An Ethereal Stay

High above the town of Jomsom, at the gateway to Mustang, lies Shinta Mani Mustang – A Bensley Collection hotel. With just 29 suites, the lodge is perched within the dramatic Kali Gandaki Gorge, one of the deepest valleys on Earth, flanked by the snow-capped Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges. Closed to outsiders for centuries, Mustang remains one of the most unique and preserved regions in the world – a landscape so otherworldly that Bill Bensley describes it as “like another planet.”

For Bensley, known globally for his theatrical, sustainability-driven designs, Mustang offered a rare opportunity. “Our own Shinta Mani Mustang is made from local stone, so it appears to grow naturally out of the landscape,” he shares. “We’ve kept every creature comfort, but celebrated the animism that is so present here, unique to this place. It is like another world.”

The interiors reflect the earthy palette of local clay quarries. Dove grey, terracotta red and ochre beige feature, symbolising prosperity, knowledge and longevity

The project was commissioned by the Sherpa family, who have lodges across the Everest and Annapurna routes, which Bensley’s friend and associate Jason M. Friedman helped consolidate into the Mountain Lodges of Nepal group. In fact, Namgyal Sherpa’s mother, was the first Nepali woman to climb Everest. The family envisioned a lodge that would respect Mustang’s culture while welcoming discerning travellers for three-to-seven-day explorations.

The original hotel structure built in 2017 was designed by Nepalese Architect Prabal Shumsher Thapa. Bensley sought to embed the lodge in its surroundings through the interiors. Locally sourced stone, slate and timber form the architecture, while interiors reflect the earthy palette of local clay quarries. Dove grey, terracotta red and ochre beige feature, symbolising prosperity, knowledge and longevity. Furniture and fittings were created through Bensley’s signature upcycling: discarded doors, yak furs, Tibetan conch shells and antique finds transformed into bespoke pieces with story and soul.

“An example is the minibar in each suite,” Bensley explains. “There is locally and sustainably sourced yak fur draped over it, while the handles to open the mini bar are in fact a traditional Tibetan conch shell which is engraved. On the wall above, one will find three big organic pieces of slate with sanskrit poems engraved on them. Traditionally, in this northern region, when winter falls and it is bitterly cold, people take refuge inside. It is a quiet time, and so people set to carving these poems and prayers into slate as a form of penance. Then in the summer one sees these prayer stones stacked one above the other outside, atop stone walls, showing years of wintertime penance. It is this unique way of seeing the world which we want to carry throughout the experience.”

Though the lodge’s structure remained intact, Bensley reconfigured the interiors to maximise the mountain views, making them visible from every space. A long central courtyard leads to the lobby – a convivial hub with fire pits on the terrace for stargazing. Flanking the courtyard, the Nilgiri Restaurant and Aara Bar encourage guests to share stories beneath a mural-sized map of the Himalayas, annotated with trekking routes, flora and fauna. One wing houses the 29 suites across two levels, while the other accommodates a multipurpose hall, spa and gym complete with stone jacuzzi, steam and sauna that all frame sweeping views.

The design ethos is as practical as it is poetic. With Mustang’s remoteness limiting supply chains, local sourcing became essential. The sustainability was a bonus. “The key issue was access,” Bensley says. “The solution was to source locally, making the project all the more inclusive of Mustang’s culture.” 

Like all Shinta Mani projects, Mustang is tied to a social mission. Here, it is cultural preservation. “The young leave the valley for Kathmandu and beyond, so their culture is slowly dying,” Bensley reflects. “We would love to be able to generate high-value, low-impact tourism and to lure the talented locals back to the valley. The right (read tiny) form of tourism can help to bring the customs of the ancient society back into practice. We have already seen a number of very unusual festivals happen since we have been there. While most of Nepal could use the helping hand of a Shinta Mani and what that can bring, I was especially thrilled to be able to pitch our flag in Mustang.”

For Bensley, the project was also deeply personal. He first learned of Mustang 35 years ago through his friend Robert Powell, an Australian artist and architect who spent decades in Nepal, painstakingly documenting the region’s vernacular architecture in exquisite watercolours. Powell’s works now line the walls of Shinta Mani Mustang, a tribute to both the artist’s legacy and the fragile beauty of this land.

“While I have been to Nepal perhaps 50+ times for various projects in and around Kathmandu, I never did make it to Mustang before being offered the project in Jomsom. You can imagine how pleased I was!” Bensley says.