May 7, 2019
We arrived in Pokhara without somewhere to stay and were quickly overwhelmed by the number of hotel touts at the bus station. We couldn’t get away from a particularly nasty hotel tout and ended up taking a taxi to a random hotel from our lonely planet guide. On arrival, it immediately started raining heavily and we hid in a small cafe whilst someone from our group ran around the lakeside looking for a hotel. Hotel Simrik was the only hotel that didn’t pressure us into making a decision.
We noticed that Freedom Adventures was attached to the hotel and so we asked them about a 5 or 6 day trek that we could do. They gave us lots of information about different treks without ever pushing us to choose a trek with them. They showed us where the trek would go on a map, a detailed itinerary and told us about the medical supplies they would take in case anything went wrong. All of their guides have a good level of medical training. They also made sure we had the correct insurance which highlighted that they cared about our safety.
They managed to organise our trek incredibly quickly. We signed the documents at midday and were ready to leave at 8am the next morning. Our guide, Nirmal, was the most excellent guide we could have hoped for and I’m not sure we could have had a better guide. He helped us make our packs as light as possible, as carrying our own bags was important to us. His attention to detail is fantastic. All of the places we stayed at had beautiful views from our rooms and he always picked the place with the best food!
At one point during the trip I became quite ill and we had to delay our start for the day. Nirmal was great at making sure I was okay and giving me space to feel better. He even offered to carry my pack or take me to a hospital if that’s what I wanted. Nirmal also gave us information along our trek that wouldn’t be possible without a guide and didn’t mind when we constantly stopped to take photos. He was incredibly enthusiastic throughout the trip and you could tell that he really loved his job and being out trekking.
This trip was one that I will remember for the rest of my life. Trekking is an wonderful experience and Freedom Adventures made it as easy as it could be. They arranged transport to drop us off and pick us up from the our start and finish point. Nirmal’s organisational skills meant that everywhere we stayed was the best place we could.
I would recommend anyone I know to book with Freedom Adventures.