Everest Base Camp Trek Day by Day

Almost every Everest Base Camp itinerary, whoever sells it, follows the same skeleton. You fly from Kathmandu or Ramechhap to Lukla at 2,860 m, walk up the Dudh Koshi to Namche Bazaar, cross to Tengboche, turn up the Imja valley to Dingboche, then follow the Khumbu Glacier to Lobuche and Gorak Shep. From Gorak Shep you walk to base camp at 5,364 m and climb Kala Patthar, about 5,545 m, for the view of Everest. Then you walk back the same way, faster.

The variations are small but matter: whether you sleep at Phakding or push to Monjo on day one, whether you rest at Dingboche or Pheriche, and how many spare days you keep for Lukla weather. The single most important rule is the rest days. Above 3,000 m your sleeping altitude should not rise more than about 300 to 500 m a night, with an extra night every 1,000 m or so. That is why every honest itinerary has two nights at Namche and two at Dingboche or Pheriche.

Day one is the flight and a short walk. The flight to Lukla takes about 35 minutes from Kathmandu or about 20 minutes from Ramechhap. Most groups walk three to four hours down to Phakding, 2,610 m, which is lower than Lukla and makes a gentle first night. The trail passes Chheplung, mani walls carved with om mani padme hum, and the first long suspension bridges over the Dudh Koshi.

Day two is the first real test. From Phakding you walk upstream through Benkar to Monjo, where the Sagarmatha National Park gate checks your permit, then down to Jorsalle and across the high Hillary suspension bridge. The climb to Namche, about 600 m of steady zigzags through pine, takes two to three hours. Halfway up, if the sky is clear, Everest's summit appears for the first time behind the Nuptse ridge. Namche sits at 3,440 m in a horseshoe-shaped bowl.

Day three is the first acclimatisation day. The usual walk climbs past the Syangboche airstrip to Hotel Everest View, about 3,880 m, then loops down through Khumjung and back to Namche. It is four to five hours, and the point is to climb high and sleep low. In the afternoon, visit the Sherpa Culture Museum and the national park visitor centre on the ridge above town.

Day four goes to Tengboche, 3,867 m. The trail traverses level to Kyangjuma with Ama Dablam ahead, drops to the river at Phunki Thenga, about 3,250 m, then climbs two hours through rhododendron and fir to the monastery. Tengboche was founded in 1916, destroyed by an earthquake in 1934 and rebuilt, and burned in 1989 and rebuilt again. Visitors can sit in on the afternoon puja, usually around 3 pm.

Day five continues to Dingboche, 4,410 m, through Deboche and Pangboche, the oldest settled village in the upper valley, and along the Imja Khola past Somare. Above Pangboche the trees end. Dingboche is a patchwork of stone-walled fields that Sherpa families farm for barley and potatoes in summer. Some itineraries go instead to Pheriche, slightly lower and windier, which has a Himalayan Rescue Association aid post in the main seasons.

Day six is the second acclimatisation day. The usual hike climbs the ridge behind Dingboche towards Nangkartshang Peak, about 5,083 m. Most trekkers turn round somewhere between 4,800 m and 5,000 m. From the ridge you see Island Peak, Lhotse's south face and, on clear days, the summit of Makalu.

Day seven goes to Lobuche, 4,940 m. The walk across the Pheriche valley to Thukla is easy, then comes a steep hour up the terminal moraine of the Khumbu Glacier. At the top, the Thukla pass is crowded with stone memorials to climbers and Sherpas who died on Everest. From there the trail is gentle to Lobuche, a small group of lodges under Nuptse and Lobuche East.

Day eight is the big one. You walk along the lateral moraine to Gorak Shep, 5,164 m, about three hours, have lunch, and then walk two to three hours each way across rubble and ice to Everest Base Camp at 5,364 m. In April and May the glacier is covered with expedition tents. In autumn the camp is usually empty. Either way, the Khumbu Icefall hangs above you. You sleep at Gorak Shep, the highest night of the trek.

Day nine starts in the dark with the climb up Kala Patthar, about 5,545 m, which takes most people one and a half to two hours. This is where you actually see Everest: from base camp the summit is hidden behind the Nuptse ridge. After breakfast at Gorak Shep you walk down past Lobuche to Pheriche or Dingboche, a drop of about 800 m, and sleep far better.

The descent is fast because altitude no longer limits you. Day ten usually goes from Pheriche to Namche, about seven hours, back through Pangboche and Tengboche. Day eleven goes from Namche to Lukla, about seven hours, which is hard on the knees and ends with a climb of about an hour from Chheplung. Day twelve is the flight to Kathmandu.

Some trekkers take a helicopter from Gorak Shep or Pheriche instead, which turns three days into an hour. Others add a day by detouring through Khumjung on the way down. Whatever you choose, keep at least one spare day in Kathmandu after the trek. Lukla flights depend on visibility at both ends, and in some seasons cloud cancels them for several days in a row.

Walking down, notice how fast the valley changes back: juniper and birch below Pangboche, the smell of pine after Tengboche, the noise of Namche. Appetite and sleep return within a day or two of leaving 4,000 m. This is also when the crew finish their work, and most groups hold a thank-you dinner in Namche or Lukla, where tipping is customary.

The table below sets out a typical 12-day trek from Lukla and back. Times are walking times for an average trekker including short breaks. Height gains are for the overnight stop, which is what matters for acclimatisation, not the highest point of the day.

Cheaper or shorter itineraries usually save time in one of three ways, and it is worth knowing which before you book.

Dropping the Dingboche rest day saves a day but takes you from 4,410 m to 5,164 m in two nights. This is the commonest reason trekkers get headaches, turn back at Lobuche or need a helicopter. Going straight from Lukla to Namche in one day is another shortcut; it is possible for strong walkers but skips the gentle first night. The third is having no spare day after the trek, which turns a routine cloud delay into a missed international flight.

• Keep two nights at Namche and two at Dingboche or Pheriche.
• Sleep at Gorak Shep only once; go down after Kala Patthar.
• Keep at least one spare day in Kathmandu after the trek.
• Walk slowly enough to talk; drink three to four litres a day above 3,500 m.
• Tell your guide about headaches early; going down always helps.