The Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows covers an area of 121,300 square kilometres (46,800 sq mi), extending along the north and south faces of the Himalaya Range from the Kali Gandaki Gorge in central Nepal eastwards through Tibet and India's Sikkim state, Bhutan, India's Arunachal Pradesh state, and northernmost Myanmar.

The Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests lie below 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) along the southern slopes of the range, from Central Nepal to Bhutan.

The Yarlung Tsangpo arid steppe lies in the upper Brahmaputra Valley of Tibet, north of the Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows.

The rhododendron flora of the ecoregion is quite varied, with species composition changing as one moves from west to east along the range.

Above the shrublands are alpine meadows which support a variety of herbaceous plants, including species of Alchemilla, Androsace, Anemone, Diapensia, Draba, Gentiana, Impatiens, Leontopodium, Meconopsis, Pedicularis, Potentilla, Primula, Rhododendron, Saussurea, Saxifraga, Sedum, and Viola.