trek Annapurna

actionchallenge in Annapurna An incredible journey along one of the world’s most famous treks. Our route takes us into the heart of the Himalayas through stunning mountain scenery beneath the glittering snow-capped peaks of Annapurna. This 10 day challenge is the adventure of a lifetime.

We trek through rhododendron forests, woodlands and temperate forests, deep into mountainous habitat looking out for Langur monkeys. As we gain height, forests open out onto incredible panoramic views overlooking valleys dotted with farms and villages and the soaring mountains of the Annapurna region stretch before us.

We pass through Nepalese villages where we get a fascinating glimpse into the traditions of the mountain people including the Gurung, who have their own religion and culture. We stay in tea houses along the way and hike along paths, tracks and an impressive flight of 3,500 stone steps that make their way down to the valley floor.

The highlight of our challenge is a trek to the summit of Poon Hill where, as a group, we watch the sun rise over the mighty snow-capped peaks and flood the valleys with light. As dawn breaks, we see the magnificent Annapurna (8,091m) to the north and Dhaulagiri (8,167m) to the west – a sight that will stay with us forever.

We celebrate our fantastic trekking achievement with a dinner and party before returning to Kathmandu and the chance to explore this incredible city. at a glance trip highlights ● Activity: Trekking ● Trek through the heart of the Himalayas ● Location: Annapurna Region, Nepal ● Summit Poon Hill ● Duration: 10 Days / 5 days trekking ● Stay in the tea houses along the route ● Difficulty: Moderate ● Watch the sun rise over the Annapurna peaks ● Distance: 70 km ● Take in magic views of Macchapuchre ● Group size: 15 -25 ● Explore Kathmandu ● Relax in Pokhara

Action Challenge have been leading inspirational team adventures across the world for individuals, private groups, charities and corporate clients since 1999. Our trips enable people to experience the world’s most exhilarating locations, often in aid of charity. At the heart of every challenge is team spirit and fulfilment; together we take on once-in-a-lifetime adventures, achieve formidable goals and forge friendships for life.

www.actionchallenge.com trek Annapurna

introduction This fully-inclusive adventure to Nepal will begin as soon as you register! You will Please visit our website for more details receive a challenge pack including a training guide, kit list and discounts for all the essentials you may need. If you are raising money for a charity, we will sort out all the formalities so you can concentrate on your own preparation and fundraising. We offer pre-challenge briefings and training weekends in the UK, where you can meet our trek leaders, members of your group and others taking part in challenges around the world. On the day of departure you will meet your group and Action Challenge leader at the airport in London. Whether you’re joining the challenge on your own or with others, you will instantly be made to feel welcome. As a team we will board our flight to Kathmandu, All inclusive trip cost from £1,849 ready to take on the hike of a lifetime! Initial £299 deposit to sign up brief itinerary Three payment options available Please visit our website for more details Day 1 Depart UK Day 6 Tirkedunga Day 2 Arrive Kathmandu Day 7 Pokhara Day 3 Ghandruk Day 8 Transfer to Kathmandu Day 4 Tadapan Day 9 Kathmandu Free Day Day 5 Ghorepani Day 10 Arrive UK what’s included · International flights · Action Challenge trek leader · Full support team, including local guides · UK medic · All accommodation · All meals, except in free time · Airline taxes · Treated drinking water · All transfers in local vehicles · National Park entrance fees This has been classed as a moderate · Celebration dinner n Pokhara challenge which means that some prior · Invitation to a challenge briefing in London training is necessary to undertake it. For · Discounted training weekends in the Peak District and Wales this challenge you will need to walk for · Fitness and training guide long periods of over five hours per day · Discounts from UK retailers with some prolonged climbs. We therefore recommend that those who · Reduced rates at Nomad Travel Clinics and Masta Health wish to participate do undertake some long walks in the build up to the challenge.

One of the best times to visit Nepal and complete the challenge is between April, when the country is at its most beautiful after the rains. The temperature is pleasant and visibility is excellent, ensuring you get the most stunning views throughout the trek.

+44 (0) 207 609 6695 www.actionchallenge.com [email protected] trek Annapurna

itinerary

Breakfasts each morning will be at our DAY 1 - Depart London accommodation whilst lunches will be en route. Evening meals will be freshly We meet for our flight bound for Kathmandu. The Action Challenge team will have prepared for us either at our hotel or tea your tickets ready for you at the airport. house in time for our arrival. There will be a variety of rice, pasta, vegetables and a Meals: Dependent on flight schedule selection of fresh meat and fresh fish.

DAY 2 - Kathmandu We can cater for all dietary requirements if informed in advance. We arrive at Kathmandu International airport mid-afternoon and transfer to our centrally located hotel. Later this evening we sit down to a welcome meal in a local restaurant to celebrate our arrival in this magnificent country and receive an introductory brief from our guides.

Meals: L,D Accom: Hotel • Four nights in comfortable 2 to 3* hotels • Four nights in teahouses with shared washing facilities on the trek DAY 3 - Ghandruk After an early breakfast at the hotel, we make our way to the airport for a domestic flight All accommodation is on a twin/triple- to Pokhara where our team will be waiting to transfer us 50km to Nayapul. Today’s trek share, single-sex basis and we will pair offers spectacular mountain scenery and charming villages. The first 10km is on the flat you with someone of a similar age, where as we pass through Biretanthi before continuing on up through the valley and into possible. rhododendron forests. We have a chance to see the fascinating culture and traditions of the Nepalese countryside including a visit to Ghandruk, home of the Gurung people If you wish to share a room with someone with their own religion and culture. As we walk, we see stunning views of both the you are travelling with, please specify this sacred mountain Macchapuchre (Fishtail) and Annapurna South. on your registration form.

Meals: B,L,D Accom: Tea house Distance: 17 km

DAY 4 - Tadapan If you decide that you would like to have After yesterday’s tough challenge we have a shorter trek, probably the easiest of the your own room on the challenge, we can challenge. We continue the slow ascent up to a height of 2,700m, beginning through the accommodate this in the majority of woodlands up to Kyunri Khola. From here, we will be able to see the entire Annapurna places. southern region stretching out before us. On our climb today we might see Langur Monkeys as we continue through the forested hillside near Bhaisa Kharka before Please email us for more information reaching Tadapani, our base for the night.

Meals: B,L,D Accom: Tea house Distance: 9.4 km

DAY 5 - Ghorepani • Insurance - approximately £60 • Visa - £35 We set off early for the meandering trek through dense temperate forests. The route will • Vaccinations - Up-to-date on boosters, involve a combination of ascents and descents as we pass through the small hamlets please seek advice from your GP. of Bhantanti and Deurali. Our destination and teahouse for the night will be Ghorepani • Tips for local staff - recommended with its incredible mountain views. We sleep early tonight in preparation for our predawn amount £30 rise tomorrow. • Airline fuel surcharge / supplement as applied by airlines. Please note that this is Meals: B,L,D Accom: Tea house Distance: 11.2 km capped at a maximum of £150.

+44 (0) 207 609 6695 www.actionchallenge.com [email protected] trek Annapurna

DAY 6 - Tirkedunga

We rise early for the highlight of our challenge. From our teahouse we trek before A kit list will be sent to you on receipt of breakfast to the summit of Poon Hill to watch the sun rise over what is considered to be registration. Many everyday items can be the most spectacular mountain vista in the world. As dawn breaks, we see the mighty used on this challenge, and we offer a kit Annapurna (8,091m) to the north and Dhaulagiri (8,167m) to the west. After this hire service to keep costs down. incredible sight and photo opportunity, we return to our teahouse for a good breakfast before heading off on our day’s challenge. Tirkedunga is 21 km away along a trail which takes us gradually downhill through forests of rhododendron and down into some very thickly forested terrain. Some steeper descents eventually bring us out above a large If you are planning on travelling to valley and the town of Ulleri (1,960m). We stop for lunch overlooking small farms and Kathmandu before the challenge or wish villages dotted over the sides of the valley far below. From here, 3,500 stone steps to organise your own flights, we do offer a switchback down the valley wall to the floor below. It’s a tough two hour descent to land only option, with a significant Tikhedhunga and our teahouse. discount off the trip price. You will be required to meet your group at the hotel Meals: B,L,D Accom: Tea house Distance: 21 km on day two of the itinerary. Please email us for more information DAY 7 - Pokhara

Today is our last trekking day and these final 11 km to Nayapul will pass very quickly. We head down to the valley floor 500 meters below, we walk on to Birethanti where we have a break. before completing the last two kilometers down to Nayapul in less than an hour. Here our coach will be waiting to take us back to Pokhara. Tonight we celebrate our trekking achievements with a delicious meal and partying into the night.

Meals: B,L,D Accom: Hotel Distance: 10.6 km

training weekends / briefings DAY 8 - Transfer to Kathmandu We run a number of training weekends This morning we wake early for our seven hour coach transfer back to Kathmandu. We throughout the year in the Peak District, stop halfway in the village of Bandipur for lunch at a beautiful riverside resort and, once Breacon Beacons and Snowdonia. These at our Kathmandu hotel, we finally have the chance to relax! are fully-inclusive - 2 night’s accommodation and all meals. We also Meals: B,L,D Accom: Hotel organise training days in London and the North and South downs. On both, you will get the chance to meet our mountain DAY 9 - Kathmandu Free Day leaders and test out your kit and fitness!

You will also receive an invite to a A full free day to explore this wonderful city. challenge briefing in central London. Meals: B

• Alcoholic drinks DAY 10 - Return Home • Drinks and food outside of meals, other than water • Personal kit / equipment We transfer to the airport for our return flight back to London. • Airline fuel surcharge / supplement as applied by airlines. Please note that this is capped at a maximum of £150.

+44 (0) 207 609 6695 www.actionchallenge.com [email protected] trek Annapurna

payment options A REGISTRATION DEPOSIT of £299 (for 2016) is required to secure your place. We ATOL is a scheme that protects you from offer 2 deposit payment options: losing money or being stranded abroad if your travel company collapses. Action OPTION 1: Deposit paid in full, by card at the time of registration. Challenge is 100% ATOL bonded, which provides you with full financial protection. OPTION 2: Deposit paid in two 50/50 split payments. The first 50% is paid when you On receipt of your registration fee, you will register and the second is charged to your payment card at the end of the following receive an ATOL certificate explaining month. For this option, a £10 supplement will be charged with the first instalment. your protection.

Once registered, there are 3 PAYMENT OPTIONS to fund the balance of the trip cost. Full details are on our website.

1) SELF FUNDED

For anyone who wants to pay for the entire trip themselves. It’s then completely up to you whether or not you choose to raise any money for a charity of your choice.

The total all inclusive cost of this trip is £1,849 (for 2016), which, after you pay the £299 Registration Deposit, leaves a balance of £1,550. This final balance is due for payment how to book 10 weeks before your departure along with any fuel surcharges levied by the airline. To book on to this challenge, please visit 2) SPONSORSHIP FUNDED our website; www.actionchallenge.com for a full list of prices and all available This is for anyone who wants to take on this challenge and will link it with fundraising a dates. significant sum of money for a charity of their choice. You would have to raise at least £3,100 (for 2016) via sponsorship and donations from friends, family and colleagues, private groups and be confident at the outset that you can achieve this total. If you are a charity, business, school or Pay the Registration Deposit and nominate a charity to fundraise for. All fundraising private group with a minimum of 10 goes directly to your charity and providing that you raise at least £3,100 (for 2016), your people and fancy your own bespoke trip, charity will pay for the balance of your trip costs to Action Challenge. That balance, paid please call us on +44(0)207609 6695 by your charity, is £1,550 (the same as if you were you were ‘Self Funded’) - the charity or you can send us an email to will retain at least £1,550 to help fund their work. You will have to pay any airline fuel [email protected] surcharges 10 weeks prior to departure. for more information.

3) MIXED FUNDED

A mix of the 2 options above! You pay about half the trip cost yourself, and also @actionchallenge fundraise for your charity. They pay the remaining balance of your trip costs. Ideal for anyone who wants to take on the challenge and also fundraise for a charity, BUT is happy to pay a reasonable proportion of the trip cost themselves, which with your www.facebook.com/actionchallenge registration deposit, is set at a level that covers at least the costs of flights & accommodation; perfect for those who feel more at ease asking for sponsorship in respect to the ‘challenge’ component of their trip.

Pay the Registration Deposit and nominate a charity to fundraise for. All fundraising Action Challenge UK Ltd goes directly to your charity and providing that you raise at least £2,300 (for 2016), your United House charity will pay a portion of your trip cost to Action Challenge. That balance, paid by your North Road charity, is £925. At the same time, you will be required to pay the remaining balance London yourself, which will be a figure of £625 (These two amounts add up to the same as the N7 9DP ‘Self Funded’ final balance) - the charity will retain at least £1,375 to help fund their United Kingdom work. You will have to pay any airline fuel surcharges 10 weeks prior to departure.

+44 (0) 207 609 6695 www.actionchallenge.com [email protected]