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Mustang Tiji Festival Trek

  • Duration: 18
  • Destination: Nepal
Mustang Tiji Festival Trek
  • Destination Nepal
  • Activity Trekking
  • Trip Grade Moderate
  • Max. Elevation 4010m
  • Best Time Mar - May & Sep - Dec
  • Group Size 2 - 30 People

Overview

Mustang Tiji Festival Trek Overview

Mustang Tiji Festival Trek is one of the distinct treks that should be pre-planned early. A little long time for the decision means you miss the date for the year. Unlike other treks in Nepal, Mustang Tiji Festival Trek is a guaranteed trip with fixed departure dates. We cannot arrange the Tiji trek twice or thrice a year because the festival waits for none.

As the name unfolds, Mustang Tiji Festival Trek is a rewarding trip to Nepal’s Mustang region with the Tiji festival celebration. It allows you to wander around the alluring landscapes of Upper Mustang and be a part of the Tiji Festival, which is one of the most important festivals celebrated in the region. With the dry & arid terrain, yak caravans, wild mountains, and picturesque landscapes, the Upper Mustang region of Nepal is a phenomenon.

The capital city of the region–Lo Manthang, is an ancient city that treasures some ancient caves, monasteries, and Buddha statues. Walking through the region is the best way to experience traditional Tibetan culture, Buddhism, religion, and people’s traditional lifestyle.

Mustang Tiji Festival–an extraordinary experience

Mustang Tiji Festival Trek is an extraordinary experience where you have time to be a part of the grand Tiji festival celebration. The name–Tiji is derived from the word Tempa Chhirim that refers to prayer for world peace. Celebrated in the kingdom of Lo Manthang, the festival marks the victory of good over bad.

As per mythology, the festival is celebrated to mark the victory of Dorji Jono (an incarnation of Lord Buddha) over a demon named Ma Tam Ruta. The demon brought trouble to the kingdom in the disease’s form, storm, drought, etc. Also, the demon ate human flesh, livestock and destroyed houses. Dorji Jono fought against the demon and freed people from trouble.

People in mustang celebrate the Tiji festival for three days in Chheode Gumba. On these three days, people chant prayers, and monks perform mask dances. Likewise, people enjoy archery, horse riding, traditional songs, dances, and many more. They perform various rituals, and people enjoy delicious food by offering food to the needy ones.

The magnificence of the Upper Mustang is a retreat.

Besides, being a part of the festival, you will have time to applaud the mind-blowing glory of Upper Mustang. The trek takes you to the remote Trans Himalayan section of Upper Mustang. The peculiar arid landscape, artistic rock formations, and deep ravines in beautiful Himalayas’ shadows enhance the place.

The long walled city of Lo Manthang is a city of marvel that preserves the fantastic melange of history, myth, and culture. The city holds a history of the 8th century. People believe that the Tibetan poet Milarepa had visited this place during 1040-1123. The rolling hills, land that resembles the Tibetan plateaus, red fluted cliffs, and mountains’ wilderness give the place a classic outlook. The place’s spectacular scenery has left many travelers enthralled, and many travelers refer to this place as–out worldly.

Tidy Himalaya for Tiji Festival Trek

Heaven Himalaya organizes Mustang Tiji Festival each year. The festival falls either in May or June, the month of the year. We couldn’t conduct the festival in 2020 because of the onset of pandemic COVD-19. But we are all set to rock the journey in 2021. So, if you are interested in Mustang Tiji Festival Trek, book the dates early. Mustang Tiji Festival Trek will probably be one of the best journeys with natural fantasies and cultural values. Just in case that your excursion time doesn’t coordinate the festival celebration time, or miss the dates then you can opt-out for other mustang visits like Upper Mustang Jeep Tour-10 days, Upper Mustang Trek-17 days, and Jomsom to Muktinath Trek-14 days.

Upper Mustang was a restricted region until 1992. Though open, the Government of Nepal still regulates tourism in the area. And a visitor requires a special permit to visit the place. Therefore, let us know early about your Tiji Festival trekking decision. We are always at your service!

Itinerary

You will be picked up at the airport by our staff and transferred to a hotel for check in. Our airport representative will explain you the details of program further. Overnight at hotel.

Enjoy a sightseeing tour to the UNESCO listed cultural heritage sites in Kathmandu. Visit Kathmandu Durbar Square, Swayambhunath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa and Pasupatinath Temple. Enjoy the artistic palace, art, culture, paintings and history of Nepal. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Early in the morning, our guide will pick you up from your hotel for a drive to Pokhara. After a 6 hours scenic drive, we reach Pokhara. You will be transferred to a hotel for check in. In the evening, you can enjoy boating on the Fewa Lake or see the reflection of the Mount Machhapuchhre and Annapurna Range on serene water of the lake. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Early in morning, we take a flight to Jomsom. After a 20 minutes amazing flight above the beautiful landscapes, we reach Jomsom and start our trek to Kagbeni. We take a gradual path along the Kaligandaki bank and continue to Kagbeni. Kagbeni lies at an elevation of 2800m and is a main gate to Upper Mustang. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We start our trek to Chele along the east bank of Kaligandaki river. Seclude and unique landscapes along this sandy trial are mind blowing. We continue uphill and downhill to Tangbe village. The view of Nilgiri peak from this village is amazing. We pass white washed houses, crop fields and apple orchards and continue to Chhusang village. We cross the river and continue our climb up to a huge red lump of agglomerate which falls from the cliff above. We leave Kali Gandaki valley and climb a steep rocky canyon to Chele. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We continue our climb along steep, treeless terrain along the side of a steep canyon to a pass and a cairn of rock at (3540m). We make a long gradual descend to Samar village and climb up above Samar village to a ridge. We further descend into a large gorge and continue to a valley field. We cross a stream and climb up a ridge at (3800m). We continue our climb up and cross yet another pass. We follow the ridge and descend to Shyangmochen. We further climb to a pass at (3770m) and descend to Geling Village. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Our trail climbs gently up to a pass called NYI La and descends below to a valley. We cross a steel bridge over the Tangmar Chu (river) and follow the way to the longest Mani wall in Mustang. We climb a pass at 3,600m and make a long gentle descend to Charang village. We visit a huge five-storey white Dzong and red Gompa which are the major attractions of the village. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Our trail climbs up steadily to Lo-Gekar Gompa, one of the oldest Gompa of Nepal. We continue our trek with a sight of the walled city of Lo all along the trial. We make a short descent, cross a stream and climb up into the plateau of Lo-Manthang. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Today is the first day of Tiji Festival. We spend our day observing the dances and celebrations. Horse racing and a giant tug-of-war are the major attractions. Tibetan women in their traditional clothing with colorful jewelry, monks in their robes and dancers in elaborate costumes make the entire environment vivid and vibrant. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We can enjoy a colorful ceremony accompanied by an unusual dance of Tibetan lamas. It is done to chase away all the hungry and evil spirits from the village. We can see many people across the region participating in this ritual of purification and renewal. After the observation, we can explore the intimate alleyways and courtyards of the city or simply rent a horse and visit some of the other villages in the area. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Today, we walk to Namgyal Gompa, a monastery that lies on a hilltop. It is an important monastery that serves as a local court to the local community people. After our visit to the monastery, we continue our tour to Tingkhar, the last village to the northwest of Lomanthang. In the evening, we return back to Lomanthang and continue the celebration of Tiji festival. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Today, our trail climbs up steadily. We climb a ridge at 4070m and continue to the Chogo La at 4210m, the highest point of our trek. Then we make a short and steep descent and cross the Charang River. We climb up to Lo Gekar and continue to Ghar Gompa, a small monastery. We climb up a ridge, cross a valley along some alpine meadows and drop down a steep eroded path to Drakmar. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Our trail descends as we pass the stone walls and fields of Drakmar and then climbs up to a ridge. We descend to the lower part of Ghami and then to Jaite (3820m). We further descend to Chhung-Kah and follow the trial to Tama Gaon (3710m). We continue our descend until we reach Shyangmochen. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We follow a stream all the way down to Chhusang. We can also take an alternative route to Samar by visiting Ranchung Cave which is 30-minutes longer than the usual route. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We start our trek early in the morning and continue to Kagbeni. After completing the upper Mustang trails, we join the normal route and head on to Jomsom for an overnight halt. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We take an early morning flight back to Pokhara. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Today we drive back to Kathmandu. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Approximately 3 hours before your scheduled flight, a representative from Tidy Himalaya will escort you to the airport for your onward journey.

Cost Includes

  • Airport transfers–pick up and drop
  • All ground transportation
  • Your accommodation in a 3-star category hotel in Kathmandu and Pokhara with breakfast plan
  • Your accommodation in best guesthouses available (on twin sharing basis) during the trek with breakfast, lunch and dinner throughout the trekking journey
  • All paper works
  • National park and heritage sites entry tickets
  • Flight to/from Pokhara -Jomsom
  • Trekkers Information Management System (TIMS) and trekking permits
  • A licensed, English speaking, experienced trekking guide, climbing guide along with a porter (1 for two clients)
  • All the costs of guide and porter including accidental insurance
  • Duffel bag, sleeping bags (to be returned to us after trek)
  • T-shirts, route map and a travel completion certificate
  • All applicable government taxes and service charges.
  • First aid kit

Cost Excludes

  • Meals (lunch and dinner) in Kathmandu and Pokhara
  • International airfare
  • Visa costs
  • Travel insurance
  • Personal refreshment items like cold drinks, snacks, etc.
  • Personal utility items like laundry, telephone expenses electricity charges, etc.
  • Personal trekking gears
  • Tips for guides and porters

Cost and Date

Start Dates are your arrival date in Nepal and End Dates are the returning date from Nepal.
The set departure dates listed are specially quoted and specified for group joining option. Let us know if the set departure dates are not suitable for you- another dates which are suitable for you can certainly be added by us.

Currently we have No Fix Departure for this trip