WHICH NEPAL TREK IS BEST? EVEREST BASE CAMP vs ANNAPURNA CIRCUIT vs THREE PASSES TREK

hi everyone I'm Liz and this is Alex and we are traveling around the world full time focusing on primarily independent adventure based travel and today we wanted to touch base with you on something that we would have found really useful when we first went to Nepal which is comparing three iconic trucks in Nepal so the three tracks we're going to be comparing today is the three high passes ever a Space Camp and annapurna circuit trek they all are great tracks overall so we're just gonna give some pros and cons for each of them based on our experience granted we did complete the in apprentice circuit three years ago so there was a bit of a gap between when we completed the three high passes and Everest base camp and the annapurna circuit so let's dive right in so number one the three high passes track this one in our opinion has the most spectacular and vast amount of mountain scenery I mean it's just gorgeous Cheyenne Himalayas surrounding you you get parts of that with both the EVC truck and in a printed circuit especially when you're going to Everest base camp and when you're going over throwing a lot pass on an apprentice circuit but for just the sheer quantity and just gorgeousness the three passes in our opinion takes the cake for the most spectacular mountain scenery it is also the most physically challenging of the three hikes you go up the highest and you stay up there for the longest amount of time yeah so if you're really looking for like a big physical challenge this would be kind of considered a pro to you but I guess if you're not looking for something as challenging this could be under the con category but we'll dive into the cons right now so the cons of the three high passes Trek is also just that it is so exhausting like I think we underestimated this we've done a bunch of different mountains and trucks and backpacking trips all over the world and for us it I think this is probably one of the hardest physical things we've ever done granted we were both suffering from sicknesses if you haven't seen our videos on this definitely go check them out we'll link them up above and down below because we definitely suffered a bit along the way one of the biggest cons I would say is that the three high passes Trek is very crowded at least for the first week or so where it follows the Everest base camp trek once you get off of the ever Space Camp proportions then you see a lot fewer crowds but for those portions where you're following the average base camp it is very very crowded yeah granted we went during October which is the highest trekking season in Nepal if you're going to do the three high passes truck and you're very averse to crowds consider going during a time when it's a little bit more of the shoulder it's just not during the peak time one of the other cons for the three passes Trek and for the Everest base camp trek is that it seems like you're trekking through villages that are built for tourists compared to the annapurna circuit where it feels like you're trekking through villages that are there regardless of the trekking so overall choose the three hypothesis track if you're looking for a very accomplishing trek if you're able to do this full trek trust me it is an accomplishment it's not physically easy also if you're looking for just the most insane mountain scenery you can ever possibly imagine definitely choose the three hypothesis track all right sticking with the Everest trekking region we're gonna talk to you about the pros and cons of the Everest base camp trap obviously the biggest Pro of the vers base camp trek is that you can go to the Everest base camp it's a very famous destination and you get to say that you've been to the Everest base camp it's very easy to follow the trail as well because you just follow the crowds there's no real concern with getting lost here another pro is that you do get to see Everest and you get to see some gorgeous mountain scenery on the way to the Everest base camp another pro is that if you are short on time the EBC trek will probably take you the least amount of time and now on to the cons the biggest con of the everest base camp trek is the crowds it is incredibly crowded you won't have a single day of trekking where you're trekking alone there will always be swarms of crowds and donkeys and yaks that will be on the trail with you when we hiked the annapurna circuit three years ago we thought that was crowded until we hiked the EBC just last fall and I was just completely shocked by how crowded it was definitely if you're seeking solitude Everest base camp it's a truck we would least recommend for you again we went during October which is the peak trekking season so this does impact crowds from what we've been told if you really want to do Everest base camp and you want to be able to say I went to Everest base camp and maybe you're short on time this can be a good truck for you just maybe go during the shoulder season but before you plan to go in the shoulders season just be aware that going in the winter months like December in January it can reach incredibly freezing temperatures yes so make sure you're going like just a little bit before a little bit after the trekking season and monitor the weather another con of the Everest base camp truck is that you miss some insanely gorgeous mountain scenery that's just a little short trek away so when we recommend the Everest base camp to people we always say add on some side trucks a day trek away from one of the parts on the Everest base camp it's just probably the most some of the most gorgeous scenery we've ever seen in our life so beautiful turquoise lake and mountain scenery if you're going to do the Everest base camp trek and you want to have a little bit of solitude or get some really insane views it would only add on a day or two if you go over to gokyo and trek back to lukla from there so overall she's the Everest base camp if you're wanting to say hey I went to Everest base camp I went to this iconic destination that so many people have drunk jumped about we met so many men on the trail who have been thinking about doing this track for 20-plus years so if this is you this is on your bucket list and you let's say you're short on time definitely consider at Everest base camp and you are going to be dealing with more crowds but if you choose a shoulder season that can work out also if you're a little hesitant about going to areas that are just so remote you definitely won't be alone on the Everest base camp truck again though we would recommend adding some side trucks though just because you're already out there you might as well go see some gorgeous scenery just add a track away it's so now we're going to talk about the an apprentice circuit the annapurna circuit feels very different than the three hypothesis and Everest base camp truck they're in completely different regions of Nepal and a printer circuits I feel like the main draw for this is that you definitely get more culture along with the trekking so if you really are trying to kind of immerse yourself in the culture a bit and also see some gorgeous mountain scenery we definitely would recommend the annapurna circuit over the other two trucks the reason being is that the first part of the truck you're going through Tibetan Buddhist territory so you have tons of prayer wheels you see people actually like praying on the prayer wheels we went to a temple and uh purpose Ong and heard Buddhist monks chanting like it's just it feels very much like you're able to get that culture and then on the other side of throwing law it's like it's literally divided over that path so throwing law for those who aren't familiar with annapurna circuit is the climax of the truck it's the highest point you go over at 17,000 something feet and on the other side it's Hindu it's primarily Hindu culture and so we met people doing their pilgrimages and stuff like that to move strong and there's temples there it's definitely much more of a cultural experience and the villages are there that are like yes they have tea houses that guests stay in however they also have villages where people are like farming and just living their life which is nice it didn't feel like they were only built there for tourists another pro of the Annapurna circuit is that it is quite a bit cheaper to do when you do the three passes check-in the ever Space Camp Trek most people will arrange a flight from either Katmandu or ROM chump and that flight for two people I think cost us around $700 down and back and you don't have to do that if you do the annapurna circuit it's just a long but inexpensive bus ride to where the trek starts and Bessy sahara it is possible to do the everest base camp in the three passes trek without flying all the way to lukla you do have to add on at least a week of hiking and then you take a bus from Kathmandu to Giri also the guest houses and tea houses in the annapurna region are much less expensive than they are in the average region granted we went three years ago but we've heard from other people that it still seems to be the more affordable option additionally it feels like there are much more independent truckers doing the annapurna circuit versus the other two trucks we did so if you're thinking about going to independently you will probably find it a little bit easier to kind of connect with people who are also going independently granted we have been told that we like our experience on the Everest base camp and at three passes Trek was a little bit off normal that there are more independent truckers when we went there was like no one but we've been told that other people are able to connect with other independent truckers so maybe it was the season we went but I think when we did the ANA prayer circuit I would say more than 50% of people were going independently and there were very few porters and guides on the truck so versus that Everest base camp in through passes area it seemed like everybody had a guide in for tour guide comm porter combo one of my favorite aspects of the annapurna circuit was the diversity that you get in the landscapes sure in the everest region you see a lot of really high mountains and that's really beautiful but one of the cool things about the annapurna circuit is that each day it feels like you're in a totally different region one day you're hiking through desert another day you're hiking through forests that looks like something out of the Pacific Northwest of the United States and then another day you're hiking past 8,000 meter Peaks that are just looming above you so just the the diversity in the terrain is just so amazing another Pro for the annapurna circuit is that it is much more gradual going up than the ever space-camp of three fastest tracks also if you do the full annapurna circuit like we did you'll see much fewer crowds on the two ends because a lot of people will cut off the first few days and cut off the few last days so on either end you're gonna see much fewer crowds after we passed Johnson which is a point where a lot of people will just grab a jeep and head out we were practically alone for a day or two on the annapurna circuit so cons so the biggest con to me of the annapurna circuit was that during certain parts because they've built out roads you're gonna be competing with vehicle traffic as well as there's some biking groups that go up to Ana Pro Circuit as well there are ways to avoid excessive street or road walking with the vehicles there are like either muffs you can find spots that kind of go around it but still some parts of it you're gonna be walking on the main road and vehicles will be passing by and that will fly up dust and stuff like that I just kind of interrupt the you know serene mountain scenery so bear that in mind another thing is that it can get very crowded from Minh on to Johnson so as we mentioned as one of the pros you know the side parts it's much less crowded but from manaan to Johnson because so many people will just take a vehicle up to munag and then take a bus or Jeep from Johnson that part of the truck can be quite crowded and when we did it we were competing with bike traffic which was extremely annoying to say the least on narrow roads when we first planned our trip to the annapurna region three years ago I really wanted to see Mount Everest and that was one of the cons of doing the annapurna circuit is that I was not able to see it and I had to wait three years so we went back last fall to finally be able to see it in person yeah because you won't get any views will get news of Annapurna and other gorgeous 8,000 meter peaks on the ANA pro circuit but you do not see the iconic highest mountain on earth Mount Everest so if that's something that you have to absolutely see consider those other cute tracks we talked about so I know we've got a lot of information at you so we're gonna be putting together a summary here [Music] so overall if you're wanting that cultural experience combined with hiking we would recommend the end of pro circuit if you're wanting the most gorgeous mountain views you could ever possibly imagine do the three hypothesis track if you're a little nervous about trucking independently and you never trekked independently before choose the annapurna circuit there are more people who go unguided and it's very clear and easy to follow and you are at high elevation for as long of a period of time so if you've never experienced high elevation and a pro circuit is probably you're safer back because there are ways to get down if you need to as well whereas on the three hypotheses and Everest base camp trek you are out there so you are gonna be able to get down very easily if you do really struggle with the altitude unless you get a helicopter yes we did see people helicopter out you so you can't and technically it's just gonna cost you quite a bit overall if you're wanting something that's more affordable we'd recommend the annapurna circuit and i've heard a circuit just the cost of food the tea houses and getting there was just so much more cheaper than the other two trucks however if you're really wanting to see Mount Everest I would choose either the three hypothesis or the Everest base camp truck additionally if you're wanting to be able to say hey I did ever a Space Camp do the Everest base camp trek but you could also do that in combination with the three hypothesis track or add an extra day or two by going over going back in a different direction than where you came so you can get some of the most insane mountain views you've ever seen in your life if you're really wanting to challenge yourself physically and you're really just kind of like yeah I want to see what I can do three hypotheses truck is the truck for you that is insane you go over three passes that are above 17,000 feet one that's 18,000 something feet and if you add Everest base camp you get another one there so that's four and if you're able to do that that's just amazing if you're super short on time and want to see Mount Everest definitely do the Everest base camp trek if you want to feel like you're really out there and there's not many crowds definitely consider doing parts of the three hypothesis truck were like that not the Everest base camp portion but some of the other passes felt very remote and out there on the Annapurna circuit as we mentioned some of the parts before Manong and before and after Johnson felt very remote and out there overall though you're gonna be most remote like in terms of not being able to get anywhere on the three high passes track so if that's something you're really seeking that getting really out there like you're gonna be days walk from civilization through high passes track is probably your track overall if you choose any of these tracks it's gonna be amazing we absolutely love trekking in Nepal hence why we have done all three of these tracks we love it it's just there's something magical about the Himalayas it's definitely a big adventure any of these trucks you choose so let us know what you guys think of this what truck you would consider based on this I'd love to see it's helped anyone decide which truck they want to do definitely let us know and giving any other questions hit us up as well and I hope you guys have amazing Trek if you are interested in following our full series we did on the three hypotheses and Everest base camp trek will link that all down below we created a video logs of everything pretty much all the ups and downs of our trekking experience so we'll link that down below if you're interested in following along our adventures we're traveling full-time we do a lot of adventure based travel we have some fun adventures coming up [Music] you

Channel: Pursuing Mountains

Views: 11,072

Keywords: Everest basecamp trek, Annapurna Circuit, three passes trek Nepal, Everest base camp trek, best nepal trek, which Nepal trek is best, everest basecamp vs Annapurna circuit, top nepal treks, Annapurna circuit vs three passes trek, Annapurna circuit vs Everest base camp, Everest base camp vs annapurna, ebc trek

Id: LX9PeHjoLy4

Length: 18min 3sec (1083 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 20 2020