Nepal is open for the autumn season, and glad you are coming.
Everest, Annapurna and Thorong La are open. Langtang treks stay paused while the Rasuwa road is rebuilt; Mustang and Manang roads are still being repaired.
Garmin inReach Mini 2
Iridium satellite, SOS, ~100 g, subscription required
4.6 on Amazon
On Manaslu, Kanchenjunga or Dolpo this is the difference between a problem and an emergency — on Annapurna and Everest, where phone coverage is good and lodges are close, it is largely redundant and the money is better spent on evacuation insurance.
Check price on AmazonAs an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.
Do not buy this if: Everest Base Camp or the Annapurna Sanctuary. Buy proper helicopter-evacuation cover instead.
Not every route needs it. These are the ones where our guides would put it on your list.
Everything else we recommend in watches & gps, including the ones we think suit a different trekker.
Best watchGarmin Instinct 2 Solar
The barometric altimeter is the genuinely useful bit — watching your sleeping altitude is how acclimatisation stops being abstract; the solar charging is marketing more than mechanism on a wrist under a sleeve.
Skip it ifAnyone who would treat its SpO2 number as a medical reading. It is not one.
