Tsum Valley Buddhist Festival Trek

Tsum Valley is a sacred, sheltered valley in the Manaslu region, long closed to outsiders and still deeply traditional. A Tsum Valley Buddhist Festival Trek walks into this hidden world of gompas, mani walls and Buddhist villages, where the community has historically pledged itself to non-violence and the protection of life.

Tsum’s spiritual life centres on monasteries such as Mu Gompa and Rachen Nunnery, set high in the valley. Buddhist festivals and rituals follow the Tibetan calendar, and the valley’s pilgrimage sites — including caves associated with the saint Milarepa — draw devotion year-round. We plan treks around verified local festival timing where possible.

Tsum Valley branches north off the Manaslu trail in north-central Nepal, reached via Soti Khola or Machha Khola and the lower Budhi Gandaki valley.

This is a suggested flow — every itinerary is private and tailored to your dates, pace and comfort level.

• Day 1 — Kathmandu to Machha Khola: Drive from Kathmandu to the trailhead in the Budhi Gandaki valley.
• Days 2–4 — Into the valley: Trek up through Jagat and Lokpa, entering Tsum Valley with its first monasteries and villages.
• Days 5–8 — Upper Tsum: Reach Mu Gompa and Rachen Nunnery, visit pilgrimage sites and, where timing allows, local festival rituals.
• Days 9–11 — Return: Trek back down the valley to the Budhi Gandaki.
• Day 12 — Drive to Kathmandu: Return by road, with onward departure thereafter.

Tsum has strong community lodges and homestays, and tourism income supports village families, guides, porters and the monasteries and nunneries that define the valley’s life. We favour community-run lodges throughout.