Langtang vs Poon Hill: The Best Short Trek in Nepal

If you have about a week in Nepal and want a proper trek, these are the two most common answers. Ghorepani Poon Hill is a four-day loop near Pokhara that tops out at 3,210 m, with a famous sunrise over Dhaulagiri and the Annapurnas. Langtang Valley is a seven- to ten-day walk north of Kathmandu up a glacier valley to Kyanjin Gompa at about 3,870 m, with a day hike to 4,773 m or higher.

Short answer: choose Poon Hill if this is your first trek, you have five days or less, or you're walking with children, because it stays low and the lodges are never far apart. Choose Langtang if you have a full week or more, want to stand among big glaciers, and are fit enough for long uphill days at altitude.

The days, altitudes and permit figures below come from our Langtang Valley and Ghorepani Poon Hill trek pages. We checked them against the Nepal Tourism Board, the conservation-area permit office and Nepali news reports, and we checked road access after the August 2026 floods in Rasuwa. Roads and fees change, so confirm both with your guide before you travel.

Langtang and Poon Hill at a glance

Dollar figures are at about NPR 154 per US dollar.

The routes

Langtang Valley: up the glacier valley to Kyanjin Gompa

Langtang is an out-and-back walk along one valley. From Syabrubesi the trail climbs beside the Langtang Khola through oak, rhododendron and bamboo forest to Lama Hotel at about 2,470 m. The next day the forest thins, the valley opens out and Langtang Lirung comes into view. You sleep at Langtang village at about 3,430 m. A short day past long mani walls brings you to Kyanjin Gompa at about 3,870 m, a small settlement with a monastery and a cheese factory, ringed by glaciers.

Most itineraries spend a full day at Kyanjin Gompa. Early that morning you climb Kyanjin Ri (about 4,773 m) for views over Langtang Lirung and the glaciers. Stronger walkers choose Tserko Ri (about 4,984 m), a longer and higher climb; our Langtang with Tserko Ri itinerary builds in an extra day for it. Then you walk back down the same valley in two days.

Ghorepani Poon Hill: a loop through the Annapurna foothills

Poon Hill is a loop west of Pokhara. A jeep takes you to the trailhead near Hile or Tikhedhunga, and the trail then climbs a long stone staircase to the Magar village of Ulleri at about 2,070 m. Day two goes through rhododendron and oak forest to Ghorepani, a ridge-top village of lodges at about 2,870 m.

On day three you leave Ghorepani in the dark, at about 4:30–5 am, and climb to Poon Hill (3,210 m) for sunrise. You then walk along the forested ridge to Tadapani, and on the last morning drop to Ghandruk, a large Gurung village with stone-roofed houses, for the jeep back to Pokhara.

Altitude: the biggest difference

This is what should decide it for many people. Altitude sickness becomes a risk from about 2,500 m. Health guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises that, once you're above about 2,750 m, you raise your sleeping height by no more than about 500 m a day.

Poon Hill barely reaches that zone. You sleep no higher than about 2,870 m and only visit 3,210 m briefly at dawn. Mild headaches or breathlessness on the climb are possible, but serious altitude sickness is uncommon.

Langtang takes you properly high. The standard day from Lama Hotel to Langtang village gains close to 1,000 m of sleeping height, more than that guideline. You then spend three nights between 3,400 m and 3,900 m, and the day hike goes to 4,700–5,000 m. The acclimatisation day at Kyanjin Gompa matters. If you're worried, ask your guide about splitting the climb to Langtang village with a night partway up. Turn back if headache, nausea or breathlessness get worse.

How hard are they?

Poon Hill is one of the easiest multi-day treks in Nepal, but it is not flat. The climb from Tikhedhunga to Ulleri is a staircase of stone steps that reports put at around 3,000 or more, and many people find it the hardest part of the trek. Walking poles help. Anyone who can manage a long day of hill walking will cope, and many families do it with active children.

Langtang is moderate, with no technical sections, but the days are longer and steeper. The first two days are almost all uphill, often on rough steps, at four to seven hours a day. The thinner air above 3,500 m makes even easy ground feel slow. It suits people who are used to full days on their feet.

Getting there, and the 2026 floods

Poon Hill is the easier trip to reach. Kathmandu to Pokhara is a day by tourist bus or a short domestic flight. From Pokhara a jeep reaches the trailhead in about 1.5–2 hours, and jeeps wait in Ghandruk for the ride back.

Langtang needs no flight, but the road matters. Normally you drive north from Kathmandu via Trishuli and Dhunche, the park headquarters, to Syabrubesi. That is a long day, typically 7–9 hours by local bus, less by private jeep.

On 26 August 2026 floods on the Bhotekoshi river cut the road and swept away bridges at Betrawati and Syabrubesi, along with parts of Syabrubesi's market. The upper valley and Langtang village were not directly hit. Since then:

• A Bailey bridge at Betrawati reopened the road into Rasuwa district in mid-October, and vehicles with trekkers have started running from Dhunche towards Langtang.
• As of 11 October a replacement bridge at Syabrubesi was still being prepared.
• Local residents repaired trail sections below Lama Hotel and opened a two-day alternative walk from Dhunche through Thulo Syabru, which joins the normal route at Bamboo and Lama Hotel.
• The Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal (TAAN) reported the Langtang and Kyanjin area safe for trekking on 8 October, with jeeps to Dhunche or Thulo Syabru as the way in.

So for autumn 2026, expect to start from Dhunche or Thulo Syabru rather than Syabrubesi, and allow an extra day. Poon Hill was not affected: TAAN listed the Ghandruk–Ghorepani route as operating normally in the same update.

Permits and the guide rule

Both treks cost the same in permits, NPR 5,000 (≈ US$32):

• Langtang: Langtang National Park entry, NPR 3,000 (≈ US$19), checked on the road at Dhunche.
• Poon Hill: Annapurna Conservation Area (ACAP) entry, NPR 3,000 (≈ US$19), usually bought in Pokhara and checked at the bottom of the Ulleri staircase and in Ghorepani.
• Both: a TIMS card, NPR 2,000 (≈ US$13), which only a registered trekking agency can issue.

Both routes are on the Nepal Tourism Board's list of treks that need a licensed guide and an agency-issued TIMS card. The board names the "Langtang Trek" and the "Poon Hill-ABC Trek". So, short or not, you can't legally walk either one alone. Our post Do you need a guide to trek in Nepal? explains the rule and how it is enforced, and our permits guide lists every fee.

Scenery and culture

Poon Hill is about one view. From the top at sunrise you look across a long line of peaks, with Dhaulagiri to the west, the Annapurna range ahead and Machapuchare (Fishtail) to the east. The rest of the trek is forest, terraced fields and villages, and in March and April the rhododendrons flower red and pink. Ghandruk is a good place to see Gurung village life.

Langtang is about being inside the mountains, not looking at them from across a valley. The upper valley is wide and open, with yak pastures, stone walls, prayer flags and glaciers coming down to the trail. The people are mostly Tamang, with strong Tibetan Buddhist traditions. At Kyanjin Gompa you can buy yak cheese from a factory first set up with Swiss help in the 1950s and rebuilt after 2015.

Langtang also carries a heavy recent history. On 25 April 2015 the earthquake that struck Nepal broke loose a mass of ice and rock from Langtang Lirung. The avalanche buried almost all of Langtang village within minutes. Nearly 300 people died in the valley, villagers, visiting Nepalis and foreign trekkers among them. The survivors rebuilt their village nearby, and today the trail passes the debris that covers the old one. The new village and its lodges were largely rebuilt by the people who live there. Walk through quietly, and if you want to ask about that day, let your guide judge whether it's welcome.

Lodges and crowds

Poon Hill has more lodges and busier trails. Ghorepani and Ghandruk are large lodge villages, some rooms have attached bathrooms, and menus are long. In October and November Ghorepani fills up the night before sunrise, and the top is busy at sunrise. Your guide may book ahead.

Langtang is quieter, with fewer, plainer lodges in each settlement and prices that rise as you climb. Both are teahouse treks with twin rooms and a heated dining room.

When to go

Both are at their best in spring (March to May for Langtang, March and April for Poon Hill) and autumn (October and November). Autumn usually has the clearest skies. Poon Hill also works in December, when it's cold at night but often clear and quieter. Langtang's upper valley is very cold in winter. During the June to September monsoon both treks are wet and leech-prone, cloud often hides the peaks, and roads to both trailheads can be blocked by landslides. Our month-by-month guide has more detail.

Making it longer

Both treks have good extensions if you have more days:

• Langtang + Gosainkunda. On the way out, turn off at Thulo Syabru and climb to the sacred lakes of Gosainkunda before descending to Dhunche. Our Langtang and Gosainkunda itinerary takes 12 days. The lakes also make a shorter trek on their own: see Gosainkunda Lake.
• Tamang Heritage Trail. A lower loop of Tamang villages west of Syabrubesi, topping out at about 3,165 m. See the Tamang Heritage Trail. Parts of it, around Timure and Thuman, were damaged in the 2026 floods, so check the current state before you plan it.
• Poon Hill + Annapurna Base Camp. From Tadapani or Ghandruk you can carry on north into the Annapurna Sanctuary to Annapurna Base Camp at 4,130 m instead of heading back to Pokhara.
• Mardi Himal instead. If you like Poon Hill's short length but want more height and fewer people, the Mardi Himal ridge climbs to a viewpoint at about 4,500 m below Machapuchare in five to seven days from Pokhara.

One more short option: the Everest View trek reaches Namche Bazaar and Khumjung in six days for a first sight of Everest. It needs the Lukla flight and costs more in permits. All these routes are on our Langtang, Annapurna and Everest region pages.

Which should you choose?

• You have five days or less: Poon Hill. Langtang needs at least a week, more in autumn 2026 while the Syabrubesi bridge is out.
• It's your first trek, or you're with children: Poon Hill. It's lower, shorter and has lodges in every village.
• You want to be among glaciers and high peaks: Langtang.
• You're worried about altitude: Poon Hill. Langtang takes you above 3,800 m for several nights.
• You'd rather avoid crowds: Langtang, or Mardi Himal on the Pokhara side.
• You don't want to fly or travel far from Kathmandu: Langtang starts closer to Kathmandu, but it's a long drive. Poon Hill means getting to Pokhara first.

Finding a guide

Both treks need a licensed guide and a TIMS card through an agency. Every guide on xTrekka has had their trekking licence and citizenship document checked by our team before their profile goes live. Browse guides by region and language, read reviews from trekkers they've led, and write to the guide directly. For Langtang, ask how they're getting to the trailhead this season; for Poon Hill, ask where they plan to stay the night before sunrise. Our post on guide costs shows typical day rates. You agree the route, dates and price with the guide, and xTrekka takes no cut of a trek you arrange that way.

Sources

• Nepal Tourism Board: TIMS card and guide-required routes, park and conservation-area entry fees
• National Trust for Nature Conservation: ACAP e-permit and fees
• Langtang National Park fee: Ekantipur, January 2026
• Nepal Rastra Bank: reference exchange rates
• August 2026 floods and access: Kathmandu Post, Langtang cut off (September 2026), Kathmandu Post, Betrawati Bailey bridge (October 2026), Onlinekhabar/RSS, tourists return to Langtang (October 2026), Republica, locals reopen the Langtang route (October 2026), The Tourism Times, TAAN trekking update (October 2026)
• 2015 Langtang avalanche: Himal Southasian, Nepali Times, Al Jazeera
• Kyanjin cheese factory: Nepali Times, Columbia Climate School, State of the Planet
• Altitude guidance: CDC, travel to high altitudes, CDC Yellow Book, high-altitude travel
• Altitudes and route details: Wikipedia, Ghorepani and Poon Hill, Journey Era, Tserko Ri, Marvel Treks, Langtang altitudes, Peregrine Treks, Kyanjin Gompa, Third Rock Adventures, Kathmandu to Syabrubesi, Everest Trekking Routes, Kathmandu to Syabrubesi, kimkim, Pokhara to Ghorepani

Last checked 20 October 2026.