DAY 2 - KATHMANDU: PREPARATION

Elevation: 1,350 m/4,428 ft
Accommodation: Local hotel

After breakfast, you can enjoy the rest of the morning at your leisure or some sightseeing around the vicinity. We will meet in the early afternoon to review the gears you have brought to ensure that they are suitable and in a perfect condition for the coming trip. After which, you can spend the day stocking up any last minutes items you need on the trek around Thamel and then we will turn in early in advance of a big day tomorrow.

DAY 3 - KATHMANDU TO LUKLA & TREK TO PHAKDING

Elevation: 2,800 m/9184 ft (Lukla) & 2,652 m/8,698 ft (Phakding)
Flight time: 35 mins
Walking Distance: 8 km (3 to 4 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

After an early breakfast, we will take a short domestic flight to Lukla – the gateway to Everest. Our flight will land on Tenzing-Hillary Airport which is widely known as the World’s most dangerous airport, the surrounding terrain, thin air, highly changeable weather and the airport’s short, sloping runway make it one of the most challenging landings in the world.

After introducing you to the rest of the crew, we will kick off the trek with an easy walk through Chaurikharka village and descent towards Dudhkoshi Ghat where you’ll likely encounter fellow trekkers, locals, and yaks. The trail follows the bank of the Dudhkoshi River until Phakding, where we will be staying for the night to acclimatize. Having an easy first day is intentional, allowing you time to get used to the higher elevation so enjoy your free time in Phakding, a popular stopping point. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 4 - PHAKDING TO NAMCHE BAZAAR

Elevation: 3,440 m/11,283 ft
Walking Distance: 10 – 12 km (5 to 6 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

Our destination today will be Namche Bazaar, the biggest Sherpa village in Nepal. This is a challenging day as you’ll start to feel the altitude. The trail also consists of a few high suspension bridges over the Dudh Kosi River and after trekking through the beautiful pine forest to Monjo, we will approach the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park which was set-up to protect and preserve the fragile mountain environment for a brief permit check. The trail gets steeper along the way, and if the weather is clear, you will get the first glimpses of Mount Everest. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 5 - NAMCHE BAZAAR - DAY HIKE (KHUNDE/KHUMJUNG AND EVEREST VIEW HOTEL)

Elevation: 3,440 m/11,283 ft
Accommodation: Tea house

Today is a rest day but if you choose to do a hike, we will leave early for the hike up to the Everest View Hotel about an hour’s hike above Namche Bazaar. It offers a fantastic panorama view of the Himalayas and Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam. After enjoying the view and relaxing with a hot coffee we continue ahead to the traditional Sherpa villages of Khunde and Khumjung. If you’re interested, we will visit Khumjung Monastery which houses the scalp of what’s said to be a Yeti. Leaving the villages, we circle back to Namche via the small airstrip at Shyangboche. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 6 - NAMCHE BAZAAR TO PHORTSE

Elevation: 3,800 m/12,540 ft
Walking Distance: 6 – 7 km (5 to 6 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

Today, we skip the traditional Base Camp trail and explore the lower section of Gokyo valley. We will head towards the east to Kyanjuma where we will stop for tea before the ascent of the fabulous ridge to Mong-la. Our destination for the day will be Phortse village; a less explored Sherpa village in the Khumbu region and the terraced village formation of Phortse is one-of-its-kind in Khumbu. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 7 - PHORTSE TO DINGBOCHE

Elevation: 4,410 m/14,470 ft
Walking Distance: 9.5 km (5 to 6 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

Leaving Phortse, we head up to the main route to Everest Base Camp from Phortse Tenga to Dingboche with an altitude gain of 730 meters. The trekking trail however is a spectacular one, said to be one of the most beautiful trekking trails with Ama Dablam edged ever closer to you. We will pass by Pangboche village and stop by the beautiful Somare village for lunch before continuing our ascent to our destination of the day – Dingboche. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 8 - DINGBOCHE - DAY HIKE (SURROUNDING VALLEYS OF CHHUKANG AND IMJA)

Elevation: 4,410 m/14,470 ft
Accommodation: Tea house

After a strenuous few days of continuous climbing, today is our chance to rest up before the last leg of our adventure! Or if you’re up for it, try an optional acclimatization hike and savor a full day of exploring Dingboche and the surrounding valleys of Chhukung and Imja, the latter of which link to Island Peak. Taking the trek to the valleys will pay off with rewarding views! Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 9 - DINGBOCHE TO LOBUCHE

Elevation: 4,940 m/16,210 ft
Walking Distance: 8.4 km (4 to 5 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

After a day of rest, we will head back to the main trail. You will also start to notice that the trek gradually becoming more challenging due to high altitude. Our climb continues through the wide valley, just beneath the snow-capped peaks of Cholatse and Tawache, looming impressively. You’ll notice that the landscape becomes more icy and remote, with sparser habitation.

We’ll pass Dungla, but not before a tough, steep walk to the top of a high hill. You’ll find many stone cairns along the top of the path, those are the memorial Stupas dedicated to the climbers and trekkers who lost their lives to Everest over the years. The route continues gently along the slope of the Khumbu glacier – the tallest glacier in the world to a small settlement, Lobuche. From here, you will be able to see spectacular views of Lobuche, Pumari and the Nuptse. Prepare for a cold night as we are high above sea level!

DAY 10 - LOBUCHE TO GOREKSHEP & EVEREST BASE CAMP

Elevation: 5180 m/16,994 ft (Gorekshep) & 5364 m/17,598 ft (EBC)
Walking Distance: 15 km (6 to 8 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

At the crack of dawn, we will leave Lobuche and along the way we’ll get a chance to catch the amazing view of the sun rises upon the summits of the Himalayan mountains. We’ll traverse the Khumbu Glacier on our way to Gorakshep; a dry, sandy lake bed. After a quick lunch, we’ll climb along the Khumbu Glacier at a slow but steady pace to reach Everest Base Camp. The trail is after all on a glacier and snow capped rocks hence it is harder, involving rocky dunes and moraine, formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris.

At the Base Camp, during Spring Everest Expedition season, you’ll have the chance to meet climbers attempting to scale the mountain’s summit. After taking some time to admire your surroundings, we’ll make our way back down to Gorakshep, where you’ll spend the night. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 11 - HIKE KALA PATTHAR & TREK TO CHUKHUNG

Elevation: 5,555 m/18,208 ft (Kala Patthar ), 4,730 m/15,580 ft (Chukhung)
Walking Distance: 9.6 km (5 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

The hike to Kala Pathar will start before dawn in the bid to catch the stunning sunrise view upon the magnificent Himalayas mountain range. The day’s first light will illuminate your spectacular view of Nuptse, Changtse and Lhotse and you’ll be face-to-face with the highest mountaintop in the world! After which, it’s back to Gorekshep for breakfast and descend the mountain to Dingboche where we will leave the main Everest Base Camp Trail and head towards Chukhung – the last settlement before Island Peak (6,189 m). It’s another 5km to Chukhung where we spend the night. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 12 - CHUKHUNG TO ISLAND PEAK BASE CAMP, CLIMBING TRAINING

Elevation: 5,200 m/17,060 ft 
Walking Distance: 5 km (3 to 4 hours) 
Accommodation: Camping

After a relatively short 3 – 4 hours hike, we will arrive at Island Peak Base Camp where we’ll start our pre-climb training; we’ll demonstrate peak climbing techniques and the proper ways of using the different climbing gears. After an early dinner, rest up and we push for the summit at midnight! Overnight stay in Camp.

DAY 13 - SUMMIT ISLAND PEAK, BACK TO CHUKHUNG

Elevation:  6,189 m/20,305 ft (Island Peak), 4,730 m/ 15,518 ft (Chukhung)
Walking Distance: 10 km (12 to 14 hours) 
Accommodation: Tea house

Today’s our adventure day! Our summit push will start at midnight while we make our way up scaling the rocky trail. The trail is sandy initially but soon the path turns to grass before becoming boulder strewn. Eventually, it leads to an exhilarating and exposed traverse onto the snout of the summit glacier. Prepare to put our climbing skills to use for the last bit of our epic climb! The summit climb is no doubt tough and exhausting but the feeling of standing on top of Island Peak overlooking the unparalleled views of the entire Himalayas, you’ll never be more proud of yourself for your own incredible achievement. After enjoying the triumphant time at the summit, we make our way down back to Chukhung. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 14 - CHUKHUNG TO TENGBOCHE

Elevation: 3,875 m/12,787 ft
Walking Distance: 14 km (4 to 5 hours) 
Accommodation: Tea house

From now on, our pace will be a lot quicker as we descend, and the walking gets easier. We make our way down the mountain and pass through several beautiful Sherpa villages to Tengboche. At Tengboche, we will stop and visit the most active monastery in Khumbu region and if you would like you can also light a butter lamp for an experience. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 15 - TENGBOCHE TO NAMCHE BAZAAR

Elevation: 3,440 m/11,283 ft 
Walking Distance: 10 km (3 to 4 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

After a night rest at Tengboche, we’ll descend the bridge over the Dudh Koshi to Phunki Tenga, where you can check out the Buddhist prayer wheels powered by water and we’ll be in Namche by late afternoon. Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 16 - NAMCHE TO PHAKDING TO LUKLA

Elevation: 2,800 m/9,184 ft
Walking Distance: 16 km (6 to 7 hours)
Accommodation: Tea house

Today’s trail is a fairly easy one and it also marks our final day of trekking. We trek along Dudhi Koshi River toward the Hillary Suspension Bridge and then pass through several local villages to Lukla, where we’ll spend our last night in the mountains. A farewell party will be held with all the trekking crew: Thanks to great teamwork and perseverance, you made it! Overnight stay in Tea house.

DAY 17 - LUKLA TO KATHMANDU

Elevation: 1,350 m/4,428 ft
Flight time: 35 mins
Accommodation: Local hotel

After spending the last morning in the mountains, we’ll hop on a brief flight from Lukla to Kathmandu, where your journey both began and ends. You’ll be transferred to your hotel upon landing and enjoy the rest of the afternoon and evening at your leisure to catch up on your much-needed rest. Otherwise, you have the entire city at your fingertips for sightseeing before you depart tomorrow. Your conquest of the Himalayas is complete! We’ll meet up one last time for a celebratory dinner at one of the town’s finest Nepalese restaurants.

DAY 18 - KATHMANDU: DEPARTURE DAY

It’s your last day in Nepal! Grab some breakfast and take in some last-minute shopping in Kathmandu before we’ll say our goodbyes and bid you farewell. We’ll make sure you arrive at the Airport with plenty time before your flight home and have everything you need to leave well!

NOTE: The above route and walking hours serve as a guide only. This itinerary may change at any time due to weather, trail conditions or other reason.

If  you have extra days after the trek and would like to extend your trip?

Let us know and we will be able to help you to arrange day tours around the city or even a 3-day trip to Chitwan for safari tour.

KATHMANDU (CONTINGENCY DAY)
As mountainous weather is often unpredictable, domestic flights to and from Lukla are easily affected by any minor signs of bad weather. We advise all our adventurers to factor in at least 1 or preferably 2 days of contingency days at the end of their trip. Moreover, there are a lot of interesting places to visit in Kathmandu at your leisure.