On arrival at Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport, you will need to get an entry visa into Nepal for which you will need one passport photo (there is a photo booth in the airport but it might be easier to bring several passport photos with you from home) and USD30 in cash for a 30-day visa.

Obtaining a visa is usually free of complications although there can be a long wait in line as all new arrivals’ visa applications are processed. If you have any problems at immigration, you can call Nabin (+977 98510 04278) or Pasang (+977 98010 25435) of Expedition Himalaya and they will assist in whatever ways they can.

After being issued with a visa, you can collect your baggage and exit the airport where a representative of Expedition Himalaya will be waiting for you. Look out for someone carrying a sign with either “Expedition Himalaya” or your name written on it.

From the airport, a short 15-20 minute drive will take you to Thamel and your hotel where our representative will arrange a time for everyone to meet after you’ve had time to settle in and relax, to go through the itinerary with you.

Thamel is the tourist enclave of Kathmandu, a buzzing, lively place of narrow, winding streets where competing signs, banners and billboards jostle for space amid a wide variety of restaurants and bars, gear, souvenir and bookshops and the inevitable street-hawkers and tourist touts. For convenience, Thamel can’t be beaten: you’re only ever a few minutes’ walk away from anything you might conceivably need and it’s a great place to get trekking/outdoor gear, usually for significantly lower prices than in your home-country.

Thamel is generally safe, but it is worth paying attention to your wallet. This applies to wherever you go; don’t make it easy for opportunists!