, to the standard Circuit itinerary rather than replacing part of it.

Which Annapurna route suits which kind of trekker?

Poon Hill and Mardi Himal are the two routes worth comparing directly if a shorter trip with a lighter altitude profile is the goal; the Poon Hill vs Mardi Himal comparison covers crowding, difficulty, and season side by side. Trekkers deciding between the region's two flagship routes, Base Camp against the full Circuit, or against Everest Base Camp specifically, should read the EBC vs Annapurna Base Camp and Annapurna Circuit vs Manaslu Circuit comparisons, both written from guides who've led departures on every route named.

Families and first-time high-altitude trekkers default to Poon Hill or Mardi; trekkers who've done one shorter Annapurna route and want the region's full traverse move up to the Circuit, with Tilicho Lake as the add-on for anyone who wants one more genuinely remote high point before flying home.

When is the best time to trek the Annapurna region?

October-November and March-May carry the region's stable weather, same as the rest of Nepal, but the Circuit adds a season-specific risk the shorter routes don't share: the Thorong La can close after heavy snowfall in the depths of winter, which rules out a December-to-February crossing on most years even though Poon Hill and Mardi Himal both run fine through the cold months at their lower altitudes. Trekkers set on a winter Annapurna trip should default to Poon Hill, Mardi, or the lower sections of Annapurna Base Camp rather than planning a winter Circuit crossing.