Everest Base Camp Heli Return Trek

After your arrival at Tribhuwan International Airport in medieval and modernized Kathmandu, you will be warmly greeted by our office representative and transferred to the hotel. After check-in and some refreshments, our senior sherpa guide will come to meet you and give you a brief orientation about Everest Base Camp Heli Return Trek.

You can then go for a stroll down the street to get familiar with the neighbourhood, have supper and go to bed. This is your first overnight in the valley of temples and cows, probably the most in the world.

A private vehicle will pick you up this morning from your hotel for an excellent sightseeing tour around the heritage sites in Kathmandu. Today, you’ll visit UNESCO-listed heritage sites in Kathmandu that include Kathmandu Durbar Square, Swayambhunath stupa, Pashupatinath temple, and Boudhanath stupa. In the evening, you’ll be dropped off at your hotel in Kathmandu.

A thrilling scenic flight to Lukla and a landing on a steep mountain runway brings us to the start of our trek at the village of Lukla [2850m]. After meeting the supporting crew, we head up the Dudh Kosi Valley on a well-marked trail and then stay overnight in Phakding.

After a good breakfast at Phakding, we set out for the mountain junction town of Namche; we cross and re-cross the river on high airy suspension bridges. Beyond Monjo is the entrance to the Sagarmatha National Park which was set-up in order to protect and preserve the fragile mountain environment.

We then take a steep hike to Namche Bazar. If the weather is clear, we get the first glimpse of Mt Everest. Namche is the main trading village in the Khumbu and has a busy Saturday market – a meeting place for the Hindu traders from the lowlands and the Tibetan yak caravans that have crossed the glaciated Nangpa La.

Namche is the gateway to the Khumbu. This is where we crash out for the night.

Namche is tucked away between two ridges amidst the giant peaks of the Khumbu and has an abundance of lodges, tea shops, and souvenir shops. It is an ideal place to spend a day, acclimatizing to the new altitude before heading off towards Syangboche.

To acclimatize, you visit Khunde Hospital set-up by Sir Edmund Hillary or take a one hour walk up to the Everest View Hotel above Namche for the sunset view of Ama Dablam, Nuptse, Lhotse, and Everest. We then go to Khumjung where we visit a school established by Hillary.

We begin our hike after enjoying lunch; bypassing the route of Khimde. There are also good views from the National Park Centre and Museum just above the town. After going through our acclimatization drills, we head down to our lodge for some beers & good sleep.

After breakfast in Namche, we start our trek towards Tengboche enjoying the superb view of Mt. Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Ama Dablam and close up view of Thamserku. Our trek follows on the gradual trail with a few ups and downs overlooking the magnificent view of the great Himalaya.

Along the way, we can spot wild lives like pheasant, musk deer, or a herd of Himalayan Thar. The trail goes gradually down up to Kyangjuma. The path eventually reaches Sanasa which is the major trail junction to Gokyo valley and Everest Base Camp.

The track then follows through the pine forests and after we cross the prayer flags festooned bridge over Dudh Kosi River, we reach Phunki Tenga, a small settlement with a couple of teahouses and a small army post amidst the alpine woods. After having a relaxed lunch at Phunki Tenga we then have a little tough climb steep up through the pine forests while before we reach Tengboche.

Tengboche is a great place for close up views of Ama-Dablam, Nuptse, and Everest and it has the biggest Buddhist Monastery all over in the Khumbu region. Overnight stay at the lodge in Tengboche.

We descend downhill through a forest, cross the Imja Khola and climb steadily to the village of Pangboche. This village is directly opposite Ama Dablam [6,856 m], and has exceptional views of the mountain, with the gompa, mani walls and scattered pine trees in the foreground. A further two hours walk brings us to Pheriche where we bunk out for the night.

This is a day to rest, acclimatize and give our weary bones a breather. However, we don’t remain idle; we also get to wander up the valley to look at a lake, the Tshola Tsho and the perpendicular walls of Cholatse and Tawache. We can climb up onto the ridge overlooking Dingboche for the view of the Imja Valley and the incredible south face of Mt. Lhotse. The views here steal your breath away. We bunk out in the village of Pheriche for the night.

We continue up the wide valley beneath the impressive peaks of Cholatse and Tawache on the left. We then turn right and take a steep climb towards the foot of the Khumbu Glacier. The tea house at Duglha is a good spot to have lunch. The trail zigzags up through the boulders of the glacier’s terminal moraine.

At the top of this climb, there are many stone cairns, built as memorials to the many Sherpas who have died while climbing Mt Everest. The path then climbs gently along the glacier, to eventually reach the cluster of houses at Lobuche.

Today it’s a long and gritty day. After a hot breakfast at our lodge, we climb through meadows and moraine stones steps to reach Gorakshep, by either climbing to Kala Patthar or continue heading to Everest base camp. We suggest that you make a beeline for the Everest base camp. By the way, from Everest base camp we do not see Mount Everest.

However, from Kala Patthar, we get to see the entire south face of Mt. Everest and well-known peaks nearby; this also includes great sights of the skyline of the Tibet plateau. Overnight at the height of (5,364) at a lodge.

Today we wake up early in the morning to increase our chance of having a clear magnificent view of Mt. Everest. The ascent of Kalapatthar (Black rock) will reward us with the most appealing views of Everest.

From the top of Kalapatthar, we get a panoramic 360-degree view of Mt. Everest and some of the highest peaks in the world including Lhotse (8516 meters), Mt.Pumori (7169 meters), the Tibetan peak Chagtse, Mt.Nuptse (7861 meters) and many other smaller peaks.This also marks the ending point of our journey.

After breakfast, you will now be boarding the helicopter to Lukla and have the aerial views of the Himalayas. What a great way !!! to end our Everest Base Camp Trek.

Most flights from Lukla to Kathmandu are schedule early morning to avoid the strong winds. It’s a scenic flight from Lukla to Kathmandu for about forty-five minutes. We touch down at Kathmandu and transferred to our hotel.

After breakfast and our last day in Kathmandu, our vehicle and escorts will be on standby to drop you to the international airport three hours before our scheduled flight back home.