Nobody tells you what the Annapurna Base Camp trek really costs in 2026 - here's the honest number
A guided Annapurna Base Camp trek runs about US$700 to US$1,300 per person in 2026, permits and guide included. The permits themselves are only about US$33 - here's where the rest of the money actually goes.
At a glance
- Published
- TopicMoney & Insurance
- Verified againstNepal Hiking Team; The Nepal Trekking Company
- Treks coveredAnnapurna Base Camp Trek — 11 Days from Pokhara, Annapurna Base Camp Trek — 7 Days, Annapurna Base Camp Trek — 9 Days
A guided Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) trek costs roughly US$700 to US$1,300 per person in 2026, with permits, a licensed guide, teahouses and trailhead transport all in. The surprise for most people is how little of that is the permit: the two official cards come to about US$33. Everything else is the guide, the beds and how many days you take. Here is the honest breakdown of what you will actually spend on Nepal's most popular trek.
Key facts
- The ACAP permit is NPR 3,000 (about US$20) for foreigners; the TIMS card is NPR 2,000 (about US$13), or NPR 1,000 in a group — roughly US$33 combined
- A licensed guide has been mandatory on the standard ABC route since April 2023 and is enforced in 2026 — a porter is optional
- Guides run US$25 to US$35 a day; porters US$20 to US$25 a day, carrying up to 20kg for two trekkers
- On-trail food and a bed come to US$30 to US$45 a day; the trek needs no flights, unlike Everest
The permits are the cheap part
ABC and every other Annapurna-region trail — Poon Hill, Mardi Himal, the full Circuit — share one permit pair. The Annapurna Conservation Area Permit (ACAP) is NPR 3,000 for foreigners and NPR 1,000 for SAARC nationals, with under-tens free. The TIMS card (Trekkers' Information Management System) is NPR 2,000 for an individual foreigner, or NPR 1,000 booked as a group through an agency. At late-2026 rates of about NPR 150 to the US dollar, that is roughly US$33 in total. Both are now issued through registered agencies rather than over the counter, and while TIMS enforcement on the main ABC trail has become inconsistent, ACAP is checked at every entry post — do not skip it.
Where the money really goes
Once the permits are paid, the trip cost is driven by the same two levers as any Nepal trek: the guide's day-rate and the number of days on the trail. A licensed ABC guide runs US$25 to US$35 a day, a benchmark set by the Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal, and that covers wages only — you also cover the guide's food and lodging as you go. A porter is optional on ABC because the trail is well graded, but at US$20 to US$25 a day shared between two people it is money well spent. Teahouse rooms cost about US$5 to US$10 a night in lower villages like Ghandruk and Chhomrong and US$10 to US$15 higher up at Deurali, Machhapuchhre Base Camp and ABC itself — and lodges expect you to eat your meals where you sleep, which is where the real daily spend sits. There are no internal flights: you reach the trail by a short drive from Pokhara to Nayapul or Siwai.
| Item | 7-day guided | 10-11 day guided |
|---|---|---|
| Permits (ACAP + TIMS) | ~$33 | ~$33 |
| Guide (shared in a group) | ~$120 | ~$180 |
| Porter (shared) | ~$80 | ~$120 |
| Food + lodging on trail | ~$260 | ~$400 |
| Pokhara transport + trailhead jeeps | ~$60 | ~$90 |
| Typical all-in | ~$700–900 | ~$1,000–1,300 |
Excludes international flights, Kathmandu and Pokhara hotels, gear and travel insurance. The Kathmandu–Pokhara leg adds about US$10–25 by tourist bus or US$100–120 by air, each way.
What this means for you
ABC is the best-value big-name trek in Nepal precisely because it needs no domestic flight — the US$360-plus Lukla fare that inflates every Everest budget simply is not there. If you want to keep the cost down, shorten the itinerary and join a group: fewer days cuts the largest line item (food and lodging), and a group splits the guide and porter that a solo trekker would carry alone. Do not cut the guide, though — it is mandatory, and on a trail with real avalanche and altitude exposure above Deurali, it is the last place to save US$30 a day.
For exactly where and how each fee is paid on the trail, see our full Annapurna ACAP and TIMS permit guide.
Annapurna Base Camp trips for 2026
These are live departures, priced from the per-person rate in a small group:
- Annapurna Base Camp Trek — 7 days · from US$800 per person, the efficient Pokhara-to-Pokhara route
- Annapurna Base Camp Trek — 9 days · from US$920 per person, with a gentler acclimatisation pace
- Annapurna Base Camp — 11 days from Pokhara · from US$1,320 per person, the full unhurried version
Want a firm quote for your dates and group size? Message us on WhatsApp or via our contact page and we will price the exact itinerary against real permit and lodge costs.
Sources: Nepal Hiking Team, Annapurna trekking permits 2026; The Nepal Trekking Company, Annapurna permits and TIMS guide 2026.
Cover photo: Bijaya2043 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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