8 Days Everest Base Camp Trek

Experience the wonder of Mount Everest, the friendliness of the Sherpa people, the culture of Tibetan Buddhism, and the thrill of flying by helicopter to Everest Base Camp, all within six days. 

On this tour, you experience all the highlights of the normal 12-day Everest Base Camp trek without so much body stress.  There is plenty of trekking included in this short trip for those who love to trek but perhaps do not have enough time to complete the full circuit. 

With an average of 5 hours hiking per day, a good level of fitness is still required but if you generally hike, gym, and are pretty active in your everyday life this could be just right for you. 

There is a wonderful helicopter tour of the base camp and the amazing viewpoint of Everest to complete the adventure.  Then a relaxing helicopter ride back to Kathmandu to round it off.  

We also include two two-night stays in Kathmandu, one before and one after the trip. 

Highlights of the 8-Day Everest Base Camp Trek

• Fly into the high-altitude airport at Lukla, named after the first successful summiteers: the Hillary Tenzing Airport.  Quite an experience all by itself.
• Meet wonderful Sherpa people, who could be your porters, lodge owners, villagers working in their fields, or yak herders.
• Feel a sense of achievement when you complete this tailored trek.
• Live in the mountains and soak up their majesty and mystery.
• Learn something about Buddhism at Tengboche Monastery. 
• Stand on the viewpoint of Everest, which is over 5,000m high with the ultimate close-up views of the mountain.
• Learn the names of other iconic mountains through your guide.
• See glaciers, the famous Khumbu Ice Falls, and Everest Base Camp. 
• Fly back to Kathmandu by helicopter with views of Everest, the Himalayas, the Himalayan foothills, and the Kathmandu Valley.

A Typical Day on the 8-Day Base Camp Trek

Aside from the final day when you will be traveling by helicopter, days on the Everest trails follow a simple routine.  Wake up early, eat breakfast in the lodge (known as a teahouse on the trails), and set off.  It is important to try and eat a good breakfast even if you don’t normally tuck into porridge, bread, and eggs at 7 a.m.  Food is fuel and water is life on the trek, so eat up.  Having a few snacks in your day pack also helps!

Your guide will have explained the night before the route you are taking and what to expect on the trail.  The porters will set off ahead of you (yes, these amazing people walk fast) and you and your guide can set off at a pace right for your body.  Don’t forget to stop to take in the beauty of your surroundings.  

Lunch is taken on the trail itself at a small tea shop. Usually, it is rice or noodles.  This is where your snacks might come in handy.  

On reaching your lodge for the night it’s a good idea to put your order in for dinner before going off to wash up.  Great conversation can be had around the dinner table with your fellow trekkers and those of other groups, but everyone generally goes to bed very early. 

Important Notes for the 8-Day EBC Trek

As with all treks in the Everest Region, there are some things you need to know before you go. 

• It is unusual for helicopters to be delayed by bad weather but delays can occur when travelling by fixed-wing plans due to fluctuations in the weather.  Please bear with us, we cannot change the weather!  We suggest you book your international flight out of Nepal only one, two, or even three days after your planned return to Kathmandu.  
• You may have heard that flights to Lukla in the Everest Region now leave from the far east of Nepal.  This means a four-hour road journey from Kathmandu in the early morning hours in order to board your plane at 6 a.m. 
• We realize this is not ideal, but again we are unable to change this.  In the near future, we anticipate hotels will be built in this area, making life easier.  Meantime, please take the road trip as part of the overall adventure of the Himalayas!
• We need a copy of each passenger’s passport, when you book your trip, so we can purchase the domestic flight tickets. 
• Porters are included in the price of your trip and it is normal for one porter to carry the bags of two trekkers.  These guys are amazing but are not superhuman so please keep your bag under 10kg in weight.  We will provide you with a bag best suited for being carried by the porter. 
• In your day pack you should carry only what you need for that day: medications, water, snacks, sun cream, camera, and/or phone.  
• Airlines have a weight limit of 15kg per person so please keep the weight down.  
• Although meals on the trek are included in the cost, the price does not cover cold drinks, extra hot drinks, extra food or snacks, or alcohol.  It also doesn’t cover hot showers, charging your phone, etc., for which the lodge will charge extra. 
• Hot showers are around $3 to $5 and battery charging is $1 to $3. You will need to pay for these services, and extra food/drink, in rupees. 
• Please exchange your foreign currency in Kathmandu.  We suggest you bring around $20 to $30 worth of rupees per day.  Beer costs Nrs 700 to Nrs 1,000, cold drinks around Nrs 400 per bottle, and in the lower settlements, you may find a café latte at around Rs400.  Calculate and change money before setting off. 
• Alcohol affects your hydration level which can heighten the risk of altitude sickness.  Stick to cold drinks, tea or coffee, and plenty of water. 
• If you need more sugar there is a bakery in Dingboche and Namche. 
• You can buy a Wi-Fi card in Lukla or Namche Bazaar http://everestlink.com.np/  for $25.  10 or 20 GB of data for 30 days in the Everest Region only. The strength of the signal is not guaranteed! 
• The weather often changes quickly in the mountains, so please follow the advice of your guide if there are delays or changes to plans.  
• Drones are not permitted.
• Obtain your insurance at home to cover trekking above 5,000m.