Limi Valley trek: route, days, season, permits and cost

The Limi Valley is the northernmost part of Humla³. This page lays out one operator’s stage table, the passes, the season, the permit and the price. Humla itself is covered in Humla, and the other long routes are in the treks hub.

Route and days

Himalayan Exploration’s page gives two day counts: a header of 12 days starting and ending at Simikot, and an itinerary table that runs to 21 days from arrival in Kathmandu to final departure¹. The table is the one used here. The header rates the trek moderate, with camping as the accommodation¹. Its stages:

The valley itself has only three settlements, Dzang, Halji and Til³. Wikipedia gives their elevations as 3,920 m, 3,700 m and 4,100 m³; the operator’s table gives 4,000 m for Til, 3,670 m for Halji and 3,930 m for Jang¹. Where the figures differ, this page uses the operator’s.

Highest point

The two high points on Himalayan Exploration’s table are Nara La at 4,620 m, crossed on day 10, and Nyalu La at 4,950 m, crossed on day 16¹. Wikipedia gives the Nyalu pass as 4,995 m³; this page uses the operator’s 4,950 m. The same page’s header lists a maximum altitude of 4,200 m, which is below both passes in its own table; the table figures are used here¹. Talung, the camp before Nyalu La, sits at 4,370 m¹.

The first route in from Simikot follows the Humla Karnali upstream to Hilsa, crosses the river there and climbs east to enter the valley near Til; Wikipedia gives 5 to 7 days for that walk³. The second turns north at the confluence of the Salli Khola and the Humla Karnali, crosses the Nyalu pass, enters the Talung valley and reaches the Limi valley near Takche in 4 to 5 days³. The operator’s table passes through both Hilsa and Nyalu La¹.

Season

Himalayan Exploration gives April to the end of November as the months of good weather¹. Most trekkers visit Humla and Limi in the monsoon as part of a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash, while outside the warm summer months there are few trekkers on the trail¹. Logistics can be problematic in summer, and local porters demand high pay rates¹.

The two passes on the operator’s table are at 4,620 m and 4,950 m¹. The Humla road and flight links to the trailhead are in flights to Simikot.

Permits

Humla is a Department of Immigration trekking-permit area. In October 2026 its trekking route and permit fee table listed Humla at USD 50 per person per week, with USD 10 per day beyond 1 week, for Simikot Rural Municipality wards 1, 6 and 7, Namkha Rural Municipality wards 1 to 6 and Changkheli Rural Municipality wards 3 to 5². Limi is a ward of Namkha Rural Municipality³.

Himalayan Exploration’s inclusions list all necessary documentation and permits¹. How the system works is in restricted-area permits.

Costs

In October 2026 Himalayan Exploration listed the trek at USD 2,860 per person¹. The package includes domestic flights, airport and hotel transfers, Kathmandu accommodation with breakfast, tent accommodation and all meals on the trek¹.

It excludes international airfare, the Nepal visa fee, meals in Kathmandu other than breakfast and personal expenses¹. Rations and fuel can be costly at Simikot, so more valuable goods are better brought from Nepalgunj¹.

There are few lodges on the Limi Valley circuit, so camping is the only alternative¹.

Getting to the trailhead

The trailhead is Simikot, the Humla headquarters³. There are two ways to reach it: by bus on the Karnali highway, or by flight from Nepalgunj³. Himalayan Exploration’s table flies Kathmandu to Nepalgunj on day 3 and Nepalgunj to Simikot on day 4¹. Read Nepalgunj for the transit city.

On the way back the table flies Simikot to Kathmandu on day 19 with a stop at Nepalgunj¹. For the pilgrim route along the same river to the border, see Humla to Kailash.