Langtang National Park permit guide: fee, where to buy, what is checked

The Langtang National Park entry permit costs NPR 3,000 for foreigners per entry as of October 2026 (SAARC nationals NPR 1,500, children under 10 free). Our region data says it is bought at the Nepal Tourism Board office in Kathmandu or at the entrance in Dhunche, and it is checked at Dhunche and Syabrubesi. It covers the Langtang Valley, Gosaikunda, the Tamang Heritage Trail and the higher part of the Helambu route. A TIMS card may be requested too, and Langtang is where operator reports say the guide rule is enforced most strictly.

One warning first: the Trishuli corridor to Dhunche and Syabrubesi was hit by floods on 26 August 2026, so confirm the gates and roads before you buy or pay for transport. The wider context is in the Langtang region trekking guide and the Langtang National Park guide.

Check conditions first

On 26 August 2026 a glacier collapse near Langtang Lirung caused floods and debris flows along the Trishuli river. According to the Wikipedia account of the event, floodwater entered Dhunche and Syabrubesi, the road from Syabrubesi to Rasuwagadhi was further damaged, and a large number of bridges were destroyed or damaged. We have not been able to confirm whether the permit counters, gates and checkposts in Dhunche and Syabrubesi are operating, so the information below is how the system worked before the flood. Ask a registered agency or the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, and do not assume a counter exists.

What the permit is

It is a national park entry permit issued under the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, separate from a TIMS card and from any restricted-area permit. As of October 2026 the Nepal Tourism Board's park entry fees page lists NPR 3,000 per person per entry for foreigners, NPR 1,500 for SAARC nationals, and free entry for children under 10. The same fee applies to Sagarmatha, Makalu Barun, Rara and Shey Phoksundo National Parks, and Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park is NPR 1,000.

The fee is per entry, which matters if you enter twice, for example by trekking Gosaikunda and then returning for the Langtang Valley after leaving the park. Ask the counter whether a second entry needs a second permit.

Which treks it covers

Helambu is the odd one. You register at Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park at Sundarijal, where the entry permit is NPR 1,000 for foreigners as of October 2026, and you need the Langtang permit for the higher section after Gul Bhanjyang and Kutumsang. See the Helambu region guide.

Where to buy it

Our region data says the permit can be bought at the Nepal Tourism Board in Kathmandu or at the entrance in Dhunche. Buying in Kathmandu is the safer choice for planning, because you avoid depending on a remote counter on the morning of a long walk. It also means you have the paper before you reach the checkposts. If you buy at Dhunche, expect to need your passport and photos, and cash in rupees. See where to buy trekking permits in Kathmandu and Pokhara for the general approach.

Where it is checked

Permits are checked at Dhunche and Syabrubesi, and the lodges along the way are used to seeing them. Gosaikunda trekkers pass Dhunche on the first day. Langtang Valley and Tamang Heritage trekkers pass Syabrubesi. Keep the original and a copy, and keep your passport with you, because the villages of the Tamang Heritage Trail are near the Tibetan border.

TIMS and the guide rule

Langtang is the region where operator reports are most consistent. The pack records that 2026 operator reports say checkpoints enforce the guide rule at Annapurna and Langtang, with Langtang the strictest and TIMS checked there, but not in Khumbu (checked 19 October 2026). The written rule is the Nepal Tourism Board announcement of April 2023, which applies to national parks and conservation areas, and the Board's TIMS page pairs the card with a licensed guide through a registered agency under a revision effective 31 March 2023. Our cost data records TIMS as agency-issued at NPR 2,000 for foreigners (SAARC nationals NPR 1,000). See the TIMS card explainer, the guide rule for foreigners explained and the guide rule by region.

In practice that means you will almost certainly be asked for a guide at the checkposts, and booking through a registered agency handles the guide and TIMS together.

What it costs in total

The permit is a small part of the cost. As of October 2026 the Langtang cost data gives a local bus from Kathmandu to Syabrubesi at about NPR 800 to 1,500, a shared jeep at NPR 1,500 to 3,000 and a private jeep at NPR 15,000 to 29,500 per vehicle, a guide day of NPR 2,700 to 4,000 and a porter day of NPR 2,100 to 3,400, as operator market ranges, not official rates, and a dal bhat of NPR 600 to 1,000 between 2,500 and 3,800 m. For the Langtang Valley the route data counts permit, TIMS, transport, lodging, a guide and a porter; see the Langtang Valley itinerary.

Sharing the permit and the guide

Each person needs their own permit. The guide and the vehicle are the shared costs, and a private jeep costs the same for one or four. Post your dates on the Langtang Valley partner page, and read what to agree with trekking partners before you book.

More on permits

The permits category lists the rest of this series, Nepal trekking permits explained gives the overview and the Langtang region page holds the route data.

A worked example: the Langtang Valley

Take a two-person Langtang Valley trek as the arithmetic. Each person pays the NPR 3,000 park permit as of October 2026, so NPR 6,000 for the pair, plus whatever the agency charges for TIMS and the guide. The permit is the smallest line in the budget, and it is also the one you cannot share, which is why it is worth buying early and keeping the receipts together. The jeep, the guide and the porter are the lines that divide.

Plan the paperwork in the order you will meet it. Buy the park permit, ask the agency to confirm the TIMS card and the guide, then carry the originals and copies to Dhunche or Syabrubesi. If anything is missing, the checkpoint is the worst place to find out, because the nearest counter is a long drive away and, after the August 2026 floods, may not be where you expect.

If something goes wrong

If a checkpoint refuses you, do not argue and do not try to walk around it; the trails are monitored and the consequences of an unpermitted trek, including a fine or being sent back, are worse than a lost day. Ask the checkpoint staff what is missing, call your agency and, if you are alone, ask your lodge owner who can help. A lost permit can sometimes be reissued against the receipt, so photograph every document before you leave Kathmandu. Our guide rule for foreigners explained covers the guide side of the same problem.

Questions to ask your agency

• Is the Langtang permit included in the quote, and in whose name is it issued?
• Is the TIMS card included, and will it be checked on my dates?
• Which gate will I pass through, and is it operating after the floods?
• Who carries the originals, and who holds the copies?
• What happens to the permits if the trek is cut short by a landslide?

Written answers protect both sides, and they make it easy to compare quotes.