12 Days Self-Launched Nepal: Rafting, Chitwan Safari & Poon Hill Trek

Land at Tribhuvan International Airport, grab a prepaid taxi (approx. NPR 700–900 / £5–6) into Thamel and check into a budget guesthouse. Get a local SIM from the Ncell or Ncell counter (NPR 300–500), sort a TIMS/ACAP perspective later, and wander Thamel for gear, cash machines and lunch. Evening: sunset beer on a rooftop and a plate of dal bhat in a local bhojanalya.

🚌Prepaid airport taxi ~£5

🛏Budget guesthouse in Thamel (private room £10–15)

• →Airport taxi to Thamel
• →Buy Ncell/NTC SIM card
• →Thamel orientation walk
• →Welcome dinner — local dal bhat

Do the classic valley circuit yourself with a taxi or on foot. Start at Swayambhunath (monkey temple, sunrise if you're up), then Boudhanath stupa for the kora walk and Tibetan lunch, Patan Durbar Square in the afternoon, then Pashupatinath for evening aarti. Tickets are cheap individually; a private half-day driver can be hired locally (~£25–30) or you can use Pathao/Indrive rides for less. Optionally join a small-group walking tour on GetYourGuide/Klook (£12–20) for the Patan and Boudhanath portions.

🚌Taxi/Pathao rides around the valley ~£8–10 total

🛏Budget guesthouse in Thamel

• →Swayambhunath stupa entry (~£2)
• →Boudhanath stupa & kora walk (entry ~£2.5)
• →Patan Durbar Square (entry ~£6)
• →Pashupatinath evening aarti (entry ~£6)

Book a Trishuli River day-raft directly with a Kathmandu or Charaudi-based rafting outfitter (Klook and GetYourGuide both sell this, ~£30–40 incl. lunch and transport, or walk up to a riverside camp and negotiate). Local bus from Kathmandu's Gongabu terminal to Charaudi takes ~3 hours (~£3–4). Afternoon on the river: class II–III rapids, ~3 hours on the water. Overnight in a riverside camp or local lodge with dinner included in most packages.

🚌Tourist/local bus ~£3–4 each way

🛏Riverside tented camp or lodge (usually bundled with rafting ~£30–40 incl. lunch/dinner)

• →Local bus Kathmandu to Charaudi
• →Trishuli River rafting (~3 hrs)
• →Riverside camp dinner

Morning transfer to Sauraha (buses and shared jeeps run from Charaudi/Mugling; ~£4–6, 3–4 hrs). Check into a budget lodge in Sauraha — most sell 2–3 day safari packages (jungle walk, canoe, jeep safari, village visit, cultural show) for roughly £40–60 per person per day on a full-board basis, so a package booked for days 4–6 is the sensible way to do it. Evening walk to the river, then the Tharu cultural stick-dance show in town (usually free/cheap).

🚌Local bus/shared jeep ~£5

🛏Budget lodge in Sauraha (within safari package)

• →Bus/jeep Charaudi to Sauraha
• →Evening riverside walk
• →Tharu cultural dance show (~£2)

Full-day wildlife day. Note: elephant-back safaris are increasingly discouraged (ethical welfare concerns), so swap this for a jeep safari into the core zone — you'll see more rhinos, deer and birdlife anyway. Morning canoe trip on the Rapti River (~£5), guided jungle walk with a licensed naturalist, then a 4-hour jeep safari (included in the lodge package or ~£20–25 standalone). Tharu village visit in the late afternoon.

🚌Included in lodge package

🛏Budget lodge in Sauraha

• →Dugout canoe trip
• →Guided jungle walk
• →Jeep safari in Chitwan NP
• →Tharu village visit & birdwatching

Long transfer day. Public bus from Sauraha to Pokhara (~5–6 hrs, ~£6–8), then local bus Pokhara to Nayapul (~1.5 hrs, ~£2). From Nayapul, walk 45 minutes or take a shared jeep to Tikhedhunga (usually the trek start, though many start the ridge the same day). Overnight in a basic teahouse. Get your ACAP entry permit and TIMS card at the Nepal Tourism Board in Kathmandu (day 2) or at the Pokhara ACAP counter — together roughly £27.

🚌Buses and shared jeep ~£12

🛏Teahouse in Tikhedhunga (~£5–8)

• →Bus Sauraha to Pokhara
• →Local bus Pokhara to Nayapul
• →Shared jeep/walk to Tikhedhunga
• →ACAP & TIMS permits (~£27)

The big climb: the infamous Ulleri stone staircase — around 3,000 steps — then a mellower traverse through rhododendron forest to Ghorepani. Around 6–7 hours walking. Lunch at Ulleri. You don't need a guide for this section; the trail is well marked and heavily trafficked, though hiring a local porter-guide in Pokhara (~£20/day) is a good idea if you're carrying a heavy pack. Teahouse dinner and an early night — tomorrow's sunrise starts at 4:30am.

🚌On foot

🛏Teahouse in Ghorepani (~£6–9)

• →Trek Tikhedhunga to Ulleri
• →Trek Ulleri to Ghorepani (~6–7 hrs)
• →Sunset from Ghorepani ridge

Headlamp on, climb ~45 minutes to Poon Hill (3,210m) for sunrise over Dhaulagiri, Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre — the ten-peak panorama. Poon Hill entry ticket ~NPR 100. Back for breakfast at the teahouse, then trek through rhododendron forest to Tadapani (~5–6 hrs), with a good chance of langur monkeys on the way. Simple teahouse night at around 2,630m.

🚌On foot

🛏Teahouse in Tadapani (~£6–9)

• →Poon Hill sunrise hike (3,210m)
• →Trek Ghorepani to Tadapani (~5–6 hrs)
• →Forest walk & wildlife spotting

Descend to Ghandruk (~3–4 hrs), a beautiful Gurung village with stone lanes and Annapurna views — worth an hour for the Gurung museum and coffee. Then take a shared jeep from Ghandruk/Nayapul down to Pokhara (~2 hrs, ~£6–8; jeeps leave when full from the Ghandruk road head). Check into a lakeside guesthouse in Pokhara. Evening: Lakeside promenade, momos, and a cold Everest beer.

🚌Shared jeep Ghandruk to Pokhara ~£7

🛏Lakeside budget guesthouse in Pokhara (~£10–15)

• →Trek Tadapani to Ghandruk
• →Ghandruk village & Gurung museum
• →Shared jeep to Pokhara
• →Lakeside evening

Hire a scooter (~£6–8/day) or take taxis and do the Pokhara circuit independently: Davis Fall, Gupteshwor Cave (directly opposite), the World Peace Pagoda (walk up or taxi to the base), Pumdikot Shiva statue for the valley panorama, and the Tibetan Refugee Camp at Tashiling for carpets and momos. Sunrises at Sarangkot are the alternative option if you'd rather swap Pagoda for paragliding (paragliding ~£55–70 — a worthy splurge).

🚌Scooter hire or taxis ~£8

🛏Lakeside budget guesthouse in Pokhara

• →Davis Fall (entry ~£1)
• →Gupteshwor Cave (~£1)
• →World Peace Pagoda (free entry)
• →Pumdikot viewpoint
• →Tibetan Refugee Camp visit

Book a tourist bus in Pokhara the day before (~£10–12, 6–7 hours, departures around 7am from Lakeside or the tourist bus park). Alternatively fly Buddha Air/Yeti (~£85–95) if you want the hour back and the Himalaya window view. Arrive Kathmandu afternoon, check back into a Thamel guesthouse, last-minute souvenir shopping in Asan Tole, farewell dinner.

🚌Tourist bus ~£11

🛏Budget guesthouse in Thamel

• →Tourist bus Pokhara to Kathmandu
• →Asan Tole market wander
• →Farewell dinner

Breakfast at the guesthouse, taxi to Tribhuvan International Airport (allow 3 hours before an international flight — Kathmandu security queues are slow). If you have a late flight, squeeze in a final Thamel coffee or a morning visit to the Garden of Dreams.

🚌Taxi to airport ~£5

🛏—

• →Airport transfer
• →Optional Garden of Dreams visit