Nepal's most popular trek begins at the lakeside town of Pokhara and leads six or seven days north-west around the Annapurna Massif, through dramatic changes in landscape, climate and culture to the high village of Jomsom, near the isolated land of Mustang. Trekkers often continue on to the sacred shrine of Muktinath, near the 5,415?meter Thorang-La pass and down into the lovely valley of Manang. The route through Manang circles the Annapurna back to the Kathmandu-Pokhara highway. The Annapurna circuit takes one through terraced hills, forests and alpine pastures and through the villages of a number of different cultures.

North of Pokhara is an area protected by the Annapurna Conservation Area Project, tucked beneath the southern slopes of the Annapurna Massif. The Sanctuary is an easy trek from Pokhara and takes one through some of Nepal's most lovely rhododendron forests to the Annapurna base camp. There are also numerous one or two day treks out of Pokhara town, where one can have views of Dhaulagiri, the Annapurna range, Manaslu and Ganesh Himal.