Island Peak Climbing - 17 Days

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, one of the representatives from Himalayan Trekkers will welcome you and escort you to your designated hotel. After the check-in formalities, you can take a brief rest before we start our short discussion regarding the Island Peak Climbing. After all those, you can opt. to stroll around the streets of Thamel which is the biggest commercial/tourist neighborhood in Kathmandu. The streets are lined with trekking/climbing gear shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, pubs, clubs, hotels, handicraft shops, etc. You can also see small temples, stupas, and monuments occasionally on the corners of Thamel. 

After breakfast, we will start your full-day guided sightseeing of Kathmandu from Boudhanath Stupa. It is one of the seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kathmandu valley that houses the relics of Lord Buddha. The dome-shaped semicircle stupa with the golden pinnacle and giant Buddha eyes in every direction sits on a giant Mandala. Boudhanath represents Tibetan Buddhism; even that particular area is called “the little Tibet”. This biggest stupa in the county is flocked by thousands of local and international visitors including pilgrims. 

Then, we will visit Pashupatinath Temple which is one of the four most revered Hindu sites in the world. The temple complex sits on the bank of the holy Bagmati River and the main temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The main temple is restricted to non-Hindus but there are more than a hundred other temples and monuments there to explore. You can also witness the open-air cremation ceremony, interact with the colored Jogi babas, and take pictures of the mischievous monkeys there. 

Following the tour, there will be a briefing on the trip, an introduction to the climbing guide, and a last check of the climbing gear for the trek to ensure that everyone is ready for the thrilling journey that lies ahead.

We will drive to the airport after an early-morning breakfast to catch the 35-minute flight to Lukla. You will have the opportunity to enjoy the vistas of the Himalayan mountain ranges, including Cho Oyu and Everest.

We will begin our Island Peak Trek after we get to Lukla. The goal for today is Phakding village, a relatively short 3-hour stroll that offers breathtaking views of the surrounding countryside and Himalayan peaks like Kusum Kanguru. The rest of the day can be spent exploring the hamlet and mingling with the residents.

After breakfast, we cross the Dudh-Koshi River to begin the hike. In a few hours, we will arrive in the village of Monjo with a few ups and downs. We will then proceed to the Jorsalle village after completing the necessary paperwork at the office gate of the Sagarmatha National Park. After a further 4-hour walk from here, where we will have lunch, we will arrive at the well-known Namche Bazaar. There are some beautiful mountain views along the route from Jorsalle to Namche, including Kwande Peak, Kusum Kanguru, and Mount Everest. Mountains like Nuptse, Lhotse, and Taweche Peak are also visible from some locations.

You get the day off to relax and adjust to the higher altitude before continuing your journey. We can spend the day on various activities and side trips. The most well-liked day trip from Namche is the hike to Syangboche and the Everest View Hotel. The Everest View Hotel is the tallest hotel in the world, with the Himalayas on all sides. Visits to the nearby Khumjung Village and Kunde Village, where you can see the Yeti Skull and Hillary Hospital and School, are another well-liked side trip from here. Or, if you're motivated and interested, you can combine these two excursions into one.

After spending a day off, we again continue with our trek. Today we trek to Tengboche, a beautiful village located at 3,867 meters. The village offers an amazing panoramic 360-degree view of the Himalayan peaks such as Mount Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Ama Dablam, and Thamserku. The largest and most famous monastery in the Everest region, Tengboche Monastery is the prime highlight of the village.

The trail begins with a gradual descent into a rich forest of birch, conifers, and rhododendron trees. As we will be rewarded with breathtaking views of the various Himalayas, including Everest, Ama Dablam, Lhotse, and Makalu, today's walk is also regarded as the best day on the Everest journey.
Before leading us to the Pangboche village, our trek route passes through Debuche and crosses the Imja River. As we go to the upper Pangboche Valley, we can see Tabuche Peak and the Pangboche Monastery in addition to the better 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.

It's only a short walk today. Only about two hours will take us to walk from Dingboche to Chhukung. Our journey begins and ends in delightful hilly scenery with stone-walled meadows. We move into the Imja Valley, where Lhotse and Ama Dablam may be seen in stunning detail. We will eventually reach Bibre, a camp for yak herders, when we travel further. Beautiful landscapes may be found on the step rock and snow-covered south face of the pyramidal Imja Tse. Up ahead, the trail is traversed by chilly streams. We finally arrive in Chhukung after a 30-minute hike from Bibre.

We will reach one step closer to our destination today. After walking for 5 hours from Chhukung, we reach the Base camp (5150m) of Island Peak. We rest for the remainder of the day to acclimatize to the higher altitude. 

Acclimatization & Climbing Preparation Day at the Base Camp. 

Finally, the day we have most awaited has come, climbing Island Peak. We start very early in the morning as we have to reach the top by noon because, after the afternoon, there may be high winds that will make climbing more challenging. The ascent will be somewhat difficult as we have to climb through the steep and uneven terrain. And after a lot of time pushing and pulling, we will finally reach the Island Peak Summit. 

We will spend a significant amount of time on the peak taking in and appreciating the spectacular scenery and adventure before returning to the base camp. From the base camp, we will further walk down to Chhukung for the night. 

Note: If you feel like spending the night at the base camp, we will stay there and move forward the next day. 

A spare/contingency day in case of bad weather or any other factors affecting the Island Peak summit the other day.

With the immense pleasure of conquering the Island Peak, we retrace back our route to reach Tengboche. Today, we celebrate our success in climbing Island Peak once we reach the village.

After morning breakfast, we follow the same route back down towards the Imja Khola to Monjo. 

From Monjo, our trail makes a steep descent towards the suspension bridge over the Dudh Koshi River. From here, we walk on a leveled trail until we reach Lukla.

It is time to say goodbye to Sagarmatha Region and enter Bagmati Region. After breakfast at the lodge in Lukla, we take a 40 minutes scenic flight to Kathmandu. We will transfer you to your hotel to freshen up. You can have a long spa day to get rid of your tiredness from the trek. Then, in the evening we offer you a complimentary dinner from our side.

After breakfast or 3 hours prior to your scheduled flight to your home country or onward destination, we will transfer you to the airport and bid farewell.