I can’t think of any volunteer who didn’t worry about what to pack for Nepal. Packing for serving in the Peace Corps is probably the most agonized thing invitees worry about before they leave. I mean how do you even begin to pack for two years. Country staff from Peace Corps post a packing list but it is pretty generic and not updated often.
You’re Not Packing for 27-Months!
Many invitees freak out when they try to think how to pack for 2+ years. But look on YouTube and various travel blogs and you’ll find people happy traveling the world for 1, 2, or more years with only a carry-on. How do they do it?
Well, you only really need to pack from what you’re going to wear between washing days, maybe 10 days max. I mean seriously, you are not going to want to “hand” wash two or three weeks’ worth of clothes! And you’ll have to allow for some different clothes for different weather conditions, like cold, rainy and hot. Thinking of it this way, what you end up packing is a lot less than you might have thought.
Weight
In general, international airlines allow for two checked bags, a carry-on, and a personal item. Although technically there are weight limits to carry-on bags, not many airlines check, so if you have something especially heavy, it might be better to put in your carry-on instead of your checked bags because checked bags are always weighed.
Checked bags are limited to two bags, 50-lbs each. This is what is allowed for FREE for international travel, but you will have to pay for the 2nd bag for domestic travel to your staging site. Be sure to keep your receipt and you will be reimbursed. You can go over the weight limit, but just realize the Peace Corps won’t reimburse you any extra baggage fees for overweight bags.
Weather
The weather has a huge effect on your packing list. My clothes for Mongolia, which has temperatures of -40F during its long winter, weighed more than twice the weight of my clothes for Thailand, where the short cool season never got below 50F. Temperature-wise, Nepal is somewhere in-between. Most of the time it is hot, but for a short period, their winters are cool, depending on your elevation.
Packing List
Although this list is specific for an Education volunteer in Nepal, a lot of this could be useful for other volunteers located in other countries, because a majority of the needs are very similar. It is just here to help future volunteers make better choices that fit them best.
Table of Contents
Notes: To help you, at the end of this post is a downloadable packing list.
Disclaimer: This list is personalized for me and what I found worked for me in Nepal. Your needs might be different depending on where you are serving, where your site is, and your sector.
Items listed in BOLD are from the Peace Corps Nepal ‘suggested packing list’. As you can see, they left a lot out. And some of the quantities they suggest are way too many. IMO
1. School Clothes
No matter where you serve, you need to find out what kind of clothes you need for work. Even though a lot of current volunteers will tell you, I like to look at what the host-country coworkers are wearing. Especially in those first few months, you want to blend in, not stand out – you’ll already stand out but blending in will help make your host-country coworkers more open.
For example, in Thailand and Mongolia, teachers dressed very well in collared shirts and sometimes even suit jackets. Women wore dresses. In Nepal, teachers all wear a school “uniform.” So, you need to bring clothes to wear those first few months at school before you get your uniform.
- PANTS (2): Marmot Arch Rock Pants
- LONG SLEEVE SHIRT: Croft & Barrow Easy Care Classic-Fit
- SHORT SLEEVE SHIRT (2): Croft & Barrow Easy Care Classic-Fit
- SHOES: Saucony Exercersion T14 trail running shoes
- SOCKS (3): Smartwool PhD Outdoor Light Mini Socks
- belt: web belt
- face mask: Adidas Originals Standard Face Covers (Medium/Large)
2. Leisure Clothes
For your free time at home, you want clothes that aren’t hot and easy to clean. For cooler weather and chilly nights, fleece is a nice option but not too thick. For winter, multiple layers are better than one thick layer. Shorts can be worn at home but in public, men wear pants.
- LONG PANTS: REI Coop Screeline pants
- casual pants: Reebok Tapered Woven Pant
- sweatpants: Nike Dry-Fit Lightweight Fleece Pants
- T-SHIRT (2 pair): Path Projects Cascade SS Tee
- long sleeve shirt: NRS H2Core Silkweight Long-Sleeve Shirt
- SHORTS: Path Projects Prospect PX 8″ Shorts
- UNDERWEAR (3 pair): Path Projects Tahoe CL 3″ Base Layer Boxers
- LONG UNDERWEAR (1):
- SANDALS: Chaco Z/1 Classic Sandals
3. Outerwear
It does get cold in the winter months, especially up in the mountains at night. So you want layers that can keep you warm. The rest of the year will be pretty hot but you also need to think about protecting yourself from the sun too. Bring the biggest folding umbrella you can find for monsoon season.
- JACKET: Amazon Essentials Men’s Lightweight Water-Resistant Packable Puffer Jacket (L)
- SWEATER: Salomon Men’s Equipe Soft-Shell Jacket
- WINDBREAKER: Marmot DriClime Windshirt
- VEST: REI Wind Vest
- HAT: REI Co-op Screeline Cap
- CAP: Mountain Hardware Polartec fleece hat
- raincoat: Marmot DriClim rain jacket
- umbrella: bought in Kathmandu
4. Personal Items
Again, don’t bring everything you own – just bring what you use every, every day. Most of these things can also be bought in-country, so don’t worry about running out. Probably the most important personal items are a water bottle and a large towel.
- WATER-BOTTLE: Hydro Flask Standard-Mouth Vacuum with Sport Cap (21oz)
- SUNGLASSES: goodr ‘A Ginger’s Soul’ sunglasses (non-mirrored)
- glasses: generic reading glasses (3 pair)
- WATCH: Coros Pace 2 + extra wristband
- LARGE TOWELl: REI Co-op MultiTowel X-Large Towel 54×25
- SMALL TOWEL:
- wash rag (2):
- soap dish: Matador Flatpak Soap Bar Case
- razor & extra blades: Merkur Long Handled Safety Razor
- electric razor: eRazor (USB rechargable)
- small mirror: couldn’t find this (bought one in my Nepal village)
- SKIN LOTION: one bottle
- TOOTHBRUSH, TOOTHPASTE & dental floss:
- NAIL CLIPPERS: large for toes
- PUMICE STONE: used to rub calluses off my heels from wearing sandals
- health items:
- vitamins: just one bottles worth
- cold-flu medicine: Alka Seltzer Cold Plus (my preference for colds/flu)
- constipation meds: CVS Health Laxative tablets (usually not in the PC medical kit)
- electric hair clippers: Riwa RE-539C Hair Clipper
- POCKET KNIFE: generic locking short single blade
- small first aid bag: to be filled with assorted supplies from PC for traveling
- BANDANAS (2): have had them a long time
- booties: Seavenger Zephyr 3mm Neoprene Socks
- GLOVES: Pearl Isumi Attack Full Finger Gloves
- EARPLUGS:
5. Miscellaneous
Probably the most important miscellaneous items to think about are flashlights. For hands-free light for heading to the charpi (outhouse toilet), a headlamp is perfect. For emergencies, I always pack a mini-flashlight in my bag or pocket. And for home, a bigger lantern will get used a lot (power outages are common). I brought an extra to give to my host family for use in the kitchen.
- HEADLAMP: Nitecore NU20 360 Lumens LED Headlamp
- FLASHLIGHT/lantern: JingooBon Camping Lantern
- sewing kit: thimble, needles, white & black thread
- assorted small carabiners: REI Coop Utility Biners
- DIY Repair Kit: electrical tape; safety pins (large & small); parachute cord; wire shrink tubing; DUCT TAPE; tape measure; shoelaces
- rag (2): to wipe up spills and clean dirty surfaces and objects
6. Bedding
Peace Corps will provide a mattress and bedding. but some volunteers like to bring a sleeping bag for travel. Instead, I brought a nice cotton sheet (which is folded over with the foot-edge sewn so I can use it as a sleeping sack). The bedding I also got from both of my host families was very thick but I’m still glad I brought my cashmere throw from Mongolia.
- cotton sheet & pillowcase: Threshold Ultra Soft Flat Sheet
- blanket: cashmere throw from Mongolia
- travel pillow: Sea to Summit Aeros Ultra Light Pillow
7. Bags
You will be carrying your bags a lot outside of airports so you want bags that you can manage. You will not be walking on surfaces where a wheeled suitcase can travel easily. All my bags, even the large ones had lots of carrying handles and backpack straps. Your choice of carry-on might depend more on if you are planning on doing travel after Peace Corps. Trekkers will want a camping backpack while others might want more of a travel backpack.
My best advice is to get all the stuff you are going to pack, then buy your bags. Don’t get them larger than you need because you will tend to fill any space left.
- DAYPACK: Osprey Daylite Daypack
- carry-on: Cotopaxi Allpa 28L Travel Pack
- duffel: REI Co-op Big Haul 90L Duffel
- duffel: generic 90L duffel
- packing cubes: Gonex Travel Organizers (4)
- COMBINATION LOCKS (2): small TSA approved locks
8. Electronics
The biggest unknown for me is the availability/reliability of electricity at site. In case power is iffy, using the tablet could help a lot because of its long battery life. A smartphone is very versatile because in countries with data plans can be used as an internet hotspot for other devices.
Power Banks are essential. I am so glad I brought all three of my power banks – I have needed them both – the big one (at home) and the small one (at school).
I’ve decided to not bring a camera and instead use my phone. For both my service in Thailand and Mongolia, I bought digital point-and-shoot cameras, and never used them because I never had them with me when I needed them.
- laptop: MacBook Air (13″ 2020) & Apple 30W charger
- tablet: iPad Air 4 with MoKo Smart Folio Case and screen protector
- stylus: Apple Pencil 2nd gen and extra Apple Pencil Tips (4)
- stylus tips: MJKOR Soft Noise Reducing Tip Replacements (4)
- keyboard: Keychron K7 Wireless Mechanical Keyboard
- external HD (backup): 1TB Seagate Backup Plus
- external SSD (media): SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD up to 550MB/s USB 3.1
- smartphone: iPhone SE (2020)
- power-bank (3)
- large = Charmast Slim Thin 3A Fast Charge 26800mAh (USB-A x3, USB-C, lightning)
- small = TG90 Power Bank 6000mAh (USB-C, lightning)
- surge protector: Ceptics World Travel PLUG ADAPTER Kit + Type C, D, M
- headphones: Aftershokz Titanium bone-conduction headphones
- Bluetooth speaker:
- earbuds
- (Bluetooth-wireless): MPOW M30
- (Bluetooth-wired): SoundBuds Slim
- (wired): ZELMINE wired earbuds
- cable organizer: REI Co-op Roadtripper Print Pod (Small)
- Lightning-to-USB cables (3): Anker 3′ Nylon Braided cables
- Micro-USB: long (1), short (2): Anker Powerline Micro USB charging cables
- USB A-to-Micro-B cables (x2)
- Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter: Apple
- 1/8′′ plug-to-1/8′′ plug
- alcohol pads
- screen cleaning cloths
- flash thumb drives (x2): MicroCenter 16GB
- RECHARGABLE BATTERIES & charger:
9. School Supplies
Many village shops will carry some school supplies. You can find: paper, notebooks, pens, pencils, sharpeners, permanent markers (black), dry erase markers (black), and sheets of thicker colored paper for posters. I was able to ask my local shop to stock wide clear tape too. Colored paper and colored pencils are available in bigger towns or Kathmandu.
- pens – fine: black (x3) + refills (x4), red (x3)
- pencils: mechanical – 0.7 (x6) + lead
- ruler (12′′ & 6′′ – metal)
- mini stapler + staples
- glue stick (x4)
- binder clips (assorted sizes)
- hole punch
- scissors
- box cutter (retractable):
- erasers – stick (x2) + refills (x6)
- Sharpie x 5 (black fine tip)
- clear tape holder & refills (x4)
- pencil sharpeners (x2)
- rubber bands – I used rubber hair bands instead and they worked great
- mini-flashlight: Olight 130 Lumen Tiny LED Keychain Light
10. Gifts for Host Families
Most volunteers think about bringing gifts for the kids, like Uno cards, but don’t forget the parents. I brought an extra lantern for them, along with some double-walled metal drinking cups (for drinking tea) that we use every day. And we have a dog so I’m glad I brought a dog brush which she loves.
PS. You will have two host families! The first will be at PreService Training (PST) and another at your site.
Other Activities
Exercise
To me, exercise equipment should almost be essential. But believe me, I’ve tried it all in my three countries of service. What I learned is that if I didn’t use it in the US, I probably was never going to use it during my service. So, if you try any new equipment, test it out thoroughly before lugging it halfway around the world.
- yoga mat: Gaiam Classic Solid Color Yoga Mats (5mm)
- mini-resistance bands (set of 4)
- IDryBag PVC Dry Bag (5L) filled with rocks and used as kettlebell
- volleyball (can usually be bought in the village)
Running
Running is an easy cardiovascular activity to do and doesn’t require much investment, just some shoes, shorts, and a shirt. But you can make it a little more enjoyable with a few extras.
- tech-T, sleeveless (2): Path Projects Madre Sleeveless T
- tech-T, long sleeve (2): Road Runner Sports Long Sleeve
- shorts (2) and liners (3):
- Path Projects Graves PX 7″ shorts
- Path Projects Crest PX 7″shorts
- Path Projects Tahoe CL 3″ Base Layer liner
- shoes: Saucony Exercersion T14 trail running shoes
- SOCKS (3 pair): Smartwool PHD Outdoor Light Cushion Socks
- hat: Outdoor Research Swift Cap
- water-bottle: CamelBak Quick Grip Chill Handheld Bottle
- GPS watch: Coros Pace 2 + extra wristband
Biking
Like some other Peace Corps countries, volunteers can purchase a bike with funds (and a helmet) provided by PC. If you like to ride back home, then by all means plan on riding here. Be warned, rural sites are not flat so you’ll be riding a lot of hills. But if you’re like me, you’ll love it. Another recommendation is to brush up on basic bike maintenance and inner tube repair before coming.
- glue-less patch kits (bring 4-5 just in case) or regular patch kit (2-3)
- spare mountain bike inner tube: you’ll be able to get better quality in the US
- small bike pump (bring needles to pump up volleyballs at school)
- bike tools:
- tire levers (for repairing inner tubes)
- wire cutters (for changing brake and derailleur cables)
- bike multitool (with various hex key wrenches)
- small crescent wrench
- small vice-grips
Download a Packing List
Here is a packing list you can download and print. There are spaces so you can add your items to the list. You can use this when buying clothes and gear, when packing, and could come in handy if your luggage gets lost and you need to replace anything.
How is packing going? Did I miss anything? Is there anything to add or delete? Any other packing questions? I’m really interested so feel free to leave questions or comment here.
Provided by Peace Corps Nepal during Pre-Service Training
- bedding: small foam mattress, pillow, sheets
- drinking water filter: large capacity British Birkfield
- mosquito sleeping net
- Nepali Language Books
- Nepali-English English-Nepali Dictionary
- Nepali in Context
- An Introduction to Basic Nepali Language
- medical kit: with a huge supply of medications and first aid supplies
- medications: Ibuprofen, antacids, Diphen, Phenylephrine, Diotame, non-aspirin, Clotrimazole (anti-fungal), hydrocortisone cream 1% (rash relief), Calagel (anti-itch), Trioral oral rehydration salts, Chap-Ice lip balm, sore throat lozenges, cherry eucalyptus lozenges, eye drops, anti-diarrheal meds, triple-antibiotic ointment
- first aid supplies: assorted bandaids, latex gloves, first aid scissors, Clorox Chlornexidine Gluconate 2% Solution (wound cleaning), larger sterile gauze pads and tape, digital thermometer, elastic wrap, whistle, condoms, SPF 30 sunscreen, tweezers, Potable Aqua (water purification), Ben’s tick & insect repellent, CPR & Basic First Aid pocket guide
- available on request:
- solar panel charger
- stretcher
References:
