Asia is home to the highest mountain range on Earth, the mighty Himalaya, and the trekking here, particularly in Nepal, is simply the best in the world. Legendary peaks such as Everest, Annapurna and Kanchenjunga draw walkers from across the globe, while Bhutan and the Indian region of Ladakh offer remote, culture-rich alternatives.
Beyond the Himalaya, the jungle-clad island of Borneo, shared by Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, has the finest tropical trekking in Asia, home to Mount Kinabalu and the vast caves of Gunung Mulu. China‘s Great Wall, meanwhile, offers a walk like no other.
Further south, Thailand is known for its hill-tribe treks in the north and lush rainforest walking around Khao Sok, while Indonesia’s volcanic islands add a fiery twist. Most Himalayan trails are best in spring and autumn, and Southeast Asia is best explored in the dry season. These are the treks worth building a trip around.
The Best Treks in Asia
Photo credits
- Everest Base Camp: Goutam1962, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Trans-Siberian Railway: Toen96, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Annapurna Circuit: Vyacheslav Argenberg, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Reunification Express: Benjamin Vander Steen, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Konkan Railway: Belur Ashok from Secunderabad, India, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Darjeeling Himalayan Railway: Subhrajyoti07, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Qinghai-Tibet Railway: Taken by Fanghong, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- Kandy to Ella Train: A.Savin, FAL, Wikimedia Commons
- K2 Base Camp & Concordia: Guilhem Vellut from Paris, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Kumano Kodo: 663highland, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- Tiger Leaping Gorge: Gisling, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Shikoku 88-Temple Pilgrimage: Dokudami, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Nakasendo Trail: Artanisen, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mount Rinjani: Giovari max, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mount Kinabalu: kallerna, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Lycian Way: Exelentz, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Manaslu Circuit: Pratapgrg, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Markha Valley Trek: SlartibErtfass der bertige, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mount Kailash Kora: Ondřej Žváček, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- Annapurna Sanctuary: Nancy Collins, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jordan Trail: hikinginjordan, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Kanchenjunga Base Camp: My Discovery, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Chadar Trek: Goutam1962, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Chomolhari Trek: Ernst Krause, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Roopkund: Schwiki, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Kackar Mountains: Ran Yaniv Hartstein, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Yakushima: tsuda from Tsushima, Aichi, Japan, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jeju Olle Trail: Jeju Olle Foundation, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Fann Mountains: Шухрат Саъдиев, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ala-Kul: Ondřej Žváček, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Goecha La: Carsten.nebel, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Fairy Meadows: M.Awais, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Wadi Rum: Raya Sharbain, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Sapa: ChieuTimViet, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Gunung Leuser: User: (WT-shared) Velorian at wts wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jebel Shams: Andries Oudshoorn, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mount Ararat: NASA/JSC, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Adam's Peak: Rehman Abubakr, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Israel National Trail: Diana Barshaw, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Great Himalaya Trail: w:en:user:summitraj, Copyrighted free use, Wikimedia Commons