A kingdom on the other side of the mountains
For five hundred years, the Kingdom of Lo sat behind the Himalaya, closed off from the rest of Nepal by mountains and by royal decree. Even today, far fewer travelers reach Upper Mustang in a year than reach Everest Base Camp in a single week. That rarity is the point.
The journey begins with a private flight to Pokhara, then on to Jomsom, where the air thins and the wind rises. From there you travel by 4×4 up the bed of the Kali Gandaki — one of the deepest gorges on earth — and into the rain shadow, where the green gives way to ochre rock.
You sleep in restored Lo-pa houses, share meals with families who have lived in these valleys since the fourteenth century, and step into cliff caves older than the kingdom itself. In Lo Manthang, we have arranged a private audience with the former royal family and access to a monastery whose murals are closed to the public.
The arc of the journey
- Days 1–2 Kathmandu acclimatisation
- Day 3 Private flight to Pokhara, onward to Jomsom
- Days 4–9 Upper Mustang — Lo Manthang, Chhoser caves, Tsarang
- Days 10–11 Return through the Kali Gandaki
- Day 12 Final evening in Kathmandu
What is included
All restricted-area permits ($500 USD per person, included). Private 4×4 with experienced Mustang driver. Local Lo-pa guide born in Lo Manthang. Every meal, every accommodation, every introduction.
