The Essential Packing List for High Altitude Trekking in Nepal

You have trained for months, your flights are booked, and you are almost ready to make your dream of trekking in the beautiful Himalayas come true. But what to bring? Do you really need that extra set of trekking pants, or would it just be extra unncessesary weight?

When packing for your trip, you want to make sure that you bring all necessary items to ensure your safety and comfort. But you also want to make sure that you don’t pack too much, making your backpack heavy and unpleasant to carry (and if you have hired a porter, make sure you know how much baggage you are allowed to bring).

When trekking in the Himalayas, the availability of teahouses along the way means that you do not need to carry a tent or other camping equipment. Other things such as warm clothes, a sleeping bag, and water treatment gear are, however, essential.

Here, we have gathered a list of what we brought for our treks in Nepal. Keep in mind that this list is based on what worked for us, and that your needs might be different to ours. Feel absolutely free to use of it what makes sense to you!

Psst... Did you know that you can jump around in this post by using the Table of Contents sider at the left side of this page?

Table of Contents

Essential Items for Hiking in Nepal

Warm Sleeping Bag

Most teahouses have blankets for keeping you warm during the cold nights, but we recommend you bringing a 3-season sleeping bag nonetheless. Blankets vary in quality and thickness, and if the teahouse is full, there might not be any spare ones in case you an extra. We were very grateful that we brought along our sleeping backs (comfort limit: -5°C) because some nights even the inside of the room reached freezing temperatures!

High Quality Down Jacket

Keeping warm during the day is equally imporant to keeping warm during the night. Temperatures can be chilling, even during the day, and strong winds will only add to the cold feeling. Bringing a high quality down jacket to wear during breaks is a good idea to avoid getting too cold when you sit still. You can also use it if you arrive early in the afternoons. Many teahouses will light a fire in the evening, but usually not before 5pm. It can be really cold waiting for the dining room to heat up!

Long-sleeved Trekking Shirt

The sun is very strong in the high mountains, especially if you walk on snow which reflects the sun’s beams. Wearing a thing, long-sleeved shirt and long pants when trekking protects is a great way to protect your skin from the sun.

Sunscreen & Sunglasses

When talking about skin protection, we cannot omit the importance of bringing sunscreen. Even though you will mostly hike in close to 0°C conditions, the sun is still hard on your skin, and sunscreen with high PFA is essential. So are sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun.

Water Treatment

You have to treat the water before drinking it when hiking in the Himalayas. There are several ways to do so, and you can choose a method based on your preference: Using a manual filter, UV-technology, or purification tablets. Your can read more about water treatment in our guide on the different ways to treat water when hiking (LINK).

Buying or Renting Gear

If hiking in Nepal is part of your long-term travel, you might not want to carry all of your hiking gear with you if you only need it for this trek. The good news is that there are many (cheap) options to buy or rent gear in Kathmandu. Note that, with the expection of a few brand shops, most outdoor stores in Kathmandu sell fake brands – but that does not necessarily mean that the quality of the items is bad.

If you are interested in buying, you can find good quality gear for a very affordable price in the stores that have a good reputation online. If you Google “good outdoor stores in Kathmandu”, you will easily find up to date recommendations for where to buy gear of fine quality. These shops will often also have the option to rent out gear – I rented a down jacket at a rate of 100 npr (less than $ 1) per day that I was very happy with. You will also be able to rent items such as sleeping bags, gloves, and down pants for a reasonable daily fee.

Complete Packing List

Here is our complete packing list for the high altitude treks we did in Nepal in October-December 2023 (Three Passes Trek including Everest Base Camp, Langtang Valley Trek, and Gosainkunda Trek).

This list is based entirely on our own experiences with hiking in Nepal and details the items we brought per person. You should adjust your packing list according to your needs, as well as the season that you will be trekking in.

Clothes

For Hiking (Including What We Wore)

2 pairs of trekking pants
1 long-sleeved trekking shirt (wool)
1 short-sleeved trekking shirt (wool)
2 pairs of wool socks for hiking
2-3 pairs of underwear
(2 pairs of sports bras)
Sunglasses
Cap

For Keeping Warm

Thin neck warmer to protect from sun and dirt while hiking
Thin gloves for trekking
2 pairs of thick wool socks for the cold evenings
Long underwear (wool): Long-sleeved shirt + pants
Warm down jacket
Warm gloves
Warm beanie
Thick Neck warmer // buff

For Keeping Dry

GoreTex shell jacket
GoreTex shell pants

Footwear

Trekking boots // trekking shoes
Crocs // open-toed sandals

Sleeping

3-season sleeping bag
Sleeping bag fleece liner

Eletronics

Headlamp or torch
Powerbank (we brought a 20 000 mAh which was plenty for the two of us)
Kindle
Phone
Garmin GPS InReach Mini
Power plug (type C)
Charging cables

Toiletries

Toothbrush
Travel size toothpaste
Travel size deodorant
Painkillers, e.g. Paracetamol or Ibuprofen
Cough drops (in case you get a cold)
(Menstrual care products)

Miscellaneous

3L camel bag // water bottle
Small sewing kit (in case you need to repair your clothes)
GoreTex repair tape (in case you need to repair you shell items)
Water treatment tablets // other water purification gear
Sunscreen
Toilet paper (you will be surprised how many teahouses don’t have it!)
Snacks

Did you find this post helpful when preparing for your trip? Let us know in the comments below if you have any questions!