Nepal

Nepal, cradled in the Himalayas between India and China, is the world's premier mountain destination, home to eight of the fourteen highest peaks on Earth, including Mount Everest (Sagarmatha), the highest of all at 8,849 meters. From the icy giants of the high Himalaya, the country plunges through middle hills and terraced valleys to the subtropical Terai lowlands, an astonishing range of altitude and landscape within a small area.

Nepal is the ultimate trekking and mountaineering destination, drawing adventurers to the Everest Base Camp and Annapurna circuits, while also offering rich wildlife in lowland parks, the temple-filled Kathmandu Valley, and a deeply spiritual culture blending Hinduism and Buddhism — it is the birthplace of the Buddha.

Trek to Everest Base Camp, the Annapurna Sanctuary, and beyond, climb Himalayan peaks, raft wild rivers, safari for rhinos and tigers in Chitwan National Park, and explore the temples and stupas of the Kathmandu Valley. Paragliding over Pokhara adds an aerial thrill.

The best trekking seasons are autumn (October–November), with clear skies and stable weather, and spring (March–May), with rhododendron blooms; the monsoon (June–September) brings rain and clouds, and winter is cold and snowy at altitude.

Nepal's wildlife spans the snow leopards and Himalayan tahr of the high mountains to the one-horned rhinos, Bengal tigers, elephants, and gharial crocodiles of the lowland Terai parks like Chitwan and Bardia, with rich birdlife throughout.

Nepal sits where the Indian Plate collides with Asia, thrusting up the Himalaya — still rising today — making it intensely mountainous and earthquake-prone (a major quake struck in 2015). It ranges from the highest peaks on Earth to the flat, fertile Terai plains in the south.

Nepal was unified into a kingdom in 1768 and was never colonized. The birthplace of the Buddha (at Lumbini), it has a rich Hindu-Buddhist heritage and was long a Hindu monarchy before becoming a federal republic in 2008; the Sherpa and many other ethnic groups give it great cultural diversity.

Nepali culture is deeply spiritual, blending Hinduism and Buddhism amid countless temples, stupas, and prayer flags, with the legendary mountain Sherpas, the Kathmandu Valley's living heritage, and a famously warm, resilient people.

Trek in autumn or spring for the clearest mountain views, and acclimatize carefully to avoid altitude sickness. Use reputable guides and porters (and treat them fairly), respect religious customs, and combine high trekking with the wildlife of Chitwan.