Nepal Considers Restricting Everest Climbs With New Experience Rules

Thinking about climbing Mount Everest? You might need to do more than just buy a plane ticket and channel your inner daredevil. Nepal is considering a new law that could make the world’s highest peak a little less accessible for first-timers.

Nepal’s draft legislation would require climbers to prove they’ve already tackled at least one 7,000-meter (22,965-foot) Himalayan mountain before even setting foot on Everest. The goal? Boosting safety and easing the infamous overcrowding up there.

The proposal comes after a particularly grim 2023 season: 12 climbers died and five went missing, despite nearly 500 permits being issued. The numbers are sobering — since 1921, over 330 climbers have died on Everest, with about 200 bodies still frozen on the slopes. Not exactly the kind of travel souvenir anyone wants.

Most of the trouble happens in the so-called "death zone" above 26,247 feet, where the air is so thin you basically need to pack your own oxygen or risk becoming a permanent part of the landscape.

But the new rules have sparked debate. Some veteran expedition operators argue that Nepal’s restriction should broaden the list of qualifying peaks. Lukas Furtenbach, an Austria-based organizer, says the focus on Himalayan mountains is too narrow. He suggests that peaks like Aconcagua in South America or Denali in Alaska—both just under 7,000 meters—should count, since they’re already used for training. Garrett Madison of Madison Mountaineering adds that even a 6,500-meter climb anywhere in the world should suffice, calling Nepal’s pickings for 7,000-meter peaks a bit too slim.

Even Tashi Lhakpa Sherpa, who knows a thing or two about Himalayan expeditions, points out that only a handful of these mountains attract climbers in the first place.

Still, Everest fever isn’t cooling down: each year, between 700 and 1,000 climbers try for the summit, with about 60-70% actually making it. If these new rules pass, expect the summit selfies to get a little more exclusive—and hopefully a bit less crowded.