11 Days Kailash Yatra by Helicopter from Kathmandu

Day 01 : Arrive Kathmandu

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, you shall be greeted by our representative from Woo Adventures. From there, they will assist your transfer to the respective accommodation. Check in for the day and have some rest at the hotel.

Day 02 : Kathmandu sightseeing & fly to Nepalgunj

We’ll start our day with some breakfast at the hotel. Once done, we will be heading towards the prominent spiritual hubs i.e. Pashupatinath Temple, Guheshwari Temple and the Jal Narayan Temple. After that, our representative will transfer you to the Kathmandu domestic airport terminal and from there you shall be boarding your flight to Nepalgunj. This flight journey would last for an hour.

Once you have arrived at Nepalgunj, a bus would be there to transfer you to your designated hotel. From here, you will be meeting your group’s fellow travellers. By the evening, you would be facilitated with a briefing session organised by our Kailash Yatra expert. In it, the expert would be answering all your questions about the Kailash Yatra by helicopter from Kathmandu and explaining to you about this journey. Later, enjoy dinner in the hotel and stay overnight.

Day 03 : Fly Nepalgunj to Simikot

Commence your morning with a lovely breakfast at your hotel and get all set for your flight between Nepalgunj and Simikot. This is considered to be a very complicated journey since its operation truly depends on the weather conditions. This route experiences changing weather conditions and due to the same reason, you might experience long or short delay in flight operation.

As instructed by the local guide, we shall arrive at the Nepalgunj Airport by early morning. This has to be done with the intention of securing the earliest available seats on our flight to Simikot. Once we have landed after a 45-hour flight, you will be escorted to your pre-booked accommodation, preferably a guesthouse. Our representative would be there to assist you in your check-in luggage coordination with the airline. The rest of the day is free for you to relax and acclimatize to Simikot’s weather and altitude conditions.

Day 04 : Fly Simikot to Hilsa by helicopter. Drive to Taklakot

You’ll be starting your day with an early breakfast or you can carry some packed snacks instead. We shall head to the Simikot airport for boarding your helicopter to Hilsa. Upon reaching Hilsa, you will be crossing a suspension bridge over the river to arrive at the Nepal immigration formalities. At this place, you will be performing all your exit formalities.

Once you are done with all the formalities, you need to walk a very small distance to the border and from there, board the Chinese bus that will be taking you to the Chinese immigration office. This bus journey will hardly take five minutes. After you are done with the process at the Chinese immigration office, you shall be a part of a 22km drive to Taklakot. En-route, you will also have to be a part of the customs check at the Burang Custom Office.

Now that you have reached Takalkot (4025 metres), you might start experiencing some high-altitude symptoms like breathlessness. However, you don’t have to worry about the same since it’s quite common. It is quite important for you to inform your tour guide the moment you start feeling such symptoms so that he/she helps you out immediately. Make sure that you are drinking plenty of water, eating well and following all our guide’s instructions for a comfortable Kailash Yatra by helicopter from Kathmandu. Spend the rest of the day resting and acclimatizing at your hotel in Taklakot. Dinner and overnight stay will be at the hotel.

Day 05 : Free day at Taklakot for acclimatization

Today, you are free to spend the day at Taklakot as per your comfort. However, we would recommend you to focus on acclimatizing today. You can do this by taking a short walk or visiting the nearby markets. There are a few shops in the Taklakot market from where you can buy essentials like gloves, sticks, cap/hat, water bottle, or fruits for the trip. The shops don’t open till late hours, thus, you should plan your visit to these markets accordingly.

Day 06: Taklakot to Lake Manasarovar

Today is going to be a very crucial day for the travellers since we will be journeying towards the holiest Lake Manasarovar. Once you have finished your breakfast, board the bus to Lake Manasarovar. This is going to be a one and a half hour drive and en-route, you shall witness heart-stealing terrains and mountains. First, you will be arriving at the Lake Rakshas Taal located nearby Lake Manasarovar. Rakshas Taal is also prominently known as the “Lake or Demons” or “Ravan Taal”. Right from this lake, you will start getting a glimpse of Mount Kailash.

We’ll take a stop at the Rakshas Taal for a while and then continue with our journey towards Lake Manasarovar. After a short drive, we will reach Chui Gompa where we will be staying for the night. It is located quite near to the serene and beautiful Lake Manasarovar. For the rest of the you are free to spend time at the lake as per your convenience. You can pray on the banks of the river and perform rituals. For the ladies, we would also arrange a shower tent on the lake’s bank. If you want to indulge yourself in puja/havan, and perform rituals as per your customs, you would also find a place favourable for the same near the lake. Enjoy the meals and stay at the guesthouse.

Day 07: 1st Day parikrama/kora of Mt. Kailash, 13 Kms trekking to Dirapuk

Wake up early in the morning, have your breakfast and then, you’ll be driving to Darchen. It is located at a distance of 35kms from Chiu Gompa. Darchen is considered as the main town of the Kailash region. Also, it is known to serve as the base camp of the Mount Kailash circumambulation i.e. Kailash Parikrama. Make sure that you fill your water bottle with hot water, and carry along your snack pack (arranged by us) for the tour.

En-route, the travellers will pass through Yama Dwar that is the commencement point of this holy trek. Now is the time for you to start the trek, and you can do it either on food, or hire a horse/pony and a porter. Those who want to hire can seek help from our experienced Tibetan guide. You will be provided with a coupon name and then you can select your porter and horse who shall accompany you throughout the trek. This trek stretches for about 12km and throughout the journey, you will be witnessing grasslands, scenic valleys and rivers.

During the trek, you shall also have a sighting of the beautiful North Face of Mount Kailash. Make sure you are taking some photos of it and enjoying the moment. By evening, you shall complete this trek and reach Dirapuk where you will check into the guesthouse and have dinner. Most probably, the nighttime is going to be cold and the oxygen levels might drop, so make sure that you stay warm in order to stay fit for the next day’s trek.

Day 08: 2nd Day Parikrama, 19 Kms Trek To Zuthulpukh via Gauri Kund

If you wish to witness the heart-stealing view of the “Golden Kailash” today, then make sure you are waking up early in the morning before dawn. After this beautiful sighting, have some breakfast and head towards your trek to Zuthulpuk. This is going to be a very strenuous and the longest journey since it is 22 kms long. During this journey, you shall be traversing through the highest point at Dolma La Pass (5630m).

Before arriving at Dolma La Pass, you will be visiting the two important stops en-route i.e. the footprints of Saint Milarepa and Shiva Tsal. At Shiva Tsal, people leave behind personal belongings like old clothes, hair locks, and even drops of blood. It is said that offering these tokens at this sacred site will help transcend the past lives and struggles one has faced. Tibetan Buddhists believe such offerings guarantee a return to heaven after death. From here, you can continue your challenging ascent towards Dolma-La Pass (5630m) which is the highest point of the trek. It is necessary to cross this pass in the early morning to avoid strong winds. There, you begin a steep descent toward the holy Gauri Kund.

Once you have crossed Dolma-La, you are going to witness Gauri Kund on the right side of your route. After a small walk, you will get some time for a packed lunch break at a tea stall. We would recommend you to stay close to your group since the downhill trail from Dolma La is going to have loose stones and thus, the journey is not going to be an easy one. Thereafter, a flat section begins soon after that leads to Zuthulphuk Gompa (4790m). In Zuthulphuk, we will spend the night at a lodge or fixed tent which comes furnished with beds, bed sheets and warm blankets. We will have dinner afterwards and sleep early.

Day 09: 3rd Day trek 06kms to Darchen, Drive to Taklakot

Start your day with a wholesome breakfast provided near the guesthouse or campground. Thereafter, feel free to visit some of the area’s caves, temples, and shrines which are available for sightseeing. You will find an old couple who maintain one of the temples and they are very affectionate towards each other. In addition to their daily labor, there is a small Tibetan community composed of devotees as well as relatives of the helpers who assist in preserving the temple and its environs.

There are several meditation platforms in the cave and climbing to such caves is undoubtedly worth it. Today, we are going to be a part of a 6km trek starting from Zuthulpuk to Chongdo. At Chongdo, our vehicles would be waiting for you and the other group members. These vehicles will be taking us to the Darchen accommodation where the other group members who didn’t further take the trek would be waiting. From there, continue your drive to Taklakot and upon arrival, check-in to your accommodation there for a night stay.

Day 10: Taklakot To Nepalgunj Via Simikot, Connect With Kathmandu Flight

Enjoy your early breakfast before beginning the 45 km trip to the China-Nepal border. At the checkpoint, border formalities will be handled when you walk across to Nepal’s side and enter Hilsa. While in Hilsa, take a helicopter flight to Simikot which lasts around 25 minutes. While in Simikot, connect to Nepalgunj through a flight and once you arrive there, take another short flight back to Kathmandu.

Optional Trip : The air route that includes the stops of Hilsa, Simikot and Nepalgunj is prone to delays, schedule changes, and interruptions due to bad weather. If you get stuck in Simikot or Hilsa due to any unforeseen reason, then you need to stay all set for a stay in a basic guesthouse with shared toilets, natural water, simple meals and limited accommodation. Health concerns, especially for elderly travelers, are possible in such conditions. It is strongly recommended to stay with your group to ensure prompt assistance, should the need arise.

During the return journey, due to any unforeseen reasons, if there would be any additional night stay at Simikot/Nepalgunj/Hilsa, then its expenses (food, accommodation etc) would be directly paid by the traveller to the respective Nepalese leader. No refund or adjustment may be made for unused stays, meals, or services. We do offer first aid services; however, all additional medical expenses resulting from hospitalisation and/or emergency evacuation are the sole responsibility of the pilgrim/traveller.

Day 11: Fly to home from Kathmandu

At your preferred time, you can be taken to Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport for boarding your flight to your hotel or any other place you intend to go. It is suggested that all the travellers keep a buffer of one or two days in Kathmandu before their international flights just to accommodate the delays which might happen during the trip.