In January, Outdoor Himalayan organised a great trek at a great price for me. Although they were about 60 per cent the price of another tour, there was no reduction in quality. The local Brahmin guide Puru took me safely and securely on a 6-day trek to the edge of Annapurna Sanctuary. Although it was mid-winter and conditions above 2000 meters were harsh, I would thoroughly recommend a winter trek. The crowds are fewer and you can enjoy the beautiful snow-capped views. You won’t be disappointed and you can have a young and enthusiastic guide in Mr Puru.
I will try to write a detailed review, as I have in-depth experience as a client of Outdoor Himalayan Treks. So far, this company has helped me arrange an entire month of travel in Nepal! I am back in Kathmandu at the moment, and I am leaving for Tibet in two days (also arranged by Outdoor Himalayan Treks). Let me tell you about the services and experience of this company…
After checking out four other travel agencies in Kathmandu, I chose Outdoor Himalayan Treks (for their low prices, extensive knowledge and attentive salesmanship) and, so far, I am very, very happy that I did.
Rammani Rijal was my contact with the company and he came to my hotel in Kathmandu nearly one month ago to give me a quote for travel from Kathmandu to Lumbini to Pokhara, a trek for 10 days to the Annapurna Base Camp, and then back to Pokhara for a week, then to Kathmandu… and we leave for Tibet in less than two days from today. That’s quite a lot of arrangements and accommodations and I am so happy to report that everything has been excellent! They have taken care of everything!
Mostly, I assume the people reading this review will be most interested in the trekking, so I will go into some good detail. I am from Florida (altitude 2.2 meters above sea level) and I have NO hiking experience. But the trek to the Annapurna Base Camp was highly recommended to me by friends of mine, so I wanted to experience it. Outdoor Himalayan Treks helped me do just that.
Mostly, I have to thank both my guide – Dilli Prasad Lamsal and Chhabi Ghimire who we named “Mama Gandhi” (“mama” means uncle in Nepali and “Gandhi” because he not only looks like Mahatma Gandhi but has the same sense of awesome peacefulness to him).
Dilli, the guide, was not only incredibly experienced, fluent in English, and familiar with the entire 10-day trek (he knew the mountains like the back of his hand) but MOST IMPORTANTLY, Dilli paid attention to how I was doing and really helped me EVERY STEP OF THE WAY.
He was patient, intelligent, funny and so kind to me for the entire ten days. And his knowledge of the mountains helped me not miss a thing. From the countless waterfalls to the roaring rivers to spotting wildlife to the plant life to the mountain peaks and teaching me to speak some Nepali (he’s a good teacher), Dilli was a perfect guide!!! After ten days of trekking together, we became friends. And he will be my friend for the rest of my life!
Thank you Outdoor Himalayan Treks! You helped make my month travelling in Nepal life-changing, smooth and unforgettable!
This company has done an A+ job so far! I’m so excited to head to Tibet in two days!
This is definitely the place to come if you want help with anything while you’re in Nepal.
My friend and I came to Kathmandu airport without any specific plans, we met Badri (thanks a lot to you) in the airport and he got us a hotel and explained a few things, we were offered a review of their treks and said yes, where we got the most amazing guide you could ever want for your Himalayan trek (thanks a lot Chris).
All in all, we had great help, made a couple of great friends, who both assured we had the greatest experience in Nepal… We took a chance trusting something that could have gone in any way. And my god, we were NEVER disappointed!!
We (my girlfriend Šárka and I) are not new to travelling. During the last 5 years, we visited numerous countries in the world, on different continents. The list includes USA, Kyrgyzstan, Chile, Argentina, Nepal and some of the European countries. It’s usually only two of us, travelling on our own. In autumn 2009, we came to Nepal for a month to trek the famous Annapurna circuit. Upon our arrival in the capital city Kathmandu, a nice guy, who introduced himself as Raj, gave us a lift from the airport to the centre. He turned out to be an owner of travel agency Outdoor Himalayan Treks. We accepted an invitation to his office in Thamel, where he gave us an overview of the services his company provides. We were already decided to manage and organize everything ourselves and therefore weren’t looking to hire a guide or porter. However, it was a very friendly and pleasant chat, with nobody trying to push us to make a deal. In the end, the visit turned to be helpful anyway, as Raj found a hotel for us – exactly in a price range we were looking for and also organized bus tickets along with all the necessary permits and cards we needed for the trekking. That saved us a significant amount of time we would be running around the city. The trekking was fantastic! In almost 4 weeks long, epic journey, we walked around the whole Annapurna massive, making it over the highest point of the trek, the 5416m high Thorung La pass. We also visited the Annapurna sanctuary – base camp hidden in the heart of the mountain range, with mighty Annapurna 1, 8091m high, towering right in front of us. Overall impressions from Nepal were purely positive: beautiful landscape, nice people and tea-house trekking style, where tourists don’t have to carry the cooking stove and food, as one can always find a bed and something to eat in lodges that can be found in almost every village, up to 4500m. When leaving Nepal, we knew we will do our best to come back again.
Earlier than we thought – in less than 2 years – we were on the way to Nepal again. This time to explore the most popular destination: the Everest region. However, trekking wasn’t the only objective this time. Being with Šárka for 13 years, we were thinking of getting married for some time already. And we came up with a crazy idea: how about the wedding in Nepal? First off, we started to investigate what are the requirements in this matter in the Czech Republic, our home country. Secondly, we wanted to find out if it is at all possible on the Nepalese side. Immediately, we thought about asking Raj from Outdoor Himalayan Treks, we had a pleasant experience with from our last visit, so it didn’t take more than few moments to initiate e-mail conversation. Raj started to investigate on his side and again, he was very helpful in answering our questions and clarifying the details. Through e-mails, we sorted out the timing, location, clothes, itinerary, required documentation and of course – price. As our wish was to get married in the Everest Base Camp, we agreed with Raj on taking a guide with us who will lead the marriage.
It felt so great being back. Now we understand, what it means being possessed by Nepal. Foreigners visiting the country 5-times or more are no exception here. At the airport, there were already people from Outdoor Himalayan Treks waiting for us to take us to the hotel. Soon after arriving, we went to meet Raj. There were plenty of things to sort out and plan in detail. The following day, one of his guys took us to the offices of the local authority where we went through paper signing exercise with the assistance of Raj’s lawyer. In the afternoon we went to a tailor to order typical Nepalese wedding clothes for me and Šárka. The next day, we left Kathmandu, heading to Jiri, the starting point of our trek. At this point without a guide. The plan was to meet him in Lukla (starting place for most of the tourists) in a week time. That was what we needed to get there on foot. Being the end of October, the weather was supposed to be good after the monsoon season, with plenty of sunshine and great visibility. However, clouds soon rolled into valleys and stayed for more than a week. That meant no flights could go in and out from Lukla. We stayed in Namche Bazaar for 3 days, waiting for the weather to improve, hoping to catch up with our guide, stuck on the airport in Kathmandu at that time. Then, being pressed by time already, we decided to move on, even without him. What a surprise it was, the first day the sky was clear again, Krish – our guide – showed up in our lodge late in the evening. We knew he couldn’t make it that fast, as we were 4 days away from Lukla (not counting essential acclimatization days). An even greater surprise was when we found out Raj sent him by helicopter, to ensure there is no impact on our wedding. Remarkable! Krish is exactly the type of the guide we were hoping to have: professional, responsible, in a good physical shape, reliable and with the sense of humour. In overall, a very nice guy. Since then, we were travelling together. Even though I consider us experienced trekkers, having Krish with us made a difference. His knowledge of the region, local traditions and religion gave the trip a different flavour. Not to mention we didn’t have to worry about pathfinding with him. We crossed the Kongma La pass (5535m) to connect with the trail going to Everest Base Camp in Khumbu valley. There, at altitude 5364m, Šárka and I, got married. Krish brought the wedding clothes and all the necessities for the ceremony and guided us through the Hindu style marriage. What a fantastic day! Something, we will never forget…
In following days, leaving Khumbu valley, we crossed Cho La pass (5420m), hanged around in Gokyo village, surrounded by beautiful sacred lakes and crossed the last saddle on the Three passes trek: Renjo La (5340m), closing the circuit and returning to Namche Bazaar. During the 10 days we stayed at a very high altitude, the weather was fantastic, but then again, clouds filled-in the valleys. As we knew there will be no air traffic between Lukla and Kathmandu, we took the opportunity and stayed a couple of days in Namche, also to cure the infamous “Khumbu a cough”. Krish returned to Kathmandu earlier, to lead another group of trekkers. Due to no planes flying, he went to Jiri to take the bus. All that just in 3 days – very impressive!
Upon our return to Kathmandu, we enjoyed a couple of days in Thamel – the tourist centre of the capital and also sorted out remaining administration related to our marriage, where Raj played a major role in getting us all the papers and stamps we needed. What a lovely Nepalese certificate of marriage we got! The great thing about it was there were no issues with the Czech administration accepting the documents and therefore we’re officially (and happily :-)) married in our country.
What to say at the end? Better holidays and wedding we probably couldn’t have. Thanks to Raj (Rajendra Sapkota) and Krish (Krishna Basnet) from Outdoor Himalayan Treks for this wonderful experience, their endless support and professionalism. The quality of service they provide is way above all other travel agencies I know. Well done!
For everyone who likes mountains, Nepal is the top destination to go to. This was our second visit, but we still don’t have enough. There is so much more to see and explore. I encourage and recommend to all the people who enjoy travelling, nature and mountains in particular, to give it a try. But don’t tell me I haven’t warned you: Nepal is extremely addictive.
In fall 2011 I decided to do Annapurna Circuit in Nepal. My friend recommended Nara as a guide, so I contacted him. Soon, in mid-February 2012 I realized I was in Nepal, going to do solo Annapurna Circuit + ABC with guide Nara and porter Kayla.
The 25-days trekking was an unforgettable experience! Nara is an excellent guide with an excellent sense of humour, picking up the best guest houses with best mountain views, always positive and helpful, arranging everything to go smoothly. And what most important, he managed to show the best parts of Nepalese people, food, and culture!
Even though we had to skip the ABC part due to poor weather conditions, Nara managed to fill the gap with other interesting sights to visit and experience during the trekking.
With an excellent guide and friendly support from the trekking company, this was the best experience of my life!
THANK YOU NARA, KAYLA, and OUTDOOR HIMALAYAN TREKS!
My son Michka comes to Nepal every year since 2008, always with the professional help of OutdoorHimalayan Treks and this year I joined him on the Annapurna Circuit. It has been a really excellent experience thanks to the very good organization (Thanks to Raj) and to the very efficient help of our guides Mingma and Nima, who are now our friends. They allowed us to meet local people and to share some good times in their lives after the long days of walking. Besides, we appreciated the (improving) quality of the food in the lodges where vegetables were always very fresh, directly coming from the garden. The cider and apple brandy of Marpha deserve a special mention, as well as the various local changes (cereals beers). We naturally also enjoyed the great landscapes and views on some of the highest peaks of the world, the variety of vegetation, from tropical to high mountain plants). Acclimatization has been no problem because well managed as we climbed 2 times to Tilicho lake, 3 times to Thorung La and eventually 3 times to Poonhill without any stress!
Besides, we just hope Nepal will go on in improving its waste management program, as well in the towns (with industrial solutions) as in the villages and on the treks where too many people (including tourists and trekkers) just throw away all sorts of packagings. We are optimistic that this can be solved by education initiatives focused on the school kids.
As a conclusion, we really can highly recommend OutdoorHimalayan Treks for your next adventure!
We were a group of 2 people and a guide, we had 22 days to trek in the Annapurna region. We had a great time and our guide did a great job. Especially she (Madhu) was a good support when one in the group felt sick, and we had to change our ordinary itinerary. When we had crossed the Thorung La pass, I and my friend wanted to do the ABC, which was not planned from the beginning. Our guide worked it out so we could make it in the 22 days, by going from Muktinath to Tatopani by jeep and bus.
All in all, it was an amazing experience, and the company provided us with warm jackets, which we definitely needed in the hights!
This was my first trip to Nepal but my friend Marcin was there a few years ago, my friend decided to go to Gokyo valley and ask me to join I was also dreaming to see Mt. Everest for many years, I accept his offer and we went to Nepal, on his first trip he trek alone but he use Outdoor Himalayan Treks in Kathmandu for flight to Lukla. He told me I know someone in Kathmandu but we did not contact them till we arrive Kathmandu, we just went to their office in Thamel and meet Raj he knew Marcin, he was surprised to see Marcin we decide to trek with guide and porter this time we were looking a bit comfortable way. He offers us very good price, our Guide Ganesh and porter Arjun helped us a lot, they took care of us like part of family, every time Ganesh was asking if we have any problems, he is a great person, knowledgeable of area as well Sherpa community and he knows all the Mountain name and heights. We had lots of fun with them, unfortunately, the weather was not very good but we knew that it was not the best time for trekking and flight from Lukla to Kathmandu was cancelled once and we had to wait in Lukla but Ganesh and Arjun took us around still we like that village walking. Maybe one day we will be back again for the trek. We would highly like to recommend OUTDOOR HIMALAYAN TREKS, and thanks to Raj, Ganesh, Arjun for made our trip unforgettable. Good luck.
I have recently returned from 18days trek to Everest base camp and Island peak climbing organized with a very professional company – Outdoor Himalayan Treks. It was a beautiful and challenging trek and one that I can highly recommend. There were great views of Everest, Ama Dablam and hundreds of other peaks as well as summiting on Island peak in adding up there were some great insights into Sherpa society. Luckily weather was good on our summit day as well we had chance to see great sunrise from Kalapather, Outdoor Himalayan Treks were very well-organized and specialized in their approach with Raj from the office keeping us fully up to date via email in the planning stages while our climbing guide Lakpa Sherpa and their friendly crew of porters couldn’t have done more for us during the whole trip- they were really wonderful and inspiring. Our Guide Lakpa has done Island peak summit multiple time and he is very nice and good person, he took care of us very well. I found the trip to be very competitively priced and great worth for money. I have extremely no hesitation for recommend the services of Outdoor Himalaorganizinganising treks and climbing for those thinking of visiting Nepal. Thanks to Raj, Lakpa and the team of OHT.
Wir genossen zi Tage im Annapurnagebiet sehr abwech slungsreiche Tour clurch uer schiedene vegetatienszcnen + Kulturen. Imposanle Bergwelt. Abslecher zum ABC lohnt sich sehr. Fraundliche, hilfsher eile menschen angetroffen. Vieten DANK an Prakash + Arjun fur die schone zeit. Schen Nava auch kennen geleint zu haben.
Wir wunshen allen alles gule fur die Zukunft + viele zufriedene Gaste.
We didn’t forget our trip + trekking in Nepal with you!
Wow ! its difficulty to compress all the great experiences I had with Janu, my guide, into a few photographs. I am glad that we selected a different sort of trek in the Ganesh Himal. Janu was an excellent guide/Porter.
We quickly became friends and the trek took its own life with both of us making decisions based not on a plan, but our surroundings and the words of the villagers. The Ganesh Himal was beautiful. Its surprising that more westerners haven’t trekked there. I was more than happy to sacrifice a hot shower and apple pie for something a bit more authentic. I have no complaints at all, and will definitely be recommending Rajendra and Janu to any friends who wish to have some kinds of Himalayan adventure……..
We went to Ghorepani, Tadapani, Jhinu, and Ghandruk. We trekked for 6 days through the most beautiful landscape with outstanding views of Annapurna and Machaputchre. We met some wonderful people and made good friends with whom we hope to keep in touch.
My guide Rammani Rijal was outstanding knowledgeable about the area, mountains, cultural, and every friend to the local people and of course to us. Porter Sambhu was strong enough to carry our bags. We highly recommend Trek with Outdoor Himalayan Treks.
Great trip, great area, great Tour Guide. Manaslu is much less develops then Annapurna and Everest, but also much less crowded. We got good contact with the local people from that area, which was really nice.
If you want the hot shower and much comfort, don’t do Manaslu, if you want to feel the mountain, see real life go for Manaslu. It Great.
Awesome trek! Fantastic landscape! Very good Guide who gave us a lot of information about the area and culture. We could sit at the warm fire in the kitchen, watching how the food was prepared. The food is actually much more tasty and healthy. Thanks, Gopal for your good guidance. Bichari, thanks lot carrying all our stuff and your truly and caring.
I had a wonderful time with a 1-day rafting trip at Trishuli river and 7 days trekking trip to Ghorepani. The views from Poon Hill was amazing. The people and the scenery along the way was an added bonus.
My Guide Navin was excellent. He was very helpful at all the times and was a great person to talk to during the week-long journey. I will always remember my trekking experience here in Nepal. I hope that one day I can return for another Trek.
Es un guia muy atenio y seruicial, anu cuando habia contratiempos el salia suy bien del paso. A la vuelta en la carretera tuvimos parbecemas y el supo como solucionarlos. No eramos muy expertas pero nos ayudo en todo, el ritmo w marcamos nosotras yel nos aguantaba eso si aunque sea un mini traking ahora mismo tensemos unas agujetas que no nos podemos mover.
Siempre nos acordaremos de Shanta y nuestra auentura, esperamos verle en Espana .
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