If you’re looking for perfect weather, the high season between October and mid-December would be your best choice. It’s warm and dry, the skies are clear and the trails are in great condition.

Of course, you’ll be sharing them with plenty of other people – and accommodation prices will be higher than at any other time – but if you’ve made it into the mountains you’ll want to take advantage of the perfect visibility.

The clear skies generally continue into January and February, but temperatures drop considerably at higher altitudes. Especially during the night. However, it’s a good time to explore the lower altitudes, such as the lakeside town of Pokhara or the safari parks of Chitwan and Bardia.

The spring months between March and May herald the arrival of huge blooms of rhododendrons, which blanket the hillsides and mountains in shades of violet, red, pink and white. March is also the month of the Holi Festival – perhaps more famous for its Indian version, but it also takes place across Nepal’s towns and cities, too.

As the season progresses, however, the ritual crop burning (and increasingly cloudy skies) can contribute to poor visibility in the Annapurna mountain range, creating poor hiking conditions there. Something we experienced during a visit in early-May when the mountains were engulfed in a constant haze until we reached an altitude of over 3200 metres. The conditions around Everest, however, are perfect at this time of year.

The monsoon season is between June and mid-September, bringing lots of rain and dangerous conditions for trekking. Visits to Kathmandu and the Kathmandu Valley are still possible, however, when the tourist crowds will have gone and accommodation prices are discounted.

The simple answer is yes – to visit Nepal, travel insurance (covering emergency medical treatment and medical repatriation) is mandatory. To be honest, given the potential hazards of trekking in the Himalayas, you really can’t afford to be without it anyway.

Seriously, don’t try and take shortcuts with your budget by ignoring insurance. Especially somewhere like Nepal, where airlifting you off the side of a mountain and repatriating you to your home country is going to cost you a not-so-small fortune. You might consider the likes of flight cancellations or lost baggage to be risks you’re happy to take. But medical cover, personal liability and emergency assistance should be a given.

Ultimately the type of insurance you need will depend on your own individual circumstances. We can recommend two insurance providers.

Being UK-based we use TrueTraveller, who offer a range of products to cover holidaymakers, adventure travellers and backpackers.

For non-UK based travellers, we can recommend SafetyWing, who provide global travel medical insurance for nomads all over the world.

You can get a free single-entry visa on arrival for 30 days or a fee-based multi-entry visa valid for 15, 30 or 90 days.

Alternatively, you can book online up to 15 days before your arrival at the Department of Immigration’s website.

For the most comprehensive and up-to-date information, we use the online booking service through iVisa.

The current fees (September 2022) for multi-entry visas are: Up to 15 days – $30 Up to 30 days – $50 Up to 90 days – $125

For the latest health-related entry requirements, please check this free online tool, courtesy of SafetyWing.

Generally speaking, Nepal is a safe destination for holidaymakers and travellers, as long as sensible precautions are taken (such as not walking along unlit streets at night, accepting drinks from a stranger, or flashing expensive jewellery).

The Nepalese are very hospitable people and are welcoming to foreign visitors as tourism is vital to their economy. In fact, the biggest dangers you are likely to encounter are potential trekking accidents or contracting altitude sickness.

The political situation is relatively stable but there’s always the chance of an impromptu demonstration or two. You’d be best advised to stay away from them as they can get heated.

No, you don’t need to acclimatise if you’re arriving in Kathmandu by air. However, at 1400 metres altitude, it’s a good place to spend two or three days to begin your acclimatisation if you’re planning on moving on to the mountains. 

By comparison, the town of Pokhara, gateway to the famous Annapurna Circuit, is at an altitude of just 820 metres.

Problems with altitude sickness begin at elevations over 2500 metres. The name of the game is to take it easy – especially in the early stages. The best general advice is to eat lots, drink plenty and take the occasional rest day.

Here’s the UK’s NHS advice on the subject.

Visit Nepal and you can’t fail to appreciate the enormity of the catastrophic earthquake that struck 40 km from Kathmandu on 25 April 2015.

It left 9,000 dead and 22,000 injured, laying waste to more than 600,000 structures in and around the Kathmandu Valley.

And if that 7.8 magnitude earthquake wasn’t enough, subsequent aftershocks increased the death toll and destruction even further. Rural villages were destroyed by landslides. It set off an avalanche on Mount Everest, stranding hundreds of climbers and killing 19 more. And thousands of families were forced to endure monsoons and freezing winters in makeshift shelters for years to come.

Needless to say, for a country already considered to be one of the poorest in the world and yet so reliant on tourism, this was a disaster beyond equal.

We visited Nepal 12 months later and the destruction was still very palpable. In centuries-old city squares, there were now mounds of rubble where grand temples and palaces once stood. Those that remained were being supported by huge wooden poles. Old bricks that were laid hundreds of years ago were now piled up on street sides. And, all around, the air was thick with dust as local people relentlessly swept their doorsteps.

Since then, over 800,000 earthquake-resilient homes have been built, along with over 8,500 schools, health facilities and government buildings. The recovery programme is all-but completed. But, with the double-whammy of the COVID-19 pandemic wiping out any tourism rebound until 2022, the returning trickle of tourists can’t come soon enough.

If any country, and specifically its people, deserves some luck and the influx of tourist dollars, it’s Nepal.

And that, if nothing else, is a reason to visit Nepal all on its own.

Earthquake damage in Bhaktapur during our 2016 visit

More rubble in Bhaktapur

Attempts to repair a tower come unstuck

NEPAL OFFICIAL TOURIST SITE

Nepal Tourism Board

NEPAL TRAVEL BLOGS

For a more detailed look at Nepal, we’ll happily defer to bloggers who’ve spent a lot more time in the country than us.

One of our favourites is Charlotte Plans A Trip.

Another is The Common Wanderer. In fact, we doubt there’s a more comprehensive blogger’s guide to Nepal than Mark & Mim’s.

And then there’s A Little Adrift – Shannon O’Donnell’s blog was one of the first we followed when we started travelling back in 2015. And it’s still one of our go-to sites today.

NEPAL TRAVEL GUIDES

Here are links to the relevant pages of some of the well-known travel guide titles.

Rough Guide

Lonely Planet

Wanderlust