Best time to visit Mustang, Nepal
Snowcat
The former Himalayan Kingdom of Mustang in Nepal is the stuff of dreams and legends! Find out when is the best time to visit Mustang discover the mysteries and wonders along the road to Lo Manthang and beyond.
Famously “off limits” for centuries, wild and barren, relentless high altitude, very sparsely populated with just a scattering of tiny villages, isolated Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, prehistoric sky caves, realm of the snow leopard, haunt of the fabled yeti and until very recently unconnected to the rest of the world by road!
The "Forbidden Kingdom" of Mustang is the only part of Nepal that lies on the "other" side of the Himalayas. It's very different to the rest of Nepal and the weather is very different to the rest of Nepal too. When to visit Mustang and the best time to visit Mustang is not the same as the rest of Nepal either. Mustang doesn't get the monsoon, so you can visit Mustang, Nepal during the monsoon season.
The Mustang Climate
There are two principal geographical reasons the climate of Mustang is different to the rest of Nepal. Its climate is more typical of Tibet.
The first is that Mustang is the "other side" of the Himalayas. These gigantic peaks are so high that the monsoon weather system is effectively blocked. So, the heavy rains of the monsoon do not reach Mustang.
In fact Mustang is the only region of Nepal that should be visited during the monsoon season and is arguably at its best in summer too.
This means, that like the rest of the Tibetan Plateau, Mustang is semi-arid and receives very little rainfall.
The second is that all of Mustang is at relentless high altitude. So, the temperatures here are much lower than the lower regions of Nepal that enjoy a sub-tropical climate. The climate in Mustang can be harsh.....very harsh.
Mustang is essentially a high altitude desert
Indeed Mustang could be regarded as an “all year round” destination to visit, although there are of course seasonal variations to the climate.
Most visitors to Mustang will be spending most of their time between 3,000m-4,000m.
The general rule with altitude and temperature is the higher you go, the colder it will get. Around 6 C cooler for every 1000m of altitude gain.
The winter months in Mustang are bitterly cold. Even during day time temperatures may not be much above freezing, although in the rarefied atmosphere at these higher altitudes the sun can still be quite strong and make it feel warmer than it actually is. Temperatures at night time during winter usually plummet to well below freezing. However, the reward of enduring colder weather is often crisp, clear mountain views and fewer tourists. The region is also blighted by bitterly cold winds emanating from Central Asia during winter.
However, many Mustang accommodations close down during the winter season.
The summer months are the warmest, the caveat for visiting Upper Mustang during the monsoon months is that although the monsoon doesn’t reach Upper Mustang you still have to get up there. So that means travelling up through the monsoon affected parts of Nepal.
But, it is during the summer months that the wild and barren landscapes of Mustang feature some greenery and in Mustang the colour green is quite a rarity.
So, you could say that in summer Mustang is at its most colourful and beautiful. The often dry river beds have flowing water as what little water there is in Mustang mainly comes from snow melt. So, in summer Mustang comes "alive".
But both Autumn and Spring the temperatures are cooling, but still not at the bitterly cold stage and the skies tend to be less cloudy.
Also, the rest of Nepal isn't being hammered by the monsoon, so this makes the journey up to Mustang and the rest of your time in Nepal much more pleasant too.
We would generally consider the most favoured times for Spring and Autumn to visit Upper Mustang as late March to late May and September to no later than mid-December.
Mustang Temperatures throughout the year
December, January, February 0 to 5 °C 32 to 41 °F -25 to -20°C-13 to -4 °F
March, April, May, June 1 6 to 22 °C 61 to 72 °F -6 to -2°C 21 to 28°F
July, August, September 20 to 33 °C 68 to 73 °F -3 to 0 °C 27 to 32 °F
October, November 12 to 20 °C 54 to 68 °F -8 to -4 °C 18 to 25 °F
To find out lots more about the amazing region of Mustang read our Illustrated Mustang Travel Guide
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