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Price(per-person)
Region
Upper MustangDuration
13 daysAccomodation
Tea-House (Lodges)Altitude
3,932 mMeals
Breakfast/Lunch/DinnerDifficulty
ModerateActivity
Jeep TourSeason
March, April, May, September, October, NovemberStart End Point
Kathmandu - KathmanduTotal Distance
Approx.460 km. / 286 milesTransportation
Private vehicle
Upper Mustang 4WD Jeep Drive Tour is a great short and exciting adventure of once in a lifetime experience. It leads to a most fascinating country around Nepal’s Far North Western Himalayas. You will be riding in the comfort of a 4WD Jeep drive and observing the beautiful landscapes. This tour can be a perfect adventure for women of all ages whether you are travelling solo or with your fellow female explorers.
The drives lead beneath the towering Annapurna and Dhaulagiri Himalayas, forming the world’s deepest gorge of Kaligandaki River. The overland journey continues towards high hills and past lovely farm villages and beautiful forests to reach a wild and picturesque country. Upper Mustang geographically is an extension of the vast plateau of South-West Tibet, where the border is close to Lo Manthang.
The dramatic features of Upper Mustang are its unique landscape and photogenic scenery, along with impressive cultures of ancient heritage. The itinerary planned and set by Woman Adventures allows visitors to enjoy the country’s rich treasures. You will be visiting the lovely traditional villages to enter the former walled kingdom of Lo-Manthang with its ancient monuments and monasteries.
Upper Mustang at one time, remained a forbidden land for outside visitors and flung its door open in 1992 welcoming interested worldwide travelers to experience and explore the beautiful highland of Upper Mustang. Since it was open for foreigners but remains a restricted area in Nepal due to its close borders to Tibet. A special permit is required to enter Upper Mustang to control the mass influx of visitors to conserve its pristine wilderness. You can enjoy the perfect serene surroundings of Upper Mustang’s lovely terrains and views of snow-capped peaks.
On reaching the walled former kingdom of Lo-Manthang visitors will experience the backdrop of a medieval era. The area is lined with narrow cobbled streets and alleys, filled with numerous shops and stores, and all the houses are decorated with traditional Tibetan architecture.
You will have time to explore the remote old town-village of Lo Manthang of great cultures. Tour the four main monasteries - Namgyal Gompa, Champa Lhakhang (God House), Red Thubchen Gompa, including an interesting tour of the Chyodi Gompa and the great Entrance Hall.
Lo Manthang and Upper Mustang are famous for a colorful religious event called the Tiji festival. It will be held during May or early June as per the Tibetan Buddhist Lunar calendar. Interested people can coincide with this Upper Mustang 4WD Jeep Drive Tour with the Tiji Festival.
Women in Upper Mustang lead resilient lives, preserving cultural heritage through traditional crafts and agriculture while actively participating in community decision-making. Their efforts in promoting education, sustainable tourism, and small-scale businesses have significantly contributed to the region's socio-economic growth.
After a rejoiceful time with a wonderful experience around Upper Mustang and Lo Manthang, the return journey back to Pokhara follows on the same scenic and interesting routes, leading back to the beautiful city of Pokhara. From Pokhara, we will be heading back to Kathmandu, after an enjoyable adventure on Upper Mustang 4WD Jeep Drive Tour.
The food and lodge accommodations along the route to Upper Mustang villages exceed expectations, offering a comfortable and satisfying experience. At designated overnight stops, the lodge accommodation is nice, with a comprehensive food menu to enjoy various food items. In Nepal the favorite and common meal is Nepali Dal Bhat, boiled or steamed rice. It is served with mild seasonal vegetable curry, including Dal, a lentil bean soup with homemade pickles, and hot sauce as options. The food menu lists from breakfast, lunch, and dinner to snack items.
Breakfast from oats porridge, and cereals to cornflakes with toast/ chapattis, and pancakes includes a choice of egg variation. Lunch and dinner options include a variety of main courses from Continental, Chinese, Indian, Nepali, and Tibetan cuisines, along with a selection of soups. The lodge accommodation and food are best in Kalapani, Kagbeni, and Lo Manthang including Jomsom Town.
The lodge accommodation is simple but with nice and cozy rooms having common bathrooms and toilets. Only Kalapani and Jomsom Town have facilities of attached bathrooms and toilets. In most places, the rooms are on a shared basis with common bathrooms and toilets. Due to freezing temperatures with harsh terrain conditions, the plumbing systems for running water freeze in the morning, evening, and nighttime. In some lodges en route, using hot showers is at an extra cost.
All the lodges and guest houses have electricity to light the large dining room powered by local hydro or solar power. For charging electronic items, you have to pay an extra cost per hour and for each gadget. Internet and Wi-Fi are available, but it is slow and disturbing in some places due to weather conditions. In a large group with more than 6 people, it is best to order a set meal for all. It saves time and fuels energy, which is important around remote areas of the Himalayas. Following the norms and rules as Responsible Trekkers is a good practice for Eco-Tourism and involves properly managing garbage and litter throughout the trek.
Nepal is a country of great diversity of landscape and people with their age-old religions, cultures, and heritage. The mid-hill people around the Mygdi district of Mid-West Nepal is Magar the hill tribe. The Magar practices both Hindu and Buddhist religions. The drive enters Mustang district from Ghasa Village which is populated by flourishing and indigenous Thakali people. The main tribes of Lower Mustang and Kaligandaki River Valley extends till Jomsom Town, the headquarters of Mustang district. The Thakali people are merchants, farmers, and raise livestock and largely in hotel management hospitality. The Thakali people follow the strong Tibetan Buddhism of the Mahayana sect.
The Upper Mustang people are known as Bhotias and Lobas with a strong culture and heritage of their Tibet predecessors. From Ghasa onwards, we will be entering Mustang areas as far as Lo Manthang. En route, travelers will encounter a series of Buddhist monuments with big Stupas, prayer walls, and spinning wheels. You will also be visiting impressive old monasteries of great religious and cultural interest to experience.
Trekkers planning to join for Upper Mustang 4WD Drive Tour or other adventures around the Nepal Himalayas should be aware that Nepal is a country of high land of mid-hill to higher mountainous landscapes and terrains. The trek involves an uphill and downhill section, with only a few gradual paths to enjoy along the way. The only flatland is the low sub-tropical Terai belt around southern Nepal.
En Route to Upper Mustang, the tour starts with steep ups for some hours with a few short downhill. The rest of the drive is on a wide plateau with flat landscapes and with few steep winding-ups crossing over the passes. The drive takes you through bridges on dirt mud tracks and gravel to reach Lo Manthang around Upper Mustang.
From Pokhara, you will be driving on a smooth main Pokhara-Baglung Highway, then divert on rough dirt tracks following the Kaligandaki River upstream past warmer farm areas of Tatopani village and entering a narrow gorge near Lete. The drive leads you through the world’s deepest gorge Kaligandaki River and up to Kalapani village. Then we will be entering a windswept flat terrain through Jomsom Town and Kagbeni to enter the wide plateau of Upper Mustang. The drive follows the old Trans Himalaya Salt Trade Route of Nepal & Tibet, China, and beyond Upper Mustang.
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Price Starts From $ 3150
General
Daypack
Upper Body - Head / Ears / Eyes
Hand
Body
Lower Body – Legs
Feet
Medicines and First Aid Kits
(Our guide will carry first aid kit bag during the trek. We still recommend you to bring your personal first aid kit as you feel it necessary).
Antibiotics.
Miscellaneous
Women's Health Essentials
The items mentioned on the list are recommended by us but not compulsory so you can pack your stuff according to your necessity. Women Adventures lends you down jackets, fleece liner and sleeping bags as a part of their service but if you have your own then you can bring it according to your preference.