Ghore Pani Poon Hill is an amazing trek in Annapurna region which offers alluring views of great Himalayas and Alpine forests. The well-trodden trails, friendly locals, and charming terrain all combine to make Ghorepani – Poon Hill trek among the most popular ones.
Early morning view from the top of the Poon Hill is the major talk point of the trek.
Ghorepani Poon Hill trek is a modest trek with a reasonable price. The total trekking distance is 20.5 kilometers. You can complete the trek in four days or lengthen it to a week or more as well.
Nayapul is the trek’s starting point that lies around an hours drive from Pokhara. The trekking trail then sets off passing through some ravishing Rhododendron forests and several Magar and Gurung villages to Ghorepani. Ghorepani is a small town at an altitude of 2,874 meters where you spend your night before trekking to Poon Hill in the morning.
Poon Hill is the highest point you reach in this trek. You witness the panoramic views of Dhaulagiri and Annapurna range as you reach the top of the Poon Hill.
Ghorepani Poon Hill trek can cost from $375 to $700. Price varies in accordance to number of days, season, number of trekkers, use of porters, Kathmandu/Pokhara stay, transfers between these cities and so forth.
If you are a solo traveler or travelling without a guide, the cost can decrease to certain extent, but responsibility increases. When trekking through travel agencies, they usually cover your transportation, accommodation, trekking permit fees and some other costs.
Below are the major costs includes and excludes in packages of travel agencies.
Costs included in packages
Transportation cost
If you book your trek through a travel company, you can solely depend upon the company for transportation fee. The company covers costs incurred while you travel to a hotel, tour in Kathmandu Valley, and travel to and from trail-head of the trek.
One of their representatives welcome you at Tribhuvan International Airport and move you to the hotel in a private vehicle. He briefly outlines you about the plan and you can loosen up yourself in your hotel room. Overnight accommodation will already be set.
If you are traveling on your own, you have to book a cab and move to the hotel. And book a room for overnight stay there.
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Accommodation in Kathmandu and Pokhara
A proper accommodation helps you enjoy your journey without any irritating inconvenience. Travel companies usually take care of your lodging facility including breakfast. The travelers have to pay for the lunch and dinner themselves.
Accommodation in Kathmandu and Pokhara usually costs around $15 – $200 per night.
Guided tour to Kathmandu and Pokhara
Kathmandu has many historical and cultural landmarks to offer visitors. Pashupatinath, Boudhanath, and Swayambhunath are some of our heritages listed in the UNESCO world heritage sites. There are certain amount tourists have to pay in their entrance to visit them. The entry fee ranges from $ 3 to $15. Travel Agencies usually do not cover those costs.
As there are so many sites to visit in a limited time, you may find it hard exploring them on your own. You may find it difficult trying to communicate with locals as well. So, an experienced guide can make your Kathmandu and Pokhara tour quick and easy.
Licensed Tour Guides
A country where you are completely new and do not know much about, you can’t just entirely depend on your google map. With this said, it’s not that Nepal is unsafe for travellers. Yet having an eloquent and experienced guide will make your journey trouble-free.
A tour guide usually costs around $20 – $ 30 per day. Your initially paid amount covers the cost of your guide.
Trekking permits
There are a couple of permits that people have to acquire before heading to Poon Hill trek. Trekking permit in Annapurna region costs $30 and TIMS card also costs $20. An agency has to pay only $10 per foreigners instead of $20. Trekking agencies cover these costs.
If you are travelling alone, you can collect these permits at Nepal Tourism Board Office, Kathmandu.
Teahouse accommodation
Trekking is an exciting but exhausting journey. As you have to pass through several villages in the continuous uphill journey to Poon Hill, it’s easy to find teahouses.
Almost every teahouses offer same food items: Dal, Bhat, Soup, Vegetables are almost same everywhere. Meals cost around $3 to $4 and tea costs around $ 0.5 to $1.
Trekking agencies set your accommodation facility prior the start of your journey.
Service cost
There are some legal processes you need to complete. The government imposes tax on travelers and their activities. Your trekking agency takes care of those procedures to make sure everything goes smoothly.
Costs excluded in packages
There are also costs travelers have to pay themselves. This is for the convenience to both the parties. Such costs include:
Personal expenses
In a trip like this, it’s obvious that many extra expenses incur. So you should carry extra cash for such personal expenses like phone call cost, extra foodstuffs, sweets and so forth. Also, make sure you carry cash as you will not find ATMs in remote areas.
Beverages
People have their own likes and dislikes. When it comes to beverages and drinks, it is pretty difficult to assume what people prefer or avoid. So we let you take care of which beverage and how much of it you want to consume.
Tea and coffee usually cost around $0.5 to $1. Other kinds of drinks are usually priced higher as transporting goods there is quite lengthy and laborious task.
Trekking equipment
You should decide what equipment and gears are necessary for you. You are responsible for bringing all the personal trekking necessities.
You can hire trekking essentials from Kathmandu or Pokhara. Down jackets, and sleeping bags can be hired for around $1 each per day with a deposit in advance. Your trekking agency can recommend you trekking gear rental shops.
Or, you can also buy new or second hand trekking gears in Thamel – a tourist center in Kathmandu. Most of the trekking gears here are cheap as they are counterfeits of branded items. They are made up of low-quality materials.
Any lost stuff compensation
During the entire trek, you are responsible for taking care of your property. If you lose or damage any of your valuables during the trek, the trekking agency will not be liable to pay. So this can be an undesirable added cost if you are a negligent traveler.
Tipping the guides and porters
Guides and porters can become your great friends for lifetime. As you continuously spend several days with them, you may establish a strong bond with them. If you are happy with them, you can tip them for their companionship throughout your trek.
Poon Hill Route
Ghorepani Poon Hill trek is around 32 miles and usually people spend 4-5 days for this. You can reach to Pokhara by a 25 minutes flight or a 5 hours drive from Kathmandu. One hours extra drive from Pokhara takes you to Naya Pool- the trailhead of your trek.
You then walk through Modi River valley crossing several streams, waterfalls and bamboo forests. The 4 hours of walk through the beautiful trail leading to Tikhedhunga ends the first day of the journey.
As the sun rises, the second morning brings a new energy to walk all day long through the Rhododendron forests. The uphill trek for 7-8 hours will take you above 2700 meters. Next stop, Ghorepani.
Ghorepani is a beautiful village where you can spend the night in a homestay or a hotel. Unlike tea houses on the way, you have varieties of choices to pick from when it comes to fooding and lodging.
Walk around the Ghorepani village and explore the lifestyle of Gurung and Magar communities of Nepal. You will surely enjoy the vivid evening before the pre-dawn ascent to the Poon Hill. Relish the evening, but remember, you are to wake up before the sun tomorrow to reach Poon Hill before the sunrise.
It’s the third dawn. You wake up early than usual, and pack your stuff. And then you ascend uphill for more than 300 meters to top of the Poon Hill (3210 m). The view looks so heartwarming as the sun rays strike upon stunning Annapurna range.
You see the exceptional view of the lofty peaks and surrounding landscapes. You are sure to reminisce the sight of Annapurna and Dhaulagiri mountain ranges including Dhampus, Nilgiri, Fishtail and more.
From Poon Hill, you descend downhill to Tadapani for 7 hours which is at the altitude of 2610m. You will spend your night there. The trek has come to the final day. You walk for 7 hours from Tadapani and then 1 hour drive will bring you to Pokhara. There is this Annapurna Base Camp Trek on which you go to ABC including side trip to Poon Hill.
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Conclusion
Ghorepani Poon Hill trek is among the most popular treks which is moderate, short and inexpensive. You can trek to Ghorepani Poon Hill yourselves or go with a trekking agency.
If you plan to go with a trekking agency, you can contact us for a smooth and pleasing trek to Ghorepani Poon Hill. For those couples planning for a honeymoon in Nepal, family holiday in Nepal, traveling with friends or solo travelers, we help you make your trek a success.
Contact us for further information and help.
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Madhav started working as a porter in 2001 and then moved on to work as a trekking guide. After working in the trekking and tourism industry for eight years, he co-founded Mosaic Adventure in 2009.
Madhav has trekked to most of the trekking destinations in Nepal, including Everest Base Camp Trek, Annapurna Base Camp, Annapurna Circuit Trek, Poon Hill Trek, Jomsom Muktinath Trek, Indigenous Peoples Trek, Langtang Valley Trek, Mardi Himal Trek, and all of the day hikes around Kathmandu.
He has also extensively traveled to other countries such as Australia, the USA, the UK, France, Hong Kong, Japan, China, the Philippines, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Thailand, Turkey, and India. Madhav is the one who answers most of your questions about trekking and tours and helps to plan your trip by giving a personal touch.
