A stone stupa hung with prayer flags on a ridge below a vast wall of snow and ice
Climbing Peaks • Khumbu · Annapurna · Langtang · Rolwaling

Nepal’s Climbing Peaks

18 summits between 5,520 m and 6,812 m, in three honest categories — from a first Himalayan snow peak you can climb with no experience at all, to the hardest technical permits in the country. NMA permits, licensed climbing guides, gear hire and a real training day on snow, all included.

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18 Climbing Peaks
5,520–6,812 m Summit Range
3 Experience Levels
15+ Years in the Himalaya
Where Climbers Begin

Beginner Climbing Peaks

Your first Himalayan summit — real crampon work, no technical climbing.

5 Peaks in This Category

These are the peaks we put first-time climbers on. Every one of them is a genuine Himalayan summit above 5,500 metres, and none of them asks you to have climbed anything before: the routes are snow slopes and easy ridges, the technical skills are taught on the glacier during the trip, and the boots, crampons and axe can all be hired in Kathmandu.

Bookings Open The glacier-carved upper Langtang Valley beneath a wall of snow peaks Langtang, Central Nepal 5,520 m

Yala Peak Climbing

A short, friendly snow climb above Kyanjin Gompa with a summit view straight across the border into Tibet — the easiest real Himalayan peak there is.

Langtang National Park and local climbing permit

Beginner

12–13 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open Panoramic view of a glacier basin ringed by snow-covered peaks Khumbu, Everest Region 5,806 m

Pokalde Peak Climbing

The lowest of the Khumbu climbing peaks, bolted onto an Everest Base Camp trek — a short rocky scramble and a snow ridge above the Kongma La.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Beginner

16–18 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A high mountain village on a hillside beneath snow-covered rock peaks Ganesh Himal, Central Nepal 5,896 m

Paldor Peak Climbing

A neat snow pyramid at the eastern edge of the Ganesh Himal, in a valley that sees almost no trekkers at all.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Beginner–Moderate

16–18 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A high snow summit lit orange by sunrise above a forested valley Dhaulagiri, Western Nepal 6,012 m

Dhampus Peak Climbing

One of the easiest 6,000 m summits in Nepal, reached across the French Pass and the extraordinary emptiness of Hidden Valley.

NMA climbing permit and Annapurna Conservation Area entry

Beginner–Moderate

17–19 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A line of climbers on a high ridge below a wall of snow-covered peaks Manang, Annapurna Region 6,059 m

Chulu Far East Climbing

The most approachable of the Chulu summits above Manang — a straightforward snow ridge, climbed as part of an Annapurna Circuit trek.

Climbed on the Chulu East (NMA Group B) permit

Beginner–Moderate

18–20 Days Spring & Autumn
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The Next Step Up

Intermediate Climbing Peaks

Fixed lines, glacier travel and a genuine summit headwall.

8 Peaks in This Category

A clear step up from a first snow summit. Expect roped travel across crevassed glaciers, a night at a high camp, an alpine start in the dark and a headwall or ridge climbed on fixed rope with a jumar. These are the peaks that qualify you for a 7000m permit, and the ones most climbers use to find out whether the bigger mountains are really for them.

Bookings Open A stone Gurung teahouse in a hillside village with snow peaks beyond Annapurna, Western Nepal 5,587 m

Mardi Himal Climbing

A compact climb directly beneath the fishtail ridge of Machhapuchhre, on the ridge line above one of the loveliest short treks in Nepal.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Moderate

15–17 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A monastery and stone village below a wall of snow-covered Himalayan peaks Langtang, Central Nepal 5,844 m

Naya Kanga Climbing

A glaciated ridge climb above the Langtang valley, reached over one of the more serious trekking passes in Nepal.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Moderate

15–17 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open Snow-covered summits rising at the head of a broad brown valley Rolwaling, Eastern Nepal 5,925 m

Ramdung Go Climbing

A glacier climb deep in the Rolwaling — the wildest valley in Nepal that still has a trekking-peak permit attached to it.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Moderate–Hard

20–22 Days Spring & Autumn
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Expedition Permit Snow-covered peaks above a stone village and chorten in a high valley Annapurna, Nepal 6,091 m

Pisang Peak

A clean pyramid above the Manang valley, climbed as a summit day out of the Annapurna Circuit trek.

Run as a full expedition — see the Expeditions catalogue.

Moderate–Hard

On request Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A chaotic field of glacier seracs beneath high snow-covered ridges Khumbu, Everest Region 6,119 m

Lobuche East Climbing

A steep, elegant snow ridge above the Khumbu glacier, with the finest close-range Everest view of any peak on this page.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Moderate–Hard

17–19 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open Climbers looking out at a wall of snow-covered Himalayan peaks under a clear sky Khumbu, Everest Region 6,189 m

Island Peak Climbing

Nepal's best-known climbing peak — a crevassed glacier, a fixed-rope headwall and a knife-edge summit ridge under the Lhotse wall.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Moderate–Hard

16–18 Days Spring & Autumn
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Expedition Permit Two climbers looking towards a horizon of snow-covered Himalayan peaks Hinku Valley, Nepal 6,476 m

Mera Peak

Nepal's highest trekking peak, with a summit panorama that takes in five 8000m mountains at once — and no technical climbing.

Nepal’s highest trekking peak, run as a full expedition.

Moderate–Hard

19 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open Trekkers beside a frozen turquoise lake on a high brown hillside Manang, Annapurna Region 6,584 m

Chulu East Climbing

The biggest of the Chulu summits and one of the highest peaks on an NMA trekking permit — two high camps and a long, cold summit day.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Hard

20–22 Days Spring & Autumn
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The TerraBlaze Difference

Why Climb Your First Peaks With Us?

Licensed Climbing Guides

Every climb is led by a government-licensed climbing guide, with a climbing Sherpa alongside you on summit day.

Skills Taught Properly

A full training day on snow before the summit push — crampons, axe, jumar and abseil — not a rushed briefing at the last lodge.

Turn-Around Discipline

Our guides are instructed to turn a rope around when conditions stop being acceptable. That call is never held against you.

For Experienced Alpinists

Advanced Technical Peaks

Nepal’s hardest permits under 7,000 metres — steep rock, ice and real exposure.

5 Peaks in This Category

Graded on difficulty rather than height. These summits involve sustained mixed climbing, two committing high camps and route-finding on ground where retreat is as serious as the ascent. We ask every applicant for a climbing resume before confirming a place, and we run these peaks in small teams with a high guide-to-climber ratio.

Bookings Open The Sherpa town of Namche Bazaar built into a hillside bowl beneath snow peaks Khumbu, Everest Region 6,011 m

Kwangde Ri Climbing

The serrated ridge that every trekker photographs from Namche Bazaar, and one of the most technical permits in the Khumbu.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Technical / Very Hard

20–22 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A steep snow-covered Himalayan summit catching the first light of morning Khumbu, Everest Region 6,367 m

Kusum Kanguru Climbing

Widely considered the most difficult peak on the NMA trekking list — steep, committing and with a summit success rate that stays stubbornly low.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Technical / Very Hard

21–24 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open Snow-covered peaks above a stone village and chorten in a high valley Khumbu, Everest Region 6,440 m

Cholatse Climbing

A steep, elegant ridge on one of the most photographed faces in the Khumbu — a serious alpine objective under a full expedition permit.

NMA expedition-peak permit

Technical / Very Hard

24–26 Days Spring & Autumn
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Bookings Open A deep blue high-altitude lake below a heavily snow-covered mountain face Annapurna Sanctuary, Nepal 6,501 m

Singu Chuli Climbing

The steep, ice-fluted peak on the north side of the Annapurna Sanctuary — the hardest climbing permit in the Annapurna region.

NMA Group B trekking-peak permit

Technical / Very Hard

20–22 Days Spring & Autumn
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Expedition Permit A steep snow-covered summit lit by early morning light Khumbu, Nepal 6,812 m

Ama Dablam

The most beautiful mountain in the Khumbu and the finest technical climb at this altitude — granite, ice and the famous Yellow Tower.

A full expedition permit — see the Expeditions catalogue.

Technical / Very Hard

28–32 Days Autumn (Oct–Nov)
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Not Sure Where You Fit?

The Climbing Ladder

Almost nobody starts on a technical peak, and almost nobody needs to. This is the progression we actually recommend — each step earns you the experience the next one asks for.

5,500 – 6,100 m

Learn on Snow

A first summit where the crampons, the axe and the rope are all taught to you on the mountain. Two to three weeks, no prior climbing.

Beginner peaks 5,600 – 6,600 m

Climb a Headwall

Fixed rope, a high camp and an alpine start. This is where you find out how your body handles a real summit day above 6,000 metres.

Intermediate peaks 6,000 – 6,900 m

Lead on Mixed Ground

Steep rock and ice, two committing camps and a descent that needs as much planning as the climb. Alpine experience assumed.

Technical peaks 7,000 – 8,848 m

Go Expedition

Himlung, Manaslu, Cho Oyu and eventually the roof of the world. Six weeks, four high camps and a full Sherpa team behind you.

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Which Peak Should Be Your First?

Tell us what you have walked or climbed before, how much time you have and what you want out of the trip. We will tell you honestly which of these 18 summits fits — and which one does not, yet.

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