Everest Base Camp Trek

Nepal has been facilitating ‘On Arrival’ Visas to those flying to Nepal. The Visa procedure is straightforward and quick; however, you may need to queue during peak tourist season. You can also obtain your Visa to Nepal from the Nepalese Embassy based in your home country if you wish to avoid the airport queue. But please remember that visitors who have obtained a visa from the Embassy must travel to Nepal within six months of their Visa issue date.

Travelers from Nigeria, Ghana, Somalia, Liberia, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Syria, and refugees are requested to get their Visa from the consulate offices of Nepal in their region.

If you are entering Nepal through the borders with Tibet or India, you can get a Visa at the border.

Here is the link to visa and fee information: Link

One of our airport representatives will be at the airport to welcome you. He will be carrying the Nepal Hiking Team placard with your name underneath. He will take you to your hotel and help you to check-in.

As well as our airport representative will come to your hotel approximately three hours before your scheduled flight. He will take you to the airport for your flight back home.

Autumn and Spring – Autumn and spring are the ideal seasons for Everest Base Camp Trek. The weather remains pleasant with crystal clear skies and sunny days during these seasons. Evenings can be a bit chilly, with the temperature dipping below the freezing point. You can expect a maximum temperature of 25°C and a minimum of -8°C.

Though you can expect a slight drizzle and a stray heavy downpour during spring and early autumn, overall, the weather stays agreeable. You get to enjoy the best views of the mountains, plus cloudless sunrises and sunsets.  The Trail to Everest Base Camp is busiest during these seasons, and the paths are crowded. Teahouses will usually have full occupancy, and it will be challenging to get a single room if you need one.

Monsoon or Rainy Season – Nepal, with the rest of South Asia, receives a tremendous amount of rainfall during the monsoon season. Apart from the Trans Himalayan regions lying in the rain shadow, Nepal’s whole is lashed by torrential rain during the summer or monsoon months. It is off-season, and very few tourists brave the rain to explore the mountains. The Everest trails are the least crowded during this season. Temperatures during this season rise to a maximum of 27°C and a minimum of 0°C.

Winter – Early winter can be a great time to trek to Everest Base Camp, provided you can brave the chill. There is no precipitation, and the Trail is secluded. With no crowds clogging the Trail, you can enjoy a blissful experience hiking alone with your guide. You can expect snow on the Trail and bone-chilling cold. If you feel inclined to book a winter trek, we advise you to pack enough warm clothes to keep you warm and toasty on the Trail. You can expect a maximum temperature of 18°C and a minimum of -20°C.

It will be impossible to trek during mid and late winter because of extreme cold, heavy snowfall, and avalanches en route chances.

You need a valid passport, a tourist Visa, two passport-sized photographs for trekking permits, and essential travel insurance to do this trek.

In general, you do not have to be vaccinated to do the Everest Base Camp Trek. There is very little chance of contracting malaria since it is only found below 1500m. However, if you are concerned about specific diseases, you can consult with your doctor before opting for the trek.

We run several small group-joining treks with guaranteed departure dates, so solo travelers are welcome to join in with a group.

We will still run your trip, even if there are no other travelers on the dates you have booked. We never ask our clients to change their travel dates due to an insufficient number of people.

Of course! You can travel with your circle of friends or family or choose to travel with a mixed group of strangers from different corners of the world. We will plan your trip as per your requirements. We can also customize your trip according to your specifications. You can choose your style of accommodation, activities, and destinations to explore. Our itineraries are also quite flexible, and we can add or deduct days and activities according to your needs.

There is no surcharge if there are two or more people for your trip. Also, for a private trip, we have guaranteed departure dates all year round. Thus, travelers can choose any dates to suit them.

But, if you are a solo traveler, then for a private trip, a surcharge of USD 250.00 will be added to the published rate on our website.

You will be spending four nights in Kathmandu at a 3-star hotel. Your hotel is located in Thamel, close to major business centers, banks, restaurants, shops, and recreational facilities. Enjoy a comfortable stay in a clean and tidy room with an en suite bathroom. Breakfast is complimentary.

Usually, we use Woodapple Hotel and Spa, or similar in Kathmandu. It is a newly built property on the outskirts of Thamel and offers excellent services and amenities to the valued guest.’

Yes, you can extend your hotel stay in Kathmandu, and it will cost approximately USD 45 and USD 50 per night, inclusive of breakfast, for a single and double/twin room, respectively.

You can upgrade your hotel to a luxury hotel in Kathmandu. There are several luxury hotels in Kathmandu. You may either inform us of your preferred hotel, or we shall give you our options. Either way, we shall comply with your request.

You will be staying at teahouses run by Sherpa families during your trek. Teahouses are small lodges that offer food and accommodation to trekkers. Generally, they are an extension of family homes with rooms partitioned by thin ply boards. A room has two beds on either side with a small table in the middle. A bed has a mattress, pillow, and a quilt or a blanket. You can use your sleeping bag to sleep in and layer the top with the blanket for added warmth.

The dining room is also a common area where you can socialize and meet other trekkers. With a stove or heater placed in the middle, this is usually the only room where you can stay warm without snuggling inside your sleeping bag.

At Lukla, Phakding, and Namche, the teahouses offer rooms with attached bathrooms. Beyond Namche, the teahouses start getting bare, with necessary facilities. At higher elevations, some teahouses have Asian (squatting) style toilets. We recommend you keep an open mind and a positive outlook to enjoy your trip.

Yes, hot showers are available throughout the trek. Our package includes a private, free hot shower for three locations, i.e., Lukla, Phakding, and Namche. In other places, it will cost around NPR 300-500 per hot shower, depending on location.

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be provided during the trek. All meals will be taken at local teahouses. Most items served at the teahouses are freshly prepared and healthy.

For breakfast, you can choose from cereal, oats, Tibetan bread, chappati, bread, hash browns, apple pie, scrambled or boiled eggs, etc., together with a beverage of your choice – tea, milk, juice, or coffee.

During lunch and dinner, you can either have the sumptuous traditional dal-bhaat or Nepali Thali comprising of boiled rice, lentil soup, two or three varieties of vegetable curry, pickle, salad, and pappad (lentil cracker). You can enjoy unlimited refills if you order dal-bhaat. Other dishes on offer include fried noodles (chowmein), Sherpa stew, steamed or fried momos (dumplings with vegetable or meat fillings), pasta, spaghetti, pizza, parantha, burger with fries, etc.

If you are allergic to gluten, then we advise you to bring your snacks and ready-to-eat meals. There will be a limited choice for you as most of the menu items will have gluten.

The food available on the Trail is ideal for vegans. Meat is not readily available, and most of the dishes are prepared using herbs and locally sourced vegetables. If you are a vegan, you can avoid the milk and yak cheese which is quite popular in the mountains.

You can carry sterilizing tools like a steri pen or Lifestraw to filter your drinking water. You can also carry water purification pills to purify your drinking water. You can purchase boiled drinking water from teahouses. Mineral water bottles are readily available, but we advise you not to purchase them as the empty plastic bottles add to the trash problem. Moreover, mineral water is very costly in the mountain. You will be paying four or five times more than the original price as each item in the mountain cost more because of high transportation costs.

Note: Drinking water is not included in our package.

You start your day on the Trail with breakfast at the teahouse, where you sleep overnight. After breakfast, you carry your daypack and follow your guide to the next destination. On the way, you stop to take pictures and admire the scenery. At mid-day, you stop for lunch at a local teahouse. After spending an hour or so, you continue your hike up to your destination. Our staff will be at the front and at the end of the group to ensure no one is left behind. Do not take off by yourself without informing your guide. It is easy to lose your way where there are multiple trails.

After reaching the stop for the day, you rest at the teahouse or explore the village and surrounding area. Usually, trekkers gather at the teahouse’s communal area and swap stories and play games sitting near the warm wood stove. After dinner, you head to your room and enjoy a good night’s rest.

There is an internet connection in the Everest Region. The teahouses offer WiFi at an extra cost. Most teahouses use the services of Everest Link, a local internet service provider. You can purchase internet data at teahouses or shops.

You can also purchase a sim and internet data from Ncell, a private telecom company, or state-owned Nepal Telecom. The downside is connection will be quite erratic while using the data offered by these two companies. You can make calls and get connected with your loved ones by using the sim cards.

Acclimatization is essential for this trek as you will be walking up to a height of 5,545 meters. There are two rest days included in your itinerary, giving you enough time for your body to get acclimatized to the rarefied air. Stroll and at a comfortable pace. Do not race up to your destination. AMS or acute mountain sickness strikes when you reach a high elevation too fast.

AMS symptoms include headache, shortness of breath, nausea, sleeplessness, rapid heart rate, vomiting, etc. If you have mild symptoms, you can take a Diamox and drink plenty of water to feel alright. If your symptoms are severe, our guide will escort you to a lower elevation and stay with you till you feel okay. In case your symptom worsens, you will be evacuated by air ambulance to a medical facility in Kathmandu. Please make sure your insurance covers the cost of high-altitude mountain rescue and evacuation.

To keep mountain sickness at bay, you need to keep yourself hydrated and have a good night’s sleep. Rhythmic breathing while trekking helps your respiratory organs to pump in more oxygen. Walk at an even pace and do not speed up or hurry.

As part of the safety protocol, our guide will regularly monitor blood oxygen levels with an oximeter. He will be carrying a first-aid box with all the essential medicines and stuff needed during an injury. Our guide is trained in providing first-aid and wilderness emergency response. He will contact the main office in Kathmandu always, and the travel consultants will be receiving regular updates about your journey from him. If there is any emergency, help will be dispatched as soon as possible.

We cannot say exactly how much spending money you need for the trek, as it will depend on your spending habits. Most of the goods available on the Trail is pretty expensive compared to the main city area.

All of our trek packages include three meals per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) on trekking days, so you will not be spending much on meals. However, trekkers will have to bear the cost of water, beverages, snacks, chocolates, etc. Many of our past trekkers have said NPR 2500-3000 will suffice each day plentifully during trekking days as a rough guide.

The credit card does accept credit cards or debit cards on the trek, but halfheartedly. Also, cards are accepted in some places only; mostly, some shops in Namche Bazaar accept credit cards, but not beyond that. Please note, it is easier if transactions are made using cash, but be warned, they will not take foreign currency; only local currencies are accepted.

You will find a few laundry services in Namche Bazaar. Beyond that, there is no service available. So, you will have to hand-wash your clothes yourself if it is essential to do laundry. Otherwise, you can bring your dirty laundry to Kathmandu and have it done all in one go.

Yes, you can charge your electronic gadgets during the Everest Trek. However, please remember that after Namche, electricity in the Everest region is obtained via solar panels. Hence, if it is not a right, sunny or bright day, you will only get limited power. Besides, it costs around NPR 200-300 per hour to charge electronic gadgets.

In Nepal, no flat-pronged plugs are found in use as in other countries. Electric plugs in Nepal have two or three round prongs. You can find type C, type D, or type M electric sockets with a power voltage of 230V/50Hz. Please bring a universal travel adapter.

Anyone in good physical shape can do the Everest Base Camp Trek. Though previous trekking experience will be helpful, it is not compulsory to complete this trek. If you are not exercising regularly, we recommend you start training for your EBC trek at least 2 or 3 months before starting your trip.

You can start your training by including aerobic exercises, jogging, brisk walking, and stair climbing in your workout routine. Cardio endurance and strength training is a must as you will be walking daily for about 5 to 8 hours at high altitudes. You can go for hikes regularly carrying a daypack. For your hikes, you can choose hills with rough terrain and steep ascents. You can break in your new hiking boots by using them for these hikes. It’s better to get used to your hiking boots before the start of your trek than to end up with sore feet on the Trail.

If you are too busy to go hiking outdoors, then you can exercise indoors. Try walking on treadmills, cycling, or swimming. Have a balanced diet and include lots of protein to build up your muscles. However, it’s important not to go overboard with your exercise routine or your diet. Keep it balanced and in moderation.

During this trek, you will be walking for more than 120km at a high altitude. Though this itinerary is evenly paced, you need to be prepared for the worst. If you have weak knees or legs and suffer from a respiratory or heart disorder, we advise you to consult a doctor before booking this trip.

The distance between Lukla to the Everest Base Camp is an 80-mile round trip. From Lukla, it takes approximately eight days to reach the Everest Base Camp, including two acclimatization days and then three days to return.

The alternative option if the flight gets delayed is to get on another flight. But we must tell you that there are no flights to Lukla after midday due to the weather change. If the flight gets canceled due to bad weather, you shall have to take another flight the next day. As you may know, the weather is quite unpredictable, and it is essential to fly to Lukla only when the weather is clear and favorable. Another alternative option is to take a helicopter to Lukla if the flight is canceled, which costs approx. USD 500.00 on sharing basis.

The weight limit is 15 kg/33 lbs for the Lukla flight, including both your duffel pack (10kg/22 lbs) and a daypack (5kg/11lbs). If you exceed the weight limit, you will have to pay USD 2-5 for each extra kilo in the air terminal. We, therefore, suggest you pack as light a bag as possible.

Travel insurance is compulsory to do any treks in Nepal. But before you purchase your travel insurance, make sure you know the maximum altitude you will reach because insurance varies depending upon the elevation. You can get more information about the different types of travel insurance packages from your insurance company.

Most importantly, if you are trekking to an altitude above 5600m above sea level, make sure your travel insurance covers emergency helicopter evacuation, extra expenses due to health concerns, and trip cancellation charges.

Our guides are qualified to handle small, primary medical emergencies as they are first-aid trained. And in the case of an emergency, then they will manage the emergency evacuation in cooperation with the Kathmandu team so that patients can get medical attention as soon as possible. Our guides carry an oximeter with them to regularly check the blood’s oxygen level, a first-aid box for minor injuries, and Diamox to prevent altitude sickness.

Indeed, a trekker can continue their trek if the sickness is mild and has recovered after a day’s rest. But, if the trekker’s condition is severe, he or she will be flown back to the city in an emergency evacuation.

All our guides are certified and trained trekking leaders. Our guides are certified by the Nepal Academy of Tourism and Hotel Management (NATHM), Nepal. They have years of experience working in this line of work and know the different trekking trails of Nepal, mountain ranges, culture, and mountain sickness.

Tipping is a form of showing your appreciation to people who have served you and helped you reach your goal. During your trek, your guide and porter will carry your load and guide you to your destination. They will make sure that you complete your trip safely while enjoying every moment of your journey. The least you can do is show your appreciation by tipping them generously. It is up to you to decide how much to offer as a tip. It all depends on your experience and the kind of service you receive from them. The field staff expects tipping for the backbreaking work they have to do.

You can add extra days to your trekking trip; however, if you join in with a group trek, unfortunately, it is not possible. It is only permitted to add a few extra days onto a private hike.

To book this trip, you can do it directly via our website or send us an email. You need to pay 20% of the total package cost as a booking deposit. To pay the deposit, you can use your credit card to make an online payment or transfer the fund via bank transfer. Our online payment gateway is protected and has a secure firewall. You can make the rest of the payment after you arrive in Kathmandu.

Please go through our three simple steps to book the trek:

I. Choose your departure date

On our website, there is a Cost and Date section. There you can find two tabs for small group journey and private journey. Please choose what type of trip you are looking for. After choosing your preferred journey, you may check for available dates. To check available dates, please select the year and months from the drop-down menu.

For group journey: Travelers can select any dates from the drop-down menu to join group tours.

For personal journey: Travelers can click on the private journey section and fill-up the form to request your preferred travel date.

II. Complete the online reservation form

After you have found the dates you are looking for, please click on the BOOK NOW button. After clicking the button, it will take you to the form page. Please complete the form.

III. Pay the deposit by Card or Wire transfer.

After completing the form, you are required to make 20% of the total trip to confirm the trip. You may pay via Card (click here) or wire transfer the deposit. Both medium are safe and secure.

Upon canceling your trip, we will refund your money (excluding the booking deposit) if you have paid the full amount. The booking deposit (20% of the trip cost) is non-refundable, as much of it will be used for the booking of services that you will need during your trip. Most service providers do not offer a cancellation refund, so we won’t get back the amount used to book those services.

Here is the Link to our booking policy.

Indeed, you can postpone the trek. We offer free trip postponement to our clients. With the free trip postponement, they have the flexibility of choosing their own trip dates. So if you intend to postpone the trek, please kindly inform us at least 2 weeks before your trip departure date. Some arrangements can’t be re-arranged if we do not postpone them in time. So prior information is essential.

Also, we encourage our clients to postpone their trip if due to any reason they are unable to travel and have to cancel the trip. Canceling the trip incurs clients with a cancellation fee. The deposit they made to confirm the trip will be used as a cancellation fee. So to save money, it is better to postpone the trip.

We accept last-minute booking provided the package cost is paid in full in cash. You need to give us a day or two to plan the logistics and book the required services. You can call our sales team at our official contact number, send us a message via WhatsApp (0977 9851058678), or drop in at our office in Kathmandu to plan your trip.

Nepal Hiking Team has built a good reputation over the years, since its inception in 2009. It has been all due to the trust and confidence that our clients have bestowed on us for our formidable and reliability.

We have had 100 % percent success rate with all the trips we organize, and most of our clients are repeat clients. Having journeyed with us for the first time and experiencing the quality of service, they tend to return to us for future trips. The transparency, honesty, and ease with which we conduct our dealings are among the chief factors for clients to choose us. These are some of the general reasons.

The reasons stated below are why we think you should choose to trek to Everest Base Camp with Nepal Hiking Team.

• A team of experienced and trained guides who can handle any emergency
• Most of our guides are locals of Solu Khumbu or the Everest region. Being a local of that area, he/she will have plenty to share about the region’s culture and traditions.
• We get some of the best rooms on the Trail as we share a good relationship with local teahouse owners
• We have a good network of service providers – hotels, airlines, etc.
• Good support and prompt communication from our sales team during your trek and while planning for your trek
• Fair and transparent transactions. No hidden costs.
• Last but not least, genuine warmth and friendly vibes from all our team members.