Classic Everest Base Camp Trek - 21 Days

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, one of the representatives from Himalayan Trekkers will greet you and escort you to your designated hotel. You will be assisted till the hotel check-in formalities. After you have rested well and freshened up, we will have a short discussion session regarding your Classic Everest Base Camp Trek and then head for the strolling around the Thamel. Thamel is a commercial hub but you can spot some beautiful temples and stupas in the corner that reflects the blend of culture and religion with modernity. 

You will spend your second day in Kathmandu exploring its famous and most significant landmarks. You will be discovering Boudhanath Stupa first. It is just a 30-minute drive from Thamel. Boudhanath Stupa is the biggest stupa in Nepal and one of the biggest in the world in terms of size and value. It is a Tibetan Buddhism Stupa built in a dome/semi-circled shape in the center of the giant mandala. It is believed that the stupa houses the relics of Lord Buddha. The environment around the stupa is vibrant yet peaceful with monks and pilgrims making a holy circuit (kora in the Tibetan/local language) of the stupa, shops selling authentic Himalayan incense, hand-painted Thangkas, visitors lighting butter lamps, children feeding pigeons, and the monasteries holding ceremonies. 

After Boudhanath, we will drive to another UNESCO World Heritage Site known as Pashupatinath Temple. It is one of the most significant Hindu sites in Nepal. In fact, it is one of the 4 important Hindu Pilgrimage Sites in the world.  The temple complex is very big with hundreds of temples, monuments, and shrines dedicated to many Hindu gods and goddesses. However, the major temple in the complex is itself known as Pashupatinath which is only open to Hindu followers. Pashupati is also the site where almost every Hindu cremation ceremony is done in Kathmandu. You might get to discover this sight when we roam around the temple. 

We return to Thamel after exploring these important places and do last-minute shopping for your classic Everest Base Camp Trek if required. 

After breakfast, we leave Kathmandu and start the Classic Everest Base Camp Trek journey by going on a scenic drive to Bhandara. We get to experience the highway of a Himalayan nation with the flow of the sun Koshi River. The eastern Himalayas, including Ganesh Himal, Langtang Lirung, and Dorje Lakpa, are seen from a great vantage point as we travel to Lamosangu after passing through the historic Newar towns of Banepa and Dhulikhel.

Following the Sunkoshi north to Lamasangu, the route drops to Panchkhal before ascending over a ridge behind Dolalghat and continuing to Bhandara for the night. 

The trail leaves Bhandara village and descends into the lower fields before following the river until we reach Kinja Village. From the village, we climb sharply towards Lamjura Pass at 3530. After taking a short break at the pass, we resume our trek where we pass by many small settlements, farmlands, forests, and streams before we come across Sete village. 

We start the trek after breakfast. Our trail leads us to Lamjura Pass, which is the highest point between Jiri and Namche Bazaar. The route is picturesque and varied, passing through forests of rhododendron, magnolia, maple, and birch, with the distant Himalayas in the background. We then descend from the other side of the pass through a fragrant fir and hemlock woodland. The trail ascends once more to the enormous painted mani wall at the head of the valley, then ascends across a ridge to a historic point with a stunning view of Junbesi, a magnificent Sherpa settlement nestled in lovely surroundings at 2675m. We will visit the Buddhist monasteries in the village if time permits. 

Today you will catch the first sight of Everest and its surrounding peaks. With a delicious breakfast, we will follow the trail leading us to Salleri. From there we descend to Ringmo Khola and cross it to make our way to Ringmo Valley. We get to enjoy a breathtaking view of the Numbur Himal (6958m). The trail traverse past the dense forest, an ancient Buddhist Chorten, and several Mani Walls before we cross Takshindu La Pass at 301 meters. From here, we will descend gently to today’s destination Nunthala which is also known as Mani Dingma. 

Our trek begins with an easy descent through the terraced field to the Dudh Koshi River. We cross the river and follow the trail that goes through the terraces farms and small villages before we reach a Rai settlement named Jubing. Then the trail slowly climbs to Khari Khola where we will cross it via a suspension bridge. The last section of today’s trek will be a steep climb from the river to the Bupsa Danda settlement. 

We leave Bupsa after breakfast and start the trek. We walk through the dense forests and come across the Khari-La Pass at (3145m). From the pass, we make our way to Paiya and as we walk through the dense forest we might get to encounter different types of birds and monkeys. Following Paiya, the trail climbs up and down for an hour as it leads to a little tributary named Surke which is next to the Dudh Koshi at 2290 meters.

Today we make our way to the Phakding Village which falls on the common Everest Base Camp Trek route. After we leave Surke Village, we will cross the Surke Khola (river) and keep walking alongside the Dudh Koshi River. We then walk past a Mani wall, cross Chheplung, and pass by Chheplun, Thado Koshigaon, and Nurning villages. Our trail also passes by the large village of Chaurikharka, prayer flags, prayer wheels, and painted Mani walls before we finally reach Phakding. 

After breakfast, we follow the Dudh Koshi River and trek through the forest of rhododendrons and magnolias and the Sherpa villages of Benkar, Chimoa, Monjo, and Jorsolle while enjoying stunning views of the mountains in the distance. Then we will enter the Sagarmatha National Park after we cross the suspension bridge over the Dudh Koshi. After 3 more hours of trekking, we will reach today’s destination, Namche Bazaar. 

Namche is the gateway to the Everest Khumbu region and a historic commercial settlement in the region. The town offers amazing views of enormous mountains including Kongde Ri, Thamserku, Kusum Khangaru, Sundar Peak, and numerous other smaller mountains. Its handcrafted yak cheese and butter are very famous. Every Saturday, the locals set up a haat bazaar (weekend market) where traditional arts, crafts, local goods, and galleries from the Everest Region as well as Tibet are sold. 

Today is a rest day for you at Namche Bazaar, in order to help your body acclimatize to such a high altitude.

Namche Bazaar is a beautiful village with almost every facility available. You will be surprised to see how the Sherpa people here have managed to sustain their life as well by providing every basic facility to the trekkers. Apart from the facilities you get, you get a closer view of many snow-capped mountains such as Mt. Everest, Thamserku, Ama Dablam, Lhotse, Tawche, and Kwangde.

For the acclimatization purpose, we will hike to Syangboche Airstrip and to the Everest View Hotel which is the highest located hotel in the world. The hotel is surrounded by the Himalayas from each direction. Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Ama Dablam, Thamserku, Kongde, Kangtega, Kusum Kangaru, and other high are the peaks we get to relish from the hotel courtyard. We return to Namche after exploring for the night. 

After breakfast, we depart from Namche Bazaar and begin our easy hike to the Tenzing Memorial Stupa. Along the way, the side hill views are captivating and the vistas are stunning. We'll wind our way through a number of Mani walls and Chortens as we make our way down the winding slopes. We also cross a suspension bridge, at Phunki Thanga and continue on until we reach Tengboche.

Once in Tengboche, we will visit the Tengboche Monastery which is the biggest monastery in the Everest Region. The village also offers spectacular vistas of the peaks including Ama Dablam (6856m), Kangtega (6782m), Thamserku (6623m), and Taboche Peak (6542m). 

With the beautiful scenic Mountain View, we start our trek towards Dingboche. The trail begins with a gradual descent into a rich forest of birch, conifers, and rhododendron trees. We will be rewarded with breathtaking views of the various Himalayas, including Everest, Ama Dablam, Lhotse, and Makalu. The trail passes through Debuche and crosses the Imja River before taking us to the Pangboche village. 

As we go to the upper Pangboche Valley, we can see Tabuche Peak and the Pangboche Monastery in addition to the wonderful Himalayan vistas. We continue on in the direction of the Imja Valley, from where we ascend to the Dingboche village where we will spend the night. 

Today is another spare day for acclimatization as we have gained quite a high altitude. So, for the acclimatization purpose, we will hike to the popular viewpoint in the region, Chhukung Ri which lies at 5540 meters. The peak awards us with spectacular views of the peaks such as Everest (8848m), Ama Dablam (6856m), Lhotse (8414m), Nuptse (7861m), Makalu (8481m), Island Peak (6189m), and Baruntse (7129m) along with the Imja valley and icy glaciers. After we spend a good time at Chhukung Peak, we return to Dingboche retracing the route.

We leave Dingboche after breakfast to make our way toward Lobuche. We will pass by the large and lush valley which offers stunning views of the peaks of Cholatse and Tawache. We will turn right from the valley and encounter a steep ascent to stand at the base of the Khumbu Glacier, which is the biggest glacier in Nepal. We eat our lunch at a teahouse in Duglha before we go through the glacier's final moraine on a zigzagging path. Along the way, we will see many prayers flag, Mani walls, Stupas, and the mesmerizing view of Ama Dablam, Pokalde, Kongma-Tse, Nuptse, Pumori, Taboche, and Lobuche. 

Once in Lobuche, we will rest at the teahouse, explore the village and interact with the locals while enjoying the mesmerizing surrounding views. 

We start our trek early in the morning on the trail leading us to Gorakshep. We walk by the left bank of the Khumbu Glacier then walk past the Lobuche Glacier before we come across the Changri Glacier. After a couple of hours, we reach Gorakshep where we will have lunch and leave our belongings for the trek to Everest Base Camp. 

The trail to the base camp is a rocky moraine, with amazing views of snow peaks, glaciers, and icebergs. Once you reach here you will be proud of yourself for conquering the Base Camp of the World's highest peak. The extraordinary and incredible view is an additional advantage in your journey to the Base Camp. While Base Camp does not have a view of Mount Everest, it does have a spectacular view of the Khumbu Icefall and is a vibrant camp during the Everest expedition season. After Everest Base Camp, we will trek back to Gorakshep to spend the night at a tea house.

We start our walk very early today as we will be hiking to Kalapatthar for the sunrise view and the Himalayas and the surroundings during the sun rising time. It is an almost steady ascent and takes around 2-3 hours to reach Kalapatthar from Gorakshep. Once we are at the top, we can see a large number of flying prayer flags and, of course, the spectacular Everest along with Pumori, Khumbutse, Nuptse, Lhotse, Lingtren, Changtse, etc. backdrop. 

Following our wonderful minutes spent admiring the panoramic views of the surrounding pinnacles and landscapes at Kalapatthar, we will descend the same trail through Gorekshep and have our breakfast. Then we continue the trek for the remainder of the day, which will end in Pheriche. 

As we have successfully reached our ultimate destination, the time to return has come now. We start to descend after breakfast in Pheriche with the goal to reach Namche Bazaar today. En route, we will pass by Pangboche where we will pay our visit to Pangboche Monastery which is believed to be the oldest in the region built in the 16th century. Then, we make it to Tengboche and continue our descent to Namche Bazaar via, Phunki Tenga, Mong, Sanasa, and Khyangjuma. We celebrate our success at the teahouse in Namche. 

Today is the last trekking day of our Classic Everest Base Camp Trek. After breakfast in Namche, we start our downhill walk through a pine forest. We will cross the suspension bridge over the Dudh Koshi River and continue the trek down the river until we reach Jorsalle. We eat our lunch at Phakding and keep going through the suspension bridges, painted Mani walls, and prayer wheels until Lukla. 

We bid farewell to Everest Region, and board a scenic 30 minutes flight to Kathmandu. Once in Kathmandu, it is a free day on your own to explore, take rest, or visit a spa and massage center to get relief from pain.
In the evening, we will gather for a farewell dinner where we will share our experiences, and enjoy our authentic Nepali dinner and a cultural program. 

As this day is marked as the last day in the package, we will transfer you to the airport 3 hours prior to your scheduled flight back to your home country or onward destination.