Types of Treks & Routes

There are a numerous ways that you can arrange your treks in Nepal such as backpacking, teahouse treks, self arranged treks and treks arranged through a trekking company.

Backpacking
This approach of carrying a light pack, stove, dried food and a tent is not really a good idea of trekking in Nepal as food is available in almost all the village except in the high mountains above 4500 meters. But in higher altitudes, this is more practical.

Teahouse Treks
In Nepali, the word 'Bhatti' is understood as 'Teahouse' though we can also get alcohol (Chyang and Rakshi) in such places. In the trekking regions, the Nepalese generally refer Restaurants or eating places as 'hotels' and use the word 'lodge' to places where accommodation is also provided. Teahouse treks are the most popular mode of trekking in Nepal as hotel accommodation readily available in the Everst Region, Langtang area and the entire Annapurna area. In these area, you can travel with a bare minimum of equipment and rely on 'teahouses' for food and accommodation. However, it is a good idea to carry your own sleeping bag as the bed/sheet provided may not be up to your expectations.

Self-Arranged Treks
You can also gather 'Sherpas', food and equipment and arrange your own trek. You can contact the local trekking agencies and ask them to arrange such a program. These self-arranged treks can be very entertaining among friends. You carry only a small backpack (camera, water bottle and a jacket) and the rest are carried by the porter. The Sherpas set up camps, cook your food and serve meals.

Treks with a trekking agent
Companies specialized in trekking can organize individual or group treks from USA, Japan, France, UK, Australia, etc. Each overseas agent works through a particular trekking agent in Nepal. As in Self-Arranged Treks, you sleep out in the tents and the food is cooked and served by the Sherpas. However, in some cases you may land up with an incompatible group or person or you may make some nice new friends in these arranged treks. The time period of these treks are mostly rigid as people who opt for this mode are more confined by time than money.

Trekking Routes
Listed are the main trekking regions, number of days recommended to trek and difficulty levels of the trek.