There are many ways in which you can hike to Annapurna Base Camp that includes 12 days, 10 days, 8 days, and 7 days trek itinerary. But, starting and ending the trek from/at Pokhara, five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek Itinerary is the shortest itinerary among all. You'll hike on the classic Annapurna Base Camp Trek Route from Jhinu to Chhomrong, Sinuwa, Deurali, Machhapuchhre Base Camp, and the base camp of Annapurna and return to Pokhara within five days, comfortably.
If you don't have adequate time to trek to Annapurna Base Camp and want to hike it anyway, the five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek Itinerary can be your deal. Being a low-altitude seated base camp, hiking here without acclimatization stops won't be an issue. Also, each day hike won't be more than six hours and for the remainder of the day, you can rest in tea houses.
In this blog, we'll guide you through each day on the trail of five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek and break down its itinerary. You'll also get the idea of hiking hours for each day, overnight accommodation places, and many elements of the hike.
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Drive from Pokhara to Jhinu and Trek to Sinuwa
To reduce the Annapurna Base Camp Trek days, you'll take a road trip from Pokhara to Jhinu via Nayapul for three hours. The blacktopped road almost to Jhinu offers a comfortable Jeep ride with the scenic terrace farm of Chimrong and Birethati.
From Jhinu, you'll start the hike to Sinuwa after lunch at Chhomrong.
For the first hour, you'll hike up to Chhomrong from Jhinu and descend from the hilltop of Chhomrong to a stream for another thirty minutes. Crossing the bridge, for another forty minutes, you'll make a gradual climb to Lower Sinuwa. Depending on how well you can hike, staying at Lower Sinuwa or Upper Sinuwa makes a 30 minutes difference for the next day's hike.
Overnight at the decent tea house at Lower Sinuwa/Upper Sinuwa.
Day 2: Trek from Lower/Upper Sinuwa to Deurali
The second day on the short Annapurna Base Camp Trek Itinerary is the longest hiking day where you'll have to trek for seven hours. But, the trekking route with scenic Machhapuchhre, bamboo forests, beautiful tea houses at Dovan and Bamboo, and rhododendron forest past the Himalayas keeps the hike entertaining. Also, you'll hike past the beautiful waterfall en route to Deurali.
For the first ninety minutes, you'll hike through the serene bamboo forest that offers the picking glimpses of Machhapuchhre. You'll reach Bamboo comfortably before making the gradual ascend to Dovan. En route, you'll cross a few wooden arc bridges and a few streams.
After hiking for four hours, you'll reach the Himalayas. Himalaya is the best place for lunch as it's midway to Deurali. After lunch, you'll climb gradually to Deurali which can be tiring and cold due to the cold breeze and fog.
Deurali hosts around 7-8 tea houses that can accommodate the number of trekkers during peak Annapurna Base Camp Trek season in the Autumn and Spring months. Overnight accommodation at the tea house in Deurali.
Day 3: Trek from Deurali to Annapurna Base Camp
With early morning breakfast at Deurali, you'll start the hike to Annapurna Base Camp. For one hour on a hike past Deurali, you'll experience some cold because the trekking trail almost to Machhapuchhre Base Camp gets covered by the towering hills, blocking the warmth of sun and sunlight.
In this period, you'll hike on relatively flat terrain on the shore of a river. You'll also witness some sheep grazing sites with hundreds of sheep.
As you reach Machhapuchhre Base Camp, you'll be at the midway of the day hike. It sits at 3,700 meters and has to gain another 4,130 meters altitude to reach Annapurna Base Camp, which becomes tiring. But, the first sight of Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre behind energizes you.
Reaching the base camp of Annapurna from Machhapuchhre Base Camp takes two hours, with a slow-paced hike. Trekkers stop at the hoarding board display of "Welcome to Annapurna Base Camp" for photographs before hiking a few hundred meters to the tea houses at the base camp.
After lunch at a tea house in the base camp, you can stroll around or hike near glaciers to enjoy the snow or the best view of the Annapurna range. In the evening, you can take breathtaking pictures of Machhapuchhre which changes its color from snow white to reddish, golden, yellow, pink, and faint red before the sun sets ultimately.
Overnight at the tea house at the base camp.
Day 4: Trek from Annapurna Base Camp to Bamboo/Upper Sinuwa
Depending on how well you can hike without losing much energy, you'll hike to Bamboo or Upper Sinuwa on the fourth day of the short five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek Itinerary. Since most hikes on the route will descend hike, your knee and ankles may experience some irritation and joint pains. But, if you can keep up, reaching Upper Sinuwa won't be an issue.
Hike from Annapurna Base Camp to Machhapuchhre Base Camp can take forty minutes. Deurali from Machhapuchhre Base Camp takes a one-hour hike time for slow-paced hikers. You can stop at the tea house in Deurali, drink some hot drinks and tea, and resume the return hike to the Himalayas.
You can stop for lunch at Himalaya or Dovan but we recommend you plan the meal at Dovan. The tea houses in Dovan offer the best meals with awesome-tasting pickles of bamboo shoots.
Another one and half hour slow-paced hike from Dovan takes you to Bamboo where you can stop for overnight accommodation. But if you can continue the hike, you can hike for another one and a half hours to Upper Sinuwa and stop for overnight accommodation.
Day 5: Trek from Bamboo/ Upper Sinuwa to Jhinu and drive to Pokhara
Hiking for four hours from Upper Sinuwa or five hours from Bamboo takes you to Jhinu. The ascend of Chhomrong will be the challenging section of the entire day hike on the fifth day of the Annapurna Base Camp Trek for 5 days.
If you stop at Bamboo, you'll have to ascend gradually to Upper Sinuwa and then descend for another one and a half hours. From the bottom of Chhomrong, you'll hike on the stone-paved stairs for one hour. This final hike of Chhomrong is the hardest part of the entire five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek. But with some rest stops, you'll complete the ascend comfortably.
You'll stop for lunch at Chhomrong or Jhinu before taking the drive to Pokhara. For a comfortable and bumpy free ride, you can take a jeep ride. For individual trekkers, the jeep fare becomes expensive. Thus, buying Annapurna Base Camp Trek 5 days from a local travel agency like Sublime Trails manages every transportation service that guarantees your comfortable drive experience.
Our representative at Pokhara will drop you at the hotel you'll stay in Pokhara, upon booking this trip with us.
Want to join five days Annapurna Base Camp Trek in 2023?
Sublime Trails has the Short Annapurna Base Camp Trek 5 days with fixed departures trip in Spring 2023. With our handpicked itineraries, expert trek guides, and best-planned logistics, we ensure you the best trek experience in Annapurna.
You can contact our tour manager Mr. Ram Khadka at +977-9851183278 or email at sublimetrails@gmail.com to learn the cost and availability of this trip. You can also ask for the customization of the itinerary by reaching out to our tour manager.
