Last updated 16 September 2026. Every price here is read from our own booking system, and every figure I could not verify, I have said so plainly rather than rounding a guess into a number.
I get asked this by Filipino trekkers more often than the arrival statistics would suggest, and the honest answer has three parts: the trek price, which I can tell you to the dollar, the flight, which nobody can promise you, and the peso, which has moved nearly nine per cent against the dollar this year and is at its weakest point of 2026 as I write this.
So let us go through it properly, in pesos and in dollars, for 2026 and for 2027.
If you would rather just ask me directly, my WhatsApp is +977 9810351300. I answer it myself.
There is no nonstop flight from Manila to Kathmandu
Start here, because a surprising number of pages imply otherwise. No airline flies Manila to Kathmandu without a stop. Philippine Airlines serves no point in Nepal at all, and Kathmandu's nonstop network reaches seventeen countries, none of them the Philippines.
That is not a problem. It is simply a fact you plan around, and it means your real decision is which hub you connect through.
Which hub should you connect through?
These are the routings that actually exist, with the flying time on each leg. Layovers are on top, and they vary enormously, so treat these as flying time only.
| Hub | Manila to hub | Hub to Kathmandu | Who flies the Kathmandu leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kuala Lumpur | about 4 hours | about 4 hours 40 minutes | Malaysia Airlines, Batik Air, Himalaya Airlines, Nepal Airlines |
| Bangkok | about 3 hours 35 minutes | about 3 hours 20 minutes | Thai Airways, Himalaya Airlines, Nepal Airlines |
| Hong Kong | about 2 hours 35 minutes | about 4 hours 45 minutes | Cathay Pacific, Nepal Airlines |
| Singapore | about 3 hours 55 minutes | about 5 hours 10 minutes | Singapore Airlines |
| Doha | about 9 hours 40 minutes | about 5 hours | Qatar Airways, Himalaya Airlines, Nepal Airlines |
Flying time through the Asian hubs comes to roughly seven to nine hours. Doha is the long way round at nearly fifteen hours in the air, and it only makes sense on price or if you are flying from Clark.
Two things worth knowing that you will not find on most pages. Kuala Lumpur and Doha have far more Kathmandu departures than Bangkok does, so if your connection collapses you have more ways out of them. And by volume, Guangzhou is actually the single most common layover on this route, which means a China Southern connection is a real option even though it is nobody's first thought.
From Cebu there is no Kathmandu service and no Doha or Delhi connection. You would route through Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong or Bangkok, or fly up to Manila first. From Clark, Qatar Airways flies to Doha, and Clark to Doha to Kathmandu is the one genuinely useful option that skips Manila entirely.
What will the flights actually cost?
Here I have to be careful with you, because this is exactly where pages invent numbers.
I could not get independent live fares. Most of the big aggregators block automated checks, and the ones that answered all belong to the same company, so what follows is one dataset, not a consensus. Checked on 16 September 2026, a typical return Manila to Kathmandu was running US$555 to US$649, roughly ₱34,800 to ₱40,700. The cheapest return actually found was US$621 on a Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways combination, one stop each way.
On that same dataset April is the cheapest month of the year to fly this route and October is the most expensive. That is worth sitting with for a moment, because October is also the best trekking month, and I will come back to it.
What I will not do is publish a confident "October 2026 fare band" or a "spring 2027 fare band". I could not verify either, and a fare I cannot verify is not a fare I will put in front of you. Book eleven or more weeks out and you save roughly fifteen per cent on this route, which is the one piece of timing advice the data does support.
The peso is at its weakest point of 2026, and that is a real cost
You are charged in US dollars. So the peso is not a detail for you, it is part of the price.
The peso opened 2026 at about 58.90 to the dollar. Its strongest point this year was 57.53 in late February. Today it is around 62.7, which is its weakest of the year. That is close to a nine per cent swing inside nine months, and it is not pegged to anything, so it can keep moving in either direction.
In plain terms: the same US$1,399 trek that would have cost you about ₱80,500 in February costs about ₱87,700 today. Nothing about the trek changed. Only the peso did.
I am not going to pretend I can forecast it, because I cannot. What I will say is that if you are booking a 2027 trek, the deposit is small and the balance is not due until you reach Kathmandu, which gives you time and some flexibility on when you convert.
What the trek itself costs
These come straight out of our booking system, and they are the same for 2026 and 2027 departures. Peso figures are at today's 62.7 and will move.
| Everest Base Camp, 12 days | USD | PHP, approximate |
|---|---|---|
| Budget | US$1,399 | about ₱87,700 |
| Standard | US$2,499 | about ₱156,700 |
| Luxury | US$4,999 | about ₱313,400 |
The difference between those tiers is not marketing. On budget you carry your own bag and meals are not included. On standard you get a porter shared between two trekkers, all meals and a private room. On luxury you get your own dedicated porter, a private deluxe room, and the Lukla legs by helicopter both ways instead of fixed wing.
The full day-by-day route is on the Everest Base Camp Trek 12 Days page. If Everest is not settled yet, the same honesty applies to Annapurna Base Camp at US$499, Poon Hill at US$499 and Mardi Himal at US$454, all budget tier.
Down jacket, a sleeping bag rated to minus fifteen and a duffel are provided free. They are our own spec, not a borrowed brand name, and you do not pay for them.
Visa on arrival: yes, and it is straightforward
Philippine passport holders get a visa on arrival at Kathmandu. Nepal's Department of Immigration lists the tourist visa as available to all foreigners, and the fees are fixed:
- 15 days, US$30
- 30 days, US$50, which is what almost every trekker needs
- 90 days, US$125
Fill the form online or at the airport kiosk, pay at the bank counter, then join the immigration queue. Carry some cash for it. Our visa on arrival guide walks through the process step by step.
Do you need a transit visa at your hub?
This catches people out, so here is what I could confirm from the immigration authorities themselves, and where I could not.
- Kuala Lumpur. Filipinos are visa exempt as ASEAN nationals. Malaysian immigration's airside exemption is written around staying on the same flight, so if you are changing airlines you are relying on ordinary visa-free entry rather than that clause.
- Singapore. The Philippines is not on Singapore's visa-required list. If you stay airside you do not clear immigration at all. Ask your airline, because a terminal or carrier change can force you landside.
- Hong Kong. Philippine passport holders get 14 days visa free.
- Doha. Filipinos need a visa, but a visa on arrival is available at QAR 100, and Qatar Airways passengers with a connection over six hours can use the transit desk.
- Bangkok. I could not verify Thailand's current transit rules today. Every Thai government source I tried was unreachable. Rather than repeat what other sites say, I am telling you to check with the Thai embassy or your airline. Bangkok is one of the cheaper routings, so this gap is worth five minutes of your time.
Permits, and what they add
For Everest you need the Sagarmatha National Park entry fee, the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality fee, and a TIMS card. Together they come to roughly US$46, about ₱2,900, and we arrange all of them. The detail is in our permits guide.
A restricted-area permit does not replace TIMS, whatever you read elsewhere. We take TIMS because it puts you and our staff on a database that gets used when something goes wrong.
Mount Apo is 2,954 metres. Base Camp is 5,364 metres.
This is the part of the trip a Filipino trekker cannot rehearse at home, and I would rather say so than flatter you.
The highest point in the Philippines is Mount Apo at 2,954 metres. Mount Pulag, the highest in Luzon, is 2,928 metres. Everest Base Camp is 5,364 metres, which is about 1.8 times the height of Apo, and you sleep at altitude for days rather than touching a summit and coming down.
Your fitness from Pulag or Apo transfers. Your altitude experience largely does not, because there is nowhere in your country high enough to give it to you. That is not a reason to stay home. It is a reason to take the acclimatisation days seriously and to walk slower than feels natural. Our fitness guide and the distance guide go into what the days actually demand.
Our guides carry an oximeter, not bottled oxygen. If you want a canister available we can arrange it, at cost, and I will tell you honestly that most trekkers who walk slowly and listen to their guide never need it.
Insurance is where Filipino trekkers get caught
I looked hard at this, and I am going to give you the uncomfortable answer.
I could not confirm a single Philippine-sold travel policy that covers trekking above 4,000 metres. The one major Philippine insurer that actually publishes its full policy wording defines trekking above 2,500 metres as an extra hazardous sport and states it is never covered. Several others publish only benefit summaries with no altitude clause at all, and two large names sell no travel product in the Philippines whatsoever.
So I will not name an insurer and tell you they will cover you, because I could not verify it.
What I will tell you is exactly what to demand in writing before you book: cover for trekking to 5,600 metres, and helicopter evacuation for illness, not only for accident. That second clause is the one that matters. Altitude sickness is an illness, and a policy that only pays for accidents will not lift you off the mountain. Get it in an email from your insurer, not a phone assurance. If they will not put it in writing, buy elsewhere.
What will you spend on the trail?
On the budget tier, where meals are not included, plan about US$20 a day, so around US$240, about ₱15,000, across twelve days. That covers food, hot showers, charging and wifi. On standard and luxury your meals are already paid for, so the same money stretches much further.
Dal bhat is the best value on any teahouse menu and comes with refills. Our dal bhat guide explains why every guide in Nepal eats it twice a day.
What about tipping?
Tipping is customary and it is not included in any price. As a guide, budget roughly US$10 to US$15 a day for your guide and US$8 to US$10 for a porter, from the group, not from each person. If you are part of a group of four, that is a shared cost.
The full arithmetic, from Manila
One person, budget tier, twelve days, assuming a US$600 return flight, which sits in the middle of the band I found:
- Trek, budget tier: US$1,399, about ₱87,700
- Return flights: US$600, about ₱37,600
- Nepal visa, 30 days: US$50, about ₱3,100
- Park, municipality and TIMS permits: about US$46, about ₱2,900
- On-trail spending at US$20 a day: US$240, about ₱15,000
That comes to roughly US$2,335, about ₱146,400, plus insurance and plus whatever you spend in Kathmandu.
Two things are deliberately outside that total. Kathmandu hotels are not included in any trek tier and are quoted separately, though we can also offer our own family homestay at US$15 per person per night, which helps fund the learning centre my family runs. And insurance is yours to buy, for the reasons above.
Does it get cheaper as a group?
Yes, and only by group size, in bands of one to four, five to eight, and nine to twelve. On Everest Base Camp the budget tier drops from US$1,399 to US$1,299 at five people and US$1,199 at nine.
The price is the same whether you book privately or as a group, and we never add strangers to your group. Four friends from the same office in Makati pay less each than four strangers would, simply because you are four.
Solo trekkers are welcome, and there is no single supplement on Everest Base Camp because your guide joins you from Lukla.
How many days off do you need?
For the twelve-day trek, ask for sixteen days away from the Philippines. Two travel days, twelve on the trek, and two spare in Kathmandu.
Those spare days are not a luxury. The Lukla flight is weather dependent and delays are routine, and a trekker with no buffer is a trekker who misses the flight home. Between roughly 25 September and 30 November, and again from mid-March to mid-May, fixed-wing flights to Lukla leave from Manthali rather than Kathmandu, which means a road transfer of four to five hours starting at one or two in the morning. We tell every client this before they book. Helicopters are not affected. Our domestic flights guide explains why.
When should you go, 2026 or 2027?
October is the most reliable month and the busiest. Mid-November into early December is cold at night, very clear and much quieter. March and April are warm, with rhododendrons in flower, and are the second busiest. June to mid-September is the monsoon and I will talk you out of it. Late October carries a real risk of cyclone tails, and we have had two autumns disrupted by them.
Here is the tension for a Filipino trekker specifically. October is the best trekking month and, on the fare data I have, the most expensive month to fly this route. April is the cheapest month to fly and is genuinely good trekking weather. If your leave is flexible, spring 2027 is the better value trip, and our prices are the same in 2027 as they are now. Our month-by-month guide goes deeper.
Filipinos have been standing on top of Everest since 2006
Worth saying, because it gets misremembered. Leo Oracion became the first Filipino to summit Everest on 17 May 2006, with Erwin Emata the following morning and Romi Garduce two days later on a separate climb. The first Filipino women followed on 16 May 2007, when Noelle Wenceslao, Carina Dayondon and Janet Belarmino summited within three hours of each other.
Base Camp is a different undertaking from a summit. But the trail you would walk is the one they walked first.
How do you pay from the Philippines?
A 10 per cent deposit confirms your booking and the balance is due when you reach Kathmandu. Card payments carry a 3.5 per cent bank charge; cash in Kathmandu carries none. We bill in US dollars only, by card or cash. We cannot accept Nepali rupees from overseas clients.
Be clear on the terms before you pay. The deposit is non-refundable and we do not offer free cancellation. We do offer free rescheduling with at least 72 hours' notice, within a year. If we are the ones who cancel, you are refunded less the bank and card charges and the tax on them, and if you paid cash you are refunded in full.
Check us before you pay
You are sending money to a company on the other side of Asia, so verify us rather than trusting a nicely written page. We are The Everest Holiday Pvt. Ltd., registered in Nepal on 8 April 2016, TAAN member number 1586. You can check a Nepali operator through the Office of the Company Registrar, TAAN, the Department of Tourism licence register, and the Nepal Rastra Bank forex certification. Ask any operator for those numbers and check them yourself.
I will also say the thing most operators leave out: even fully licensed companies have been involved in scams. Licences are a floor, not a guarantee. Talk to us, ask hard questions, and see whether the answers are specific.
The questions Filipino clients always ask me
Is there really no direct flight? Really. One stop is the minimum, and the shortest routings are through Bangkok, Hong Kong or Kuala Lumpur.
Can I pay in pesos? No. We bill in US dollars, by card or cash. The peso figures on this page are a guide and they move.
Do I need a guide? On Everest, yes, and honestly you want one. Solo trekking is restricted, and on restricted-area routes a licensed guide is mandatory.
Will my Philippine travel insurance cover me? Assume not until they confirm it in writing. See the insurance section above, and get the altitude limit and helicopter evacuation for illness stated explicitly.
How fit do I need to be? If you can walk five to seven hours a day on consecutive days, you can do this. Pulag and Apo are good preparation for the walking. Nothing at home prepares you for the altitude.
What if the Lukla flight is cancelled? That is what your two spare days in Kathmandu are for. We rebook you, and on the luxury tier you are on a helicopter anyway.
Is October or April better? October for weather and atmosphere, April for cost and flowers. Both are good. April is the better value for you.
If you want the numbers run for your dates and your group size, message me on WhatsApp or email [email protected]. I will give you the real figure, including the parts that are not in our favour.
You may also want our detailed country pages for the hubs you will transit, since several Filipino trekkers break the journey: from Malaysia, from Singapore and from Japan. Our broader Nepal trekking from the Philippines page covers the other treks in peso terms.
Written by Shreejan Simkhada, CEO of The Everest Holiday and third-generation Himalayan guide. TAAN Member #1586.
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