Context. The bolometric luminosity is one of the most fundamental stellar parameters that is generally not directly observable. When integrating whole spectral energy distributions, bolometric corrections are widely used. These corrections are typically specified for a well defined object type, a measured photometric colour, and the colour index range for which it is calibrated. Aims. We provide this bolometric correction for the near-infrared colours of red late giants. Methods. We compare bolometric luminosities derived from fits to spectral energy distributions covering the visual and near, mid, and far infrared to different near-infrared colour indices to define subgroups within our stellar sample and finally obtain specific bolometric corrections.Results. For well-defined subgroups of different near-infrared colours and atmospheric chemistry, we present four distinct bolometric colour relations and compare these to earlier results from the literature.