Besisahar (823m) is the traditional starting point for the Annapurna Circuit, a town of guesthouses, gear shops, and trekking agencies on the main road from Kathmandu. It is reached by bus in six to eight hours from Kathmandu or three to four hours from Pokhara. Most trekkers spend a night here before beginning the circuit the following morning.
The town has grown significantly around the trekking trade and now has plenty of guesthouses, a few restaurants, and a small market. It is not a particularly atmospheric place — the circuit proper begins once you are walking up the Marsyangdi valley. In recent years many trekkers skip the first few days of the circuit (Besisahar to Dharapani) by taking a jeep along the new road, which has reduced the walking through the lower valley but allows more time for the scenic upper sections.
From Besisahar the trail follows the east bank of the Marsyangdi river northwards, climbing steadily through rice fields and then subtropical forest to Bahundanda, Syange, and the first major village of Dharapani, where the landscape starts its transition towards the higher, drier terrain of the Manang district.