Affiliate disclosure: this page contains affiliate links. Purchases made through them may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. See our affiliate disclosure.
In plain English
The Annapurna Circuit is a loop of villages, and you sleep in a family-run lodge in one each night. There is no need to bring a tent. The tricky part is the pass, called Thorong La, which sits far higher than the villages before it. You do not sleep on top of it. You sleep at a lodge below it, get up in the dark, and cross the next morning.
That makes your bed the night before the pass the most important bed of the trip. If you feel fine there, the crossing is a long cold day. If you feel unwell, the honest answer from health agencies is not to push on. The CDC says you should never go higher to sleep while having symptoms of altitude illness, however mild.3 Nepal Tourism Board puts it more bluntly: if symptoms get worse, descend.2
Getting used to altitude just means giving your body time. A rest day in a big village partway up is the standard way to do that, and the trail is built with such a stop in mind. Rules on guides and cards apply to this route, so sort those out through a registered agency before you leave the city.1
The Annapurna Circuit is a multi-day teahouse trek looping around the Annapurna massif in Nepal, inside the Annapurna Conservation Area, building toward its high point at the roughly 5,416-meter Thorong La pass. As with most classic Nepal treks, nobody camps out here — family-run teahouses in the villages along the route provide a room and a hot meal each night. So the real question isn't where to pitch a tent, but how to pace the days so your body is ready for the pass.
Why hike here
The circuit's appeal is in the range of country it covers in a single trek: you climb through terraced village farmland and rhododendron forest on the approach, then watch the landscape turn drier and more Tibetan in character as you near Manang, where stone houses sit under a wall of ice peaks. From Manang the trail keeps climbing past Yak Kharka to Thorong Phedi or High Camp, simple, cold lodges with little to do but eat, hydrate, and wait for morning. Crossing Thorong La itself means leaving in the dark, well before sunrise, and walking up into thin, cold air until the pass finally opens onto views down the other side toward Muktinath — a genuinely different, drier world from the one you left that morning.
Getting there
Most trekkers start from Kathmandu or Pokhara, then take a long day of road travel to Besisahar or, if you want to skip the first, mostly road-adjacent stretch of trail, all the way to Chame. From there you're on foot, following jeep track and trail up through the lower villages before the valley narrows and the route becomes a proper mountain trail. Because it's a teahouse trek requiring an ACAP permit and trekker registration, and, under a provision Nepal Tourism Board dates to 31 March 2023, a licensed guide (rules may have been revised since), most hikers sort permits and transport in Kathmandu or Pokhara before heading out, rather than trying to arrange them at the trailhead.
Where to stay
The realistic options, closest-to-the-trail first. Book through the official links — we don't list prices or availability because they change all the time.
For example: Family lodges in the villages along the route (Manang, Yak Kharka, Thorong Phedi/High Camp, Muktinath)
Every trekker — teahouses line the whole circuit.
High Camp before the pass is basic and cold; beds fill fast in season.
Via a licensed trekking operatorFor example: A cluster of lodges in Manang, the key acclimatization stop before the pass
Trekkers taking the essential rest day before Thorong La.
Spend an extra night here to acclimatize before crossing the pass.
Via a licensed trekking operator
Permits & rules
You need the ACAP permit and trekker registration, and Nepal’s rules on guides for trekkers have been revised, so check the current requirement with the Nepal Tourism Board or a licensed operator. Crossing Thorong La means a very high pass — acclimatize properly, start the pass day before dawn, and know the signs of altitude sickness.
Gear you'll want for this trip
Matched to the terrain and conditions here. Real products — check current price on Amazon.
The night before the pass is the real booking
Because the pass crossing starts before dawn from the last lodge below it, the choice of where you sleep the night before, and how you feel there, matters more than any other decision on the route. Nepal Tourism Board's safety page says trekkers unwell above 2,500 m should assume altitude sickness until proven otherwise, list early symptoms as headache, loss of appetite, nausea, fatigue on minimal exertion and dizziness, and advise not going higher, resting and drinking fluids.2 If symptoms worsen, with severe headache, vomiting, walking unsteadily, confusion, severe fatigue or breathlessness at rest, its instruction is to descend.2
The pacing numbers give context for why the route includes a stop in Manang. The board advises sleeping altitude rise of no more than 300 to 500 m a day above 2,500 m, with a rest day for every 1,000 m gained.2 The CDC Yellow Book gives a similar figure at higher altitude, about 1,600 feet a day above roughly 9,850 feet, plus an extra day for each 3,300 feet.3 The CDC also says fitness does not protect against altitude illness, so a strong hiker gets no exemption from the rest day.3
Medical help exists, but on a seasonal schedule
Nepal Tourism Board describes the Himalayan Rescue Association as a voluntary non-profit founded in 1973 that operates aid posts along the two most popular trekking routes, one of them at Manang, at 3,550 m, just before the Thorung La pass on the Annapurna Circuit.2 It says the post is staffed by volunteer doctors during the two main trekking seasons, spring and autumn, and that a daily talk on altitude sickness is given at 3 pm at the Manang and Pheriche aid posts and its Kathmandu office during those seasons.2
Two practical points follow. First, the aid post is a reason to plan the Manang stop around its schedule, not a guarantee of help wherever you are on the trail. Second, the seasonal wording means that outside spring and autumn you should not assume the same staffing, and should confirm with the Annapurna Conservation Area project, which the page names as manager, and with your agency. The National Park Service adds that search and rescue can take hours or days depending on weather and resources, and that you should not rely on a cell phone for emergencies.4
Cold rooms, dark starts and what to carry
Lodges at the top of the route are, as the page says, basic and cold, so the pack question is mostly about sleep and the pre-dawn start. NEMO explains that a sleeping bag's comfort rating is the air temperature at which an average woman sleeps comfortably, not curled up, and that the extreme rating is not a target rating.5 A bag chosen by the extreme figure will feel far colder than its label suggests.
The pass day starts in the dark, and the National Park Service names headlamps as the recommended light source because they are hands-free, which matters when you are also managing poles, gloves and a pack.6 Sun becomes a problem after sunrise: the EPA says UV intensity increases about 6% per kilometer of elevation above sea level, so a day spent several kilometers above sea level carries substantially more UV than a day at the coast.7 Sunglasses, a hat and sunscreen belong in the top of the pack, not the bottom.
Common questions
Do I need to camp anywhere along the Annapurna Circuit?
No — the route is a classic teahouse trek, so you'll sleep in family-run lodges in villages like Manang, Yak Kharka, and Thorong Phedi or High Camp rather than a tent. Rooms get more basic and colder as you climb toward Thorong La, so a warm sleeping bag is worth carrying even though you won't be sleeping outside.
What permits do I need, and can I trek the circuit without a guide?
You'll need an Annapurna Conservation Area Permit (ACAP) plus trekker registration, and Nepal Tourism Board lists this route among those needing a licensed guide and an agency-issued TIMS card under a provision dated 31 March 2023; a revised provision has since been noticed, so confirm the current rules. Arranging both in Kathmandu or Pokhara before you travel to Besisahar or Chame is far simpler than trying to sort them once you're already on the trail.
How do I avoid altitude sickness crossing Thorong La?
The standard advice is to climb high and sleep low, take the rest day in Manang to acclimatize before pushing higher, and know the warning signs of altitude sickness so you can descend if they appear. Because the pass crossing starts before dawn and stays at serious elevation for hours, being properly acclimatized before you leave Thorong Phedi or High Camp matters more than pace.
Complete gearsets for this trip
Full curated kits built for exactly this kind of hike — what to bring, why, and links to similar gear.
Lodging details are compiled from official parks, refuge associations and reservation systems and can change without notice. We publish no prices, availability or ratings — always confirm current information on the official site before booking or setting out. Product links and the accommodation map are affiliate links: we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you; product prices and availability are shown on Amazon, and accommodation prices on the booking site. See our affiliate disclosure.