A record number of climbers scaled Mount Everest on Wednesday (May 20), a hiking official said, the highest number ever to reach the world's tallest peak on the same day from the Nepali side.

"On the 20th of May, 2026, about 274 people (made it to the) summit successfully, including the climbers and the Nepali climbing sherpa guides,” said Rishi Bhandari, secretary general of the Expedition Operators Association of Nepal on Thursday (May 21).

The previous highest number of ascents from the Nepali side was 223, on May 22, 2019.

Bhandari brushed aside concerns over overcrowding, saying climbers were spread across different camps and areas, but added it would be preferable to limit summit attempts to no more than 250 people a day.

Mountaineering experts often criticise Nepal for allowing large numbers of climbers on the mountain, which sometimes leads to risky traffic jams or long queues in the so-called "death zone" area below the summit, where the level of natural oxygen is dangerously below what is required for human survival.

Nepal has acknowledged risks from congestion and inexperienced climbers by introducing tighter controls and higher fees.

Nepal has issued 494 permits to climb Everest this year, each costing $15,000.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

VIDEO SHOWS: TENTS AT EVEREST BASECAMP / CLIMBERS TREKKING SLOPE / SOUNDBITES FROM SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: EVEREST BASECAMP, KHUMBU REGION, SOLUKHUMBU DISTRICT, NEPAL (ARCHIVE - APRIL 22, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. CLIMBERS TREKKING UP SLOPE

KATHMANDU, NEPAL (MAY 21, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

2. SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI WORKING AT DESK

3. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI, SAYING:

"On the 20th of May, 2026, about 274 people summit successfully, including the climbers and the Nepali climbing Sherpa guides. This year, 2026, more than 500 people obtained the climbing permit for Mount Everest from the department of tourism."

EVEREST BASECAMP, KHUMBU REGION, SOLUKHUMBU DISTRICT, NEPAL (APRIL 22, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

4. CLIMBERS TREKKING UP SLOPE

KATHMANDU, NEPAL (MAY 21, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

5. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI, SAYING: (ON COMPLAINTS OF OVERCROWDING ON EVEREST)

"I disagree that there were more climbers because Everest is (around) 8,000 metres and people are climbing from 5,400 metres to 8,800 metres, so they are not gathering, they are distributed in different camps and parts. So there aren't that many climbers in Everest, according to the size and the distance of the mountain."

MOUNT EVEREST, NEPAL (MAY 19, 2026) (PURNIMA SHRESTHA - No resales / No archive / Must on-screen courtesy Purnima Shrestha) (ORIGINALLY 4:3)

6. LONG LINE OF CLIMBERS ASCENDING MOUNT EVEREST

KATHMANDU, NEPAL (MAY 21, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

7. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI, SAYING:

"But as per the capacity in our base camp, camp 1, camp 2, camp 3, and even summit, if the (number of) climbers goes above 800 or 1,000 people, then at that time government has to think about controlling

the climbing permit. Otherwise, 500 or 600 climbers, and same number of climbing Sherpa guides is not more than the capacity of Mount Everest."

EVEREST BASECAMP, KHUMBU REGION, SOLUKHUMBU DISTRICT, NEPAL (ARCHIVE - APRIL 28, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

8. SHERPA PREPARING BELONGINGS, SPEAKING

KATHMANDU, NEPAL (MAY 21, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

9. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SECRETARY GENERAL OF EXPEDITION OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION NEPAL, RISHI BHANDARI, SAYING:

"In one day, (it is ) better to not move more than 250 people (towards the summit) in a day. This is our experience. And we are going to control on this in future expeditions."

EVEREST BASECAMP, KHUMBU REGION, SOLUKHUMBU DISTRICT, NEPAL (ARCHIVE - APRIL 22, 2026)

(REUTERS - Access all)

10. ROWS OF TENTS AT BASECAMP