Nepal Travel Vaccines — What You Need in 2026

Recommended Vaccines

• Hepatitis A

  Allow 2 weeks before travel

• Typhoid

  Allow 2 weeks before travel

• Rabies

  Allow 4 weeks before travel

• Japanese Encephalitis

  Allow 4 weeks before travel

Routine Vaccines to Keep Up to Date

Other Health Risks

• Altitude sickness (trekking regions)
• Traveller's diarrhea

Travel Health Summary

Nepal's health advice is dominated by altitude rather than infection, but both matter depending on your route. Kathmandu and Pokhara are low-risk for malaria, and transmission is limited to the southern Terai lowlands bordering India, including Chitwan and Bardia, where antimalarial tablets are sometimes advised for extended rural stays but are often unnecessary for short lodge visits. Altitude sickness is the real danger: the Everest Base Camp trek reaches 5,545 metres at Kala Patthar and the Annapurna Circuit crosses Thorong La at 5,416 metres, acute mountain sickness affects a large proportion of trekkers, and high-altitude pulmonary and cerebral oedema cause several deaths each season, so a conservative ascent profile, rest days at Namche and Manang, and a discussion about acetazolamide with a travel clinic before departure are essential. Hepatitis A and typhoid are strongly recommended, as waterborne illness is extremely common on trekking routes and tap water is unsafe everywhere; giardia and travellers' diarrhoea are near-universal complaints, so water purification is part of standard kit. Rabies is endemic and street dogs are common in Kathmandu and along trekking trails, with immunoglobulin effectively unavailable outside the capital, which makes pre-exposure vaccination a strong recommendation for trekkers. Japanese encephalitis vaccination is advised for the Terai during the monsoon transmission season, and a yellow fever certificate is required only if you are arriving from an endemic country. Kathmandu has CIWEC Clinic and a few good private hospitals, but on the trails the only realistic evacuation is a helicopter, so insurance that explicitly covers helicopter rescue above 4,000 metres is non-negotiable.

Related destinations

Nearby countries with a comparable vaccine and disease-risk profile to Nepal.