Handy guide to Everest Base Camp Trek in Nepal

Everest Base Camp is the most popular trek in the world. The trekking route to Everest Base Camp is very well marked and well facilitated. Many companies organise Everest Base Camp trek, however this trek can be attempted as a self-supported trek or solo trek if you are an experienced trekker. 

Route to Everest Base Camp:

The 12-day itinerary is generally the standard route followed for trekking to Everest Base Camp. This route ensures you gain height gradually to reduce the chances altitude sickness.

Day 01: Fly to Lukla (2800m) and Trek to Phakding (2660m) - 6 kms, 3 hours.
Day 02: Trek to Namche Bazaar (3440m) - 13 kms, 7 hours.
Day 03: Rest and acclimatization day at Namche Bazaar.
Day 04: Trek to Tengboche (3870m) - 11 kms, 6 hours
Day 05: Trek to Pheriche (4200m) or Dingboche (4410m) - 9kms, 5 hours.
Day 06: Rest and acclimatization day at Pheriche / Dingboche.
Day 07: Trek to Lobuche (4910m), 7 kms, 5 hours.
Day 08: Trek to Gorakshep (5160m) - 4.3 kms, 3 hours
              Trek to EBC (5364m) - 3.7 kms, 2 hours and back to Gorakhshep 1 hours
Day 09: Steep ascend to Kalapatthar (5555m) - 2.4 kms, 2 hours and back to Gorakhshep 1 hour,
              Trek to Pheriche / Dingboche - 11.3 kms, 5 hours.
Day 10: Trek to Namche Bazar (3440m) - 20 kms, 7 hours.
Day 11: Trek to Lukla (2800m) - 19 kms, 8 hours
Day 12: Fly from Lukla to Kathmandu

However, if you are already acclimatised (if you have done another high altitude trek just before attempting EBC), you can cut down on the acclimatisation days and can walk longer hours in the initial days. You can complete the trek in 5-6 days too, depending on your fitness, but be very careful when you choose to do this.

Also, keep 2-3 days extra when you plan Everest Base Camp Trek, as the flights to and fro Lukla are subject to weather conditions. The flights get delayed and cancelled very frequently.

Route to Everest Base Camp

Difficulty Level of Everest Base Camp Trek

Difficult. The maximum height on this trek is 5360m for EBC and 5555m for Kala Patthar. These heights are not to be taken light. EBC is a long route and the hike to Kala Patthar is quite steep.
I would not recommend EBC trek for first time trekkers. Ideally one should have experienced 4500m to 5000m high-altitude treks before attempting Everest Base Camp.

Steep hike to Kala Patthar at 5555m

Physical fitness required for Everest Base Camp Trek

Everest Base Camp Trek can get very exhaustive even for the seasoned trekkers, as one needs to walk very long distances everyday. Each day will take you through continuous ascends and descends before you reach your destination for the day. 
It is advisable to follow regular workout routines including heavy cardio and strengthening for 1-2 months before the trek.

Best time to trek to Everest Base Camp

April-May and October-November is considered to be the prime trekking season for EBC when the skies are generally clear and the views are fantastic.
If you want to avoid the crowd, you can consider trekking in late March, early June and early December. The weather might not be the best then, but it could be the best bet if you want to enjoy your "ME" time in the mountains.

Candid moments with the mountains on way to Lobuche, Everest Base Camp trek

Accommodation on Everest Base Camp Trek

There are countless tea houses on the EBC route. You will find tea houses at intermediate locations too. You can conveniently walk till your body allows you to, and the moment you want to stop, you should be able to find a tea house around. 
The tea houses have single and double rooms with shared toilets and shower rooms and are available for NPR 250-500. These cheap rates come with a condition that you need to buy your meals in their restaurant. If you don't, they can charge you higher. 
The tea houses have their own charges for hot shower, drinking water, wi-fi and charging and are very strict about all of it.

Amongst all these tea houses, there exists a chain of Lodges "Everest INN - Your Home in the Himalaya". They are currently operational in Lukla (Shangri-La), Phakding (Sherpa Eco-Home), Namche Bazaar (Hotel Everest) and Pheriche (White Yak) and are trying to mark their presence at other locations too. I found Everest INN to be the best lodges on the entire route as they lived upto their tagline of "Your Home in the Himalaya".

• They don't charge extra for hot shower, drinking water and charging the gadgets.
• The wi-fi rates are very nominal compared to the other lodges.
• They provide fresh and healthy food with good portion size. It is a very important criteria as many restaurants on EBC disregard the fact that trekkers need fresh food to keep in good health. I had seen many trekkers falling ill due to stale food they had taken on their way. 
• More importantly, the hosts and managers at these lodges welcome you with the widest smiles and actually make you feel at home. They go out of their way to cater to the need of their clients - a very rare attitude on the EBC route.
• Sherpa Eco-Home at Phakding has charging points even in the room, Hotel Everest at Namche Bazaar has attached toilets, White Yak at Pheriche has a sun-room which keeps you warm in the low temperatures, Shangri-La at Lukla is located right in front of the runway which gives you fantastic views of the flights landing and taking off.

Everest Inn - White Yak Lodge & Restaurant with sun room, Pheriche

Everest Inn - Room with attached toilet at Hotel Everest, Namche Bazaar

Food at tea houses on Everest Base Camp Trek

This could be one of the treks where it might get difficult for you to lose calories even when you walk more than 100 kms. The tea houses on Everest Base Camp route have proper restaurants with multi cuisine menus menus offer burgers, pizzas, parathas, daal bhat, macaroni, rosti, steaks, sizzlers, chowmein, choupsey, soups, salads and desserts on their menu.
I would suggest to avoid breads and meat after Namche Bazaar, as the higher altitudes don't have fresh supply of these items and the stale food can harm your health when digestion is anyways difficult at these altitudes.

Everest Inn - Restaurant at Sherpa Eco Home, Phakding

Evererst Inn - Sample menu at Hotel Everest, Namche Bazaar

Everest Inn - Nepali Breakfast Set at Hotel Everest, Namche Bazaar

Water on Everest Base Camp Trek

Tap water on Everest Base Camp is potable at least for the locals and Indians. However, you can buy filtered water for NPR 100-150 per litre and hot water for NPR 250-300 per litre from the tea houses. Mineral water bottles are equally expensive. Other option is to carry your own water filter and use the tap water. There are water purifying tablets too that can be carried.
I used the normal tap water and it was totally fine for my body.

Alcohol on Everest Base Camp Trek

Alcohol, specially beer, is available on the entire route on Everest Base Camp Trek. There are a lot of tempting pubs serving happy hours at Lukla and Namche Bazaar. The world's highest Irish Pub is at Namche Bazaar at the height of 3440m. I would strongly suggest you to celebrate only on your way back. 

Worlds highest Irish Pub at Namche Bazaar, Everest Base Camp Trek

Phone and internet connectivity on Everest Base Camp Trek

Ncell network has good connectivity on the EBC route. You get signal and 3g connectivity till Pangboche. Ncell also works at Gorakshep, but this connection isn't very reliable.
Almost all the tea houses have wi-fi connectivity. They can charge you anything between NPR 200-500 for an hour. From Tengboche onwards Everest Link is the only internet connection available. This connection is very expensive, you need to buy wi-fi prepaid cards costing NPR 600 for 200MB data. You can use this card on the entire route as long as your data lasts, but only on 1 device.

Buying trekking gears for Everest Base Camp Trek

Thamel in Kathmandu has huge market for buying and renting trekking gears. You will be able to select from wide range of  local to branded gears. Lukla and Namche Bazaar also have lot of shops selling from where you can buy and rent trekking gears at quite high rates. You would want to buy from there only in case of emergencies.

​Permits required for Everest Base Camp Trek

You need 2 permits for trekking to Everest Base Camp:
1. Trekkers Information Management System (TIMS Card)
  TIMS cards can be obtained from the offices of Nepal Tourism Board in Kathmandu and Pokhara, TAAN Secretariat at Maligaon and TAAN Pokhara Secretariat in Pokhara. You need passport and 2 photographs. TIMS Card fees: Group trekker: NPR 1000  and Free individual trekker: NPR 2000
For SAARC countries: Group trekker: NPR 300  and Free individual trekker: NPR 600

2. Sagarmatha National Park permit:
    This permit can be obtained from the entrance point of the National park at Monjo.
Sagarmatha National Park fees: NPR 3390 per person per entry
For SAARC countries: NPR 1500 per person per entry
​
If you are trekking with any agency, they'll arrange these permits for you.

AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) on Everest Base Camp

EBC trek is attempted by lot of people as it is the most popular trekking route in the world. Since it is commercialised and well facilitated trek, it is easy to attempt. But the altitude of Everest Base Camp (5300m) and Kala Patthar (5555m) needs to be taken seriously as lot of people tend to get hit with AMS on this route. The flat desert land at Gorakshep also calls for serious headache and AMS symptoms as well. 
It is advisable to drink lot of water, eat healthy food, avoid junk food and alcohol, take proper rest on the trek and spend a couple of days acclimatising at the mentioned points on the route. Even then if you get hit with AMS, the only solution is to descend to lower altitudes ASAP. Many people take AMS light and take it to their ego to complete the trek and put their life at risk. Chopper evacuation is available at most of the places on the route, but it is subject to weather conditions. Always listen to your body on high altitude treks and if you feel discomfort, analyse the symptoms and take appropriate action.

Rescue operation being carried out at Gorakshep

My take on solo trek to Everest Base Camp

The trail is broad and well marked. There are ample of tea houses on the way even between the stop points mentioned on the regular route. Food, water, shelter, directions and other facilities are so easily available on this route that it's very easy to trek all by yourself. All you need to carry is your clothes and water. You can carry only 2 pairs of clothes and wash them at the tea houses. 
However, I would suggest to do this trek solo if and only if you have prior high-altitude trekking experience. Only if you understand the symptoms and seriousness of AMS, only if you can listen to your body and can totally rely on yourself in the worst situations. Don't expect the locals to help you on your way, everything is way too commercialised there. 

Trekking with a company or an agency has many benefits over solo trekking:
1. They provide you with travel insurance that can be very helpful in case of rescue operations. (Please make sure that the company you are trekking with provides you with one).
2. They have tie ups with airlines and in case of flight cancellations at Lukla, they can smoothly help you for alternative flights in the coming days. If you are trekking alone, you need to carry this burden on your head all the time, be at the airport for first-come-first-serve boarding in case of rescheduling.
3. The experienced guides can help you in case of health issues or natural calamities.
4. Negligence can lead to spending more on solo trek than what the companies would charge. But make sure you go in smaller groups. Treks are enjoyed the best when the group size is small (8-10).
5. You don't need to take the overhead of arranging the permits as they would take care of it.

Whichever option you choose, make sure you are safe and totally ready for that.

Video showing entire route of Everest Base Camp & Kala Patthar

P.S. I had trekked with Explore Himalaya and stayed in the Everest Inn Lodges at Lukla, Phakding, Namche Bazaar and Pheriche.

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