Manaslu Circuit Trek

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This trip was organized by Unique Adventure International, Pvt.Ltd, 04-22-October 2010 whose manager is Mr. Khum Bahadur Subedi. The Guide was Lapka Sherpa: the only Porter was Dawa Sherpa. Both these men were with me in 2009 for the Manaslu circuit trek.

The other client was Jewel McKee from Alexandria, Virginia, whom I have known since 1998, when we made the trek in Bhutan, with Mountain Travel* Sobek.

On 01 October, I flew with United (UA 765) to Los Angeles, in order to join the Thai Airlines flight (TG 795) to Bangkok. After a three hour wait in Bangkok, on Sunday, 03 October, I took the Thai Airways flight to Kathmandu, where I was met by Mr. Khum Subedi, who accompanied me to the Hotel Manang in Thamel.

The plan was drive from Kathamandu to Syabru Besi (140km): trek east, up the Langtang Valley to Kyanjin Gompa, return down the Langtang Valley, to Thulo Syabru, and then trek southeast to Gosainkund, and on to Sudarijal, which is only 20km away from Kathmandu.

Perhaps because of the proximity of Langtang to Kathmandu, I deceived myself into thinking that this would be an easy trek. It wasn't, each day presented a new challenge of extreme ascents or descents of 500m or more. In addition, the trails were frequently long approaching 20 km on some days. Many days we trekked above 400m. These conditions were not helped by the weather, which was frequently cloudy, including two days of rain. From 11 October, when we climbed Tserko Ri, I acquired a cold that continued until the end of my first week back in Colorado.

We are very very happy with them & we will again to visit in Nepal near future. If someone would like to visit in Nepal,Tibet,Bhutan & India contact his website,email or phone as per your interest.

 

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I had a wonderful trekking tour around the Manaslu with my friends. Unique adventure had organized everything very well and provided us with a great guide, Lakpa, and Porter, Phurba, Nima and Lama, with whom we spent a marvellous time. Also the time before and after the trekking in Kathmandu was very well organized. Unique adventure gave us a super nice holiday with great impressions and experiences. Many thanks for that!

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- About the trek: Our trek was on May 2022. The trekking offers fantastic views of the best Annapurna and Manaslu region. It takes you through a relative off-the-beaten remote path, escape the masses, and see the beautiful landscapes, snow-capped mountains, high glacier lakes and spot the most stunning flora and fauna. Especially, the circuit passes many Nepalese and Tibetan cultural heritage sites, which gives you an authentic insight in the local Nepalese culture. One highlight to note is that the route is a lot less tourists, and this sets the trek apart from its busier neighbours the Annapurna Circuit and EBC. People said Manaslu Circuit is everything the Annapurna Circuit is, but it allows for more genuine trekking experience. - About the service: Mr. Khum (Director) was very helpful and informative. He extended his assistance and patience to support me with those back-and-forth questions. Our guide Raju Kandel and porter Purna were very friendly and helpful too. They have been of unforgettable service to us. Especially Raju, his care, support and humor did make our long trip more interesting and meaningful. His effort in Lho to arrange for us joining in a blessing ceremony at monastery - totally touched our hearts and exceeded our expectation. We were also impressed by his knowledge about local culture, environment and the routes. Anything you want to or think about during the trek, just talk to Raju, he will do everything he can to make your trip as pleasant and safe as possible. Yes, he really cares about his clients. Highlight note: the price is competitive while the food and accommodation are best. (We always get a better room comparing to other trekkers of other agency. Raju knows how to pick a best view room). The Manaslu Circuit Trek has been one of the greatest experiences of us and our Dad (in heart). Much appreciated Mr. Khum, Raju, Purna. Unique Adventure Intl is such a best choice for us in Nepal.

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Our trek was on May 2022. The trekking offers fantastic views of the best Annapurna and Manaslu region. It takes you through a relative off-the-beaten remote path, escape the masses, and see the beautiful landscapes, snow-capped mountains, high glacier lakes and spot the most stunning flora and fauna. Especially, the circuit passes many Nepalese and Tibetan cultural heritage sites, which gives you an authentic insight in the local Nepalese culture. One highlight to note is that the route is a lot less tourists, and this sets the trek apart from its busier neighbours the Annapurna Circuit and EBC. People said Manaslu Circuit is everything the Annapurna Circuit is, but it allows for more genuine trekking experience. Mr. Khum (Director) was very helpful and informative. He extended his assistance and patience to support me with those back-and-forth questions. Our guide Raju Kandel and porter Purna were very friendly and helpful too. They have been of unforgettable service to us. Especially Raju, his care, support and humor did make our long trip more interesting and meaningful. His effort in Lho to arrange for us joining in a blessing ceremony at monastery - totally touched our hearts and exceeded our expectation. We were also impressed by his knowledge about local culture, environment and the routes. Anything you want to or think about during the trek, just talk to Raju, he will do everything he can to make your trip as pleasant and safe as possible. Yes, he really cares about his clients. Highlight note: the price is competitive while the food and accommodation are best. (We always get a better room comparing to other trekkers of other agency. Raju knows how to pick a best view room). The Manaslu Circuit Trek has been one of the greatest experiences of us and our Dad (in heart). Much appreciated Mr. Khum, Raju, Purna. Unique Adventure Intl is such a best choice for us in Nepal.

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We had a fantastic time on our Manaslu circuit trek with our guide Raju. It was really easy and straightforward to book our trek, the company provided us with lots of information beforehand and were very responsive to our questions. They met us at the airport and organised everything for us. Our guide was amazing, and flexible and made sure we had a great time each day - he really looked after us, and we felt lucky to have him. Raju was very accommodating with some slight changes in the itinerary as we went along. The trek itself can be difficult at times, steep on some days with high elevations (we needed an extra acclimatisation day at one point and Raju was able to fit it into the itinerary with short notice). We’d recommend going over the itinerary with the guide before hand, they have excellent information on each village and day’s walk. We went in early April and were lucky with the weather and had some great mountain views, especially in the morning time. The villages we stayed in were lovely, and the people were always nice. The guesthouses get more basic and cold as you climb up, and the food is the same almost everywhere so might be an idea to some vitamins, supplements and snacks. One of us had issues with altitude sickness from 3000 metres up, so it is a good idea to take it slow and to be aware of that. Overall, we had a great time and would highly recommend both Unique Adventures and Raju!

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Went on the Manaslu trek with Rupla and Ramesh, the trip was great, better than I expected. both the guide and porter were great and very helpful. I want to go again on a trek-Makalu probably

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Me and my friend did the Manaslu circuit trek with Uniqe adventures and it was indeed UNIQUE! Had an amazing experience with our experienced guide Dev Shrestha. His English is great and he’s full with knowledge . 10/10 The whole paper process and the bureaucracy was smooth and wonderful. Highly recommend.

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My wife and I highly recommend this experience. We have nothing but amazing things to say about the trek we did, our guide Raju Kandel, and the company Unique Adventure International and its owner and manager Khum Subedi. I will review all three here: I will start by describing our trek. We booked a 22 day trek of the Manaslu circuit followed by the Annapurna circuit, including Poon Hill and ending in Pokhara, from March 15 to April 5. We took a local bus from Kathmandu to Machhakhola to start the Manaslu circuit. It took us 11 days to complete this circuit to Dharapani, which is where we started the Annapurna circuit. We did not trek the Tsum Valley due to time constraints. The main Manaslu cuicuit was spectacular. Only one day comprised of Jeep road trekking for portions of the day. Many epic suspension bridges, many colourful villages along the way. We were impressed by the mission statement of the Manaslu conservation Area Project in reducing environmental impact of trekking and supporting the local people. We met locals along the way, and where even invited into a local home for traditional Tibetan tea and Sisnu (nettle) soup that we collected on the trail. We got to partake in a local celebration including dancing and community Momo feast. We visiting the tranquil monastery in Lho, and passed by other monasteries with traditional music and ritual. The accomodations were satisfactory, we typically were able to pay for a hot shower expect at the highest elevation villages in the 2 night prior to Larke pass. The food was way beyond my expectations. We ate Dal Bhat every day, sometimes twice a day, and did not tire of this dish. Each restaurant had their own variation on the dish and the fresh vegetables were delicious. The day of the pass was difficult but the views are spectacular. Birendra lake was spectacular and worth a visit. The Annapurna section boasted more panoramic mountain views, different type of forest scenery and slightly more polished accommodations. It had more trekkers than Manaslu and more of the trek included the Jeep Road, however at most we would see 5-10 cars per day on the road. Thorong La pass was also a memorable experience. We took a bus from Muktinath to Tatopani and I do not think we missed much skipping this portion of the trek (dry arid and dusty area). From Tatopani ato Ghorepani was spectacular jungle and rhododendron Forrest trekking. Overall it was the most varied, beautiful, culturally immersive, and delicious trek I have done. Our guide Raju Kandel was fantastic and went beyond what I expected from a guide. He was a joy to trek with and very professional. He took our safety as top concern, regarding altitude symptom monitoring, and how to navigate around the animals that share the path for examples. We layered learned he has experience in mountain search and rescue. He has done the Manaslu circuit for many years, and has a relationship with the locals in the guest houses and restaurants along the way. He was able to call ahead to reserve rooms at the best accommodations, pick the most delicious Dal Bhat restaurants, plan the days in order to see key sights along the way, network with locals we met along the path to translate our questions and even get an offer for a visit into a home for food and tea. He taught us Nepali trekking songs and key phrases. He learned what our interests and preferences where along the trek and was able to tailor the experience for us. He got us into the kitchen at most smaller Tea Houses on Manaslu circuit to witness the cooking our our meals. Without Raju as our guide, our experience would not have been as personal or immersive. Unique Aventure International was a a fantastic agency to book our trek with. Khum Subedi, the past president of the Trekking Agencies Association or Nepal, was friendly, professional and went the extra mile. He personally picked us up at our hotel on the first day of the trek. He helped us navigate an issue we had with another trekking agency (and luckily we ended up not booking with the other agency), again going the extra mile. He ensures a debrief meeting with his trekkers, demonstrating his commitment to providing the best experience for the trekkers that book through his organization. Overall very pleased with the entire experience. It was the adventure of a lifetime.

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We had an incredible time, and have nothing but positive things to say about Unique Adventure International and our guide, Raju Kandel. We combined the Manaslu and Annapurna circuits, and our itinerary was well planned for safe acclimatization, spending time in beautiful places, and successfully completing the high passes. Our guides experience and relationship with guesthouse owners along the way enhanced our experience, and the choices of accommodation were excellent. Would highly recommend Unique Adventure.