Lo Manthang Tiji Festival and Trekking Expedition

On this day you will have a special breakfast and lunch at the hotel. During the day, you will be checking all the necessary equipment for the trek and buying missed items in Kathmandu. You could also visit some of the most reached-from-inner-hill amazing destinations, like Pashupatinath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa, Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square, with many famous other places. At night, you can walk up to Thamel and enjoy the nightlife here.

After having a delicious breakfast in Kathmandu. Then we will make a trek toward Pokhara. We will go to Pokhara as scheduled. The domestic flight towards Pokhara will afford a wonderful view of Kathmandu Valley from above and other Himalayan Peaks too. It takes you around 20-25 minutes or so to reach Pokhara. Upon our arrival, we can check in to the hotel, and some rest will be allowed before lunch. Afterward, we will take the opportunity to walk to nearby sites which include Pokhara International Mountain Museum, Davis Fall, and lots of other historically significant places. In the evening, we will roam around Lakeside, visiting Tal Barahi Temple and enjoying a boat ride. It is completely up to you if you would like to rent a cycle to stroll around. At night, we shall enjoy a good time at the Lakeside of Pokhara making the most of the moments with singing, dancing, etc. Overnight stay at the hotel with a Nepali Thakali Khana set.

Our day four starts with an early breakfast at the hotel. After that, you will quickly pack up from Pokhara and head toward your next destination Jomson. So, to reach Jomson, we will have a flight from Pokhara International Airport. You will reach Jomson in around 20-22 minutes enjoy the eye-catching moment of seeing the beautiful view of Phewa Lake, Mountain Ranges, and many other picturesque views. So, after landing in Jomson, we will start to trek from here towards Kagbeni. We will walk through the Jomson where you have to take a permit from ACAP. After making all the arrangements, we will walk through the bank of Kali Gandaki River until we reach Akle Bhatti. Here, we will have our delicious Nepali lunch and rest for some time. After trekking for around 4 hours, you will reach Kagbeni where you will have a night stay for today. Then, in the evening time, you will walk around the Kagbeni nearby places exploring and enjoying the local monasteries, gumbas, and other nearby places. At night, we will have our dinner and have a beautiful night.

On this day, we will enjoy the morning view of sunrise from the bank of the river here at Kagbeni. From here we need to have a permit from ACAP to go forward so we will re-arrange everything at the checkpoint and after starting the trek we will go towards Tanbe village to enjoy the beautiful monuments of Buddhist. We can enjoy the farmland on the trails experiencing the potatoes, barley, wheat, and many others on the bank of the river. We will have a stop at Chhuksang where we will enjoy our lunch and have some rest. Then, we will go through Narshing River and Kali Gandaki crossing through bridges and climbing up towards Chele Village. After you reach Chele you will be at the elevation of 3,055m where you may feel some change in altitude. Here, we will stay in a tea house, enjoying our dinner with local people and having fun.

On day 6, we will have our breakfast and be ready to move up to Shyangmochen exploring Chungsi Cave and other beautiful places. We will have an uphill slowly and steady trek until we reach Chele-la from where we can see Samar Village. We will have our lunch quickly and then, we will move to explore Chungsi Cave which is on the bank of the river. The trail from Chele-La is sloppy so we will reach quickly. Here, we will explore the places of Guru Rinpoche where he used to meditate and climb back to Chungsi-La. We have to go to get to the bank of the river and again climb back to Shyangmochen Village where we will stay overnight and have our dinner. On this day we will walk for around 7 to 8 hours and reach the elevation of 3,930m.

The day to Dhagmar is a little long and we have to walk for around 8 hours to reach there. We will have our breakfast at Shyangmochen and start our trek getting up to Shyangmochen-la, from where we will be at the center point from where we can see the Geling Village and Nyi-la pass. From here, we will reach Ghami-la and have some rest there. From here we will have our walk towards Ghami village which is the hub of agriculture in this region. Ghami Village is on the trail towards Dhagmar so will will again slowly walk uphill until we reach the longest Mani Wall. Mani Wall has been a spot for panoramic shots where we will also see the mountain ranges at the back and desert like places on front of it. After walking for 8 hours along the way, we will land in Dhagmar where we will have a warm welcome at our Tea house. The local people here are so helpful and won't compromise on providing hospitality to you. Here, you have an option to have a variety of Nepali cuisine at the dinner.

This day will be so joyful and pack of excitement as we reach Lo Manthang. We will have breakfast at Dhagmar and start our trek. On the way, we will go through a beautiful trail leaving Dhagmar behind. We will be walking enjoying the breathtaking view of valleys and surroundings and reach Ghar Gumba Monastery. This place has always been known for its monastery being there for ancient centuries. We will explore Ghar Gumba Monastery and walk forward to reach Lo Manthang. Enjoying the fresh air, blue skies, and the snow-capped peaks of the mountain, going up and down we will reach Lo Manthangwhich is at an altitude of 3,840m. Lo Manthang is exactly the place where we will be enjoying Tiji festivals which is the traditional place of Buddhists influenced by Tibetan culture. We will take our room to the tea house to have some rest and in the afternoon time, we will explore the nearby places and also the lifestyle of people there. After spending some time, we will get back to the tea house, have our dinner, and stay overnight.

This is exactly the date from when the Tiji festival started. We will be joining the festivals with locals where we can see the colorful and vivid streets full of flowers and lights. We can also have the local costumes and enjoy the festivals gathering at one place dancing and enjoying every moment. The customs will be different for both males and females. As the day started, we saw the monk dancers dancing in their costumes wearing a mask and pieces of jewellery all over the body. All the dancers are dressed as different deities and mythological figures and perform highly elaborate with the rhythmic beats of traditional instruments like Tibetan trumpet and hand-held traditional drums. They slowly walk over the narrow streets of Lomanthang, with villagers chanting prayers and mantras behind them. The orange and pink of the festival colors, the delightful music, and the commitment of the people create a beautiful texture that attracts the eyes of everyone witnessing it. It finally arrives at the Tiji Monastery, the cultural heart of the festival. Here, the dancers and musicians perform a series of rituals and ceremonies the protect against resulting calamities. Villagers become associated with other traditional activities folk dances, tales, processes according to the festival, and festive foods throughout the day. You will enjoy every minute. As the night comes near all the people stay in one place and stay there for the night. You will get back to your tea house, have your dinner, remember every moment, and stay overnight.

On the second day of the festival, we will have our breakfast and will be ready for quick exploring around the Lo Manthang. First, we will so and visit the top main monasteries like Choede, Jampa, and Thubchen from where we will also explore the centuries-old walled city. On the day we will enjoy the Tiji festivals. We will go with the locals to explore the Lo Manthang areas. We will also observe the mask dance in the afternoon. Exploring, strolling, and enjoying the day we will end our day at the teahouse after having dinner. You can have dinner according to your preferences cause in the festive time you can get lots of variety to eat.

On the third day of the festival, as this is the end day we will quickly have our breakfast in the early morning. On this day we will have a short hike toward Chosar where we will go and explore the old traditional cave houses and monasteries. We will return to our tea house at Lo Manthang to have our lunch and during the daytime, we will enjoy the Tiji festival. Also, one thing you can enjoy is horse riding or you can keep on your own to explore the places.

As the festive season ends, we will also continue of journey from Lo Manthang to our next destination. After having our breakfast at our tea house we will start our journey towards Yara. Walking slowly and steadily following the trails along the Dhechaeng River we will keep going seeing the picturesque surroundings. Then, we will walk for around 2 hours passing small rivers and bridges doing ups and downs we will reach Dhey. Here, we will have our lunch and start moving forward. Being far away from city areas, we can enjoy the local businesses run by Buddhists along the way. We will keep walking and follow to trails that go through the Puyon Khola River. From here, we will walk until we reach Yara. In Yara, we can see only 4 or 5 teahouses which are run by the locals of there where we will enjoy a tasty dinner and stay overnight.

This day we have a hike to Luri Gumba where we can explore caves, monasteries, and a high tower cliff which are made in ancient times ago. We will start our trek from the Yara following the trails that go through Gara Village. We will have lifelong memories here at Yara seeing the unique paintings, history, cultures, and sculptures. You will surely never gonna forget the every moment you made at Luri Gumba. The climb will be worth it which will also let you enjoy the stunning panoramic view from there. We can meet the monks there who will also know you the myths that lie under Luri Gumba. After having a great time at Luri Gumba, we start to get back to Yara. On the way, we will also visit and explore Tashi Kabung Chorten which is on our way. There we can see a total of 108 Stupas that we made centuries ago. Enjoying the time, we will get back to Yara in the evening and stay at the tea house.

On this day, we will have an early breakfast at the tea house in Yara and move to the next destination. Enjoying the trek leaving the landscapes of Mustang we will reach Tangya Village which is very far from modernization and still live in a traditional way influenced by Tibetian cultures. Here, we can see houses made of mud where we will have our lunch in a typical Nepali style. We will also enjoy the farmland full of wheat, and barley along the way and lead our journey towards Tangge Village which is also known as the hidden gem of Mustang. Here will explore the nearby areas which are rich in cultural heritage with breathtaking landscapes and unique architecture. You will spend your leftover daytime here and at last we will stay in a tea house overnight.

After having lunches in Tenge, we get up the steps and pass a suspension bridge. This day is the longest trek day in our journey where we have to walk for 10 hours on the same day. We will keep right on a trail that will lead us to the Yak River, from where we ascend the terraced hill to 4,210m which is the highest point of our Upper Mustang journey. This will also take approximately 2.5 hours to climb. The view includes the Damodar Himal and Saribung Himal. We then go downhill to Chuksang or Tetang Village for an overnight stay.

After having breakfast at Chuksang we will pack our bags and head toward Muktinath. Our first stop will be Tetang village which is a good spot to witness traditional local life. From there, we will have a gentle uphill to Gyu-la. At the top, we can enjoy stunning views of Muktinath village, its temple, and its mountains. Then we will go down to Jhong village for lunch or continue to Muktinath after another 45-minute trek. In the late afternoon, we explore the temple and monastery, have a hearty dinner, and overnight in Muktinath.

From Muktinath, it will just take us 5 hours to reach Jomson. So, we will start our trek along the Kali Gandaki passing through Jharkot and Khingar settlements where we can see the art and architecture of Tibetan cultures. We will then have a sloppy down trek to Kagbeni. As we have to reach Jomson today we will roughly explore Kagbeni which is the city of Tibetan art. From here, we will come across the Ekle Bhatti. After some time, you will reach Jomson which is also the headquarters of Mustang where we will also enjoy the Nilgiri and Tilicho Peak in the afternoon time. We will stay in the same tea house overnight.

Well, the day has arrived to say goodbye to the Mustang region. From here, we will take a flight from Jomsom to Pokhara watching the beautiful view of Mustang. After we reach Pokhara, we will have our lunch and have some rest. If you wish you can have a stroll around Pokhara in day time. After having some rest and free time we will catch a flight from Pokhara to Kathmandu in the afternoon time and get back to the same hotel we stay here at Kathmandu.

The final day has come. Here, our journey comes to an end. We will have a little talk about the journey and have a sweet farewell. As we complete the trek to Lo Manthang Tiji Festival and Trekking, you will have another place to explore with us.