Nepal is also a land of contrasts when it comes to connectivity: in Kathmandu and Pokhara, you'll have plenty of 4G to order a taxi or find a café with views of Lake Fewa, but as soon as you step into the Himalayas, things change completely. That's why it's a good idea to decide how you'll get internet in Nepal before you fly. In this guide, I compare all the realistic options for tourists: your operator's roaming, hotel and teahouse Wi-Fi, Nepalese local SIM cards (Ncell or Nepal Telecom, which require a passport and a passport-sized photo), and eSIMs. I also dedicate an entire section to the most frequently searched topic: what coverage is available on the Annapurna and Everest Base Camp treks, and where you'll lose signal.
Internet in Nepal: the quick answer
For a tourist, an eSIM is the most convenient way to get internet in Nepal: it activates in minutes on the Ncell network, avoids queues and paperwork at Kathmandu airport, and works as soon as you land. A local SIM is cheaper; roaming is convenient but expensive.
That's the short conclusion, but in Nepal, the mountains add a nuance. In tourist cities and valleys, almost any option works: there's decent 4G and very cheap data. The problem arises above 3,500 meters, on the major treks, where no SIM card guarantees continuous signal, and paid Wi-Fi in teahouses and specific networks like Everest Link come into play.
That's why my recommendation has two layers. For 90% of your trip—Kathmandu, Pokhara, Chitwan, travel—an Ncell eSIM is more than enough, and you'll be connected from minute one. For the high-altitude part, no card works magic: you combine whatever mobile network is available with paid Wi-Fi in lodges, and, most importantly, offline downloaded maps. In the following sections, I break down each option with real prices and coverage so you can make an informed decision, not one based on gut feelings.
All options at a glance
Before going into detail, here's the complete overview. There are five realistic ways to get connected in Nepal, and they don't all cost or weigh the same. Focus less on the price and more on the "but" column: that's where this comparison is decided, because what's a minor detail in the city can leave you isolated in the mountains.
| Option | Approximate price | Process | Its big "but" |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator roaming | €10-15/day or up to ~€12/MB | None | Very expensive and with limited data |
| Free Wi-Fi (hotel, cafes) | Free | None | Only works where you are stationary |
| Local SIM (Ncell, Nepal Telecom) | €4-14 for many GB | Medium: passport, photo, and form | Queue, paperwork, and losing your number |
| Portable router (pocket Wi-Fi) | €5-10/day | Medium: rental and return | Device, battery, and deposit |
| Travel eSIM | From ~€10 for several GB | None: QR and ready | Requires compatible phone |
As you can see, the Nepalese local SIM wins on price, but it involves more cumbersome paperwork than in other countries: in addition to your passport, they ask for a passport-sized photo and a form that takes between 15 and 30 minutes. The portable router is a minority option in Nepal; if you're traveling in a group, check out the comparison of eSIM vs. pocket Wi-Fi. And the eSIM strikes a comfortable middle ground: it's the only option that keeps you connected without visiting a counter or touching your phone's SIM slot.
Roaming with your Spanish operator
Roaming is the "do nothing" option and, for that very reason, the most expensive. Nepal is outside the "roam like at home" zone of the European Union, so your Spanish gigabytes don't travel with you: you enter an international zone, where the bill skyrockets without you realizing it. For pay-as-you-go, some operators charge around €12/MB, which turns an afternoon of maps in Kathmandu into a shock.
To make it more palatable, operators sell daily passes. Typical rates outside Europe range between €7 and €15 per day, and be careful what they include: some offer only 100 MB per day, a pittance if you rely on maps in Thamel. Do the math: two weeks in Nepal at €10-15/day is €140-210 just for data, and it barely works on treks, where there's no network at all.
My advice: treat it as an emergency network and only activate it if something goes wrong. And check your operator's app before you leave to find out which rate applies to you, because it changes per plan. If you want the detailed numbers, you'll find how much international roaming costs and the comparison of eSIM vs. roaming useful.
Hotel, teahouse, and airport Wi-Fi
The second temptation is to rely on free Wi-Fi. In cities, there's plenty: almost all hotels in Kathmandu and Pokhara offer it, as do cafés in Thamel and many tourist restaurants. The problem is that it only works where you're stationary, and a trip to Nepal is all about the opposite: moving a lot, by taxi, shared jeep, and on foot.
In the mountains, the story is different and needs to be understood well. On treks, teahouse Wi-Fi is almost never free: it's paid for separately, per connection or per time slot, and its speed depends on an antenna shared by the entire lodge. In high season, with the dining room full of trekkers uploading photos at the same time, it can crawl or drop out. Moreover, the higher you go, the more expensive the megabyte becomes.
The honest conclusion: Wi-Fi is good support for planning routes, uploading photos at night, or downloading offline maps from the hotel. But as a primary plan, it's a disaster, because you need it precisely when you don't have it: negotiating a taxi or looking for your guesthouse in a Kathmandu alley. In the city, use it as a supplement; on the trek, expect it to be slow and paid.
Nepalese local SIM: Ncell and Nepal Telecom (with passport and photo)
In Nepal, there are two operators that are of interest to you: Ncell, private and with better speed in the city, and Nepal Telecom (NTC), public and with wider coverage in the mountains. For the average tourist, Ncell is the best choice for urban coverage; serious trekkers sometimes carry an NTC as backup at higher altitudes. You can buy them at Kathmandu airport or in official stores.
Here's the process that surprises many people: to activate a Nepalese SIM, you need your passport and a passport-sized photo, in addition to filling out a registration form. If you don't have a photo, they'll take one for you at the counter for about 50 rupees. The process can take between 15 and 30 minutes. The SIM itself is very cheap (Ncell costs around 110 rupees, and NTC sometimes gives away the card at the airport); what costs is the time.
These are my Ncell tourist plan references for 2026:
- TouristPro Sprinter: 7 days for about 595 rupees (~€4), with generous data before speed reduction.
- TouristPro Explorer: 14 days for about 995 rupees (~€7).
- TouristPro Voyager: 28 days for about 1,995 rupees (~€14).
- Loose bundles like 20 GB for 15 days for about 700 rupees if you prefer to control your spending.
The "but" isn't the price but the logistics: you take out your Spanish SIM, insert the new one, lose your number (goodbye to bank SMS unless you have Dual SIM), and do the paperwork after a long flight.
eSIM: my recommended option
This is where the eSIM shines in Nepal, and not just for marketing: it gives you the same local network as the Ncell SIM, but without its drawbacks. An eSIM is a digital card that already lives inside your phone. You buy the Nepal plan from home, receive a QR, scan it, and you're done. No queues, no passport photo, no filling out forms at three in the morning after a long flight with a layover.
eSIMs for Nepal mainly rely on the Ncell network, so your coverage in Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan is the same as a SIM from the store. The difference isn't in the signal, but in how you get it: no paperwork and active upon landing. In terms of price, plans range from about €10 for several GB and go up depending on the number of days and data you contract. It's not as cheap as a local SIM, but the difference is a few euros in exchange for not losing your number or your time.
Another key advantage: with Dual SIM, you keep your Spanish number active for bank SMS while data goes through the eSIM. If it's your first time, read what an eSIM is and then the eSIM guide for Nepal, where I explain the installation and activation step-by-step.
Local SIM vs. eSIM, head-to-head
This is the comparison that really matters in Nepal, because roaming is ruled out by price alone, and Wi-Fi isn't enough to get by. The table pits the two contenders against each other, and you'll see that the battle is decided on convenience: how much paperwork you do, whether you change cards, and if you keep your number.
| Criterion | Local SIM (Ncell / NTC) | Travel eSIM |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~€4-14 for many GB | From ~€10 for several GB |
| Documents | Passport, passport-sized photo, and form | None |
| Where to buy | Airport or official store, in person | Online, from home, before flying |
| Time until data is available | 15-30 min of registration plus queue | Minutes: scan QR and ready |
| Network used | Ncell or Nepal Telecom | The same, usually Ncell |
| Your Spanish number | Lost if your phone has only one slot | Remains active with Dual SIM |
| Mountain backup | NTC holds up better at altitude | Combine it with teahouse Wi-Fi on the trek |
My take: if you're going for a month or more with a backpack and don't mind the paperwork, a local Ncell SIM is worth it for the price, and an NTC as backup helps on long treks. If you're going for two or three weeks through cities and some short treks, an eSIM wins: you arrive with data and keep your number. If you're unsure, check out the comparison of eSIM vs. local SIM.
Coverage in cities: Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan
Good news: in the major tourist hubs, signal is almost never the problem. Ncell is the network with the best speed in the city, and NTC has similar reach; 4G is widespread in the Kathmandu Valley and Pokhara, and 5G is starting to appear in specific areas of the capital. Here's what you can expect by destination:
- Kathmandu: the best in the country. Reliable 4G throughout the valley—Thamel, Patan, Bhaktapur—with plenty of speed for maps, banking, and some video. You won't notice a lack of connection here.
- Pokhara: very well covered. Stable 4G in the Fewa Lake area and in the center, perfect for organizing the Annapurna trek, booking flights, or working remotely for a few days from a café.
- Chitwan: there's 4G in Sauraha and the access villages to the park, enough for daily use. Inside the jungle, on safari looking for rhinos, it's normal to lose signal for a while.
The key for Chitwan is the same as for any national park: good coverage on the edges and weak in the center. On a jeep or canoe safari, you won't have continuous data, but you won't need it either; the guide knows the way. Download what you need from the lodge's Wi-Fi and enjoy the wildlife. For everything else in the city, any eSIM on Ncell will give you an identical experience to a local.
Connectivity on treks: Annapurna, Everest, and Everest Link
This is the section most people look for, and where expectations need to be managed. On the major treks of the Himalayas, connection exists in sections, but it's neither continuous nor reliable: it depends on altitude, operator, and village. The golden rule: NTC (Nepal Telecom) holds up better at higher altitudes than Ncell, which performs better in lower villages.
On the Annapurna Circuit, the lower and middle areas—Besisahar, Chame, Pisang, Manang, Jomsom—have coverage from both operators. Above 3,500 meters, Ncell fades quickly, and NTC holds out better, with intermittent 3G or 4G. Thorong La (5,416 m) is a dead zone for both networks; at most, you'll catch a weak NTC signal in Thorong Phedi, just before the pass.
At Everest Base Camp (EBC), Ncell provides a good signal in lower Khumbu (Lukla, Namche, sometimes Tengboche), but above Dingboche, it becomes unreliable and disappears on the way to Base Camp. This is where Everest Link comes in, a paid Wi-Fi network exclusive to the region: you buy scratch cards in Lukla, Namche, or almost any teahouse, and it works in almost all villages up to Gorak Shep. It's not cheap: it's around 600-1,200 rupees per GB and increases with altitude, with packs of 10-20 GB for 2,000-3,000 rupees.
My advice for any trek: carry a SIM or eSIM for the lower villages, count on paid Wi-Fi (Everest Link or teahouse) higher up, and, most importantly, download offline maps before you set off. In the mountains, disconnection is part of the plan.
How much data you need in Nepal
The million-dollar question before buying any plan. The short answer: for cities, less than you fear; for treks, it almost doesn't matter because connectivity is the limitation, not gigabytes. It's best to calculate by days and by actual usage. In Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan, you'll mainly use maps, messaging, some social media, and banking. Heavy video and photo backups are best left for hotel Wi-Fi. This table gives you a reference by activity and day.
| Daily activity | Approximate consumption |
|---|---|
| Google Maps and navigation | ~50-100 MB/day |
| WhatsApp and messaging | ~20-50 MB/day |
| Social media (normal scrolling) | ~150-300 MB/day |
| Uploading photos and some video | ~200-400 MB/day |
| Banking, email, and app calls | ~30-60 MB/day |
Summing up normal tourist usage, you'll use about 400-800 MB per day in the city. With that reference, for a week between Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan, 3-5 GB is enough; for two or three weeks, a 10-20 GB plan is more than enough. For trekking, don't inflate your plan thinking about the mountains: you'll barely use mobile data there because there's no network, and whatever you use up there will be via paid teahouse Wi-Fi or Everest Link. Calculate your gigabytes for cities, round up with a buffer, and download your route maps offline.
Frequently asked questions
Is there coverage at Everest Base Camp or Annapurna Base Camp?
In sections and not reliably. In Annapurna, NTC holds up better at altitude, and Thorong La (5,416 m) is a dead zone. On the way to Everest Base Camp, Ncell fails above Dingboche, and most people use the paid Everest Link Wi-Fi.
Ncell or Nepal Telecom, which is better for a tourist?
For city and speed, Ncell. For reach in remote mountain areas, Nepal Telecom (NTC). The average tourist is perfectly fine with Ncell; serious trekkers sometimes carry an NTC as backup at higher altitudes.
What do I need to buy a SIM card in Nepal?
Your passport, a passport-sized photo, and a registration form. If you don't have a photo, they'll take one for you at the counter for about 50 rupees. The process takes between 15 and 30 minutes.
Does an eSIM work in Nepal?
Yes, and very well in cities. eSIMs for Nepal use the Ncell network, so your coverage in Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan is the same as a local SIM, but without queues and active as soon as you land.
How many GB do I need for two weeks in Nepal?
For normal use in cities —maps, messaging, social media, and photos— 10 GB will be more than enough for two weeks. On treks, you'll barely use mobile data because there's no network, so don't inflate your plan thinking about the mountains.
How much does Wi-Fi cost in teahouses on the trek?
It's almost never free. Everest Link costs around 600-1,200 rupees per GB and increases with altitude, with 10-20 GB packs for 2,000-3,000 rupees. The speed depends on the lodge's antenna and decreases during peak season.
Can I use hotel Wi-Fi to avoid needing data?
Only as backup. Hotel Wi-Fi in Kathmandu and Pokhara works well at night, but in Nepal, you travel a lot by taxi and jeep, and you need a connection outside your accommodation: for transport, directions, or prices.
Can I use WhatsApp with an eSIM in Nepal?
Yes, no problem. WhatsApp works with data, not with the voice network, so it works the same with a Nepali eSIM. With Dual SIM, your Spanish number remains active for bank SMS.
Conclusion
Having internet in Nepal is easy in the cities and an exercise in managing expectations in the mountains. In Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan, any Ncell option provides more than enough 4G; a local SIM is very cheap but requires a passport, a photo, and a 15-30 minute form, and roaming will cost you €140-210 for two weeks. Therefore, for most, an eSIM is the answer: the same Ncell network, no queues, and keeping your Spanish number. For the Annapurna and Everest treks, expect the signal to come and go, and rely on paid Wi-Fi and offline maps. Install it before you take off and you'll be connected as soon as you land. Once you're clear, check out the eSIM for Nepal.
