Why train on the trail?

There is a quiet truth among Himalayan climbers: the difference between a successful first 6,000-metre summit and a hard, expensive failure is rarely fitness. It is almost always technique. Knowing how to set a rope on a sloping anchor at four in the morning, how to walk in crampons on bad neve without burning your calves, how to clip into a fixed line you cannot quite see — these are the small skills that decide who tops out and who turns around at high camp.

Most climbers learn these skills the wrong way: a weekend at a low-altitude crag back home, then straight to a real expedition where the cost of a mistake is enormous. Khrego's Trek & Train programme exists to fix that. Each course is a real teahouse trek across the Annapurna region — so you acclimatise as you walk — paired with structured, hands-on alpine instruction taught by a NMA-certified climbing Sherpa with multiple expeditions of summit-day experience. You learn the skill, then immediately use it on real Himalayan terrain. By the end of the course, you have practised every move you'll make on a 6,000-metre peak, and you've done it at altitude.

The page below is in three parts. We lead with Trek & Train — the climbing schools — because that is what most of our international travellers come to Nepal to find. Below it sit our Yoga & Trek journeys for a gentler, more contemplative week in the mountains, and our Teach & Learn village stays, where you live for several days with a Sherpa, Gurung, Newari or Tamang host family. All three programmes share the same DNA: small groups, licensed Nepali leads, and a slower, deeper version of the Himalaya than the standard trek loop allows.

What a day on Trek & Train looks like

A typical day begins in a teahouse somewhere in the Annapurna sanctuary — Tilicho, Manang, Chhomrong or Mardi base, depending on which course you booked. Mornings are for moving. We walk together for two to four hours, gaining altitude steadily, with your certified Sherpa explaining the day's terrain and what we'll practise when we stop. You learn the small things first: how to lace climbing boots so you don't lose a toenail on a long descent, how to choose your step on loose moraine, how to pace yourself so you arrive at camp warm but not cooked.

After a hot lunch we move into instruction. The Annapurna foothills hide a remarkable variety of natural training ground — small glaciers, ridge scrambles, fixed-line sections, snow slopes, and rocky aretes that mimic the technical sections of every 6,000-metre peak in Nepal. Your guide picks a feature suited to the day's lesson and you practise the skill on real rock and ice — not on a manufactured course. Day one covers harness, helmet, knots, belay device fundamentals. Day three brings rope ascent and descent on a fixed line — exactly the system you'll use to climb the headwall of Island Peak. Day five is crampon and ice-axe technique on a small glacier, including self-arrest. Day seven is your mock summit day: a pre-dawn start under headtorches, a long approach, a real technical section, and a turn-around discipline that gets drilled into you so that on the real peak it is muscle memory rather than a decision you have to make.

Evenings are for theory and rest. Over dinner in the lodge, your guide walks the group through the next day's plan, the route topography, the weather window, and the decisions that will shape it. By the time you finish the course you have not only learnt to climb — you have learnt to think like a climber. That, more than anything, is what we want you to take home.

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Who Yoga & Trek is for

Yoga & Trek was built for the traveller who wants the mountains in their lungs and the quiet in their head — but does not need the lungs-out-of-body intensity of a Trek & Train climbing school or a 5,400-metre pass crossing. These are foothill journeys, capped at moderate altitudes, with a daily rhythm of sunrise yoga, a half-day walk, a long lunch on a sunny terrace, an afternoon practice on the mat or by the lakeside, and a quiet evening of breath-work and meditation.

Three of our four programmes happen in the Pokhara and lower Annapurna foothills, where the air is warm, the views of Machhapuchhre and Annapurna South dominate the skyline, and the highest you sleep is around 2,200 metres. The fourth — our Lumbini Pilgrimage — is a quieter Terai journey through the gardens of Buddha's birthplace, paired with morning meditation in the Maya Devi temple complex. Every Yoga & Trek group is co-led by a Khrego licensed mountain guide and a 200- or 500-hour RYT-certified yoga teacher who speaks fluent English. Group size is capped at eight travellers, with private trips available year-round.

A meaningful number of our Yoga & Trek travellers go on to book a Trek & Train or classic teahouse trek with us the following year. That is, in some ways, the highest compliment the programme can be paid: it leaves people fit, calm, acclimatised to the rhythm of mountain life, and quietly hungry for more.

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LEARN · Village Stays

Live with a host family.

Cook, weave, walk to school with the children, sit in on the morning monastery puja. Slow travel with our partner Sherpa, Gurung, Newari and Tamang families across Nepal.

What a day in a village looks like

There is no fixed timetable in a village stay. That is the point. You wake when the household wakes — usually around six, with the sound of yak bells, prayer-flag rope creaking in the wind, and the kitchen fire being lit for morning tea. You drink butter tea or sweet milk tea with the family on a low bench by the stove. The grandmother of the house, who is almost always the quiet boss of operations, will press a piece of warm flatbread into your hand and gesture at you to eat more.

After breakfast, the day shapes itself. In Junbesi you might walk thirty minutes to the monastery school where you teach an English class to twenty Sherpa children, then sit through morning puja with the monks. In Ghandruk you'll likely help with tea-picking in the cooperative gardens or join a porter family on a delivery walk to the next village. In Bandipur the weekend might be spent volunteering at the heritage school or learning Newari woodwork from one of the master craftsmen who restored the old town. In Briddim you might trek up to a high pasture with the dzo (yak-cow hybrids), help bring them in by dusk, then return to the lodge for a Tamang dinner of dal-bhat and homemade chhang.

Afternoons are for walking — there is always a viewpoint, a small gompa, a sacred spring, a rhododendron stand a short hike from the house, and your host family will send a son or daughter along as a guide. Evenings are for the kitchen. You watch dinner being made on the woodstove, you eat with the family, the children practise English with you, and someone usually starts singing by nine. Lights out is early. The walls are thin and the household sleeps when the sun goes down.

A hundred per cent of the lodging fee stays with the host family. We do not take a margin on that line. We make our money on logistics — the transport, the guide, the planning — and we leave the rest of the value with the people whose home you are sharing. Every host family has been on the Khrego programme for at least three years, and they get a small fixed retainer from us during the off-season as well so the relationship doesn't depend on bookings to survive the monsoon.

How it works

A different kind of journey.

No fixed itinerary. No tour bus. Just life with one of our partner families, on their terms.

01

Choose

Pick a Trek & Train course or a village from the lists above based on the region, season, and what you want to learn.

02

We connect

We match you with the right certified guide or host family, share dietary needs by phone, and confirm the dates.

03

You arrive

Khrego transfers you from Kathmandu or Pokhara. Your guide / host meets you on day one.

04

You learn

You either walk + train with a certified Sherpa on the Annapurna trail, or you live with a host family — for as many days as you booked.

Frequently asked

Train on the trail — your questions.

The questions we get asked most often by travellers planning a Trek & Train course, a Yoga & Trek journey, or a village stay with Khrego.

Do I need any climbing experience to book Trek & Train?

For the Annapurna Foundation course, no — it is built precisely for fit hikers with no previous climbing background. You'll learn from scratch: harness, knots, belay, crampons, the whole foundation. For the Intermediate Glacier Course and Pre-Expedition Conditioning courses we recommend at least the Foundation course or an equivalent week of alpine instruction back home. Send us your background and we'll tell you honestly which course is the right starting point.

How fit do I need to be?

For Trek & Train and our classic treks: comfortable walking 5–7 hours a day on hilly ground, with a light daypack. We recommend 8–12 weeks of training before you fly — regular hill walks, stair climbing, cardio and a little leg-strength work. For Yoga & Trek the bar is much lower — a moderate hiker who can manage 3–5 hours of gentle walking will be fine. Village stays require no particular fitness at all.

What's the best season for Trek & Train in the Annapurna region?

Autumn (mid-September to late November) is the prime window — clear skies, stable weather, comfortable temperatures on the glacier sections. Spring (March to May) is the second-best window and the season for the higher technical days; the rhododendrons are in bloom across the Annapurna foothills and the higher snow is in better shape than late autumn. We avoid the monsoon (June to early September) for Trek & Train as the snow conditions become unpredictable, though we do run village stays year-round.

Who teaches the Trek & Train courses?

Every Trek & Train course is led by a fully NMA-certified (Nepal Mountaineering Association) climbing Sherpa with at least six expeditions of summit-day experience on Himalayan peaks. Group size is capped at four students per certified guide so you receive close, hands-on instruction throughout — not lecture-and-watch. Several of our lead instructors also hold IFMGA certification and have summited Everest, Manaslu, Ama Dablam and other technical objectives multiple times.

Can I combine Trek & Train with a real summit expedition?

Yes — and many travellers do. A common 4-week itinerary is: 10 days of Annapurna Foundation in late October, then a few rest days in Pokhara, then a 16-day Island Peak (6,189 m) or Lobuche East (6,119 m) expedition with the same guide who taught you. Or, for travellers aiming higher, the Tilicho & Thorong La Pre-Expedition Conditioning course rolls neatly into a Mera Peak or Ama Dablam attempt the following season. Tell us your end goal and we'll design the full progression for you.

What languages do the village host families speak?

English ranges from confident (Junbesi, where many Sherpa families have worked in trekking lodges for generations) to functional (Briddim, Bandipur, Ghandruk). In every village a Khrego liaison is available on WhatsApp for translation when something nuanced needs to be conveyed — and the children of the household are almost always the best English speakers in the family. Most travellers report that the small-vocabulary stretch is part of the pleasure.

Is the food included? What if I'm vegetarian or have allergies?

Yes — all meals are included on Trek & Train, Yoga & Trek, and village stays. Nepalese cuisine is naturally vegetarian-friendly (dal-bhat, vegetable curries, tibetan-style momos and noodles) so vegetarians and vegans are easy to look after. For allergies (gluten, nuts, dairy) please tell us at the time of booking so we can brief the host family or lodge kitchen well in advance. We have a strict no-surprise policy on food at altitude — your guide is briefed on your dietary needs before day one.

What does it cost?

Every Khrego programme is custom-quoted around your dates, group size, accommodation tier and inclusions — there is no single sticker price for our courses. Send us an enquiry with your preferred window and we will send a fully itemised quote within 24 hours. For booking, the deposit is USD 500 minimum for treks and training courses, or 50% of the trip price for full expeditions. The remaining balance is due 30 days before departure.

How do I book a free 30-minute consultation?

Visit our contact page and pick a planner from the team — they each have different specialisms (climbing, yoga, family travel, expedition logistics). Choose your preferred channel (WhatsApp, Zoom, or phone) and a time slot in your timezone. The call is free, with no commitment, and you'll leave with a clear answer on whether Khrego is the right fit for you — even if that answer is ‘not this year’.

Want a custom Teach & Learn programme?

Have a region in mind that's not listed, want to combine a Trek & Train course with a village stay, or build a longer 2–3-week skills + culture immersion? We can design any combination for you.

Start the conversation