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Pokhara goes international: flydubai starts daily Dubai flights on September 23

Nepal's lake city gets its first scheduled international route — a daily flydubai service from Dubai that lands trekkers an hour from the Annapurnas and sidesteps Kathmandu's congestion.

LR By Laxman Rawal · Jun 15, 2026 · 3 min read · Updated Jun 15, 2026

Pokhara and Phewa Lake beneath the Annapurna range, Nepal

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For decades, almost every international visitor to Nepal has funneled through a single airport in Kathmandu. That is about to change for the west of the country. From 23 September 2026, flydubai will run daily direct flights between Dubai and Pokhara — the first scheduled international service ever to operate from Pokhara International Airport, and a genuine turning point for the Annapurna region.

Key facts

Daily Dubai–Pokhara flights begin 23 September 2026
First-ever scheduled international route from Pokhara
flydubai's second Nepal destination after Kathmandu
Departs Dubai Terminal 3; codeshare with Emirates

Why this is a big deal

Pokhara is the staging post for the Annapurna Circuit, Annapurna Base Camp, Mardi Himal, Poon Hill and Mustang. Until now, a trekker flying in from Europe, the Middle East, Africa or India had to land in Kathmandu, then take a domestic flight or a long drive to reach the trailhead. A direct international arrival into Pokhara removes an entire leg of the journey — you can step off the plane and be at your lakeside lodge within the hour, with the Annapurnas filling the skyline.

The Dubai connection is the clever part. Through flydubai's codeshare with Emirates, Pokhara is suddenly plugged into a network of more than 300 airports worldwide via a single hub. Passengers get one ticket, through-checked baggage and one connection, whether they are starting in London, Lagos or Lahore.

flydubai Dubai–Pokhara at a glance
Detail	Information
Airline	flydubai
Frequency	Daily
Start date	23 September 2026
Origin	Dubai International, Terminal 3
Network	Emirates codeshare, 300+ airports

Good timing for the autumn season

The launch date is no accident. Late September is the start of Nepal's premier autumn trekking window, when the monsoon clears and the mountain air turns crisp and clear. Trekkers who book the new route can arrive directly into Pokhara just as the Annapurna trails hit their best conditions of the year, skipping the Kathmandu transfer entirely.

It also eases a real bottleneck. Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International handles all of Nepal's long-haul traffic on one runway, and peak-season congestion there is a well-known headache. Sending a daily flow of network passengers straight into Pokhara spreads the pressure and helps the whole system breathe.

What this means for you

If you are coming from anywhere in the flydubai or Emirates network, you can now plan an Annapurna trek that begins the moment you land in Pokhara — no internal flight, no Kathmandu overnight unless you want one. We can meet you at Pokhara airport and have you on the trail to Annapurna Base Camp or Poon Hill the next morning.

Two cities, two doors

Paired with the new Kathmandu–Shenzhen link, the Pokhara–Dubai route is part of a clear 2026 pattern: Nepal is widening its front doors. For the Annapurna region specifically, having its own international gateway is a structural shift that should pay off for years — more visitors, shorter journeys, and a far easier sell to travellers who once found Nepal logistically daunting.

Source: Travel And Tour World; IndexBox; Nepal Tourism Board.

Cover photo: Jungsik Kwak via Pexels (Pexels License).

Source: Travel And Tour World

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