Route Pokhara → Tatopani → Marpha → Jomsom → Kagbeni → Ghami → Tsarang → Lo Manthang, and back Distance 600 km round trip, short and slow Duration 10 days, but the days are short
4 to 7 hours a day for very little distance Best Months May to October, monsoon included
Mustang sits in the Himalayan rain shadow World Heritage On Nepal's tentative list, not yet inscribed
The sky caves and the walled city of Lo Manthang Parks & Protected Areas Annapurna Conservation Area
The Upper Mustang restricted zone Signature Roads The Kali Gandaki gorge, the world's deepest
The dirt north of Kagbeni
The high plateau tracks to Lo Manthang

Route Map

Open in Google Maps The Plan

Ten days up a walled kingdom and back down the same corridor, because there is only one way in. Out of green Pokhara, up the deepest gorge on earth between two eight-thousanders, and out the far side into an ochre desert that used to be Tibet. Short distances, rough dirt, thin air – and at the top, a mud-walled city behind a gate. The permit costs more per day than the rooms will. It is that kind of place.

Notes

Upper Mustang is a restricted area and you cannot ride past Kagbeni on your own. It needs a special permit, arranged only through a registered agency with a licensed guide and a minimum of two foreign travellers, plus the Annapurna permit and a TIMS card. The old flat 500-dollar-for-ten-days fee was replaced in November 2025 by 50 dollars a person a day; the details are still settling, so confirm the current rule with the agency when you book.

Because it lies in the rain shadow behind Annapurna and Dhaulagiri, Mustang stays dry and rideable through the monsoon when the rest of Nepal is washed out – one of the few Himalayan rides that works in July. Winter closes it with cold and snow.

Rough dirt, stream crossings, dust and altitude to 3800 m. Fuel is limited beyond Jomsom, so carry it, and ride the mornings before the afternoon wind gets up. This is proper Himalayan off-road – a Himalayan or a light dual-sport, not a road bike.