As a further exciting addition to any Access-Himalaya adventure holiday, you may choose to pursue one of man’s oldest dreams - to fly through the air, like a bird. In tandem with a professional Nepalese paragliding pilot, soaring over the beautiful Fewa Lake in the Pokhara Valley, you can share the Himalayan skies with vultures and eagles.

Arguably, the most exhilarating and peaceful, simple yet challenging, form of aviation yet devised, paragliding in Nepal allows you to experience the incredible feeling of flying silently, among magnificent peaks, glaciers and valleys, in a completely free way, with only the wind in your ears and nothing between your boots and the ground but clear air!  Viewed from a distance there is little to choose between the outline of a bird of prey in the foreground and paragliders further away – they both look very much the same! 

Paragliding is very similar to hang gliding; in fact they are essentially the same activity, done with slightly different equipment. The advantage of paragliders is that they have a less rigid frame than hang gliders, and are much easier to land, which gives them a big advantage. The inflatable wing that suspends you and your pilot is ultra hi-tech material that unfolds from a backpack. Tandem flying involves a pilot flying with a passenger. Both have separate harnesses that are attached to each other and to the wing. After launching, you ride comfortably in a specially designed harness that holds you in place, while your pilot flies the wing. You fly with confidence, knowing that you have a fully qualified tandem pilot at the controls.

Your Access-Himalaya paragliding adventure takes you flying from Sarangkot, the stunning view-point 2000m above Lakeside, Pokhara, after a 20 min vehicle ride to the launch site, from where, incidentally, three of the highest mountains in the world may be seen. After a pre-flight briefing on paragliding, and what you are about to experience, you are coached on how to work with your pilot to launch and land successfully. Once in the air you can relax and enjoy the view and commentary from your pilot.

Paragliding really adds an extra, adrenalin-rushing dimension to your holiday in Nepal, and we can thoroughly recommend it from personal experience. Nowadays, an extreme variety of paragliding is being developed, namely Parahawking, where you may indulge in tandem paragliding alongside a trained bird of prey with the bird coming to alight on your gloved hand – but that’s another story……..!

Whatever you choose, be sure to take your video or still camera with you – the pictures will bring back your experience sharply and add a unique dimension to you photo gallery.

Altitude Chart