The standard kailash mansarovar yatra itinerary takes 14 days from Kathmandu and back, crossing into Tibet at the Kerung border, driving 950km west across the plateau, and circling Mount Kailash on foot before returning the same way. It is not the only format, but it is the format that works for the broadest range of pilgrims because it gives the body two acclimatisation stops before the kora and ends with two recovery nights in Kathmandu. This day-by-day breakdown lays out altitudes, drive hours, what each lodge looks like, and where the rest days are. If you want to compare formats and pricing first, our travel packages page lists current departures. The itinerary below assumes the overland route, twin-share lodges, a Land Cruiser per four pilgrims plus a luggage truck for groups over eight, and an English-speaking Tibetan guide picking the group up at Kerung.
Quick-Glance Itinerary at a Glance
Use this table to plan flights and check insurance dates. Drive hours are typical for sealed-road days; weather can add an hour or two.
| Day | Route | Altitude end of day | Drive / Walk | Stay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive Kathmandu | 1,300m | 0 / 0 | Hotel Kathmandu |
| 2 | Kathmandu briefing, Pashupatinath | 1,300m | 0 / 0 | Hotel Kathmandu |
| 3 | Kathmandu to Syabrubesi | 1,460m | 7 hr / 0 | Lodge Syabrubesi |
| 4 | Syabrubesi to Kerung (Tibet) | 2,700m to 3,800m | 4 hr / 0 | Guesthouse Kerung |
| 5 | Acclimatisation Kerung | 3,800m | 0 / 2 hr | Guesthouse Kerung |
| 6 | Kerung to Saga | 4,640m | 7 hr / 0 | Hotel Saga |
| 7 | Saga to Lake Mansarovar | 4,590m | 7 hr / 0 | Lodge Chiu Gompa |
| 8 | Mansarovar darshan, transfer Darchen | 4,575m | 1 hr / 0 | Lodge Darchen |
| 9 | Kora Day 1: Darchen to Dirapuk | 4,890m | 0 / 6 hr | Tea-house Dirapuk |
| 10 | Kora Day 2: Dirapuk to Zuthulpuk via Dolma La | 4,790m | 0 / 10 hr | Tea-house Zuthulpuk |
| 11 | Kora Day 3: Zuthulpuk to Darchen, drive to Saga | 4,640m | 5 hr / 4 hr | Hotel Saga |
| 12 | Saga to Kerung | 3,800m | 7 hr / 0 | Guesthouse Kerung |
| 13 | Kerung to Kathmandu | 1,300m | 9 hr / 0 | Hotel Kathmandu |
| 14 | Departure | 1,300m | 0 / 0 | Onward |
Days 1 to 2: Arrival in Kathmandu and Pashupatinath Puja
Day 1 is a free arrival. Most international flights land at Tribhuvan in the early afternoon. We meet you at the airport and transfer to your hotel in Thamel or Boudha, depending on your preference. If you arrive early enough, walk Boudha stupa at sunset, when butter-lamps are lit and Tibetan elders walk their evening kora; it sets the right tone for the trip. For airport logistics and a rough sense of arrival pace, our Kathmandu airport guide is worth a quick read on the plane.
Day 2 is the briefing day. Morning starts with a Pashupatinath visit, where many Hindu pilgrims perform the traditional puja before a Kailash yatra. Pashupatinath is the seat of Lord Shiva on the Bagmati river, and the priests there are familiar with the rite of dedication for the trip ahead. Afterwards we run a 90-minute briefing at the office: paperwork check, gear check, group introductions, a walk-through of altitude protocols, and a question-and-answer session with the guide who will lead the kora. The afternoon is free for last-minute gear purchases. If you want to extend the spiritual context of the days in Kathmandu, our Nepal spiritual tour blog covers what is open in Boudha, Swayambhunath, and the smaller Shiva temples around the valley.
Days 3 to 5: Kathmandu to Kerung and a Vital Rest Day
Day 3 (Kathmandu to Syabrubesi, 7 hours). The drive heads north through Trishuli and along the Bhote Kosi valley. The first three hours are smooth highway; after Trishuli the road narrows and climbs through small farming villages. Syabrubesi at 1,460m is the gateway to Langtang and the last Nepali town before the border. The lodges are simple but clean, with hot showers and Wi-Fi.
Day 4 (Syabrubesi to Kerung, 4 hours including border). A short drive of 30 minutes takes you to Rasuwagadhi, the Nepali immigration post on the Bhote Kosi. After exit formalities you walk across the friendship bridge to the Chinese side at Kerung port, where Tibetan immigration officers process the group visa and check the Tibet Travel Permit. Allow 90 minutes to two hours for the crossing. The drive up to Kerung town climbs from 1,800m at the river to 3,800m in two hours of switchbacks, which is a significant altitude jump in one afternoon.
Day 5 (Acclimatisation at Kerung). This is the most important rest day of the trip. You stay a second night at 3,800m to let the body produce more red cells before the next jump to Saga. The schedule is loose. Most pilgrims walk to a small monastery on the hill above town in the morning, eat a long lunch, and rest in the afternoon. Drink four to five litres of water, skip alcohol, eat carbohydrate-rich meals, and start any prophylactic Diamox dose the night before if your doctor has prescribed it.
Days 6 to 7: Saga and Lake Mansarovar
Day 6 (Kerung to Saga, 7 hours, 4,640m). The drive crosses two passes over 5,000m, and you may feel the altitude during the lunch stop. The road is smooth and the scenery shifts from green Himalayan slopes to brown plateau steppe inside three hours. Saga is a small Chinese-built town used by Tibetan truckers and pilgrim convoys. The hotel is the best you will see for the next week, with proper rooms, hot showers, and oxygen on call at reception.
Day 7 (Saga to Mansarovar, 7 hours, 4,590m). This is the day everyone talks about afterwards. Late morning the road bends past a low ridge and the first view of Kailash appears in the distance, a single white pyramid above the brown plateau. Twenty minutes later Lake Mansarovar opens up below the road: 320 square kilometres of turquoise water at 4,590m, the highest freshwater lake of its size in the world. We stay at Chiu Gompa on the lake's western shore. The lodge is basic; the view is the best on the trip. Sunset over Gurla Mandhata on the lake's south side is the photograph you will print when you get home.
Days 8 to 11: Mansarovar Darshan and the Three-Day Kora
Day 8 (Mansarovar parikrama and transfer to Darchen). Sunrise puja at the lake. Many pilgrims take a ritual bath at Chiu Gompa or further south at Hor Qu, but the water is 6 to 9 C even in July, so most settle for sprinkling water on the head. After breakfast we drive a short clockwise loop of the lake by jeep, stopping at four cardinal-point bathing ghats, and then transfer 35km north to Darchen at 4,575m. Afternoon is rest and gear sort: a porter is assigned per two pilgrims and a duffel of up to 10kg goes to him for the next two nights.
Day 9 (Kora Day 1: Darchen to Dirapuk, 18km, 6 hours). A jeep drops you at Yam Dwar, the trailhead, to save 5km of road walking. The path follows the Lha Chu river up the western valley with the long western face of Kailash on your right. The walk gains only 300m of altitude across the day, which is gentle, but the air is thin and most groups take 6 hours including lunch. Dirapuk tea-house faces the north face of Kailash, and the late-afternoon light on it is the most photographed view of the mountain.
Day 10 (Kora Day 2: Dirapuk to Zuthulpuk via Dolma La, 22km, 9 to 11 hours). Start at 4 a. m. with tea and porridge. The first 6km climb steadily from 4,890m to the prayer-flag forest at Shiva Tsal at 5,330m, where pilgrims leave a piece of clothing or hair as a symbolic death-and-rebirth before the pass. Another 2km of steeper switchbacks bring you to Dolma La at 5,630m, marked by a giant boulder and rope upon rope of weather-beaten flags. Take photographs, do not linger more than 20 minutes; this is the highest point of the yatra and the air carries roughly half the oxygen of sea level. The descent is long. You drop 700m in two hours to Gauri Kund, a green glacial pool, and then walk a further 12km on a gradual valley floor to Zuthulpuk. Most groups arrive between 2 and 4 p. m. exhausted but elated. The tea-house has a small stone chamber said to hold Milarepa's hand and footprint in the rock.
Day 11 (Kora Day 3 and drive to Saga, 14km walk plus 5 hours drive). The final walking day is short and flat along the Zhong Chu river, taking 3 to 4 hours back to the road head where jeeps wait. Lunch in Darchen, then the long drive back to Saga for the night.
Days 12 to 14: Saga to Kerung to Kathmandu
Day 12 (Saga to Kerung, 7 hours). A retracing day. Bodies are tired but the altitude is dropping, which most people feel as instant relief: deeper sleep, better appetite, a return of energy. Kerung at 3,800m feels almost like sea level after Mansarovar.
Day 13 (Kerung to Kathmandu, 9 hours). The longest single drive of the trip, but every hour brings warmer air and greener trees. You re-enter Nepal at Rasuwagadhi mid-morning, lunch in Syabrubesi, and arrive in Kathmandu in the late evening. Most groups gather for a closing dinner that night at a Newari restaurant in Patan or Boudha.
Day 14 (Departure). Free morning, transfer to the airport for onward flights. Pilgrims with extra time often use this morning to revisit Pashupatinath for a closing puja or to spend a few hours in Kathmandu for shopping at Patan or Bhaktapur.
Variations on the Standard Itinerary
Not every group fits the 14-day overland format. Three common variations are worth understanding before you book.
- Helicopter shortcut (9 to 10 days). Replace days 3 to 7 with a Kathmandu to Nepalgunj to Simikot to Hilsa flight chain, which gets you to Mansarovar in 36 hours instead of five days. Faster, harder on the body, more expensive.
- Extended Mansarovar parikrama (16 days). Add two days to walk a section of the 90km Mansarovar lake circuit on foot, with camping on the eastern shore. This is for travelers who want a quieter, slower trip and have done the standard kora before.
- EBC north-side combo (18 to 20 days). Combine Kailash with a side trip to Everest Base Camp on the Tibet side, sleeping at Rongbuk monastery. This works for travelers who want both peaks in one journey. It pairs naturally with a follow-on visit to Lumbini and the wider Buddhist circuit covered in our Buddhist pilgrimage in Nepal guide.
Travelers who want a longer total time in the region often add a week in Nepal before or after, using the framework in our 3 weeks in Nepal itinerary blog as a starting point. A pre-yatra week of light walking in the middle hills also helps acclimatise lungs and legs.
Planning Your Yatra with Navigate Globe
Our team has been running this exact 14-day Kailash Mansarovar format since 2008 with small adjustments year on year as roads improve. We hold fixed group departures every fortnight from May to mid-September, and we run private departures for sangha groups, family groups, and corporate well-being trips. We handle the Tibet Travel Permit, Aliens' Permit, group visa, vehicles, twin-share accommodation, oxygen kits, satellite phone for the kora section, English-speaking Tibetan guide, and Nepal-side logistics. You bring trekking clothes, sturdy boots, a duffel, and your own appetite for a long walk at altitude.
For a deeper feel of the Tibetan and Hindu spiritual landscape that frames the trip, our Nepal spiritual tour page lays out the temple circuit we run as a pre-yatra add-on. When you are ready to lock dates, review the departure list on the packages page linked above and then contact our Kailash desk with the size of your group, your preferred month, and any medical notes the team should know about. We will reply within one business day with availability and a costed quote.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the Kailash yatra 14 days specifically?
Because of altitude. The body needs a rest day at 3,800m and a slow build to 4,590m before walking over a 5,630m pass. Compress the schedule below 14 days and the chance of altitude sickness on the kora rises sharply. Operators who advertise 10 or 11 days overland either skip the Kerung rest day or do not stop properly at Mansarovar, both of which are false economies.
Can the yatra be done in fewer days?
Yes, but only by helicopter. The Simikot-Hilsa heli format runs 9 to 10 days, which suits time-constrained travelers in good cardiac and respiratory health. It is not advised for pilgrims over 65 or anyone with a previous serious bout of altitude sickness.
What happens if weather closes Dolma La?
It is rare in season, but it has happened. If the pass is closed by snow on the morning of Day 10, the group rests at Dirapuk for an extra night and tries again the next day. If a second attempt is also blocked, pilgrims return the way they came, and the kora is treated as completed at Dirapuk. The route insurance and guide protocols handle the day-juggle.
Are the rest days really flexible?
Yes. The Kerung acclimatisation day on Day 5 is the firm one, because every pilgrim needs it. Other rest days, particularly at Mansarovar and Saga on the return, can be shortened or extended by half a day depending on group condition. Our guides decide on the morning of each day in conversation with the group leader.
How is altitude managed on the trail?
Three ways. First, the schedule itself is the main tool: gradual gain, rest days at the right altitudes. Second, every vehicle carries a bottled-oxygen kit and a pulse oximeter, and the guide checks SpO2 each morning at altitude. Third, the kora porters carry an emergency oxygen cylinder, and the satellite phone allows us to coordinate evacuation by jeep from any point on the route within four hours back to Saga, where there is a clinic.
What should I pack for the kora?
A 35 to 45 litre daypack, two pairs of broken-in trekking boots, three pairs of merino socks, two thermal base layers, a fleece, a down jacket rated to minus 10 C, waterproof shell jacket and trousers, gloves, a buff, a wide-brim hat, sunglasses with side shielding, sunblock SPF 50, lip balm, a head torch with spare batteries, a one-litre water bottle and a 1.5 litre bladder, water-purification tablets as backup, a small first-aid kit with Diamox, ibuprofen, oral rehydration salts, blister tape, and any prescription medication. Pack a separate plastic bag for wet clothes; the lodges have nowhere to dry gear quickly.
