There are two main seasons for visiting the Himalayan regions, when you'll have the best conditions. The first is Spring, from March to early May and the second is Autumn from the end of September to the end of November.
Outside of these months it's still very possible to have a great visit, but it does depend on where you go and what you plan to do. For example December, January and February are great times to visit but some of the more remote and high altitude routes will not be possible at this time.
For most of the Himalayan regions the summer season (from end of May to end of August into early September) are not so suitable for travel as it becomes very hot and in some places, also humid and when the monsoon (rainy season) arrives the roads and trekking trails become muddy and slippy and not enjoyable or safe to travel on. Some treks are still possible but it's not the ideal time of year to visit as you won't have the same great views or overall conditions. However the summer months are the perfect time to visit Tibet and also Ladakh in India. Parts of Bhutan are also fine to visit if you're planning a tour and some hotels offer great seasonal discounts as long as you don't mind a bit of rain during your stay.
So to some extent it depends on where you want to visit and what you plan to do with Spring and Autumn seasons generally best for most places. If you're not sure when's best for your plans, we're always happy to discuss options and share our recommendations and advice on when and where is best to travel.
Most of our treks and tours private trips meaning you can choose your preferred dates of travel (we'll guide you on the best times to visit the destinations) and you'll have your own private guide (and porter if you're trekking) and private transfers. Private trips are ideal for families, groups of friends or colleagues or anyone wanting a more personalised pace. Our private trips are all fully customisable and flexible and based on your preferences. If you don't see a trip you like amongst our range of featured trips on our website, we also offer a tailor made travel service where we'll design an itinerary based on your interests and requirements.
For some of our trips including treks, tours and expeditions, we offer a range of fixed date departures for small group tours. These are perfect for solo travellers, couples or small groups who'd like to meet others and share the experience. You'll still have some time to yourself to rest, relax and explore yourself if you'd like to on these trips, as well as enjoy the social aspect of being in a small group. Our small groups usually have a maximum of 12 people so you'll still have a personalised service from our guides and support teams as well as the chance to meet and enjoy the experience with your fellow travellers.
If you're not sure which type of trip is best for you, get in touch and we'll be happy to talk through the options with you.
Yes, of course! All our trips can be customised based on your preferences and requirements. For example, many travellers like to add a few days wildlife safari to the end of their trek or tour and your itinerary can easily be adjusted to include that or to include any additional activities or extension trips. If you have a particular type of hotel or accommodation you'd like that's not the same as in our featured trips, that can also be changed or if you'd like to spend longer somewhere or add on a few days stay in a neighbouring region or destination or include some extra activities such as white water rafting, mountain biking, hot air ballooning, a houseboat stay, wellness or spa retreat stay. Those are just a few examples of how our featured trips can be customised. The easiest way is to get in touch with us to discuss and we'll either customise one of our featured trips to more closely fit your interests and preferences or we can design a tailor made trip for you. We want you to have the most enjoyable and memorable experience for you and will always do our best to make that happen.
You don't need to be super fit but a good level of fitness and preparation prior to your trek is always helpful and will ensure you enjoy the overall trek experience much more. There are a wide range of treks suitable for all fitness levels and abilities, including short, lower elevation treks suitable for first time trekkers, older travellers or families with younger children. There are also day hikes in a few areas if you don't have time or aren't sure a multi day trek is for you. For the longer, higher altitude treks such as Everest Base Camp, the Annapurna Circuit and more remote and more challenging treks such as Upper Dolpo, we recommend you start preparing and work on reaching a reasonable to good level of fitness and stamina at least a few months in advance of your trip. We can provide guidance on preparing and how to work on your fitness, just get in touch or look out for our blogs on various subjects including preparing for your trek. As with most things in life, the more prepared you are, the more you're going to enjoy and get the most out of the overall experience.
No you don't need prior climbing experience but if you do have some, that's helpful or if you've been on a winter skills training course to use crampons and ice axe and fixed ropes, that's also helpful but not necessary. You'll be accompanied by an experienced Sherpa trekking and climbing guide and support team who will provide training and support in basic climbing skills to enable you to successfully summit these fantastic 6000+m peaks. We do recommend you focus on ensuring you have a good level of fitness and stamina in the months leading up to your expedition as that will ensure you get the most out of the overall experience and enjoy it more. If you're not sure, just get in touch and we'll be happy to provide more information and guidance.
Yes, most travellers will require a visa to enter Nepal. More information on the visa application process and required fees is listed elsewhere in the FAQs section.
There are a few exceptions, mostly for Official representatives from specific countries who do not need a visa, based on reciprocal visa waiver agreements.
In some cases, a Gratis (Free) Visa will be issued. This only applies to the following applicants:
There are a number of ways to obtain your visa for entering Nepal, including through the Nepalese Embassy or Nepalese Diplomatic Missions in your home country or on arrival to Kathmandu. For UK travellers, more information is available on the Nepalese Embassy in London website here
The easiest method for most travellers is to obtain a visa on arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu. Please note that nationals of some designated countries must obtain their visa before arriving in Nepal and will not be granted a visa on arrival. We advise checking your eligibility and the full visa requirements on the Nepalese Embassy website via the link here.
On Arrival Tourist Visas
The 'On Arrival' tourist visa procedure is quick and simple. During the peak tourism seasons, it can get busy with some queues to use the kiosks and to pay the visa fees, so you may need to be a little patient but the queues are usually processed fairly quickly without too long a wait at any point.
If you want to avoid the queues, then consider getting your visa in advance from your nearest international Nepalese Diplomatic Missions prior to your arrival. If you do choose to apply for your visa in this way, please be aware you must enter Nepal within 6 months from the issue date of the visa. The number of days you can stay is counted from the first day you enter Nepal.
Visa fees
Fees for on arrival visas are paid at the Visa Fees Collection Counter in the arrivals hall of the airport. You can pay by card or cash and there is an ATM in the hall. Just in case the ATM is not working we advise you to carry some cash, at least enough for your visa fee, just to be sure.
The fees are as follows:
15 Days – 30 USD
30 Days – 50 USD
90 Days – 125 USD
Gratis Visa (Free Visas)
Gratis Visa is issued free of cost for the following categories of Visa applicants:
Getting your visa on arrival to Kathmandu - how it works
When you arrive at Kathmandu airport you will need to do the following 3 steps:
1. Complete the Arrival Card
Complete the online Tourist Visa form using one of the Kiosk machines in the Arrivals Hall of the airport. You can also do this in advance, which is recommended, using the official Department of Immigration website. Go to https://nepaliport.immigration.gov.np/ Select your point of arrival which will be Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) and the complete the form with your passport and other details as requested.
If you complete the form online, you will receive a confirmation of submission receipt with a barcode. You will need to print this out and bring it with you in order to obtain your visa. The online submission is valid for 15 days from completion. If you arrive in Kathmandu more than 15 days from completion it will be invalid and you will ned to complete a new form.
If using the kiosk terminals at the airport to complete the form, you should be able to print it out once completed but we advise taking a photo on your phone of the final confirmation screen showing the bar code. If it does not print out for you, you can show the photo as confirmation at the Visa Fee Payment Counter.
2. Pay for your visa
Once you have a printout or photo of your completed visa form, you need to pay for your visa at the Visa Fee Payment Counter. This is in the same arrivals hall area where you first arrive and close to the kiosk terminals. You’ll be given a receipt which you must keep as you will need it when you go through the Immigration desks.
3. Proceed to the Immigration Desks for visa processing
The final stage is to proceed to the Immigration Desk area with your online form, payment receipts and passport where your application will be processed by an Immigration Officer who will then issue your visa.
Currently, passengers travelling to Nepal by air or land routes are no longer required to provide proof of COVID Vaccinations (COVID pass) or a negative PCR test report of COVID-19. However, this advice is subject to change and we do advise you check before travel. It is your responsibility to ensure you have a valid passport and comply with all the necessary requirements to enter Nepal or any of the other destinations where we operate.
Yes. More info to go here...
Yes, you will need a visa and entry permit in order to visit Bhutan which must be arranged before your arrival. The current visa fee for Bhutan is USD$40 per person. We organise the Bhutan visa on behalf of our clients at no additonal cost, as part of our service to you. In order to do so, we request a copy of the photo page of your passport and a colour passport size photo, before your arrival to Nepal, India or other destination, from where you then fly to Bhutan.
Bhutanese visas and entry permits are issued by the Department of Immigration, Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs in Bhutan, and tourist visas can only be requested through licensed tour operators in Bhutan. Once approved and issued, we will provide a copy of the visa to you to use for travel to Bhutan.
When you arrive in Bhutan you must present your passport, 2 passport colour photographs and the visa fee of USD$40 to receive your visa sticker. The actual visa is only issued on arrival in Bhutan but must be applied for in advance through a tour operator and you must receive visa approval before you travel to Bhutan.
Your passport must also be valid for at least 6 months after your departure date from Bhutan.
Bhutan Sustainable Development Fee (SDF)
As well as needing to have a Bhutan visa and entry permit, all travellers to Bhutan must pay a Sustainable Development Fee. More information on this is listed separately in the FAQs section.
Bhutan's SDF, or Sustainable Development Fee, is a policy that was introduced by the Kingdom of Bhutan in 1999 to support Bhutan’s committment to protecting the environment and to promoting sustainable development.
It's an environmental levy on all tourists visiting Bhutan and is implemented as a daily fee paid by tourists, with the revenue generated mainly used to support infrastructure development and conservation, healthcare and education initiatives.
The aim is to promote smaller scale sustainable tourism, to reduce negative impacts of tourism and at the same time maximise the benefits for local communities.
Yes, you will need a visa and travel permit to visit Tibet. We arrange this on behalf of our clients, at no additional cost as part of our service to you. In order to make the arrangements on your behalf, when you book a trip to Tibet with us we will request the necessary information and explain the process to you.
As of January 2024 the rules for visiting Tibet have changed. The Chinese Government controls all travel to and within Tibet as well as the issue of visas and travel permits. The recent changes to this mean that visiting Tibet for foreigners is not as easy as previously, particularly for groups smaller than 5 (all travelling together) or for solo travellers, travelling into Tibet from Nepal, either overland or flying to Lhasa. However it is still possible and we believe it's important and a great experience to visit Tibet and learn more about this beautiful region and culture. Small groups, travelling together can enter Tibet via Nepal but solo travellers or groups less than 5 must either join a group or enter Tibet via China. The visa processing times are also slightly different with a shorter time if entering from China. Before booking your trip to Tibet please check with us for the latest information as the rules for entering Tibet are subject to change.
Yes, absolutely. One Himalaya is a full member of the Travel Trust Association, a travel trade association for travel agents, tour operators and travel organisers. The Travel Trust Association exists in order to protect you, the customer, with 100 percent financial protection. Every penny that you pay for your holiday booking is paid into and held in a Trust Account where it is ringfenced and can only be used for your trip arrangements. Payments made to us are held in the Trust Account until your trip has completed, meaning it is 100% protected at all times.
All members of the Travel Trust Association also abide by a members Code of Conduct, to further ensure that customers receive the best possible service. It means that you can book your holiday secure in the knowledge that your money and your booking is fully protected, including in the unlikely event if One Himalaya were to financially fail or cease trading.
We also hold ATOL licence 12415 which means when you also book flights with us, the air inclusive holidays we arrange are ATOL protected providing either the person who pays for the booking is present in the UK when the booking is made or the first leg of any flight or flights we arrange for you commences in the UK. If booking a flight from outside the UK we can also help with those although different rules and protections apply. More information is available here.
We also offer a No Surcharge Guarantee – once you book with us, we guarantee the price of your holiday will not change.
Find out more here about how your money and booking is protected.
Yes, we do! Find out more about it at One Himalaya Refer a Friend Scheme
