Tsum Valley
A quiet, Tibetan-flavoured trek off the main Manaslu route — one of our favourites.
- Permits
- MCAP and a Tsum Valley Restricted Area Permit (RAP) — plus a local community fee of around NPR 1,000, paid in Jagat
- Guide
- Yes — required. Previously you needed a minimum of two trekkers as well, but new rules now allow solo trekkers with a guide
- Time
- 11–14 days
- Local dog aggression
- Low
- Other dangers
- Altitude, cattle, horses
- Can combine with
- Manaslu Circuit
Overview
This is one of my favourite treks — it has a distinctly Tibetan flavour compared to anywhere else I've been in Nepal. For the wider background, Wikipedia's Tsum Valley page is a good starting point; this page sticks to the dog-specific side of things.
When we went in December, we were the only tourists there — if you're after somewhere genuinely quiet, this is a great option.
Good to know
One thing to plan for: you might have to come down the same way you went up. Talk to your guide about it — we took a different route down the other side of the valley, which was more technical and involved some climbing over landslides, but felt completely different from the way up. I'd definitely recommend asking about it. The other small downside is that the trek ends at a monastery rather than a natural sight, which I found a little anticlimactic — though it's still one of my favourite treks overall. I've also heard the flowers are amazing if you go in spring or autumn, though that's still on my own list to try.
Photos from the trek
Dog-friendly tea houses on this route
We haven't logged specific tea houses for this route yet — check the Tea Houses page as we add them, or get in touch if you know one that's happy to take dogs.