Eight of the world's ten highest mountains, treks you can walk without technical skill, and a capital of temples and dust. The cheapest serious trekking country on earth.
Nepal is where people come to walk. Eight of the world's ten highest peaks are here, and the trekking infrastructure — teahouses every couple of hours, marked trails, guides and porters available everywhere — means routes that would need expeditions elsewhere are walkable by anyone reasonably fit.
The two classics are the Everest Base Camp trek, around twelve to fourteen days from Lukla, and the Annapurna Circuit, ten to eighteen days depending on where you start and finish now the road has extended. Shorter options like Poon Hill take four or five days and still put you in front of the Himalaya.
Between treks, Kathmandu has the temples, Durbar squares and Boudhanath stupa, and Pokhara sits on a lake with the Annapurnas behind it and does very little, pleasantly. Chitwan in the south has rhinos and tigers and a completely different climate.
Buses are slow and mountainous. Domestic flights save days but are weather-dependent.
Temples, Durbar squares, Boudhanath stupa, and Thamel, where every trek is arranged.
Kathmandu is full of fascinating and ancient buildings. The shops and stalls sell beautiful and cheap handmade goods. Most of all, the people are very friendly, welcoming, and helpful. Their devotion to hospitality, and their religions is highly impressive. Come to Kathmandu! The best city in the world!
A traveller, on Hostelworld
A lakeside town under the Annapurnas: paragliding, boats, and the start of most treks.
Pokhara is an amazing city next to magical lake Fewa. Many things to do like boating, visiting sacred places, paragliding and trekking. Food is good and people welcoming. Very recommended to visit.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
A preserved medieval city half an hour from Kathmandu, and the best-kept of the valley's old towns.
The birthplace of the Buddha, in the southern plains, with monasteries built by many countries.
Nepal is a trekking country first, with temples, wildlife and adventure sports attached.
The reason everyone comes. Teahouse trekking at altitude.
Hindu and Buddhist temples in one valley.
Serious mountains at the lowest prices anywhere.
Dal bhat, momos and Tibetan influence in the hills.
The Kathmandu valley, which is three cities in one.
No coast, but lakes, rivers and paragliding instead.
Trekking is the point. Everest Base Camp takes twelve to fourteen days and starts with a flight into Lukla, one of the more alarming airports in the world. The Annapurna Circuit is longer and more varied, crossing the Thorong La pass at 5,416 metres. Poon Hill, at four or five days, is the short version and still spectacular.
You do not need technical skill for any of these, but you do need to respect altitude: ascend slowly, take rest days, and know the symptoms of altitude sickness. Guides are now required on many routes, which has been enforced more strictly since 2023 — check the current rule before planning to go independently.
Off the trails, the Kathmandu valley has three medieval city centres in Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur, plus Boudhanath, one of the largest stupas in the world, best at dusk when pilgrims circle it. Chitwan does jeep and walking safaris for rhino and, rarely, tiger.
Dal bhat is the national meal and the trekking fuel: rice, lentil soup, vegetable curry and pickle, refilled until you stop eating, for €2 to €4 in town and more as you climb. Nepali guides eat it twice a day and will tell you it is the reason they can carry your bag.
Momos — dumplings, steamed or fried — are the snack, at about a euro for a plate of ten. Newari cuisine in the Kathmandu valley is a distinct and spicier tradition worth seeking out.
On treks, prices rise with altitude because everything is carried or flown in, so a plate of dal bhat that costs €3 in Pokhara might be €8 at 4,500 metres. Bring water purification rather than buying bottled on the trail, where it is expensive and the plastic is a genuine problem.
Thamel in Kathmandu is the tourist quarter and has the bars, live music and the post-trek celebration scene. It is cheerful, a little chaotic, and where most people spend their first and last nights in the country.
Pokhara's lakeside strip is the other one: bars with mountain views, live music and a crowd that is either about to walk or has just finished.
Nightlife elsewhere is limited, and on treks the evening is dinner in the teahouse dining room around a stove, in bed by nine, because you are walking at six. Alcohol at altitude is a bad idea and most guides will tell you so.
Roads are slow and mountainous. Kathmandu to Pokhara is 200km and takes six to eight hours by bus, with tourist coaches costing €10 to €20 and being considerably more comfortable than local buses.
Domestic flights turn that into 25 minutes and cost €80 to €120. Nepal's domestic aviation safety record is poor by international standards and several airlines are on the EU banned list, which is worth knowing when you weigh the bus against the flight.
The Lukla flight for Everest treks is its own case — short runway, mountain weather, frequent cancellations that strand people for days at either end. Build buffer days into any itinerary that includes it.
Nepal is cheap, and trekking is the cheapest serious mountain experience anywhere. Dorms start around €6, dal bhat is €2 to €4, and a teahouse trek costs roughly €25 to €40 a day including bed, food and permits once you are walking.
Guides run €25 to €35 a day and porters €18 to €25, which is money that goes directly into mountain communities and is worth paying properly rather than negotiating down.
Permits are the fixed costs: TIMS cards and national park or conservation area fees run €20 to €30 each, and the Everest region has an additional local fee. Flights to Lukla and back are the biggest single expense on an Everest trek.
Nepal has low crime and travellers report feeling safe. The risks here are altitude, roads and air travel, and they are real rather than theoretical. Anti-government protests in September 2025 turned violent in Kathmandu and brought down the government; check current advice before travelling and avoid demonstrations.
Altitude sickness kills trekkers every season, and it is entirely preventable by ascending slowly and descending at the first serious symptoms. Headache, nausea and breathlessness at rest mean go down, not push on. Any trek above 3,000 metres needs insurance that explicitly covers high-altitude trekking and helicopter evacuation, which standard policies exclude.
Road accidents are common on mountain roads, and domestic aviation has a poor safety record. Nepal also sits on a major fault line — the 2015 earthquake killed nearly 9,000 people — and aftershocks and tremors are part of life.
Most nationalities get a visa on arrival at Kathmandu airport and main land borders, for 15, 30 or 90 days, paid in cash in dollars or by card. You can pre-fill the form online to save time in the queue.
Passports need six months' validity, and bring passport photographs — several permits and forms want them.
Trekking permits are separate from the visa: a TIMS card plus the relevant national park or conservation area permit, arranged in Kathmandu or Pokhara. Rules on trekking with a licensed guide have tightened in recent years, so check the current requirement for your route before assuming you can go solo.
October and November are the best trekking months, with March to May a close second. The monsoon closes most high routes and winter closes the passes.
Average highs for Kathmandu at 1,400m. Temperatures fall sharply with altitude — nights on the Everest trek go well below freezing even in October — and the monsoon closes most high routes from June to September.
Pick how you travel and how long for. Per night, for one person, in euro equivalents. Trekking days cost more than town days.
A teahouse trek runs €25–40 a day all in. Guides at €25–35 and porters at €18–25 are on top, as are Lukla flights for the Everest region.
The festival calendar is Hindu and Buddhist and packed. Dashain in particular closes much of the country.
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Dashain Festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, is the most significant Hindu celebration in the country, drawing families together at historic sites like Hanuman Dhoka Palace.…
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Christmas Day in Kathmandu, Nepal, is a joyful celebration that brings together locals and visitors in a unique blend of Western traditions and Nepali…
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Tihar, also called the Festival of Lights, transforms Kathmandu, Nepal, into a dazzling celebration of color and tradition each year. Over five days, locals…
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The Kathmandu Marathon, established in 2007, is a celebrated running event that brings together national and international participants in Kathmandu, Nepal. Hosted at the…
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Jazzmandu, the Kathmandu Jazz Festival, is Nepal’s leading international music celebration, bringing together acclaimed artists from around the world alongside local talent. Hosted at…
Nepathya Live in Kirtipur brings the iconic Nepali band to the Laboratory School Ground for an evening of music. The gates open at 4:15…
Marking 70 years of diplomatic ties between Nepal and Japan, this cultural festival brings together music, performances, and people-to-people exchanges on Durbar Marg. Japanese…
Every Saturday, the streets of Tokha come alive with a traditional Newari food market where you can sample dishes like Yomari, Bara, Chatamari, and…
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