Everest Base Camp Trek Cost From New Zealand: The Real All-In Numbers in NZ Dollars for 2027

Last updated 10 November 2026. Fares are from a search run that day for April 2027 dates, Auckland (AKL) return. New Zealand dollar amounts use the open.er-api rate of 10 November 2026, US$1 = NZD 1.777, which changes daily. Payment to us is in US dollars or euros.

Auckland to Kathmandu is a long haul with a change on both legs, and the quickest outbound in the search took about 17 hours 35 minutes. Leaving on 4 April, three results reached Kathmandu the same evening and the other twelve the next day. This page puts the fares next to the trek so you can see the whole bill.

The trek itself, 12 days to Everest Base Camp for two to four trekkers, costs US$1,255 per person on Budget (about NZD 2,230), US$2,320 on Standard (about NZD 4,125) and US$4,650 on Luxury (about NZD 8,265), the same for 2027. Adding an Auckland return, the visa, insurance and tips, one traveller should expect about NZD 7,120 to NZD 8,470 on Budget, NZD 8,240 to NZD 9,380 on Standard and NZD 13,020 to NZD 14,270 on Luxury, travelling alone.

Auckland to Kathmandu: the fares

The fare search was economy for one adult with a hold bag, leaving on Sunday 4 April 2027 and returning on Wednesday 21 April, one ticket and at most one change on each leg. There were 15 itineraries, from NZD 2,884 to NZD 3,573. A Christchurch search with the same settings found no fare with only one change each way, so from the South Island expect an extra connection.

The cheapest, NZD 2,884, was Cathay Pacific out (Auckland 13:25, Hong Kong 21:05, then a wait of almost 22 hours until the 18:55 flight, landing in Kathmandu at 21:45 on 5 April, about 38 hours 35 minutes) and Emirates home through Dubai. That return leaves Kathmandu at 00:35 on 21 April and reaches Auckland at 09:55 the next day, about 27 hours. Singapore Airlines out through Changi, landing in Kathmandu at 21:30 on 5 April, was NZD 2,911 with the same Emirates return.

The fastest way out was Singapore Airlines, leaving Auckland at 10:10 and landing in Kathmandu at 21:30 the same day, about 17 hours 35 minutes, from NZD 3,105. Malaysia Airlines through Kuala Lumpur (13:00 from Auckland, 12:00 in Kathmandu the next day) was NZD 3,242, and China Southern through Guangzhou (21:20, landing at 11:30 the next morning, about 20 hours 25 minutes) was NZD 3,274. The dearest fares, NZD 3,349 to NZD 3,573, came home on Malaysia Airlines through Kuala Lumpur, leaving Kathmandu at 13:00 and reaching Auckland at 11:25 the next day, about 16 hours 10 minutes.

New Zealand dollars, line by line

Below, one person per row. Flights appear as a range, and the extras column holds the visa for 30 days, insurance, tips and, depending on tier, meals or spending money. Kathmandu hotels are quoted apart in every tier, and staying at our family homestay is US$15 per person a night, about NZD 30.

If you book Budget, add US$25 to US$40 a day for meals, US$300 to US$480 across the trek; the two higher tiers include them. Add US$130 to US$195 for showers, charging and snacks, which is 20,000 to 30,000 rupees from a Kathmandu cash machine. Guides are tipped US$15 to US$20 a day and porters US$10 to US$15.

A New Zealand passport at Kathmandu

New Zealand is not on the list of twelve countries that must apply beforehand. The three options are US$30 (15 days), US$50 (30 days, about NZD 90) and US$125 (90 days), all in US dollars and all multiple entry. Carry a photo and a passport valid for six months; the online form can be done before you leave. See the visa on arrival guide.

What SafeTravel says

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's SafeTravel page for Nepal, updated on 28 September 2026, gives the advice level as exercise increased caution, with higher levels in some areas. It mentions flash flooding in the Rasuwa district and near the China border on 26 August 2026, the risk of landslides in heavy rain, protests and general strikes, and altitude sickness on treks. It recommends insurance that includes helicopter rescue and air evacuation. Check the page again close to departure and register your trip.

Insurance and who to call

Buy a travel policy in New Zealand before you leave. Before you buy, confirm that the plan reaches 6,000 m (the viewpoint of Kala Patthar is 5,645 m, and some plans stop at 3,000 or 4,000 m), that it pays for a helicopter out (a US$3,000 to US$5,000 bill, about NZD 5,330 to NZD 8,880, if it does not) and that it covers being ill, not only hurt. Our helicopter cover to 6,000 m explains the wording. On the ground, SafeTravel lists an honorary New Zealand Consulate in Kathmandu (+977 1 472 0580, by appointment) and the New Zealand High Commission in New Delhi (+91 11 4688 3170). The 24-hour emergency numbers are 0800 30 10 30 within New Zealand or +64 99 20 20 20.

What each tier gives you

With Budget you carry your own bag, share rooms and buy meals, and fly fixed-wing to Lukla. With Standard, meals are paid, rooms are private and one porter takes the bags of two trekkers. Luxury provides a porter just for you, deluxe private rooms with bathrooms, fruit, nuts, soft drinks carried by your porter and a helicopter to Lukla and back. Every tier has a licensed guide, three permits (NPR 3,000, 3,000 and 2,000), airport transfers, and a borrowed down jacket and minus 15 sleeping bag. Solo on Standard, there is no porter and the guide carries up to 10 kg. On your own you pay more, because nobody shares the guide or the room: US$1,805 on Budget, US$2,605 on Standard and US$5,175 on Luxury, against US$1,255, US$2,320 and US$4,650 each for two to four people. Kathmandu hotels are quoted apart. Details on the trek page.

Do Kiwi mountains prepare you?

Aoraki Mount Cook is 3,724 m and Mount Ruapehu is 2,797 m, so New Zealand's highest ground is below Namche Bazaar (3,440 m) and well below Gorak Shep (5,164 m), the highest night. A Tongariro Crossing day is a good baseline for the walking, which is five to seven hours a day with two acclimatisation days among the 12. A loaded pack on steep tracks several days in a row is the best training. Read how fit you need to be.

Group prices in New Zealand dollars

• 2 to 4 people: Budget NZD 2,230, Standard NZD 4,125, Luxury NZD 8,265, which is US$1,255, US$2,320 and US$4,650.
• 5 to 8 people: Budget NZD 1,750, Standard NZD 3,645, Luxury NZD 8,210, which is US$985, US$2,050 and US$4,620.
• 9 to 12 people: Budget NZD 1,695, Standard NZD 3,565, Luxury NZD 8,105, which is US$955, US$2,005 and US$4,560.
• 13 to 20 people: Budget NZD 1,535, Standard NZD 3,485, Luxury NZD 8,060, which is US$865, US$1,960 and US$4,535.

A private trip costs the same per person as a group trip. The size of your party sets the price.

Leave, daylight saving and dates

Right now Nepal is 7 hours 15 minutes behind Auckland. New Zealand puts its clocks back on 4 April 2027, the day of the sample flight, and the gap then becomes 6 hours 15 minutes. You are entitled to four weeks of annual leave under the Holidays Act 2003, which covers a 12-day trek plus the long flights. Good Friday is 26 March 2027 and Easter Monday 29 March, a good start to the spring window; Anzac Day falls on a Sunday in 2027, so the holiday moves to Monday 26 April. In autumn, Nepal's two biggest festivals, Dashain and Tihar, fall in October and November. Government offices shut, and permits take 48 hours of working days. Also, during the peak the small planes to Lukla depart from Manthali, so Budget and Standard guests make a four to five hour road transfer with a pick-up between midnight and 2 am, while Luxury guests fly out of Kathmandu on a helicopter.

Paying from New Zealand

Reserve with a 10 per cent deposit; pay the balance once you are in Kathmandu. Dollars and euros are the two currencies we take, in cash (no charge) or by card (3.5 per cent more), and New Zealand dollars and rupees do not work. A reschedule is free: pick any date inside a year and let us know 72 hours before (seven days for Tibet, Kailash and restricted areas). If you cancel instead, the deposit and anything else you have paid are not refunded. When we are the cause of a cancellation, we repay your money minus taxes, bank and card fees, and permits and flights already bought.

Verifying The Everest Holiday

Since 2016 we have been a registered Kathmandu company, and for three generations my family has guided in the Himalayas. TAAN 1586. More than 300 reviews, on TripAdvisor, Google and Trustpilot. The registrar, TAAN, the tourism licence and the forex certificate are all open to checking. Licensed operators have been involved in scams, so a licence is not enough on its own; ask for a video call before you send a deposit. The Nagarjun Learning Center receives part of each booking.

For figures on your own dates, message me on WhatsApp +977 9810351300 / info@theeverestholiday.com.

Related: the cost guide, best time to trek.

Shreejan Simkhada, CEO of The Everest Holiday. TAAN 1586.