The Everest Base Camp trek (EBC trek) is a 14-day guided trek from Kathmandu to the foot of Mount Everest (8,849 m) in Nepal's Khumbu region. You fly to Lukla, walk through Namche Bazaar, Tengboche and Sagarmatha National Park to Everest Base Camp (5,364 m), and climb Kala Patthar (5,545 m) at sunrise, the best viewpoint for Everest's summit.
The trek is strenuous but non-technical: you walk 5–7 hours a day and need no climbing experience. This itinerary includes two acclimatisation days, in Namche Bazaar and Dingboche. The best time to go is March–May or late September–November. Prices start from US$1,500 per person, including Lukla flights, permits, teahouse lodges, meals on the trek, a licensed guide and porters, arranged by Himalayan Hiking in Kathmandu.
People tend to picture the Everest Base Camp trek as one long walk to a famous spot. It's really a slow climb through a whole world. The first days are green: pine forest, the milky blue Dudh Koshi river, suspension bridges hung with prayer flags, and villages where kids walk to school in the same trainers you'd wear to the gym. By day five the trees are gone. By day eight you're walking beside a glacier at nearly 5,000 metres, and the lodges are small stone buildings with one stove and a lot of people around it.
That change is what makes the trek. Base camp itself is a rocky stretch of moraine at the foot of the Khumbu Icefall, and from there you can't actually see Everest's summit. The view everyone comes for is from Kala Patthar, a dark hill above Gorak Shep that you climb in the cold before sunrise. When the light hits the top of Everest from there, nobody talks much.
| Length | 14 days from Kathmandu; 12 of them on the trail |
| Distance | About 130 km there and back from Lukla |
| Highest point | Kala Patthar, 5,545 m (18,192 ft) |
| Everest Base Camp | 5,364 m (17,598 ft) |
| Grade | Strenuous, but no climbing |
| Walking | 5–7 hours most days; 7–8 on the two biggest days |
| Best months | March to May, late September to November |
After a night in Kathmandu you fly to Lukla, which in the busy months means a pre-dawn drive to Ramechhap first. The first afternoon is short: a couple of hours downhill to Phakding. Day three is the first real test, a long climb from the river up to Namche Bazaar. Take it slowly. On a clear day you'll catch your first glimpse of Everest about halfway up, over the ridge to the right, and you'll probably have to ask your guide which peak it is, because it looks smaller than you expect.
You spend two nights in Namche. The "rest day" isn't really a rest: we walk up to the Everest View Hotel or Khumjung and come back down, which helps your body adjust. Then the trail follows a high path above the river to Tengboche, where the monastery sits on a ridge with Ama Dablam behind it, and on to Dingboche in the Imja valley for the second acclimatisation stop.
From Dingboche it's up past the climbers' memorials at Thukla to Lobuche, and then the big day: along the edge of the Khumbu Glacier to Gorak Shep, lunch, and on to base camp. You sleep at Gorak Shep, the highest and coldest night of the trip, and leave for Kala Patthar at around 4:30 the next morning. After that it's downhill, and it's remarkable how much better everyone feels by the time they reach Pheriche. Two more days take you back through Namche to Lukla, and a morning flight gets you to Kathmandu.
| Stage | Distance | Walking | Sleep at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lukla – Phakding | 8 km | 3–4 h | 2,610 m |
| Phakding – Namche Bazaar | 11 km | 5–6 h | 3,440 m |
| Namche – Tengboche | 10 km | 5–6 h | 3,860 m |
| Tengboche – Dingboche | 11 km | 5–6 h | 4,410 m |
| Dingboche – Lobuche | 8.5 km | 5–6 h | 4,940 m |
| Lobuche – Gorak Shep – Base Camp – Gorak Shep | 12 km | 7–8 h | 5,164 m |
| Gorak Shep – Kala Patthar – Pheriche | 13 km | 7–8 h | 4,240 m |
| Pheriche – Namche Bazaar | 15 km | 6–7 h | 3,440 m |
| Namche – Lukla | 18 km | 6–7 h | 2,860 m |
Times include short breaks but not lunch. Don't worry about distance; it's the height that slows you down.
Harder than most people expect, and easier than they fear. The trails are good and there's no scrambling or ropes. What wears you down is doing five to seven hours a day, several days in a row, with less and less oxygen. Above Dingboche, a flight of steps that wouldn't bother you at home will have you stopping to breathe.
If you can walk for a full day in hills, get up and do it again the next day, you can do this trek. Age matters much less than people think. Fit trekkers in their sixties and seventies reach base camp every season, while the occasional marathon runner struggles because they went up too fast. Fitness helps. Patience helps more.
Almost everyone feels the height a bit. A dull headache in the evening, a poor night's sleep, not wanting to finish your dinner: that's normal in the first night or two at a new altitude. What isn't normal is a headache that painkillers don't touch, vomiting, confusion, or being unusually breathless while resting. If that happens, you go down. Every time. It's the one rule our guides won't bend.
That's why this itinerary has two acclimatisation days and never climbs more than about 500 metres in sleeping height above Namche. Your guide carries a pulse oximeter and checks your oxygen levels and heart rate each evening. It's quick and a bit of a ritual; people end up comparing numbers over dinner. Drink three or four litres a day, go easy on alcohol until you're back in Namche, and talk to your doctor before you come about whether altitude medication is right for you.
October and November give the clearest skies of the year, and it's the busiest time on the trail. Spring (March to May) is warmer, the rhododendrons are out in the lower forests, and in April and May the expedition tents fill base camp, which is a sight in itself. Winter is cold, very quiet and often beautifully clear, as long as you're happy with nights of −15°C or lower at Gorak Shep. The monsoon, June to August, brings cloud, mud lower down and a lot of cancelled Lukla flights; we don't recommend it unless you're flexible.
Whatever the season, temperatures swing hard. You can walk in a T-shirt at midday below Namche and need every layer you own that same night. Mornings are almost always the clearest part of the day, which is why we start early.
You sleep in teahouses, which are family-run lodges with small twin rooms, thin walls and a dining room with a stove that's lit in the evening. Lower down many rooms have their own bathroom; higher up you'll share, and you'll be grateful for a warm sleeping bag. Lodge owners are proud of their places and most are spotless for how remote they are.
Food is better than people expect. Dal bhat (rice, lentil soup, curry and pickle, with refills) is what the guides eat, and it's the best fuel you'll find. There's also pasta, noodle soup, fried rice, potatoes in every form, porridge and eggs, and Namche's bakeries do a decent apple pie. We suggest skipping meat above Namche, because it's carried up without refrigeration.
Your meals are included. What isn't: hot drinks between meals, snacks, showers, charging and Wi-Fi. They get more expensive as you climb, simply because everything has come up on someone's back. Bring cash in rupees; cards rarely work on the trail and the ATMs in Lukla and Namche aren't reliable.
You need two permits, the Sagarmatha National Park entry permit and the local Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality fee, and we sort out both. Since 2023, most foreign trekkers in Nepal's national parks also have to walk with a licensed guide, which is included in this trip anyway.
The flight to Lukla is short, about 35 minutes, and it lands on a steep runway cut into the hillside. It also depends completely on the weather at both ends. Delays of a day happen every season, and occasionally longer. We handle rebooking, but we strongly suggest keeping one or two free days in Kathmandu before your flight home. If you run out of time, a helicopter is usually possible at extra cost.
The baggage limit is around 15 kg in total, including your daypack. Leave everything else at your Kathmandu hotel; it'll be waiting when you get back.
Two to three months of regular walking makes a real difference. The best training is simply walking uphill for hours with a pack on, and doing it on consecutive days. If you live somewhere flat, stairs and a stepper will do. Add some squats and lunges for the descents, which are hard on the knees. And wear your boots on those walks. New boots on the trail are the most common cause of blisters we see.
The Khumbu is the home of the Sherpa people, who came over the mountains from Tibet several hundred years ago. Buddhism is part of every day here. You'll pass carved mani stones and prayer wheels, walk under strings of prayer flags and hear the monks at Tengboche in the afternoon. Keep chortens and mani walls on your right as you pass, ask before photographing people, and dress with a bit of care in villages and monasteries. Many of the lodge families have climbed Everest themselves, or have fathers and uncles who did. Ask them about it.
The price is per person and goes down for larger groups (see the price box). It covers airport transfers, two hotel nights in Kathmandu, return flights to Lukla, both permits, your lodges and three meals a day on the trek, a licensed guide, porters, and their wages, food and insurance. You'll need to budget separately for international flights, your visa, travel insurance that covers trekking to 5,600 m and helicopter rescue, drinks and extras on the trail, and tips for your guide and porters at the end.
If you're short on time, you can fly out by helicopter from Gorak Shep or Pheriche after Kala Patthar instead of walking back down. You save two or three days and get a remarkable flight down the valley. If you have more time, the Gokyo Lakes loop over the Cho La is our guides' favourite extension, and fit trekkers can add Island Peak (6,165 m) after base camp. Ask us and we'll work out the extra days and cost.
We're a small team based in Kathmandu, and we plan every trek ourselves. Our guides are from the mountain regions, they're licensed and first-aid trained, and our porters carry sensible loads, are paid fairly and are insured. We keep the itinerary realistic because we'd rather you reach base camp feeling reasonably good than race up and spend the best day of the trip with a headache. If you'd like to talk it through before you book, send us a message. A real person in our office will answer, usually within a day.
You'll walk five to seven hours most days, on and off for twelve days. Two or three months of long hill walks, ideally on back-to-back days and with a daypack, is the best preparation. Wear in your boots on those walks, not on the trail.
A mild headache or a poor night's sleep is normal the first night at a new height. A headache that won't shift, vomiting, confusion or breathlessness at rest are not, and the answer is to go down. Drink three to four litres a day, skip the alcohol until Namche on the way back, and ask your doctor before the trip about altitude medication.
Midday below Namche can be T-shirt weather. Nights above 4,000 m are below freezing, and Lobuche and Gorak Shep are the coldest. Carry a warm layer and a waterproof every day, even when the morning looks perfect.
About 15 kg in total per person, usually 10 kg in the hold and 5 kg in your hand luggage. Anything you don't need can stay at your Kathmandu hotel.
Bring enough rupees from Kathmandu for drinks, snacks, showers, charging and Wi-Fi cards. There are ATMs in Lukla and Namche, but don't count on them. A power bank saves you money and hassle.
Plastic bottles are discouraged in the national park, and rightly so. Fill up with boiled or filtered water at lodges, or treat tap water with tablets or a filter.
Compulsory. It needs to cover trekking to 5,600 m, medical treatment and helicopter evacuation, and plenty of standard policies don't, so check the altitude limit. Send us your policy details before you arrive.
Most nationalities can get a tourist visa on arrival at Kathmandu airport or apply online beforehand. Your passport needs six months' validity; bring a couple of passport photos for permits.
Choose add-ons and quantities on the booking form.
Things we can add or change. Ask and we'll quote you:
This itinerary is 14 days door to door in Kathmandu, with 12 days on the trail and two of those as acclimatisation days. You can do it faster, but most of the problems we see come from people rushing.
It's strenuous, but it isn't technical. The trails are good; the hard part is walking five to seven hours a day at high altitude, and the last few days above 4,900 m. If you can hike all day and do it again the next day, you can manage it with some training.
Yes. Plenty of people do this as their first proper trek. What matters is preparing for a couple of months, walking at a steady pace and listening to your guide. If you'd like a warm-up first, Poon Hill or Langtang are good choices.
October and November for clear skies, March to May for warmer days, flowers and the expedition camps at base camp. Winter works if you don't mind the cold. We'd avoid June to August unless your dates are flexible.
Not the summit. It's hidden behind the mountain's West Shoulder. The full view is from Kala Patthar, which you climb at sunrise the morning after base camp. You also see Everest from the trail above Namche and from Tengboche.
Yes. Since 2023 most foreign trekkers in Nepal's national parks have to walk with a licensed guide. It's included in this trip.
Mild symptoms usually settle with rest, water and an extra night at the same height. If they get worse, you go down with a member of our team, and if it's serious we arrange a helicopter. That's one reason your insurance has to cover evacuation.
Days can be warm in the sun lower down. Nights above 4,000 m are below freezing, and at Gorak Shep they're usually somewhere between −5°C and −15°C in spring and autumn, colder in winter. Bring a proper down jacket; we can lend you one, and a sleeping bag, if needed.
We rebook you on the next flight and shift the plan around. This is why we ask you to keep a spare day or two in Kathmandu at the end. If time runs out, a helicopter can usually be arranged at extra cost.
In most villages, yes. Lodges sell Wi-Fi cards, and mobile data works in a lot of places, although it gets patchy near base camp. It's not a bad trek to be a bit offline for.
Most lodges have hot showers and charging for a small fee, which goes up as you climb. At the highest lodges, showers may not be possible when it's very cold. A power bank is worth bringing.
Besides flights, visa and insurance, plan for drinks and snacks on the trail, showers, charging and Wi-Fi, and tips for your guide and porters at the end. Bring cash in rupees; cards rarely work up there.
Yes. Any date works for a private trek, and we can add rest days, a helicopter back, or an extension to Gokyo or Island Peak.
For October, November, April and May, two to four months ahead is sensible, mostly because of the Lukla flights. In quieter months we can often arrange things at short notice.
Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable and the whole trek was perfectly organized. Reaching Kala Patthar at sunrise was a moment I will never forget. Highly recommend Himalayan Hiking!
From the airport pickup to the final farewell dinner, everything was seamless. The tea houses were comfortable and the guide made sure we acclimatized properly. Worth every penny.
Physically demanding but so rewarding. The team was supportive throughout, especially during the acclimatization days. Would book with them again for my next Himalayan adventure.
