Annapurna Sanctuary Trek: Recap and Review (G Adventures)
The Annapurna Sanctuary Trek, or Annapurna Base Camp, is one of the most incredible hikes in Nepal. This diverse hike rewards hikers with spectacular views of the Annapurna Range as it weaves through jungles, rice terraces, rural villages, and mountainous areas.
Since 2023, it’s been the law in Nepal to have a local guide when trekking in the mountains. This new law and the fact that this is one of Nepal’s most popular hikes mean there are endless tour companies to choose from. Narrowing down which company to choose can sometimes be an overwhelming task. There are so many factors to consider, such as start dates, inclusions, price, and safety records.
In 2023, I hiked the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek with G Adventures. I absolutely loved my tour experience with G Adventures, so much so that I’ve written all about it in this post.
Below is a recap of the route to Annapurna Base Camp with G Adventures, a review of my experience, and some additional things to know about the ABC Trek.
Recap of Annapurna Sanctuary Trek Itinerary
One of the unique things about the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek is that there are several different routes. If you opt to go with another company, you may find the route is slightly different to what I’ve outlined below.
The route can also change due to weather, landslides and avalanche risks.
Days 1 & 2: Kathmandu
The first day of the tour begins in the evening. Your guide (or Chief Experience Officer as they’re known at G Adventures) hosts a meeting with the rest of your group.
We had a full group on our tour, so we got to know each other and asked our fantastic CEO, Tek, any last-minute questions. This was also when we were given our duffel bags for the trip. After this, we went for our first group dinner.
Day 2 included a tour around Kathmandu and a cooking class. One of the things that appealed to me about booking the Annapurna Base Camp trek with G Adventures was the additional day in Kathmandu with included activities. It also gave us some extra time to do some last-minute essential shopping.
Day 3: Driving from Kathmandu to Pokhara
On day 3, we waved goodbye to the chaotic Kathmandu and began the long journey to Pokhara. Pokhara is the gateway to the Annapurna region and where most treks to Annapurna Base Camp begin. G Adventures supplies a private shuttle bus with air conditioning, which makes the trip a little more comfortable.
However, if you’ve read my guide to visiting Nepal, you’ll know that the roads in Nepal are not in great condition. We had a series of hiccups on our long journey (including a smashed window), and it took us almost 12 hours to reach Pokhara.
Note: You can opt to fly to Pokhara to skip the drive. You can book this yourself or through G Adventures for an extra cost.
We got into Pokhara so late that we didn’t really have time to do much other than grab dinner and get an early night. If you need to grab any last-minute essentials, try and do this in Kathmandu.
Day 4: The trek to Annapurna Base Camp begins
On day 4, the Annapurna Sanctuary trek to ABC finally begins! The day starts early with a short drive to the tiny village of Nayapul. It doesn’t take long for the magnificent scenery to begin, and this is just a taste of what’s in store over the next few days!
After collecting our permits, we began our long trek!
The first day of trekking to Annapurna Base Camp is relatively easy (although please note that different tour companies use different routes). We walked up a gradual incline for about two hours along a gravel path. We passed through local villages and a rhododendron forest and eventually stopped by a beautiful river for lunch.
Throughout the trek, you’ll be eating your lunch at tea houses. As the G Adventures groups can have up to 15 people, there can sometimes be a wait for lunch. This is great as it gives you plenty of time to recover and get ready for the next section of the hike.
After lunch, we continued to our first accommodation of the trek in the village of Tikhedhunga and shared a bottle of Raksi, the local drink in Nepal. Our guide, Tek, shared the plans for tomorrow and we headed off for an early night.
Summary of the first day of trekking
This day was a good start to the hike. It wasn’t too difficult, but it was enough to get you ready for the next few days. The biggest shock to me was the heat! I was expecting it to be cool, but it was so hot and humid.
Day 5: To Ghorepani Poon Hill (via the dreaded staircase)
The next day is arguably one of the most difficult days on the ABC trek. You’ll be making your way to the small village of Ghorepani but there’s a few thousand stone steps between you and your accommodation for the night …
I’m not sure of the exact number of steps, but our guide told us it’s roughly 3,500 steps up towards the village of Ulleri, where we stopped for a tea break. The Annapurna Base Camp trek is renowned for its endless steps, but this steep staircase towards Ulleri and Ghorepani was a real killer. At the time, I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to walk down that many steps, although I would find out later in the trek…
So, the morning was spent pushing on up through endless steps in humid temperatures. While the hiking was tough, the views were spectacular. I can’t quite put into words just how beautiful the scenery was. We were surrounded by lush, green mountains covered in rice terraces. Every now and again, we’d pass through a tiny rural village where we were greeted by friendly locals.
This was also when we first saw the snow-capped Annapurna Range as Annapurna South peeped out over the top.
After a long lunch break, the hike gets a bit easier as you make your way through a forest towards the village of Ghorepani. As we climbed to a higher elevation, the temperatures also started to cool down, which was a nice relief.
Summary of the second day of trekking
Despite being a tough trekking day, it was still one of my favourite days. The views kept getting better, and we got our first glimpses of what awaited us.
There’s no denying that this is one of the tougher days on the Annapurna Sanctuary hike, but I don’t think anyone does the hike expecting it to be easy and without its challenges.
The day ended with the group in a great mood and we had another early night before our sunrise start in the morning.
Day 6: Poon Hill Sunrise
The next day, you have the option to wake before dawn and hike to Poon Hill for sunrise. This day of trekking was one of my favourite days of the Annapurna Base Camp trek but also one of my worst.
Let’s begin with the star of the show: Poon Hill. This iconic peak boasts panoramic views of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri mountain ranges. Hiking to Poon Hill itself is one of the most popular hikes in Nepal. It only takes a few days and boasts magnificent views of the mountains, including Annapurna, Annapurna South, Machapuchare and Dhaulagiri, some of the most iconic mountains in the world.
To reach the top of Poon Hill, you’ll need to spend an hour or so climbing up some more stone steps in the dark. After the previous day’s neverending steps, this felt particularly tough! In total, it took us around an hour to reach the top.
It was slightly slower due to the sheer amount of people attempting the trek. This was by far the most people we saw on the entire trek, even more so than at Annapurna Base Camp. This is likely due to Poon Hill being a hike in itself. Many trekkers opt to just do the shorter trek to Poon Hill then looping back to Pokhara, skipping ABC.
Watching the sunrise at Poon Hill is certainly a highlight of the entire trek. At first, the clouds covered most of the mountains but they quickly lifted and rewarded us with phenomenal views.
We spent around two hours at the top before returning to our tea house for breakfast. There is somewhere at the top of Poon Hill where you can purchase a warm cup of tea, but I’d recommend also taking a snack as you will no doubt be hungry.
So, is waking early and hiking to Poon Hill worth it? Absolutely! It was tough, and my legs were physically shaking when I returned to the tea house. However, it’s genuinely one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen.
The rest of the day is spent hiking to Tadapani, which was particularly tough for me. There’s not too much uphill, but the downhill got me. After already hiking down hundreds (if not thousands) of steps that morning, walking down even more steps really took its toll on my knees. At one point, I thought I was going to have to give up. I was crying in pain.
I can’t state this enough – if you have ever had any slight form of knee pain or twinges when exercising, take hiking poles! Even the fittest people in my group struggled with all the downhill steps, which takes its toll on your knees.
Summary of the third day of trekking
Visiting Poon Hill for sunrise was a real highlight of the trek for me. However, it was also the first time I realised just how difficult the coming days were going to be. After already walking up and down thousands of steps, my knees felt broken, and there were still several days of trekking left. Despite the pain, this was still a beautiful day of trekking.
Day 7: From Tadapani to Chhomrong
After resting up, we began the hike from Tadapani to the village of Chhomrong. This larger village is a bit of a pit stop on the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek to Base Camp. It’s known for its incredible views and even has a market and shops.
When you arrive, you can walk to visit a beautiful Buddhist Stupa with the Annapurna Range in the background. I opted to save this for the following day as we would be passing it then anyway.
Side note: If you’re like me and thought you wouldn’t need trekking poles, this is the only place on the hike where you can purchase them.
Summary of the fourth day of trekking
This day is probably one of the least exciting days of the trek (other than arriving in Chhomrong). The scenery remains magnificent, but it’s very much a case of pushing forward to the accommodation for the night.
Day 8: Even more steps
On day eight of the trek to ABC, you leave the sights of Chhomrong behind and head towards the village of Himalaya. This involves walking down hundreds (if not thousands) of stone steps before climbing up another set of seemingly neverending steps.
If you’re lucky with the weather, you’ll be rewarded with absolutely incredible views. Endless rice terraces, beautiful villages, a magnificent Buddhist Stupa and all with the incredible Annapurna Range looming overhead.
The steps on the way up are tough—almost on par with the steps to Ghorepani. After lunch, we entered the jungle again and looked for monkeys. We were lucky enough to see some white Langur monkeys, a critically endangered species.
The path continued, and we passed some incredible waterfalls and more Buddhist Stupas until we reached our tea house.
The trek from Chhomrong is where the trail starts to get busy. Other than the sunrise at Poon Hill, the trail had been very quiet so far, and we’d barely seen another person other than in the villages. However, Chhomrong is where many of the paths meet, and from here on out, there’s only one way to Annapurna Base Camp and one path back. This means you’ll start to see a lot more people walking in both directions.
Summary of the fifth day of trekking
I loved this day of trekking. The climb up the steps was tough, but the scenery was a great distraction. This is where the path starts to get busy, and it was a bit of a shock to see so many people again.
Day 9: To Annapurna Base Camp
Today is the big day – the trek to Annapurna Base Camp. The day starts early and involves the highest elevation of the trek: 4,130 metres. We set off nice and early and made our way to Machhapuchhare Base Camp where we stopped for lunch.
Overall, the hike is quite easy. The main challenge is the altitude. It’s a slow and steady climb so take your time and pace yourself.
Unfortunately, the weather was not kind to us. It started to snow, and we had very little visibility. The final push to ABC was long, tough, and very cold, but we made it! We couldn’t see any of the mountains at first, but the clouds lifted just before sunset, and we had incredible views.
I can’t quite describe the feeling of being surrounded by some of the world’s tallest mountains. It was surreal and magical.
One thing to be aware of is Annapurna Base Camp is quite busy. It didn’t feel crowded as such, but you will be sharing the camp with a couple of hundred others.
Summary of the sixth day of trekking
Today is another tough day of trekking. The terrain is quite easy, but the altitude makes it tricky. Many of my group struggled to sleep that night due to the altitude. Base Camp itself is also freezing (at least when I was there).
Day 10: Annapurna Base Camp to Bamboo
Today is a looooong trek day. In fact, it’s one of the longest trek days of the trip. The goal today is to say goodbye to Base Camp and head back down to the village of Bamboo.
We watched the sunrise over the mountains and then set off. It had snowed very heavily overnight, so the first hour or so was a bit difficult, but once we reached a low altitude the snow disappeared.
Today isn’t the most exciting day as you’ll be returning the way you came the day before. I was lucky as the weather was dramatically better than the previous day so we finally got to see the views. The track is mostly downhill or flat so it’s a nice and easy day, although it’s still very long.
This was another busy day on the trails. The path was quite narrow, so we often had to step aside and wait for others to pass. Our guide told us that the crowds on the Annapurna Base Camp trek are nowhere near as bad as Everest Base Camp, but it still felt very crowded on this day.
Summary of the seventh day of trekking
This is a long day of trekking! Despite having reached ABC, there are still several trekking days ahead. I wasn’t a fan of the busy trails but when you’re part of the problem, you can’t really complain!
Day 11: To Jhinu Danda and the hot springs
Today was the day we left the snow-capped mountains behind and headed to the lively village of Jhinu Danda. To reach Jhinu Danda, you need to walk back through Chhomrong before turning off and walking down a steep valley. It’s another long day with A LOT of uphill and downhill steps.
The village of Jhinu Danda is a lot livelier than other villages on this route. It’s close to a road, so the menu is a little more varied. The tea house we stayed in even had burritos and white wine on the menu.
After several hours of endless up-and-down steps, we finally reached our guest house. The area is also home to the Jhinu Danda hot springs, one of the most popular spots on the Annapurna Sanctuary trek and a good place to relax after all the hiking.
The only catch is it’s another 30 minutes of hiking down steps to reach them (and back up once you’ve finished). We had already climbed thousands of steps that day, and my knees were done, so I opted to rest at the tea house instead.
From what the group said, the hot springs are a nice spot but very busy and crowded.
Summary of the eighth day of trekking
This is when things got really tough for me. Annapurna Base Camp is long gone and it’s a long slog back to civilisation. I was starting to feel unwell and my body felt broken. Even so, the scenery is somehow still magnificent and walking through the rural villages is a magical experience.
Day 12: The hardest day yet
The final full day of trekking was the hardest by far for me! Our guide told us it would take around seven hours, but it ended up being closer to ten.
Today, the itinerary G Adventures follows takes you to the small town of Pothana. We met several others in our tea house who didn’t follow this route. Instead, they would be returning straight to Pokhara that day. It seems this is an added day on the G Adventures itinerary.
It has its pros and cons. The scenery remains beautiful on this day but is a bit different from previous days. It’s much greener, and you get to cross one of the longest swing bridges in Nepal. The route also takes you through several local, non-touristy villages, which is a great experience.
However, it’s a really long day. There was a lot of uphill and after eight days of tough trekking, everyone’s body was tired. After a couple of hours hiking, you reach a road and at this point, half of our group hired a jeep to take them to our tea house for the night. The rest of us plodded on and eventually reached our final tea house of the trek.
Summary of the ninth day of trekking
This was by far the hardest day of the trek for me. It was long, and I felt very unwell. Hearing how other groups were going straight back to Pokhara led a few of us to question why we weren’t. Now that I’ve recovered, I can see why the itinerary includes Pothana. It really is beautiful, and the scenery feels very different. The views from the tea house are just spectacular and really made it all worthwhile. Just be prepared for a tough day on this one.
Day 13: Return to Pokhara
The last day of trekking is a short one. Before the group set off, we watched the sun rise over the Annapurna Range, and wow, this somehow beat the sunrise at Poon Hill. It was absolutely magnificent and made the pain from the day before seem worthwhile.
The bus to take the group back to Pokhara is in a town called Phedi. It’s about a three-hour trek downhill. We walked through several local villages and encountered lots of friendly locals.
Side note: This was the only day of the tour when we were followed and asked for money by children. They seemed innocent enough, but our guide told us not to give them any money.
After three hours of walking, we reached Phedi and our bus was waiting to take us back to Pokhara.
Day 14: The last day
The last day is pretty uneventful. It’s a case of getting back to Kathmandu and saying goodbye to our porters. In the morning, we all met as a group and gave the brilliant porters their tips.
After a rough journey going to Pokhara, most of the group had booked flights back. This meant those of us travelling in the bus had plenty of space to spread out.
We had a farewell dinner in Kathmandu, tipped our guide and said goodbye.
I do wish we had spent more time in Pokhara. It seemed like a beautiful town, but we didn’t really have much time to explore it. Of course, you are not obligated to return to Kathmandu with the group. However, if you don’t, you’ll need to make your own way back to the city.
Important things to know about the G Adventures tour
The guides are incredible
Our guide, Tek, was absolutely incredible. We also had a trainee guide who was fantastic. The guides do their best to ensure you have everything you need and go above and beyond.
We always had a guide at the front of the tour, and a guide at the back to ensure no one got left behind.
You get porters
Porters are included on your ABC trek with G Adventures. At the start of the tour, you’re given a duffel bag to pack anything you’ll need for the trek. This can be up to 10KG which is more than enough.
Don’t worry about being slow
If you’re like me and worried you’ll be the slowest in the group, don’t be! G Adventures caters its tours to all ages and abilities, and our group had a real mix. There was always a guide at the back to make sure everyone was okay. Our group had a real sense of comradery, and everyone supported each other. G really does attract people of all abilities.
The accommodation is basic
You’ll be staying in tea houses in mountainous and remote regions, so don’t expect luxury. I was more than happy with the standard of tea houses, but some of them were very basic.
Food isn’t included
Food isn’t included on the G Adventures tour, you will need to pay for all your meals on the trek. This is the case for most tours operating the Annapurna Sanctuary / Base Camp trek. Some of the higher-priced tours include meals, but it’s not that common.
There are some early mornings
With such long days of trekking, we were often awake around 6 am with breakfast shortly after. As we had a big group, it sometimes took a while for us to get going. There weren’t many days we set off before 8 am. However, be prepared for some early starts to get on the trail early.
Solo travellers
Heading to Nepal solo? That’s exactly what I did. According to G Adventures, roughly almost half of their customers are solo travellers. While there’s no guarantee, there’s a big chance you won’t be the only solo traveller. Half of our group were solo travellers. In fact, all the girls in the group were travelling by themselves except for one who was with their partner.
My review of the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek with G Adventures
I loved my experience trekking in Nepal with G Adventures. I’ve travelled with G Adventures more times than I can count and always return to them.
The extra day in Kathmandu at the start was a great bonus, especially the included tour and cooking class. Many similar operators charge around the same price for the tour but don’t include this. It was a great way to get to know the group before starting the trek.
As always, group travel has its pros and cons, but as you are legally required to have a guide in Nepal, G Adventures is a great option.
It would be nice to spend some more time in Pokhara as there seemed to be a lot to do there. I’ve noticed some tour operators dedicate a full day of the itinerary to Pokhara, normally after the trek. However, G Adventures seems to be one of the only ones who provide a day of activities in Kathmandu at the start, so there are pros and cons.
Side note: If you want to stay an extra day or two in Pokhara, you’ll need to make your own way back to Kathmandu. However, your G CEO can normally help you to arrange this. It’s such a popular tourist route so I don’t think it would be difficult.
In terms of the trek, our guide (Tek) was absolutely brilliant. Tek always ensured everyone in the group was okay and had everything they needed. He went above and beyond for our group and if I ever do another hike in Nepal, I would love to have him as a guide again.
One of the best things about G Adventures is its safety standards. I had heard stories of trekkers being abandoned by their tour operators during an emergency. Being one of the biggest tour operators in the world, G has the highest level of safety standards which is very important when hiking in Nepal. (I travelled with G for a bit in Costa Rica and while camping, our group got caught up in a huge storm. G Adventures sent us a driver and moved us to a hotel at no extra cost.)
Another great thing about G Adventures is their support for locals. All the porters on the trek were hired locally and paid a fair wage. You can read more about G’s commitment to supporting local economies here.
One thing to note is that this tour isn’t the flashiest. We passed the odd tea house that looked much more modern and flashier than the ones we stayed in. There are also tours that include all of your meals. However, everything about the tour met or exceeded my expectations, especially when I consider the price I paid. If you want a fancy tour with all your meals, you’re going to be paying a lot more money.
Overall, I highly recommend booking the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek with G Adventures.
If you’re keen to travel with G but the dates don’t work, consider Intrepid or Much Better Adventures.
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