Electricity, wifi and hot showers in Nepal teahouses

On a Nepal teahouse trek you can usually charge a phone for a small fee, get patchy paid wifi in many lodges and have a hot shower at the lower and middle altitudes, but all three get scarcer, slower and more expensive the higher you go. Power comes from solar panels, micro-hydro or generators, so it depends on sun and water, and the weather decides whether your shower is hot. This guide explains how each service works, what to carry so you are not stuck and how to keep devices alive in the cold, so that you can plan for a few days off the grid.

Where the power comes from

Villages in the trekking regions are connected in different ways. Some have mains electricity from the national grid, particularly lower down and in larger villages like Namche Bazaar, whose lit streets at night appear in the photograph above. Others rely on small micro-hydro plants driven by streams, solar panels or diesel generators. Many lodges have their own solar panels and batteries for lights and charging. Because supply is limited, lodges charge for charging, and sometimes ration it to certain hours.

This is why a sunny afternoon matters: solar-powered lodges produce most of their charge and hot water between about 10:00 and 15:00. A cloudy day or a village with a stream running low in the dry season means less. The practical advice is to charge during the day, not overnight, to keep your devices to a minimum and to carry a power bank.

Charging your devices

Lodges usually provide a few sockets in the dining room, and some have sockets in rooms. You pay per device or per hour, and the charge rises with altitude, as everything is carried up. Ask the price before you plug in. At higher lodges, a fee for a single phone charge is a visible cost, and many trekkers charge only once every two days.

Practical points:

• Plug types. Nepal commonly uses types C, D and M at 230 V, so a universal adaptor is the safest choice. Check that your charger is rated for 230 V.
• Power bank. A 10,000 to 20,000 mAh power bank is the most useful item for a week-long trek, and a bigger one for a longer route. Charge it fully when you can.
• One cable, one charger. Use a multi-port USB charger so one socket charges everything.
• Low-power habits. Put your phone in flight mode, turn down the screen brightness and shut down apps you do not need.
• Camera batteries. Carry spares and keep them warm.

Dining rooms are crowded with phones at charging time. Keep an eye on your devices, label your cable and do not leave your phone unattended.

The cold and your batteries

Cold drains batteries quickly. At night, rooms are unheated and can fall below freezing at higher altitude, and a phone or power bank left on a shelf may lose much of its charge by morning. Keep your phone, camera battery and power bank inside your sleeping bag at night and inside an inner jacket pocket during the day. Charge them while they are still warm, and do not charge a very cold battery. A cheap pouch or sock to wrap them helps.

If a phone shuts down in the cold, warm it slowly and do not put it on a heater. Your headtorch batteries also suffer, so bring spares.

Wifi and mobile coverage

Many lodges on the popular routes sell wifi. It is usually provided through a paid card, an account or a fee collected by the lodge, and speeds are slow. In practice you can send messages and check email, and video calls are unreliable. The signal is stronger in the dining room, weaker in your room, and disappears in bad weather. At the highest lodges, there may be no wifi at all. Do not rely on it for anything urgent, and tell family that you will be out of contact for days.

A local SIM card from a Nepali provider gives coverage in many lower and mid-altitude villages, but it is patchy, and it depends on the valley. Coverage may disappear completely in narrow valleys or at a high camp. Before leaving signal, download offline maps, send your itinerary to someone at home and tell your guide how you will receive updates. In an emergency, your guide and your agency's contacts are more reliable than your own phone. See also the Himalayan Rescue Association's travel advice.

If you work remotely, a trek is not the place to rely on a connection. Tell your employer or clients that you will be out of contact, or plan to check email only on rest days in larger villages such as Namche Bazaar or Manang.

Hot showers

Hot showers are common at lower and mid altitudes. The water is usually heated by solar panels, gas or a wood-fired boiler, so it is best in the afternoon after a sunny day and unreliable on cloudy ones. Lodges charge a fee, which rises with altitude, and some at the highest villages do not offer showers at all. Ask the price first, shower in the middle of the afternoon while there is still warmth and use a bucket if the shower is cold.

At high altitude, a shower in a cold bathroom is not very pleasant, and wet hair at dusk can leave you chilled. On the coldest nights, wet wipes and a wash from a basin of hot water are often more sensible. If you feel unwell or are suffering from altitude symptoms, skip the shower and rest. Our guide to rooms, bathrooms and bedding covers washing facilities in more detail.

Lights, fuel and the dining room stove

The lodge's electric light is often dim and may go off at 9:00 or 10:00 to save power. Bring a headtorch with spare batteries and keep it by the bed. The stove in the dining room, which may burn wood, dried yak dung or gas, is the one source of warmth, and the room is lit by a few bulbs. This is why evenings feel communal: everyone sits around the stove, charges devices and drinks tea. Do not hang wet gear too close to the stove, and do not leave electronics on it.

Costs and how to budget

We do not quote fixed prices for charging, wifi or showers, because they vary by lodge and altitude, so plan for a small daily amount and ask before you use each service. A sensible approach is to treat charging and showers as occasional rather than daily, to charge once every couple of days and to shower on warm afternoons. Our teahouse prices guide and cost guide show how these small items add up.

Being a good guest with shared power

Because the power belongs to the lodge, a few habits keep everyone happy. Charge during daylight when the panels are producing, unplug when you are done and do not leave a hungry device running overnight on a shared strip. Do not use heaters, hair dryers, kettles or any high-draw appliance, because the small systems cannot cope. If the lodge asks you to pay a flat fee for the day, accept it, and if lights go out early, treat it as a reason to go to bed. A lodge that offers hot showers, wifi and charging in a remote village is spending real money on fuel, panels and batteries, and a patient, courteous customer is a better guest than one who complains about speed.

What to bring

• Universal adaptor and a multi-port USB charger.
• Power bank (10,000 to 20,000 mAh) and short cables.
• Headtorch and spare batteries.
• A pouch or sock for keeping batteries warm.
• Offline maps downloaded in advance.
• A paper copy of your itinerary and emergency contacts.
• Wet wipes for cold nights.

For the wider picture, read what is a teahouse trek and a typical day on a Nepal trek, and browse the first-timers hub. To plan your route and find companions, see the Everest Base Camp itinerary the Annapurna Base Camp itinerary and the Annapurna Base Camp partner page.