Trekking · Packages
Upper Mustang Tour Package — 12 Days
The bookable 12-day Upper Mustang package — trek or jeep to the walled city of Lo Manthang, with permit, cost and day-by-day itinerary.
This Upper Mustang tour package is the complete 12-day trip into Nepal's last forbidden kingdom — Kathmandu to Kathmandu, ending at the walled medieval city of Lo Manthang near the Tibetan border. Upper Mustang is a restricted area: entry takes a special permit of around US$500 for ten days, a minimum group of two travellers and a licensed guide, all arranged through a registered agency. In return you get cliff-cut sky caves, five-hundred-year-old murals and a high-desert landscape unlike anywhere else in Nepal — and because the whole region sits in the Himalayan rain shadow, it is one of the few trips here that works right through the monsoon.
The package is sold in two versions on the same permit and the same skeleton: the classic trek, walking up the Kali Gandaki valley, or the jeep tour, which compresses the walking days into long drives. This page lays out the day-by-day plan, what's included, an honest cost range and how to book.
At a glance
| Duration | 12 days, Kathmandu to Kathmandu (8 days inside the restricted area) |
| Highest point | Passes near Lo Manthang, ~4,000 m; Lo Manthang, 3,840 m |
| Start / end | Kathmandu (fly to Pokhara, then Jomsom, 2,720 m) |
| Style | Trek, jeep tour or hybrid — same route, same permit |
| Permits | Restricted-area permit (~US$500/10 days) + Annapurna permit |
| Best season | March to November — monsoon included, thanks to the rain shadow |
The 12-day itinerary, day by day
| Day | Plan | Approx. altitude |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive Kathmandu; briefing and permit paperwork | 1,400 m |
| 2 | Fly to Pokhara; free afternoon by the lake | 820 m |
| 3 | Fly to Jomsom, continue to Kagbeni — the restricted-area checkpoint | 2,810 m |
| 4 | Kagbeni to Chele, up the Kali Gandaki | 3,050 m |
| 5 | Chele to Ghami, over the passes | 3,520 m |
| 6 | Ghami to Lo Manthang via Tsarang | 3,840 m |
| 7 | Lo Manthang — royal palace and the Jampa, Thubchen and Chode gompas | 3,840 m |
| 8 | Lo Manthang — day trip to the Chhoser sky caves | 3,840 m |
| 9 | Begin the return, via Ghar Gompa or Ghami | 3,520 m |
| 10 | Back to Jomsom via Kagbeni | 2,720 m |
| 11 | Fly Jomsom to Pokhara, connect to Kathmandu | 1,400 m |
| 12 | Final departure | 1,400 m |
The plan is built to fit the ten-day permit window — you pay the base US$500 and no daily extension. Days 4–6 walk through wind-carved canyons; the return typically uses the jeep road, the walk-up, drive-back hybrid most travellers now choose. The jeep variant replaces the walking days with two drives, freeing extra time for the walled city or a buffer for the weather-prone Jomsom flight. See the Upper Mustang trek guide for the walking route in full, or the jeep tour to Lo Manthang for the driving version.
What's included
A standard package covers:
- Airport transfers, 2 nights in Kathmandu and 1 night in Pokhara.
- All four domestic flights — Kathmandu–Pokhara and Pokhara–Jomsom, return.
- The restricted-area permit (~US$500) and the Annapurna Conservation Area permit, agency-arranged.
- A licensed, Mustang-experienced guide — mandatory in the restricted zone — plus porters (trek version) or a 4WD jeep and driver (jeep version).
- Lodge accommodation on the route, twin-sharing, and meals on trail days.
Not included: international flights, your Nepal visa, travel insurance, meals in Kathmandu and Pokhara, drinks, hot showers and device charging in the lodges, and tips.
Upper Mustang tour cost
Expect US$2,500 to US$4,000 per person for the full 12-day, Kathmandu-to-Kathmandu package — group departures at the lower end, private and Tiji-festival trips at the top. The single biggest line is the restricted-area permit, around US$500 per person for the first ten days with roughly US$50 for each extra day; the rest goes on four domestic flights, the mandatory guide and agency arrangement, lodges and meals. Group size moves the price more than anything else, since the permit is the only strictly per-head charge. Leaner arrangements staged from Pokhara or Jomsom can come in lower — the Upper Mustang permit and cost breakdown has the line-by-line version. Fees are revised periodically, so confirm current rates when you book.
That permit is not a bureaucratic accident. Upper Mustang opened to foreigners only in the early 1990s, and the fee deliberately keeps numbers low on a sensitive border while funding conservation and local communities — it is why the region still feels like a restricted kingdom rather than a trekking highway.
Trek or jeep — which version?
- The trek gives quiet trails, gradual acclimatisation and real immersion in the villages — at the cost of four to five hours' walking a day into the afternoon wind.
- The jeep tour reaches Lo Manthang in two driving days, opening the region to travellers who can't walk for days at altitude — but it is dusty, bumpy and gains height fast.
- The hybrid — trek up, drive back — is what most people choose, and it is how the day-by-day above is built.
The honest trade-offs are weighed in full in our Mustang by jeep vs on foot comparison. Whichever you pick, the permit, guide and agency requirements are identical.
Best time to go
The season runs March to November — far longer than Nepal's big trekking routes, because Mustang's rain shadow keeps it dry while the rest of the country is under monsoon cloud. May and autumn give the most settled weather; July and August work well here and almost nowhere else in Nepal. Winter is bitterly cold, and many Loba families move south until spring. Month-by-month detail is in our best time to visit Mustang guide.
The Tiji festival option
Each spring, Lo Manthang hosts the Tiji festival — three days of masked monastic dances below the royal palace. It usually falls in May, but the exact dates follow the Tibetan lunar calendar and shift each year, so confirm them before locking flights. Tiji departures book out months ahead; tell us early if you want the itinerary timed to it.
Difficulty and fitness
By Nepal standards this is a moderate trip. The trail tops out around 3,800–4,000 m at the passes near Lo Manthang — well below the big circuits — so serious altitude sickness is less common, though the jeep version's fast ascent still demands care. The real challenges are the relentless desert wind, dust and strong sun. Reasonable hill fitness covers the trek; the jeep version asks only that you tolerate long, rough drives.
Book this tour
Departures run right through the March–November season, and the package can be shaped to you — trek, jeep or hybrid, private groups, or a Tiji-timed itinerary. The permit needs a minimum of two travellers, so couples and small groups book straight in; solo travellers can join a scheduled departure.
Enquire about this trek
Tell us your dates and group size and we'll come back with departures and a firm price.
Prefer to browse first? See the rest of our Nepal trekking packages.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the Upper Mustang tour cost?+
The full 12-day, Kathmandu-to-Kathmandu package runs from around US$2,500 per person for group departures to US$4,000 or more for private or festival-timed trips. The single biggest line is the restricted-area permit — around US$500 per person for the first ten days, with roughly US$50 for each extra day — on top of the Annapurna permit, four domestic flights, the mandatory licensed guide, lodges and meals. Fees are revised periodically, so confirm current rates when you book.
Why is the Upper Mustang permit so expensive?+
Upper Mustang sits on a sensitive stretch of the Tibetan border and holds a fragile environment and an unusually intact Tibetan Buddhist culture. The restricted-area system, in place since the region opened to foreigners in the early 1990s, deliberately limits visitor numbers and channels revenue toward conservation and local communities. The high fee is part of that design — and a large part of why Lo Manthang still feels the way it does.
Can you do Upper Mustang by jeep?+
Yes. A rough unpaved road now runs from Jomsom up the Kali Gandaki to Lo Manthang, and this package is sold in a jeep variant that compresses the walking days into two long drives each way. You still need the full restricted-area setup — the special permit, a registered agency and a licensed guide — however you travel.
How many days do you need for Upper Mustang?+
Twelve days Kathmandu to Kathmandu is the sweet spot: it fits the trip inside the ten-day permit window, includes two full days in Lo Manthang and builds in a buffer for the weather-prone Jomsom flight. The trek itself runs 10 to 14 days from Jomsom, while a pure jeep tour can reach the walled city in a four-to-five-day return.
When is the best time for the Upper Mustang tour?+
The season runs roughly March to November. Because Mustang lies in the Himalayan rain shadow it stays dry through the summer monsoon, so this is the rare Nepal trip that works in July and August. May and the autumn months give the most settled weather, and the spring Tiji festival at Lo Manthang is a draw of its own.
Is Upper Mustang worth it?+
For the right traveller, absolutely. The permit buys entry to one of the best-preserved medieval walled cities in the Himalaya, cliff-cut sky caves, five-hundred-year-old murals and a living Tibetan Buddhist culture — with a fraction of the crowds on Nepal's open trails. If you want big snow peaks up close, choose an Everest or Annapurna route instead; Upper Mustang is about culture and desert landscape, not glaciers.
Can you visit Upper Mustang solo?+
No. Permits for the restricted area are issued only through a registered agency, to groups of at least two travellers accompanied by a licensed guide. Solo, independent travel north of the Kagbeni checkpoint is not permitted — which is exactly why the trip is sold as an organised package.
