Annapurna Base Camp Packing List – What you need to Trek

When preparing for your ABC trek, your Annapurna Base Camp packing list is one of the most important things to consider. In this guide, I share everything you’ll need to pack for a safe and comfortable trekking experience.

If this is your first experience of multi-day trekking or trekking at a high altitude, it can be a daunting prospect. But having the right gear will help ensure you have a comfortable and enjoyable trek.

Knowing what to pack for the Annapurna Base Camp trek can be tricky, as you don’t want to overpack. But at the same time, you want to ensure you have enough clothes and belongings to cover all circumstances.

We trekked during the winter and were able to keep our luggage under 7kg each. We found this a manageable weight to carry ourselves, so there was no need to hire a porter.

I’ll share it all with you in this blog post. I list everything we carried, from our clothes and footwear to all the accessories and hiking equipment.

So let’s get to it – here’s a comprehensive packing list for the Annapurna Base Camp Trek.

Annapurna Base Camp Packing List – Everything you need to Trek

Before we get into the packing list, it’s worth pointing out that Natalie and I were completely unprepared for trekking in Nepal.

We’d spent the previous two months in India, sweating our boobies off.  And the warmest item we owned was a thin hooded jumper. 

On the bright side, at least we’d had lots of time to practice all the best yoga poses for hikers! 

Thankfully, everything you need for trekking, from down jackets to hiking boots, is available to buy or rent in Kathmandu or Pokhara. 

Our logic was that we had no idea if we were going to dig this kind of experience (which we totally did btw), so why spend a fortune on kitting ourselves out.  

As we go through the list, I will mark any items that are available to rent.  And further down in this article I will advise the prices we paid to rent our gear in Pokhara.

** Available to rent in Kathmandu & Pokhara

Travel Insurance

The most essential item on your Annapurna Base Camp Packing List!

It’s important to note that most standard travel insurance packages do not include high altitude trekking. 

The risks of trekking at a high altitude are significant.  We saw many people having to be helicoptered down due to altitude sickness or injury. 

The cost of helicopter rescue is $2500, so unless you can afford that, be sure to get suitable cover.  

World Nomads are our favoured travel insurers as they make it super easy to make changes to your policy. 

We contacted them the day before we were due to start our trek and a simple add on gave us cover right away.  Get a quick quote using the button below:

Annapurna Trekking Permit

To trek within the Annapurna conservation area, you will need to obtain an Annapurna Trekking Permit and a TIMs card from the tourism centres in either Pokhara or Kathmandu. 

The process is simple; however, there are some things you need to consider.  To this end, we have put together a simple step by step guide that will help make this process straightforward.

Trekking Clothes

The following items are what we packed per person.  

• 1 x pair of hiking boots** – Preferably broken in to avoid blisters
• 2 x t-shirts
• 1 x vest
• 1 x thin hoodie or jumper
• 1 x leggings
• 1 x trekking pants** – Useful as they are quick to dry;  however, we got by with just one pair of long pants and leggings underneath.
• 2 x pairs of trekking socks
• 2 x ankle socks to wear underneath trekking socks
• 1 x warm scarf
• 1 x warm gloves
• 1 x warm hat that covers ears
• 3 x underwear
• 1 x sports bra

** Available to rent in Kathmandu & Pokhara

Accessories

• 1 x sunglasses
• 1 x hiking rainjacket
• 1 x bandana – Useful for so many things, from acting as a lightweight scarf to covering your greasy hair! 

Evening Clothes

Pack comfy and warm clothes for the evenings so you can get nice and relaxed after a long day trekking.

• 1 x lightweight slip-on shoes
• 1 x down jacket with stuff sack** – it will be rare that you will need to wear a warm jacket during the day as trekking soon warms you up, so make sure it can be easily packed away.  Most down jackets come with a stuff sack that can clip onto your backpack.
• 1 x thick hoody or jumper**
• 1 x t-shirt
• 1 x warm pants
• 1 x thick socks
• 1 x warm gloves

** Available to rent in Kathmandu & Pokhara

Trekking Essentials

The stuff you just can’t trek without.

• 1 x 40l waterproof backpack
• 1 x rain cover for backpack – if it doesn’t already have one!
• 1 x ice traction grips – As we slid down the ice on our butts from base camp, we really wished we’d had these!
• 2 x hiking poles** – We actually preferred using only 1; but, you won’t know for sure until you try.  You can always tie the other one onto your backpack as we did.
• 1 x sleeping bag with stuff sack** – Make sure to get a sleeping bag that’s suitable for the colder temperatures.
• 1 x quick-dry towel
• 3 x packing/organiser cubes – to keep day and evening wear separated. Plus an extra one for toiletries.
• 2 x 1l refillable water bottles
• 1 x Steripen – For sterilising drinking water.  Water refills get more and more expensive the higher you go.  With the Steripen, you can fill up at any tap or stream for free.  Alternatively, you can buy iodine tablets from any pharmacy or hiking shop.
• 1 x notepad and pen – to keep a diary of your day.
• 1 x Kindle – for reading in the evenings if you can stay awake long enough!
• 1 x safety whistle – especially if you are trekking alone.
• 1 x Headtorch – incase you get caught out in the dark.
• 1 x hydration bladder bag – we didn’t have one but we saw trekkers who did and they looked awesome!
• 1 x trekking map – see below a picture of the map we took.  Don’t be this guy.  Invest in an actual trekking map

** Available to rent in Kathmandu & Pokhara

Medical and First Aid Kit

It’s best to come prepared for all circumstances.  

• Altitude sickness medication*
• Paink!llers
• Anti-diarrheal tablets
• Band-Aids
• Blister Plasters – plenty of them.
• Electrolytes – have one at the end of each day to replace the salts and minerals lost during trekking.
• Multi-Vitamins – to keep your immune system strong.
• Mini First Aid Kit

*We decided against taking altitude sickness medication; however, we regretted this by the time we reached base camp.  Although we didn’t suffer too bad, we certainly could have felt better.  Pick up altitude sickness medication from any pharmacy in Kathmandu or Pokhara.  Also, it pays to read this article on the prevention and treatment of altitude sickness.

Toiletries

• Baby Wipes – You won’t always want to endure a cold shower!
• Face Wipes
• Sunblock
• Small shower gel
• Heavy Moisturiser – for face and body.
• Deodorant
• Lip balm 
• Toilet Roll
• Compact Mirror
• Hair Brush/Hair Ties
• Toothbrush/Toothpaste
• Tampons

TIP – You will find some medication and toiletries are available along the trail; however, be prepared to pay a premium. 

Electricals

• Camera – Fully charged with a spare battery.  Suggested Read:  Our Travel Photography Gear
• Power Bank – This is one of our most essential items when travelling!
• Go Pro with chest strap and selfie stick
• Headphones
• Fitbit –  A useful piece of kit to keep track of steps, distance, and calories!  
• All relevant charging cables

TIP – At the lower elevation villages it is easier to find charging points.  The higher you get, the more sparse (and expensive) they become.

Snacks

If you stock up on snacks, you may be able to keep your Annapurna Base Camp Trek Costs down.  We were able to skip paying for lunch or breakfast most days by carrying these items with us.

• Trekking bread – We found this in the German Bakery in Pokhara and it stayed fresh for 4 days!
• Mixed nuts
• Protein/Cereal Bars
• Chocolate Bars
• Sucky Sweets/Mints
• Biscuits
• Tea/Coffee 

Related Read: Annapurna Base Camp Trek – How we did it on less than £20 a day!

Hiking Gear Rental Prices

We rented most of our hiking gear in a Lakeside store in Pokhara and the quality was very good for the price.  Here are the daily rental prices we paid:

• Cold temperature sleeping bag with stuff sack – 100NPR/£0.70 per day.
• Down jacket with stuff sack – 150NPR/£1 per day.
• Hiking Boots – 150NPR/£1 per day.
• Trekking Poles – 80NPR/£0.60 per day.

And we bought:

• Warm Hat – 250NPR/£1.80 
• Trekking Socks – 200NPR/£1.40 a pair
• Gloves – 250NPR/£1.80

TIP – Hiking Boots are available to buy for around 4000NPR/£28; however, the authenticity and quality are questionable. We heard stories from other hikers of the boots coming apart after just a few days.  The best option when it comes to hiking boots is to bring your own.  

Good Luck Packing for Annapurna Base Camp!

Well, that concludes our Annapurna Base Camp Packing List.  I hope you find it helpful!

If you have any questions or feel we have missed anything, please reach out to us in the comment section below.

Or for more information on trekking to Annapurna Base Camp, check out these articles:

• 7 Day Annapurna Base Camp Trek Itinerary & Guide
• How to get an Annapurna Trekking Permit
• Annapurna Base Camp Trek Cost – How we did it on less than £20 a day!
• Annapurna Base Camp Photo Diary

Stay adventurous & Happy trekking,

Charlotte & Natalie x

Disclosure:  Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. That means that if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. And we can continue bringing you free travel tips and advice.  If you use our affiliates, you are awesome, and we thank you! 

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