Tilicho Lake Trek
Trip Overview
Trip Facts
- Country: Nepal
- Trip grade: Challenging
- Destination: Annapurna
- Activities: Trekking
- Accommodation: Hotel, Teahouse
- Meals: Breakfasts, Lunches, Dinners
- Maximum altitude: 5330m
- Group size: 1+
- Best Season: Mar-May / Sep-Nov
Tilicho Lake Trek is a breathtaking high altitude trekking in the Annapurna region. This adventure takes you to Lake Tilicho – a beautiful lake situated at a high altitude amidst the mountains in the Annapurna. You will get to experience a river valley walk to a high mountain pass during the adventure. Reaching the lake Tilicho that stands at 4919 meters above sea level is a surreal walking experience.
The adventure goes along the Annapurna Circuit trail but skips the Thorang La route. Instead, you go towards the lake Tilicho and eventually cross Mesokanta La. When you cross Mesokanta pass, you will be at an elevation of 5330 meters above sea level.
What you see during Tilicho Lake Trek
Although the trek ultimately takes you to the surreal surroundings of Tilicho Lake, you will also explore several other wonders. The walk starts from a beautiful river valley that leads you up towards higher elevation in the mountains.
As you traverse the trail, you will enjoy the magnificence of the mountains in the Annapurna. In addition to the mountains, beautiful natural surroundings along the trail make the walking adventure a beautiful memory. The trail goes past several beautiful local villages and you can also experience the local culture and lifestyle.
After a few days' walk, you will find yourself in incredible mountain surroundings. Eventually, you will reach one of the most spectacular lakes on earth – Lake Tilicho. This beautiful glacial lake is a breathtaking place to be. You will not believe that such a beautiful place also exists on earth. But, yes, it does and you are standing right there as you enjoy the charming beauty of the place.
Later on, you will trek over Mesokanta pass in the final leg of the trek towards Jomsom where you can also meet the trekkers heading towards Lo Manthang of Upper Mustang Trek.
Reasons this trip becomes an Experience
Nepal Climbing Adventure always strives to offer an adventure traveling experience that you can cherish. While the Tilicho Lake Trek is beautiful in its all essence, your experience of trekking there becomes even more beautiful with us.
By the time we take you to the base camp and bring you back, we take one step ahead to offer you a beautiful experience. We keep your safety and happiness is our top priority and you will experience the same during the trip.
Trekking with us to Tilicho Lake is traveling in safe hands.
Detail Itinerary
Day 01: Arrival in Kathmandu (1400m)
Normally, your arrival in Kathmandu is the day one of this trip. We will come to pick you up at the airport as per your flight time and transfer you to the hotel. There are no activities today apart from a trip briefing meeting. The information about the meeting time will be available upon your arrival at the hotel.
You have time to relax and go for any last-minute preparation for the trip. Welcome to Kathmandu!
Accommodation: Hotel
Day 02: Sightseeing Tour in Kathmandu
We have a full day in Kathmandu to explore the heritage sites in the valley. If we have not met for the meeting yesterday, we will meet today after breakfast. If we have met yesterday, we will continue on a full-day sightseeing tour.
Your entire afternoon will be busy going around different ancient and medieval heritage monuments in the Kathmandu valley. We will take you to Swoyambhunath, Kathmandu Durbar Square, Boudhanath, and Pashupatinath to explore the ancient and medieval magnificence of the valley.
The tour will show you a lot about the culture, spiritual practice, history, and lifestyle of people in the valley. You will have an awesome cultural tour day today. Our city tour guide will make it easier for you to understand what you are looking at to make your experience even better.
Accommodation: Hotel
Meal: Breakfast
Day 03: Kathmandu – Chamje (1410m)
After a full day in Kathmandu exploring the heritage sites, it is now time to leave for the trek. We will start our long day drive to Chamje early in the morning. Chamje is the starting point of our Tilicho Lake Trek. It will take us a long day's drive to reach Chamje.
We will take a bus ride to Besisahar that will take us around five hours to reach. And from Besisahar, we will catch a jeep to drive to Chamje. From Besisahar onwards, it is a dirt road drive, which will make the drive slow. After a bumpy dirt road drive, we reach Chamje to stay overnight. We settle into a teahouse and relax after the long day drive.
Accommodation: Guesthouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 04: Chamje – Dharapani (1860m)
It is our first day of the trek in the Tilicho Lake Trek. Excited, we begin our walking adventure after breakfast. The destination of our walk today is Dharapani in Manang. We follow the Marshyangdi river valley and head towards the destination. We descend and ascend the trail that winds through the mountains.
As we walk the trail, we will come across beautiful scenery of nature, villages, and the mountains. Walking towards the destination, we go past beautiful places like Tal, Koto, etc. before reaching Dharapani. Amazing views of the surroundings as we walk through the trail will make our first day of walk beautiful.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 05: Dharapani – Chame (2650m)
We continue the trek around the Annapurna. Our destination for the day is Chame, the district headquarters of Manang. It is a lovely walking day along the river valley that brings incredibly beautiful views of the surroundings. Peaceful natural surroundings and breathtaking mountains on the Annapurna massif make our daily walk a beautiful adventure.
We eventually reach Chame and settle into a guesthouse to stay overnight.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 06: Chame – Pisang (3250m)
It is another great day in the Annapurna and we are ready to traverse the trail to Pisang today. The walk will take us past several beautiful places with wonderful surroundings. We will reach the elevation over 3000 meters from sea level for the first time on the trek today. Our overnight destination, Pisang, stands at 3250 meters above sea level. We will have to go easy and at a pace to help ourselves adjust with the increasing elevation in the mountains.
Once we reach Pisang, we will check into a teahouse and relax the tiredness of the day.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 07: Pisang – Manang (3519m)
Our walk for the day in the Tilicho Lake Trek takes us to another beautiful place in the region – Manang. Manang is a beautiful ethnic town in the region. We proceed on our adventure walk of the day to Manang. As we traverse the trail, we will enjoy the natural surroundings of the mountains. The walk will take us past places like Humde, Bhakra etc. The trail turns into a dry path as we have entered the high mountain region. We will have two trail options to reach Manang – one is shorter of about four hours and the other is longer and challenging of about seven hours.
We will decide on which route to take but we will eventually reach Manang to stay overnight.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 08: Manang Acclimatization Day
As we have already come to the elevation of 3,500 meters above sea level, we will require a day to acclimatize before we head further towards the higher elevation. We take the day today to explore around in the surroundings of Manang and stay overnight here. Exploring Manang and its surroundings will give us an experience of lifestyle in the region.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 09: Manang - Khangsar Village (3756m)
The trail of our journey follows down along the path to the river and over it. The trek goes through a coniferous forest by a narrow trail. Khangsar village is known for its spectacular views of the Tilicho peak and the great barrier.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 10: Khangsar - Tilicho Base Camp (4,200m)
The path to Tilicho Base camp is narrow and stony but fairly easy. The trail is also filled with rock formations prone to landslides. The trail descends down to Tilicho Base Camp where we stay overnight.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 11: Tilicho Base Camp - Tilicho Lake (4919m)
The trek from the base camp ascends along green pasture where yaks can be sighted grazing. The trail follows along the side of the mountain that reaches to Tilicho Lake. The magnificent reflection of the Tilicho peak can be captured on the turquoise lake.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 12: Tilicho – Mesokanta Pass (5330m) – Kaisang (3360m)
We start the trek for the day and cross Mesokanta pass early in the to avoid strong winds in the afternoon. While crossing the pass, the trail has Annapurna and Dhaulagiri massifs on the backdrop. The route descends to Kaisang where we spend overnight today.
Accommodation: Teahouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 13: Kaisang – Jomsom (2743m)
We are on the final day of the trekking adventure around the Annapurna massif. Our walk today heads towards Jomsom along the Kali Gandaki river valley. Since it is a downhill walk, we will find the day easier than other days of the trek. But the trail along the river valley will get windy as the day progresses to the afternoon.
We will reach Jomsom eventually and check into a guesthouse. We will have a relaxing day at Jomsom as the trek has come to an end.
Accommodation: Guesthouse
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 14: Jomsom – Pokhara (900m)
We have an early morning flight to Pokhara. The flight is a short one of just 20 minutes but it takes us along the river valley and past the massive mountains. Even during this short flight to Pokhara, we can see the breathtaking view of the mountains.
Once we reach Pokhara and check into a hotel, we will have the day to relax. The Lakeside in Pokhara is a beautiful place to hang around and relax after the trek. We can just take a leisurely stroll on the Lakeside or find some relaxing massage or just sit at a restaurant eating and drinking. There are lots of options to spend the day at leisure in Pokhara.
Accommodation: Hotel
Meal: Breakfast
Day 15: Pokhara – Kathmandu
As we have completed our trekking journey, it’s time now to return back to Kathmandu. We will get ready for the early morning bus ride back to Kathmandu. It will take another seven hours to reach Kathmandu.
Accommodation: Hotel
Meal: Breakfast
Day 16: Departure Day
The trip has come to an end today. We have to bid farewell for this time hoping to meet again for another adventure soon. We will drive you to the airport for your departure flight as scheduled.
Meal: Breakfast
Cost Details
What is included?
- All airport and hotel transfers
- Welcome and farewell dinner
- Accommodation and meals during the whole of the trek.
- All necessary paper works and permits
- Government and local taxes
- An experienced English speaking trekking guide, assistant trek guide(4 trekkers,1 assistant guide), porters(2 trekkers, 1 porter) including their salary, insurance, food, lodging and all equipment.
- A comprehensive medical kit
What is not included?
- Nepal Visa fee(bring small denomination cash USD and two passport photographs)
- International airfare
- Excess baggage charges
- Extra night accommodation apart from the schedule due to any reasons
- Lunch and evening meals in case of early return than the scheduled itinerary
- Private vehicle from Besisahar
- Travel and rescue insurance
- Personal expenses
- Tips for travel guides or porters
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions - Trekking in Nepal
Are you a licensed trekking agency?
Do the guides speak English and have first aid training?
How big are the groups?
Are permits included in the price of the trek?
Do you arrange private treks?
Do you provide any equipment while trekking?
How difficult are the treks?
How long do we walk each day?
What is exactly 'teahouse' trekking?
What do we mean by FOT trek?
What is security like during trekking?
Security for our clients is always a foremost priority for us. All our guides and other support crew are carefully chosen for your trips. Our guides hold licenses issued by the Nepal Government. They are very honest and reliable. But we would also advise you to take care of your own personal belongings. If you are on ‘camping treks’ please do not leave your bags unattended at any time for your own safety. Take your main bag inside the tent once you reach the campsite. At night, all bags and belongings are kept in the middle of the tent. Your guide assigns a Sherpa on a rotation basis to guard the campsite throughout the night. If you are on a ‘Tea house or GAP trek’ arrangement, you will be sleeping in local teahouses. You need to take sensible precautions yourself at all times. Never leave your baggage unattended and keep your lodge room locked when you go out.
What happens if I fall ill during the trek?
What type of food is served during a trek?
Do I need to carry my own gear?
How much could porters carry?
What is the overnight accommodation like?
Can we change the itinerary?
Depending on the prevailing situation, you can modify it to some extent after consulting with your senior guide. However, the date of trek completion should always coincide with the original itinerary. You should keep in mind that this is an adventure trip into some of the most remote regions in the world, where many unforeseen circumstances may contribute to the need for a change in itinerary. In such cases, we or your guide will suggest the best alternative similar to your original itinerary.