Highlights

• Visit one of the most famous and beautiful temples of Nepal, Muktinath Temple

• Wash off your sins and bad karma by showering in 108 waterspouts of Muktinath temple

• Harmony between Buddhist and Hindu religion

• Observe the Himalayan view of various Lofty Mountains and Peaks including Annapurna and Dhaulagiri

• Observe the beautiful Thakali and Tibetan Cultures

• Mustang, the former Kingdom and the only place known as desert of Nepal

• Experience the windiest and most beautiful town, Jomsom

Muktinath Pilgrimage tour is a holy tour which takes you to the sacred place of salvation, Muktinath temple. Muktinath is one of the gateways to one of the most famous religious places for the Hindus and Buddhists in Nepal. The beauty of this place makes it worth visiting once in a lifetime. Jomsom is a major central attraction in the Annapurna region, though it is situated in a difficult topography. Altitude wise Muktinath is located at 3800 m and distance wise it is 48 km away from north east of Jomsom. Muktinath is visited more by the domestic tourists as it is one of the famous religious places of Nepal. But the beauty of the terrains and the landscapes surrounding the Jomsom Muktinath area is attracting more and more international tourists lately.

Muktinath Temple has a pagoda style design and is believed to be dedicated to Lord Vishnu. Hindus regard Muktinath as the incarnation of Lord Vishnu whereas Buddhists regard it as Buddha. Muktinath is the only shrine where the combined Hindu and Buddhist priest is found. When you see 108 waterspouts behind this beautiful temple in the shape of a cow head, you will have a feeling that you have self-imposed yourself in a mythological place. It is believed that when you bath through those 108 waterspouts all of your sins are washed by the holy water of the spouts. Muktinath draws a lot of visitors during the festival season of Janaipurnima.

Muktinath is considered to be one of the 24 Tantric places in the Tibetan Buddhism. According to the tradition, Guru Rinpoche, who founded the Tibetan Buddhism, stopped here to worship and call the evil goddesses and Dakinis on his way to Tibet. For the Hindus, the importance of the shrine is a bit different. Hindu Vaishnavites consider the Muktinath shrine to be one of the eight most sacred shrines on earth. They consider the Muktinath as one of the 108 holy places on earth where a person should worship lord Vishnu. The desert and arid beauty of Mustang will steal your heart and it is mesmerizing.

Muktinath pilgrimage tour is suitable for every kinds of travelers, trekkers, researchers, believers and the explorers alike. Whether you want a quick break or getaway or you want something extraordinary to spend your short time in Nepal, this holy religious or spiritual Muktinath tour is for you. Since the vehicles and the flights can easily get to this place, Muktinath pilgrimage tour has it all for you to serve you the best in the Annapurna region of Nepal.

Please also check our most popular easy tour to Lower Mustang, Mustang motorbike tour

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour Outline Itinerary

Day 1: Drive from Pokhara to Tatopani 1,190 m, BLD, Teahouse

Day 2: Drive from Tatopani to Kagbeni 2,804 m, BLD, Teahouse

Day 3: Drive from Kagbeni to Muktinath 3,800 m, BLD, Teahouse 

Day 4: Visit Muktinath Temple, explore around and drive back to Jomsom, BLD, Teahouse

Day 5: Drive back from Jomsom to Pokhara, BL.

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour Detailed Itinerary

BLD denotes Breakfast Lunch Dinner

Day 1:Drive from Pokhara to Tatopani 1,190 m, BLD, Teahouse

Your Muktinath pilgrimage tour will start early in the morning with 4WD jeep. After driving about 4 hours you will reach Beni through the river bank of Kali Gandaki. There, you will have your breakfast and explore the beautiful Beni bazaar located between two hills and Kali Gandaki flowing through the middle of the market. Then driving alongside the Kali Gandaki River you reach Tatopani in few more hours. The first day of your trip ends here and you will stay overnight in Tatopani. You can also choose to fly from Pokhara to Jomsom to make your Mustang pilgrimage tour shorter and easier.

Day 2:Drive from Tatopani to Kagbeni 2,804 m, BLD, Teahouse

After breakfast, your journey starts again and will reach Ghasa viewing the spectacular view of Kali Gandaki River. There you will have your meal and next stop will be Jomsom at an altitude of 2,743 meters. Windy Jomsom is different, and you will get the fascinating view of Jomsom bazaar. Here, you get a chance to view the snow-covered peaks, such as Nilgiri and Dhaulagiri. You will feel at the cutting edge, that is, when you see these scaling peaks rising and when your unexpected eyes encounter the depth of the world’s deepest gorge. From here you continue to Kagbeni. At an altitude of nearly 3000 m, Kagbeni is located at a perfect destination with the backdrops of mountains and deserted hills, unexpectedly different, and a remote place like this is always looked down but occasional night in such a place is inarguably the best with wonderful feelings.

Day 3:Drive from Kagbeni to Muktinath 3,800 m, BLD, Teahouse

After breakfast, you will ascend to a dramatic height as you reach Muktinath, which is a famous pilgrimage site for both Hindus and the Buddhists. It is going to be the easiest and the best day of your whole tour. Once you reach Muktinath, it’s the time to explore around the temples and also the villages.

Day 4:Visit Muktinath Temple, explore around and drive back to Jomsom, BLD, Teahouse

Today’s chore will be to explore the area and see an eternal flame. For the Hindus, the importance of the shrine is a bit different. Hindu Vaishnavites consider the Muktinath temple to be one of the eight most sacred shrines on earth and one of the 108 holy places on earth where a person should worship lord Vishnu. After spending enough wonderful moments in Muktinath, drive back to Jomsom to stay the night.

Day 5:Drive back from Jomsom to Pokhara, BL.

After breakfast, you take an early morning drive back to Pokhara. We have come to the end of our spiritual journey and the celebratory dinner and the drinks await us.

Cost for 1 PAX: $580 /-

Cost for 2 or more PAX: $490 per person

Note: Trip cost varies with the group sizes.

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour Cost Breakdown

Cost Includes

• All private ground transportation throughout the journey

• Sightseeing entirely with entrance fees

• Teahouse lodges with all meals

• Hygienic meals with clean drinking water

• An experienced guide, porter and their expenses

• ACAP permit and TIMS card

• Company t-shirt and certificate of appreciation

• Comprehensive medical kit bag

• Local government taxes and VAT

Cost excludes

• Personal expenses

• Food and accommodation behind schedule

• Travel and emergency rescue insurance

• Gratuities to the staffs (mandatory)

• Duffel bag, walking stick, down jacket and sleeping bag (provided if needed but to be returned after)

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour Useful Information

Customized Trips and Trip departure

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour departs from Pokhara as per our fixed departure dates. You can join any available fixed departure groups if you are a solo or small group travelers if you wish to, when the trips cannot be customized.

But if you are in a private group, fixed departure dates are not suitable for you and so you need to choose your own dates and packages, when you can customize the tour as per your travel needs. For further information, please kindly contact your own friendly neighbor, Nature Lovers Treks and Tours.

Accommodations during trek

You will be staying in the teahouse lodges or guesthouses during the tour.

Nature Lovers Treks and Tours has the best accommodation arrangement for you from the beginning to the end. The rooms will be clean and comfy. Our entire accommodations will be on twin-sharing basis as you can see, so you have to let us know if others; let’s say if you want triple or quadruple sharing or if you want a double bed, etc. There will be extra charge for the single supplement.

Route Map and Company T-shirt

Nature Lovers Treks and Tours offers you a complimentary trekking map and the company t-shirts.

Your trekking and tour guides and porters

Nature Lovers Treks and Tours has the best guides and porters in the whole tourism industry. We can guarantee you on that. Ask yourselves a question. What do you look for in a guide and a porter? Are they fully insured and are they paid well? Well, they are the staffs of Nature Lovers Treks and Tours so they are hundred percent happy with their treatment by the company. They are experienced, licensed and knowledgeable in the field. They are well paid and fully insured for their journey as well as for the medicals.

Now, let’s talk about our backbones. The leader or a guide should have a significant knowledge in the climbing and trekking so that he can wonderfully and safely lead you, clearing any obstacles on the way. We, Nature Lovers Treks and Tours can proudly say that our guides (climbing, assistant, trekking guide) are highly qualified for the role. They are fully trained, experienced and licensed. They have undergone through a whole lot of training to make themselves useful in various situations and to make your journey a smooth and pleasant one.

Our guide knows the local areas, the cultures, the traditions and the lifestyles much more than anyone do. Some of the things he tells you, might even be hard to find in the travel guide books. Depending upon the situations and weather conditions, the daily plans might change slightly which when happens, he will inform you beforehand. You should always be flexibly ready to accommodate to your guides’ instructions. Let him know if you have any health problems as well since he will act accordingly to the situation. Depending upon the group size, we will also provide you assistant guides and extra Sherpas if needed.

Our porters are always fully equipped with the gears they need and as per the company policy, they are always insured and completely looked after. They are our backbone. We allow maximum weight of 25/30 kg to be carried by one porter. They are the strongest in our group with less communication skills. We also closely work with IPPG {International Porter Protection Group} and follow their ethics and guidelines.

Your safety

Nature Lovers Treks and Tours puts your safety as the top priority. We provide you our own comprehensive first aid medical kit bag along with the professional team of guides and porters. We are always in communication with our field team members to keep track of your safety and concerns. Your entire journey will be monitored by us and we make sure you enjoy your journey in full scale. We are available 24/7 for your health and safety checks during Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour.

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour Frequently Asked Questions

How much does the Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour cost?

The cost of the Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour varies from $300-$600 depending upon the number of days you choose to do the tour. The longer the tour, more expensive it will become. Similarly, the price will differ with the accommodation choices and group sizes also. Normally, Nature Lovers Treks and Tours offers a comprehensive package which is inclusive of all the cost and expenses for the entire journey. However, you could also choose to buy only service-based package from us when we will be providing you only the supporting field staffs plus trekking or tour permits and you have to arrange the rest by yourselves.

How is the Accommodation during the Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

In Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour, we will provide you the teahouse accommodations. A teahouse is typically a mountain lodge which is a combination of a lodge or a guest house and a restaurant or a café with basic furniture and interiors suitable for the social hangout. Some teahouses even have attached bathrooms and the central heating furnace. Some of the teahouses provide the European toilets these days while Asian style of toilets are available in every teahouses. Hot showers are available but on extra cost. Sleeping blankets are usually provided but we recommend you to carry your own sleeping bags for the hygienic purpose {can be arranged on request}. At the same time, it’s better to carry your own toiletries including the towels.

What are the permits that I need for Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

For Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour, you will need to make two permits: ACAP permit (Annapurna Conservation Area Project) and TIMS Card (Trekkers' Information Management System).

How does this tipping system in Nepal works and do I have to tip?

Tipping is not compulsory for Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour however tipping is all about showing your gratitude and appreciation. We care about our staffs in the fields so we expect you to look after them in return for them looking after you throughout your journey. They are your closest friend in the remotest parts and also your protector whenever anything seems to happen to you. So tipping is highly expected and we’ve made it mandatory too. The amount of gratuities can be determined by yourselves. Normally, a guide expects around $5 or more per day per person while a porter expects $4 or more per day per person.

Can I charge my phones, batteries or other electronic devices in Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

You can easily charge your electronic devices during Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour. Don’t forget to buy a plug adapter or socket fittings before you leave Pokhara.

Is there WiFi and mobile signal on the Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour route has good mobile network coverage, thanks to the Nepalese telecommunication companies called Ncell and NTC. You can buy one of these Sim cards from any local phone shops in Kathmandu or Pokhara. It is wiser to buy a sim card with around 4 GB data in Kathmandu or Pokhara and use the mobile data in the tour to avoid paying extra by buying WiFi on the trek.

WiFi is available on the teahouses in Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour route. However, the signal varies from place to place and please don’t expect to receive the fast data coverage in the tour.

When is the best time to travel to Mustang Muktinath?

Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour can be done throughout the year. However in average, Spring {March, April and May} and Autumn {September, October and November} are the best times or seasons to trek in Mustang Muktinath. Spring and Autumn are known as the Peak season or Busy season in Nepal. It’s because the temperature is moderate during these seasons and the best panoramic mountain views are guaranteed while during other Summer {June, July and August} and Winter {December, January and February} season, the clear weather is not guaranteed. But if you are an explorer, a photographer and a peace lover, less busy season can also be the right time to do Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour.

Do I have to worry about the altitude sickness in Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

The itinerary of our Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour is perfectly designed by Nature Lovers Treks and Tours and has separated enough time in the places to let the body acclimatize well in high altitudes. As long as you follow the guide, you should be fine. Altitude sickness in fact can affect anyone regardless of the age or the fitness level, so it is very important to walk slowly and gradually as you go higher. Learn more in details about Altitude Sickness to prepare yourselves for the upcoming Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour.

Do I need to be healthy and physically fit for Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

When it comes to traveling to the mountains, health and fitness of a person plays a vital role. If you are a healthy person without any serious medical problems, Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour is for you but if you have any sorts of medical issues, please consult to your doctor before coming to Nepal for the tour.

Now when it comes to the fitness level required, Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour demands normal physical fitness.

What kind of food items or meals can I eat on Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

Full board meals or full meals are included during the trek. Tea and coffee will also be provided during the entire trip. During the tour, you will have your breakfast and dinner in the same teahouse where you spend the night while the lunch will be served en route towards the next destination of the day. There are a varieties of choices to choose from; Nepalese, Tibetan, Indian, Continental, etc.

The most common and the highly recommended food during the Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour is typical Nepali Dal Bhat {rice and lentil}. You can also eat other food items such as seasonal vegetables, noodles and spaghetti, pastas, pizzas and French fries, soups, etc. depending upon the availability. For the beverage, you can either choose warm, hot or cold beverages; soft drinks, beer and hard drinks. For the breakfast, you can order cereals, breads, noodle soups, egg dishes, etc.

Do I need a travel insurance for Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

Travel insurance is a must when you go to Muktinath. Therefore before you come to Nepal, please make sure you have your insurance documents with you since our insurance companies cannot insure foreign nationals. Because of the reason that they cover all the expenses, if you face some unfortunate happenings and you have to be rescued or medically assisted during the trip or if your belongings are lost or stolen. We strongly advise you to take out an insurance which covers any medical risks up to 3800 meter as well as the medical evacuation from the mountains.

What gears and equipment do I need to pack for Muktinath Pilgrimage Tour?

Choosing the right gear and equipment is important as well for the successful trek to Mustang Muktinath. Pack the right gears and equipment but remember, packing as light as possible is the best way to go when trekking to Mustang Muktinath. You should read this What to take for travel to get all the details on what you need to pack or carry.