Nepal's Wild West: Upper Mustang
A 1,000-kilometre ride to Lo Manthang, the walled former capital of the once-forbidden Kingdom of Upper Mustang, via Muktinath’s pilgrimage site – eleven nights into Nepal’s remote west.
Tell us your trip details and we'll put together a complimentary Stradora Expedition Pack for the journey.
11 nights through Nepal
Eleven nights in a loop from Kathmandu, guided, a thousand kilometres into Upper Mustang on a Royal Enfield.
Upper Mustang is the reason to book this one. It was an independent Buddhist kingdom until 2008, closed to outsiders entirely until 1992, and still requires a restricted-area permit to enter, which the operator includes in the price at five hundred dollars a head.
Bandipur and Pokhara open the route, then Tatopani and Kalopani carry it up the Kali Gandaki, which runs between Annapurna and Dhaulagiri and is the deepest river gorge in the world by some measures. Muktinath follows at 3,800 metres, sacred to Hindus and Buddhists alike, then the road north into Mustang itself: a high desert in the rain shadow of the Himalaya, with eroded cliffs, cave dwellings and the walled former capital of Lo Manthang at the end of it. Nuwakot closes the loop.
Accommodation in single or double rooms, the airport transfers, the Royal Enfield, all the meals, two professional guides, first aid, a chase vehicle with a driver, mechanic, tools and spares, all the fees and permits including the Upper Mustang permit and the drinking water are all included; the Nepal visa, flights, medical insurance, gratuities, alcohol and any damage to the motorcycle are not, and a five-hundred-dollar bike deposit is required. The full day-by-day itinerary sits behind an enquiry form on the operator’s site. The riding is rough and high and the altitude is a genuine consideration. This is the most expensive thing the operator sells and the hardest to reach any other way.
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Images selected by Stradora to represent the journey.
What's included
- Single or double occupancy luxury accommodation
- airport transfers
- a Royal Enfield motorcycle
- all meals
- two professional guides
- first aid
- chase vehicle with driver
- mechanic
- tools and spare parts
- all fees and permits
- including the USD500 per-person permit to enter the protected Upper Mustang region
- all drinking water
Not included
- Nepal visa
- flights to Nepal
- medical insurance
- phone/internet charges
- driver/guide/mechanic gratuities
- motorcycle damage (USD500 bike security deposit required)
- alcohol
Ready to drive it?
11 days, from £4,454pp
