Everest Base Camp vs Annapurna Base Camp
12 / 10 days · 5,545 / 4,130 m
The two most famous base camps. Everest is longer and much higher, starts with the Lukla flight, and the last days are above 4,500 m among…
Side by sideTrekking in Nepal
Nepal treks compared
Two treks, one holiday. These are the choices people ask me about most, with the facts side by side and my honest note on who each trek suits. For any other two: compare two walks.
Written by Rujan Neupane, licensed trekking guide from the Kathmandu Valley
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Each opens a page with both treks side by side.
Everest Base Camp vs Gokyo Lakes
12 / 11 days · 5,545 / 5,357 m
Both start in Lukla and share the first days to Namche. Base Camp follows the main valley to the foot of the Khumbu Icefall; Gokyo turns…
Side by sideManaslu Circuit vs Annapurna Circuit
13 / 11 days · 5,106 / 5,416 m
Two great circuits around an 8,000 m mountain, each over a high pass. Manaslu is a restricted area: quieter, wilder, Tibetan Buddhist villages, a permit through…
Side by sideGhorepani Poon Hill vs Mardi Himal
5 / 6 days · 3,210 / 4,500 m
Both are short walks from Pokhara with big views. Poon Hill is lower and easier, through Gurung and Magar villages and rhododendron forest, with the famous…
Side by sideAnnapurna Base Camp vs Mardi Himal
10 / 6 days · 4,130 / 4,500 m
Both look at Machhapuchhre. Annapurna Base Camp walks into the Sanctuary, a ring of peaks, and takes about a week or more. Mardi Himal is shorter…
Side by sideLangtang Valley vs Ghorepani Poon Hill
7 / 5 days · 4,984 / 3,210 m
Two walks of about a week from a city by road. Langtang starts from Kathmandu, climbs a deep valley to glaciers and Tamang villages and goes…
Side by sideUpper Mustang vs Annapurna Circuit
13 / 11 days · 4,010 / 5,416 m
Both are behind the Annapurnas, in the dry rain-shadow. Upper Mustang is a restricted area: a desert of red cliffs, cave dwellings and the old walled…
Side by sideManaslu Circuit vs Manaslu and Tsum Valley
13 / 20 days · 5,106 / 5,106 m
Neighbours in the same restricted area. The Manaslu Circuit goes round the mountain and over the Larkya La; the Tsum Valley is a hidden side valley…
Side by sideQuestions people ask me
Which is harder, Everest Base Camp or Annapurna Base Camp?
Everest Base Camp: it is longer and goes about 1,400 m higher, with more nights above 4,000 m.
Is Manaslu better than the Annapurna Circuit?
Quieter and wilder, yes; easier to organise and more comfortable, no. It depends on what you want from the walk.
Not sure which trek suits you? Tell me your dates and what you hope for, and I will say honestly.
