Who would have thought a scrawny, non-athletic, Indian girl like me would one day hike the Annapurna Base Camp?! The words “base camp” have become synonymous with Mt. Everest, and sound intimidating to many of us! 10 years ago, when a friend told me about this place called the Annapurna, he described it as even more beautiful and less crowded than the journey to Everest Base Camp. In October 2019, my dream of trekking to Annapurna Base Camp (referred to fondly as ABC) came true, and I led a group of 9, in collaboration with First Light Adventure to ABC. In this article, I share with you everything you need to know about the beginner friendly 8-day hut-to-hut trek to Annapurna Base Camp.

Getting In & Visa Requirements

Annapurna is located in Nepal which is in Asia. From San Francisco, it took me two days to reach Nepal.  I found a round trip ticket for $940, via Southern China Airlines with a layover in China.  Alternatively, you can also fly Turkish Airlines with a layover in Istanbul. I applied for an e-visa online which made the process a lot smoother upon landing in the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal. Walk to the counter upon arrival to pay a visa fee of $30 and then stand in line to get your passport stamped before heading to baggage. The visa line can be long and the people behind the counters can abruptly leave if they are swapped out with another officer (you could be waiting up to a half hour or an hour before another offices takes over).

Introduction to the Annapurna

Annapurna is part of the Himalayas in north-central Nepal and means “goddess of the harvests.” The Annapurna Base Camp or ABC trek is also referred to as the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek and is commonly known as a great introductory trek in the Himalayas along structured trails. There is no exposure or drop offs and for anyone afraid of heights, THIS is a great multi-day option.

The trek itself is an 8-day trek through varied landscape that culminates at the base of majestic peaks such as Annapurna 1 (8091m), Annapurna South (7219m), Machapuchhre (6993m), Hiunchuli (6441m). The trek length varies depending on the time you have to complete the trek. I chose a guided 8-day option. My total trip length was 13 days. Give yourself at least two days before the trek to acclimatize to the altitude.

8 Day Trek Itinerary

Day 0

I landed in Kathmandu on a Sunday afternoon and spent the night before flying out with the entire group to Pokhara the next day, early morning. The flight to Pokhara is only one hour and fifteen minutes. We spent the afternoon exploring the local market, searching for Nepalese Momos (like dumplings), and biking around the lake. The next day we drove out to the trailhead to begin our trek to Annapurna Base Camp.

Day 1 – Trailhead to Ghandruk (8km, 1940 meters. 400m Ascent)

From the trailhead, we immediately started climbing up a steep path to the village of Ghandruk. On the way we stopped for lunch at a local’s house and had the best dal bhat (Nepalese lentil curry) with ghee (clarified butter). The trail continued upward steeply and the last few meters was nearly all steps as the tea house was situated high up on a hill. As you can expect, the views from our rooms were spectacular! I was sharing a room with another girl and was happy to see we had a private bathroom. However there was no shower head in the bathroom, only a spout located closer to the floor. So I literally squatted under the spout, rinsed myself with cold water (hot water wasn’t available) and proclaimed to have taken a shower! I was so drenched in sweat on the hike up, that I just had to take a shower. Over the course of the 8 days, I probably showered only twice, due to lack of hot water. Some others in the group showered almost every day however.

Pro Tip: From this tea house, you can already see the Annapurna South and Machhapuchhare (Nepal’s Matterhorn) peaks clearly. Don’t miss waking up at sunrise for incredible views.

Day 2 Ghandruk to Chhomrong (11.5km, 2100 meters. 851m ascent)

From Ghandruk we trekked our way through another village called Khimrung. From Khimrung, our destination for the evening was Chhomrong, a pretty village with incredible views. Chhomrong also happens to be one of the biggest villages on this trek. We stayed at a tea house called Excellent View Guest House. 🙂 And the views were magical. Here I shared a room, with a private bathroom. The rooms all have American charging points so converter plugs are not needed.

Pro Tip: You typically start trekking by 8am and arrive at the tea houses by 2pm giving you plenty of time to unwind. Bring a small notebook you can use to write down your thoughts in – it’s always great to look back at the journal years later and reminisce.

Day 3 Chhomrong to Dovan (14.1km, 2600 meters. 829m ascent)

This morning we began our Annapurna Base Camp hike to the village of Sinuwa post breakfast. Breakfast consisted of porridge, muesli, eggs, toast and coffee and tea. Lunches are had at tea houses on the way. We crossed a suspension bridge before arriving at the Bamboo village for lunch in a large courtyard in front of a teahouse. Post lunch we began to hike uphill again to Dovan. Our guesthouse here was the Dovan Guest House. I ended up sharing a room with two other women. The beds are all lined up next to one another (with a small gap in between).

The rooms did not come with a bathroom, so we took turns taking showers in the shared bathrooms. While this guest house had several bathrooms, only one had hot water at the time we went.

Pro Tip: You have to pay a small fee for Wi-fi and $1-$2 per hour for charging your devices. Since the Wi-fi is very weak and nonexistent the higher you go, my tip is to forget about Wi-fi and just remain disconnected during the trek!

Day 4 Dovan to Deurali (8.6km, 3200 meters. 701m ascent)

From Dovan our destination for the evening was Deurali. I enjoyed staying at the Deurali guesthouse because the views surrounding us were simply magnificent. The rooms were also significantly colder here as we were getting higher and closer to Annapurna Base Camp, and I ended up sleeping in most of my layers.

Pro Tip: Bring two packs of playing cards, if people in your group are inclined to play, this can be a really joyful way of passing a few hours pre or post dinner!

Day 5 Deurali to MBC (4.6km, 3700 meters. 500m ascent)

Today was a gorgeous hike that took us into the valley and upward to Machhapuchhare Base Camp, the last stop before our ascent to the Annapurna Base Camp. Today’s hike was actually quite short and the goal was to acclimatize at MBC before we attempted Base Camp on Day 6. At Machhapuchhare, we stayed at the stunning Fish Tail Guest House – stunning because we were now in plain view of several majestic peaks. Here is where we had to force ourselves to sleep early because we had to wake up by at least 3am for a 3:45am departure. We were also told to hydrate heavily to combat altitude sickness as we were at 3700m and getting ready to hike up to 4200m the next day.

Pro Tip: Make sure you’re drinking at least 3-5 Liters of water per day on this trek to combat any altitude sickness you may experience.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Day 6 MBC – ABC (7.6km, 4200 meters. 396m ascent. Then descend to Dovan. 11.1km. Total 18km hike today.)

Waking up at 3:00am for our 3:45am hike to Annapurna Base Camp was super exciting! We barely slept due to the adrenaline. Surprisingly, most of us woke up with headaches. As much as I had been hydrating during the trek and on day 5, my headache was a steady throb for most of Day 6. I didn’t take any medicines as we were advised against it.

We set out at 3:45 am with just our day backpacks (loaded with water and snacks). It was ethereal to hike in the dark with just the moonlight for company. The peaks lay silently in front of us. Welcoming us. I wore all my clothes I had in my backpack this morning as it was -4 DegC.

We reached Annapurna Base Camp just as first light was starting to spread through the peaks of the mountain range in front of us. It was magical to watch. Many slipped inside the tea house for hot tea and coffee as they couldn’t stand the cold. But I valiantly stayed with a few others trying to soak in as much of the majestic sights in front of me as possible! We left base camp around 9am to hike back down to the guesthouse. After a scrumptious breakfast we packed up our gear and began our hike down from MBC to Deurali all the way to the Dovan guesthouse for the night. Needless to say this was our longest hiking day.

At night we begged the porters to find us some wine to celebrate our trek to Annapurna Base Camp! Big mistake. They gleefully brought us some from a nearby guesthouse or store and it turned out to be their local alcohol, although they claimed it was white wine. Whatever it was, we were unable to drink it due to the strong fumes emanating from the liquid!

Tip: Bring gloves, you will need it this morning.

• 

• 

Day 7 Dovan to Chhomrong (12.3km, 2100 meters. 546m ascent)

Dovan to Chhomrong was bittersweet as we were now done with our goal – which was to ascend Annapurna base camp. We reminisced the entire way to Chhomrong and spent the evening playing games and laughing (we pretty much did this almost every night!)

Day 8 Chhomrong to Bus Stop (5km, 104m ascent)

From Chhomrong we hiked to the bus stop and began the rickety ride into Pokhara. At Pokhara we stayed at the lovely Middle Path hotel. It was an oasis in Pokhara. Most of us indulged in an hour long spa session at this hotel that afternoon before heading out for the evening! We opted for an elaborate Chinese dinner where I made sure to have the Nepalese Momos one last time! Afterward, we headed out to a few bars in the vicinity and we were pleasantly surprised at the liveliness of these bars!

The next day we took an early morning flight out to Kathmandu. A few of us hired a taxi and spent the afternoon sightseeing different places. You have the option of visiting Pashupatinath temple, the Buddha Stupa, the quaint and charming town of Bhaktapur for example. Some of us were staying the night in Kathmandu while others were flying out that evening to different destinations. But whatever your destination, take some time in Kathmandu; the temple and Bhaktapur are worth it as they give you more insight into the Nepalese culture.

How to train for the ABC

I live in a city where I have access to mountains so I tried to hike 7-8 miles at least once a weekend every week for about two months prior to the start of the ABC trek. In the weekdays, I walked around my city for about an hour, or lifted weights at home. First Light Adventure, the company I trekked with, recommends working towards the following:

1. Being able to run 3 km in 22.5 minutes or faster
2. Climb 20 floors in 15 minutes, twice or more
3. Free of injuries

What to pack

The two most common questions I get asked about the Annapurna Base Camp trek is fitness levels and how to pack for such a trek. Here is what you need to know:

Day Backpack

Your day backpack is a 25-30 liter pack and shouldn’t weigh more than 6-8 pounds when it’s loaded. You will only need to carry about 1-2 liters of water, layered clothing, snacks, and camera gear if any. Here is what I had in my pack:

1. A bladder (comes with the Osprey backpack) with 1-2 liters of water. It’s easy to fill up water on the way at the tea houses in the villages.
2. Water purification tablets. I used these whenever I filled up water to purify them. The water is already filtered at the tea houses but for double protection we were advised to also use the tablets. If you’re using the Aqua potable tablets, they take about 30 minutes to do the job before you can drink the water.
3. Hats: I mostly wore my sun hat everyday as it was quite hot but also had a beanie just in case the early mornings turned out to be really cold.
4. Camera gear: I carried my Sony DSLR with the 70-300mm lens and the 16-35mm wide angle lens, my Hero GoPro, and my iphone for photos and videos.
5. Snacks: I carried a small bag of dried fruits and nuts. In truth your breakfast and lunches are so plentiful, chances are you will not really need a snack.
6. Sunglasses: I mostly wore these when the sun was at its peak but if the clouds rolled in, I had them tucked away inside my pack.
7. Jackets: This depends on which month you’re hiking as well as the weather forecast for the day. I had my rain pants and rain shell in my day pack, but didn’t carry any other jacket in my day backpack. Even if you do need anything from your larger backpack, you can take it out during a break as all the porters tend to stop as well.
8. Waterproof Rain cover: This is for the backpack to keep it protected during rain

Large Backpack

Your large backpack must be a 50-55 liter pack and not weight more than 8-10kgs. The porters will carry these bags and you will have access to them at the tea houses. Here’s what I carried in my large backpack:

1. One clean leggings to change into at the end of each day. This also served as my pajamas.
2. One clean t shirt to change into. This was also my pajama top.
3. One down jacket to wear in the tea houses as they are not insulated.
4. One down sleeping bag to put over the beds in the tea houses.
5. 3 pairs of socks. 2 for the trek and one for the night as needed.
6. 1 pair of walking sandals for the tea houses.
7. 1 quick dry towel.
8. Gloves for day 7 when you start trekking at 3:45am.
9. Toiletries bag with sunscreen, body soap, comb, toothbrush, toothpaste, ass wipes, medicine kit for cold/cough/fever.
10. 1 pair of shorts for the hike, an additional pair of hiking pants, one full sleeves mid-layer (fleece), one thin full sleeves layer, 3 short sleeve tops, 2 sports bras, underwear.
11. My tripod for camera gear & hiking poles.

Costs

The cost of the Annapurna Base Camp trek as of October 2019 was $1,180. Please check the website at First Light adventure for 2021 pricing. Tips for the porters and guides can range anywhere from $30 per person to $100 per person depending on your experience with the porters.

Choosing a tour operator for a guided trek

I chose First Light Adventure as I knew the owner personally, and the company’s itinerary included a unique aspect of the trek I hadn’t seen elsewhere – entering the Annapurna Sanctuary at moonlight, in time to see the sunrise! On day 7, you start the trek around 3:45am, to get to basecamp by sunrise. Watching the first light shine over the peaks was an intensely magical & divine moment for me.

I also really loved hiking with the guides and the porters at First Light Adventure because they are local people from the community who are incredibly knowledgeable about the terrain and the culture. Watching the porters carry your luggage up the mountain is a humbling sight and I was glad I had chosen this particular tour company because I had also vetted them ahead of time to ensure their porters were getting paid well, unlike some of the other companies in Nepal. Do your research before choosing a company to support and hike with – it can make all the difference between a great experience and a mediocre one.

If you have any questions about the Annapurna Base Camp trek, please email me at theeagertraveler@gmail.com or you can also connect with me on Instagram.