Tanvir Hasanat Rahat · CC BY-SA 4.0 · edited
Himalaya Airlines is restoring the only scheduled nonstop between Kathmandu and Shanghai, with the first outbound on Monday, September 28, 2026. The carrier’s September 24 press notice sets two weekly frequencies on Airbus-sized service between Tribhuvan International Airport and Shanghai Pudong, and names Himalaya as the sole airline on that city pair.
Travelers who have been connecting via a third country can now book a direct Monday or Friday night departure from Nepal, or a Tuesday or Saturday departure from Pudong, through late October. Use Deep Arrival’s airline planning hub for the booking checklist, then confirm seats on the airline site or app before you lock hotels around Pudong or the Bund.
- Start: Monday, September 28, 2026, Kathmandu to Shanghai Pudong.
- Frequency: Two weekly round trips; KTM Mondays and Fridays, PVG Tuesdays and Saturdays.
- Times: KTM 18:25 to PVG 02:00 next day; PVG 03:00 to KTM 07:10 same day.
- Posted window: Outbound through October 23; inbound through October 24, 2026.
- Book: Himalaya counters, agents, himalaya-airlines.com, or the airline app.
Monday and Friday Departures From Kathmandu
The airline’s table lists Kathmandu to Pudong from September 28 to October 23 on Mondays and Fridays, leaving Tribhuvan at 18:25 local and arriving Pudong at 02:00 the next calendar day. That overnight arrival is a hotel night in Shanghai, not a same-evening dinner on the Bund, so the first usable city day is Tuesday after a Monday departure, or Saturday after a Friday departure.
Travelers coming from Pokhara, Lumbini, or a trek should not plan a same-day Kathmandu connection into that 18:25 unless they already hold a buffer night in the valley.
Kantipur independently reported the same Monday restart and the two-day weekly pattern. Himalaya says it will consider extra frequencies if loads support them. Until a new notice names extra days, treat Monday and Friday as the only outbound inventory. An 18:25 Tribhuvan departure sits in the evening bank, so plan to be at the terminal with checked bags well before the airline’s cutoff rather than after a late Pokhara or Chitwan day trip.
Shanghai Return Legs Land Tuesday and Saturday
Pudong to Kathmandu is posted from September 29 to October 24 on Tuesdays and Saturdays, leaving at 03:00 China time and landing at 07:10 Nepal time the same morning. A traveler who flew in on the Monday night outbound can, in theory, return on Tuesday’s 03:00, which is a brutal turn. Most visitors will stay at least to Saturday’s return, or book the next Tuesday.
The overnight gap also matters for Shanghai day plans: you cannot count on a same-day Pudong connection to another Chinese city after a 02:00 arrival without a buffer night. Build the first hotel night before you add a Maglev, metro, or domestic ticket. A 03:00 Pudong return means a hotel near the airport or a pre-booked car, not a midnight metro gamble from the Bund with checked luggage.
Booking Windows Through Late October
Himalaya tells passengers to buy at airport counters, authorized travel partners, www.himalaya-airlines.com, or the Himalaya Airlines mobile app. The posted table ends in late October, so a November Nepal or China trip is not covered by this notice. If you need dates after October 24, wait for a winter filing rather than assuming the twice-weekly pattern rolls forward.
Screenshot the confirmation and the fare rules when you pay, because a two-weekly restart can sell out the Monday night bank before the Friday bank, or the reverse.
AeroRoutes had listed the Kathmandu to Pudong pair from September 7, 2026, on A320 metal as H9780 and H9781. The airline’s September 24 restart notice does not print those flight numbers in the public table, and it sets Monday the 28th as the first day. Book against the press table and the live inventory, not the August schedule file. If the booking engine still shows a September 7 historic string, ignore it unless Himalaya’s site actually issues a ticket for that date.
Visa and Peak-Season Checks for Nepal
Himalaya timed the restart to Nepal’s autumn tourism season. That helps inbound Chinese visitors and Nepal-origin travelers heading to a Chinese commercial hub, but it does not change visa rules. Nepal’s pre-arrival e-visa portal remains a separate process from the airline ticket, as covered in Deep Arrival’s August e-visa rollout.
Chinese visa rules for Nepal-passport holders, and Nepal visa rules for Chinese-passport holders, sit with the relevant embassy or e-visa system, not with Himalaya’s press desk. Buy the ticket only after you can actually enter the destination on the travel dates. Tribhuvan evening check-in for an 18:25 departure is a peak-hour window; arrive with the airline’s cutoff, not a city-center guess. Autumn in Nepal is also festival season, so same-day Kathmandu hotel changes around Dashain and Tihar dates should be booked before you rely on a walk-up room after the 07:10 arrival.
Frequency Growth Is Optional, Not Promised
Vice president Vijay Shrestha framed the route as a Nepal-China trade and tourism bridge and said Himalaya wants passengers on both sides of the corridor. That is a company goal, not a third weekly flight. The only inventory in the notice is two weekly round trips through the October dates above. If a third weekday appears in the booking engine without a matching press table, treat it as unconfirmed until Himalaya publishes days and times the same way it did for Monday, Friday, Tuesday, and Saturday.
The same press room posted a separate Hangzhou inaugural for September 30, 2026. That is a different city pair and a different booking. Do not mix Hangzhou tickets into this Shanghai restart, and do not assume a Shanghai seat can be changed to Hangzhou at the airport. If your China trip is West Lake and Zhejiang rather than Pudong, wait for that Hangzhou table and buy the H9 225 and H9 226 pair instead of this Shanghai restart.
| If you… | What to do |
|---|---|
| Need Kathmandu to Shanghai in late September | Book Monday or Friday from September 28 through October 23 on Himalaya’s site or app. |
| Need Shanghai to Kathmandu | Use Tuesday or Saturday from September 29 through October 24, departing Pudong at 03:00. |
| Need November dates | This notice ends October 24. Wait for a winter schedule before buying. |
| Need Hangzhou, not Shanghai | Treat the September 30 Hangzhou launch as a separate Himalaya route and ticket. |
September 28 is the first Kathmandu departure in this restart. Himalaya restores the only direct Pudong nonstop that night at 18:25 local time.
October 23 and 24 close the posted table. Do not invent extra dates past those returns.
A 02:00 Pudong arrival needs a hotel night. Plan Shanghai sightseeing from the following morning, not from the jetway.
When do Himalaya Airlines Shanghai flights resume?
Monday, September 28, 2026, from Kathmandu to Shanghai Pudong, according to the airline’s September 24 notice.
How often does Himalaya fly Kathmandu to Shanghai?
Two times a week at the restart: Mondays and Fridays from Kathmandu, Tuesdays and Saturdays from Pudong.
What time does the Kathmandu to Shanghai flight leave?
18:25 local from Tribhuvan, arriving Pudong at 02:00 the next day. Return flights leave Pudong at 03:00 and land in Kathmandu at 07:10.
Is Himalaya the only nonstop on this route?
Yes. The airline says it will be the only commercial carrier operating a direct scheduled Kathmandu to Shanghai to Kathmandu service.
How do I book Himalaya Shanghai tickets?
Use Himalaya ticketing counters, authorized agents, himalaya-airlines.com, or the Himalaya Airlines mobile app. The posted table runs through late October.
Does this ticket include a Nepal e-visa?
No. The airfare is separate from Nepal’s pre-arrival e-visa and from any Chinese visa you still need for Pudong arrival.
