Town Of Dunai Gateway To Dolpo

Dunai is the biggest town of Dolpo district and serves as its district heardquarters. 

Situated at an altitude of 2000m, Dunai is a town inhabited by just about 350 households. The settlement is spread across the bank of Thulo Bheri River and is surrounded by green hills. Local bazaar at Dunai is a regular attraction for locals as well as travelers to Dolpo.

There are no road connections to Dunai. Dunai is connected the rest of Nepal by a small STOL airport, in nearby Juphal village. Scheduled flights operate to Dolpo Airport in Juphal from Nepalgunj, Pokhara and Birendranagar. 

Majority of tourists who are visiting Dolpo must take a flight from Nepalgunj to Dunai which takes about 45 minutes. You can also make a 3-hr trek from Juphal to Dunai. There is park headquarter office between Juphal and Dunai where tourists have to show their permits. One can easily see the Dhaulagiri and Churen Himal ranges from Dunai itself. You can also trek to Dunai from Beni, one of the ends of Annapurna Circuit Trek which takes around 12 days. 

Dunai to Phoksumdo Trek is one of the popular treks in the region. Those who are interested in longer adventure often choose to go to Rara Lake in Jumla district. Because of their remoteness, lodges are not easily available along the trekking route. 

Dunai stands as the only gateway to Dolpo. Dolpo is not only the largest district, it is also one of the least inhabited regions of Nepal. Dolpo circuit trek which touches both Upper and Lower Dolpo is famous tourist destination. It is home to Shye Phoksundo National Park (the largest transhimalaya national park in Nepal) and Phoksundo lake- the deepest lake in Nepal. 

Dunai was also one of the instrumental battlefields between Maoist guerillas and government forces during insurgency period. All the infrastructures have been rehabilitated in the town since the end of Maoist revolution. The town now boasts of school, electricity, health office and basic communication facilities.