Me and my wife decided to take a break from our routine life and go for a trek at Langtang National Park. So we went there after Dashain (a huge festival in Nepal during October) which happens to be the start of a peak season for tourism industry in Nepal. Here, with this post, I want to share my experiences in brief so that if any one of you is interested to go there, this post can serve as a reference.

NOTE: Please note that the walking time that I have mentioned is subjective. We walked very very slowly. If you are fit and have no problems walking, our 8 hrs of walk can be the same as your 6 hrs of walk.

Travel Route

Day 1: Kathmandu to Syabrubeshi (1300m-1550m)

Syabrubeshi is the gateway to Langtang trek. You can get there via a bus which starts from Machhapokhari (nearby Gongabu Bus Park also known as New Bus Park). We booked the tickets a day earlier as it was festive time. There were two options for the bus:

Deluxe: Non-stop service i.e. it doesn’t carry passengers exceeding the seat capacity and follows the ticketing system. However, it will stop at a few places for toilet breaks and snacks. Slightly expensive but recommended for a comfortable ride. We chose this service and they charged us Rs. 600 per person. They even played some movies and music videos and even had Wi-Fi (I didn’t bother to check if it worked but people were using it while we were within city peripheries). Non-deluxe: More like a local bus. It stops at various places to pick-up and drop passengers. Less comfortable and slow.

The bus took off at 8:00 am precisely (surprisingly) and took us to Syabrubeshi at around 4:00 PM. The road was quite okay with beautiful scenaries but for the last 1.5 hours or so, the road was very very bumpy and dusty. Also, in the last hour, we were stopped at three points in Langtang National Park for security checkings.

By the Nepal Police By the Armed Police Force By Nepal Army: They will require you to move out of the bus with your belongings (including your bags) to a room where they will manually check everything.

It may sound hectic but this is essentially done for safety reasons and to prevent any kind of smuggling so please co-operate.

It will be wise to book your tickets a few days in advance. Ticket counter at Machhapokhari to get your tickets to Syabrubeshi. This truck was stuck on the road for a while but later managed to go through. Fantastic view from the bus

Once we reached Syabrubeshi, we booked a hotel room, rested, and began planning for the next day.

Day 2: Syabrubeshi to Lama Hotel (1550m-2505m)

Once we left the town of Syabrubeshi, we officially began our trekking after crossing a suspension bridge close to the town. Shortly, we came across another similar suspension bridge but this one lead to Thulo Syabru, so we didn’t cross the bridge and followed the trail. So, be sure to keep an eye out and look for signs, and talk to locals if you have any confusions.

ROUTE: Syabrubeshi to Domen (1672m) to Pahiro Dobato (1725m) to Bamboo (1970m) to Rimche (2495m) to Lama Hotel (2505m).

Total time we took:

Syabrubeshi to Bamboo: Approximately 4 hrs

1 hr rest and lunch at Bamboo

Another 4 hrs or so from Bamboo to Lama Hotel

First day of trekking immediately immersed us into the rich vegetation of the Langtang National Park. We found ourselves walking along the upstream of the mighty Bhote Koshi River and at many points, the river bestowed us with its beauty and power. It was just magnificent. At some points, the first day this trek left us too tired as the route was too steep. But what fun is a trek without such challenges.

A tourist starts his Langtang trek from Syabrubeshi Langtang trek is mostly walking upstream of Bhotekoshi river A suspension bridge (one of many in the trekking route) A place called Domen in the Langtang region

After reaching Lama Hotel, we could find many hotels there. We chose one at random and spent the night there.

Day 3: Lama Hotel to Langtang Valley (2505m-3400m)

The hotel owner had informed us that this day would not be so difficult like the previous day and advised us to be ready for windy conditions. And he was right. Lama Hotel to Langtang Valley was a relatively easy walk compared to the previous day’s walk and it sure was windy and cold around Langtang Valley area.

ROUTE: Lama Hotel to River Side (2769m) to Ghoda Tabela (3008m) to Thangsyap (3205m) to Langtang Valley (3400m)

Total time we took:

Lama Hotel to Ghoda Tabela: Approximately 4 hrs

1 hr rest and lunch at Ghoda Tabela (we noted that there were just two hotels at Ghoda Tabela)

Another 3.5 hrs or so from Ghoda Tabela to Langtang Valley

When we reached the “Old Langtang Valley” we were totally shocked to have a first person’s view of the level of devastation done by the 2015 earthquake. Everything was gone and only one house was left of the Old Langtang Valley. Just across the debris of the massive landslide, we could see the new Langtang Village. The effort and determination of the local people is truly appreciable.

A house destroyed by earthquake in the Langtang region Tourists approaching Ghoda Tabela for lunch A new hotel is constructed near the landslide area caused by the April 2015 earthquake Distant View of landslide in Langtang Valley Landslide in Langtang Valley due to earthquake A tourist observes the memorial Mane constructed to remember those lost in Langtang Valley during the April 2015 earthquake A local is seen carrying wooden support for reconstruction of a hotel in Langtang

Day 4: Langtang Valley to Kyanjin Valley (3400m to 3860m)

We did our shortest hike on day 4. We set out at around 8 in the morning and reached Kyanjin Valley at around 12 noon; just in time for lunch. The walk was relatively the easiest but had a magnificient view of the mountains. We didn’t mind the short walk because we understood that walking too much at high altitudes can be very challenging (and in rare cases, even lethal). At around 1:00pm after lunch, we were set to move up to Kyanjin Ri (4500m) but the hotel owner asked us not to go there in the afternoon as it would be very windy up there and the mountains would be covered in clouds. Turned out he was right as immediately we noticed that the mountains were covered with clouds and the view was not at all a good one. It was a bummer because it meant that we would have to miss the climb because of our time constraints.

We spent the rest of the day roaming around Kyanjin valley. We visited a Yak Cheese factory there and bought some as a souvenir. We even saw a bakery there and decided to taste some cakes there. It was quite a cozy place and the cakes were delicious.

Prayer inscriptions like this can be seen in many places when we head to Kyanjin Valley from Langtang Valley. This one is near Langtang Valley. Prayer inscriptions near Kyanjin Valley. A stupa is seen near the Kyanjin Valley with magnificient view of the Langtang Range in the background. A worker is seen weighing some cheese for us in the cheese factory at Kyanjin. Gorgeous mountains welcome you to Kyanjin Valley View of magnificient mountains in Kyanjin Valley One of many mountains viewed from Kyanjin Valley

Day 5: Kyanjin Valley to Lama Hotel (3860m t0 2505m)

Day 5 meant that we had to descend now. The descend was quite easy and followed the same route that we had ascended, but the walk was a really really long one since we had to walk a two day’s route in one day. So we suggest you to head out early (at 6 or 7) so that you can reach Lama hotel before it begins to get dark. We started at 8 in the morning and began walking slowly only to reach Lama hotel at around 5:15pm. It was really a tiring day.

Day 6: Lama Hotel to Syabrubeshi (2505m-1550m)

After a long walk the previous day, we started our day early this time and left Lama hotel at 7 in the morning. We reached Bamboo by 11, had lunch there and rested for an hour and then by 4 we had reached Syabrubeshi.

After finding a hotel there, we immediately headed out to book bus tickets to Kathmandu. The booking station was quite near to the hotel. We chose the Deluxe bus again and this time they charged us Rs. 550 per ticket. We then headed back to the hotel, took a cold shower, had some tea, listened to some music, had dinner and went to bed.

Day 7: Syabrubeshi to Kathmandu (1550m-1300m)

It was the same routine this time again, bumpy roads, security checks, musical bus ride, traffic jam in Naubise, and dusty Kathmandu.

Things to consider

People in Langtang region do not kill animals. So do not expect to get delicious meat in you meals. You can carry some dry meat or packaged meat/fish if you want. Never try to walk too much and gain altitude rapidly. You body will tire out and will not be able to cope with the decreased amount of oxygen immediately. Take some time. Do not drink too much alcohol while trekking. A beer in the evening is fine. Know your limits. Talk as much as possible to the trekkers and guides on your route. Chances are you will come across them many times during the course. If you have any confusion or problem, they will be the best help you can get. When we were there, Syabrubeshi was the only area where we had good access to mobile signals and electricity. So inform your friends and families about your where-being and carry a power bank or a solar charger with you if you need to charge anything. For cameras, carry a fully charged spare battery if you require. A trekking stick is highly recommended. Trekking is not just about walking between stops. Take breaks in between and enjoy the route you’re walking. Cheers!!!