Trek through villages in the shadow of Mount Everest, passing through the Khumbu Valley engaging with Nepal’s ethnic mountain communities acquainted with the mountain way of life. A stark contrast from where we start in the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu.
Standing at the base of the world’s highest mountain is an awe-inspiring experience. Trekking to Everest Base Camp is an exhilarating adventure, which begins with an incredible flight that lands at a village in the heart of the Himalayan mountain range. This is a beautiful scenic hike that is worth the challenge.
Now that we’re here, a Wild Guanabana rep will be waiting outside the airport gates to take us to our hotel. Depending on when everyone arrives, we’ll plan to have our briefing meeting once we’ve settled in.
Make sure to arrive by 10 am
Today we start our journey at 01:00 AM (Midnight) drive to Manthali Airport About (133 KM) 04 to 05 hours. We take a picturesque 15-20 min flight to Lukla from where we begin our journey into the Himalayas.
From Lukla (2,652 m), we trek downhill toward the Dudh Koshi (Milky River) – a raging river that flows from the glacier of the highest mountains. This fairly easy and well-marked trail meanders around the fields of potatoes and wheat, passing through many traditional villages to reach Phakding. After about three hours of trekking, we’ll spend our first night in Phakding.
After breakfast we start our trek, passing through pine forest, rhododendron, magnolia, and cultivated terraces to get to Sagarmatha National Park in the mountain capital, Namche Bazaar. Spectacular mountain peaks like Nupla (5,885 m), Kongde Ri (6,093 m) and Thamserku (6,808 m) rise majestically above us throughout most of the day.
Hiking hours: 5 – 6 hours
It’s important to spend an extra night at Namche Bazaar for acclimatization purposes before venturing higher. We’ll do a short day hike up to the Everest View Hotel in Shyangboche at 3,833 m for stunning views of Ama Dablam and Mount Everest.
Hiking hours: 2 hours
We start our trek to Thyangboche (3,780 m) early in the morning after breakfast following a trail around the ridges for some spectacular views of Ama Dablam. Everest can be clearly seen on the horizon before we descend through splendid rhododendron forests for lunch. After lunch, we cross Dudh Koshi River once again and begin a long winding ascent that takes us to the famous Buddhist monastery of Thyangboche – built in 1912 and considered the spiritual and cultural center of these highlands. The monastery has been recently re-built with the assistance of Sir Edmund Hillary after it was destroyed by fire in 1989. As this area is a devout Buddhist region, the wildlife is unharmed so there is always a possibility that we may see some wild animals such as musk deer, mountain goat, and pheasants in the forest.
Average hiking hours: 4 to 5 hours.
The trail now ascends up to Imja Khola before an easy climb along a wide open trail to a small mountain village named Pangboche, sitting at 3,901 m. We may take a slight detour to visit an old monastery where Lama Geishi gives his blessings to those attempting to stand on Sagarmatha’s highest point. Then we gradually head uphill to Dingboche at 4,365 m as the trail passes through the valley surrounded by awe-inspiring mountains.
Average hiking hours: 4 to 5 hours.
Walking on barren slopes above the tree line, our 4 – 5 hour trek will have us see impressive peaks like Cholatse, Lobuche, and Pumori unfold before us. Rock Cairns dedicated to the memory of climbers who have died attempting the world’s highest mountains can be seen at Dugla Ridge. Further up, we begin to follow the longest glacier in Nepal – the Khumbu Glacier – to the Lobuche settlement at 4,955 m for our overnight stay. We will feel the temperature drop here as we become more elevated and exposed to the upper slopes of the valley.
Average hiking hours: 4 to 5 hours.
The trail follows the rocky moraine of the Khumbu Glacier toward the high settlement of Gorak Shep at 5,395 m where we stop for lunch before continuing our journey toward Everest Base Camp at 5,340 m. We’ll be spending some time here taking in the view before we descend back to Gorak Shep for the night. This spectacular village is surround by beautiful mountains, including Pumori (7,145 m), Lingtren (6,697 m), Nuptse (7,745 m) and of course Everest (8,850 m).
Average hiking hours: 7 to 8 hours.
We’re up early this morning to climb Kalapattar at 5,545 m, which can take anywhere between 2 to 3 hours. If the weather’s on our side once we reach the top of the hill, we may be treated to one of the best views of the great black pyramid that is Mount Everest. We then embark on our 8-hour descent into the village of Pheriche at 4,252 m.
Average hiking hours: 6 to 7 hours.
We’re retracing our steps along the Dudh Koshi River – a beautiful and easy walk through pine and rhododendron forest with a view of Kusum Kanguru. Climbing out of the river valley, we head back to Lukla at 2,652 m to savour our final mountain sunset.
Average hiking hours: 6 hours.
EBC is a hike that can be done anytime of the year except for June-August which is the monsoon season so it is very difficult to go during these months. Peak season is in October as this offers the best weather, sunny and not too cold at night. This lasts till December when the winter season starts running through February. Winter season offers pretty cold nights and moderate temperatures in the morning of around 20c at lower altitudes and can reach to -10 at higher altitudes. March to May is when spring starts and the temperatures start to rise up to 30c with clear skies and blossoming flowers. April and May are the climbing season for mountaineers who are attempting higher mountains in the region especially Everest.
In the city you will be staying in the center of the Touristic area in Kathmandu where you will just step out of your hotel and find all the hussle and bussle of Kathmandu’s Thamel. Once you reach Lukla, you will be hiking from one village to the next and spending your nights in tea houses which are family owned guest houses for trekkers passing along the way. Rooms are double or triple with beds and blankets to keep you warm. All tea houses have a main room where all hikers gather for meals, briefing, playing card games or just to chill. They are all heated with a huge fireplace in the center so you will definitely be warm. All of them have wifi available for purchase as well as electricity (at an extra cost) for those who want to charge their cameras, phones...etc. Most of them also sell snacks, energy bars, juice and water.
During the hike, you will have 3 meals, all energy based to help give you the required nutrients for hiking around 7 hours a day. Breakfast and dinner are prepared by the tea houses and lunch is taken at other guest houses along the way while hiking. Nepali mountain food is very delicious and has its own flavor, we recommend you go for the Dhal Bat which is a typical Nepalese dish and very high on energy. Try to stay away from any meat during the hike.
To reach Everest Base Camp you don’t need to be an experienced hiker nor an olympic runner, but you do need to be fit enough to hike for 6-7 hours daily, sometimes going up stairs, sometimes slopes and sometimes just crossing bridges. It is not a super difficult hike but it’s not easy either so its’ better to be well prepared to be able to enjoy the hike more. The rewards you will get after completing each day will just keep you motivated for the next and push you towards the base camp.
Everest Base Camp stands at an altitude of 5,380m, which can be quite high for someone who hasn’t been at this altitude before. However, this trip is designed to help you acclimatise in the best way possible to avoid any altitude sickness problems. You will be gaining more altitude each day as you go higher but at a moderate speed so your body will have enough time to get accustomed to the lower oxygen levels
The scenery on this hike is breathtaking and indescribably beautiful. You will be passing along many ecosystems on this hike, this makes the hike a lot more interesting with a constant change in scenery.
$2,650
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