Easy treks in Nepal for beginners, ranked

Ranked by nights above 3,000 m, where altitude sickness starts to matter, then by the highest night. The nights and climbs come from each trek's day-by-day plan at the usual pace (for North ABC, the six-day version with two nights at the lake). "Biggest climb" is the most the sleeping height rises in one day; "longest day" the slow end of the walking hours.

• Altitude, more than distance. Above 3,000 m the advice is to sleep no more than 500 m higher each night, with a rest day every three or four (CDC). A trek that breaks that is hard however short it is.
• The steepest day. Stone steps for hours, as on the climb to Ulleri and Ghorepani, tire legs more than a long flat valley.
• Days in a row. Four days is a long weekend. Fourteen means walking tired, and a cold or an upset stomach on day six still has to walk.
• Passes above 5,000 m. Thorong La, Larkya La and Kala Patthar are long days in thin air, started before dawn.

Ghorepani Poon Hill is 4 days from Nayapul, a short bus ride from Pokhara, and never sleeps higher than Ghorepani at 2,874 m. The view is from Poon Hill, 3,210 m, before sunrise. Its one hard day is the second: 1,394 m of stone steps from Tikhedhunga to Ghorepani.

It is also the cheapest: about Rs 19,000 for a Nepali, Rs 32,000 for an Indian and Rs 35,000 for a foreigner with the guide the rules require.

Mardi Himal is 5 days with a single night above 3,000 m, at High Camp (3,550 m), and a dawn walk to the viewpoint at 4,500 m. It climbs in short days through forest, and it is the quieter of the two.

Annapurna Base Camp is 7 days with 2 nights above 3,000 m and the last at the base camp, 4,130 m. The first day climbs 942 m to Ghandruk, and the last brings you down to Nayapul in about 8 hours. It is the most popular first high trek for a reason: teahouses at every stop and the Annapurna Sanctuary at the end.

Langtang Valley starts at Syabrubesi, a day's bus from Kathmandu, and takes 7 days with 3 nights above 3,000 m, the highest at Kyanjin Gompa (3,900 m). The first day is long, 1,050 m up to Lama Hotel in up to 9 hours, but the rest day at Kyanjin and the side trip up Kyanjin Ri are the reward. The flood of 26 August 2026 hit Syabrubesi; check before you go.

Short is not the same as easy. Gosaikunda is 5 days, but climbs 1,340 m on its first and sleeps at the lake, 4,380 m, on the third. North ABC takes 3 to 6 days from the Hum Khola road head at 2,883 m; the 6-day plan spends 5 nights above 3,000 m, two of them at Panchakunda Lake, 4,050 m, and the fast three-day trip climbs about 1,200 m in two days. Both are fine for a fit trekker who knows the signs of altitude sickness; neither is a first trek.

Everest Base Camp, the Annapurna Circuit and Manaslu each cross 5,000 m and spend 6 to 9 nights above 3,000 m over 12 to 14 days. Upper Mustang stays lower, but with 8 nights above 3,000 m and a restricted-area permit at USD 50 a day it is a long, expensive trek. Do one of the easier four first.

• Walk stairs with a loaded pack for a few weeks: the trails are steps more often than slopes.
• Break in the boots you will wear. New boots on a long trek mean blisters.
• Learn the signs of altitude sickness, a headache that does not go, sickness, breathlessness at rest, and agree beforehand that you will go down if they come.
• Pick the usual days or more. The days on each trek page include the rest days for a reason.