Everest Base Camp Hike

[flatlander88]

Good day,

I am looking for some input about the Everest Base Camp hike, mostly about what guides to use. I did do some research on here but there were a lot of people saying to do it with only a Sherpa. I like the idea of having everything in place once we land in Kathmandu. The connecting flight to Lukla, then the subsequent stops along the way to base camp and back.

I've have a travel agency to help with VISA, health insurances, and flights but I do have a few questions.

1) What services would you recommend?
2) When would you recommend going?
3) Any particular information we should know before going? eg. what to take, what to see, what to be prepared for, ...

Thank you in advance!

[cottonmountaineering]

there are hundreds of operators out of kathmandu that will run the whole hike for you, at the end of the day no matter if you spend 500 or 10k youll be staying in teahouses and carrying just the basics (clothes, snacks, personal items, sleeping bag) so a porter is optional. you will likely not get a "sherpa" but just a guide from kathmandu with a different last name and didnt grow up in the khumbu

you dont really need a travel agent to go to nepal, just show up to the airport and get your visa, i wouldnt buy health insurance or anything like that either personally. honestly you can pretty much just show up to kathmandu, pick an outfitter, and head out a few days later without any planning ahead of time

april, may, sept, oct, nov are good times, fall has more unpredictable weather. the plane to and from lukla is often delayed for days at a time if visibility is low

the religious sites are neat to visit on the way

if you arent dead set on everest, you would probably have a better time hiking elsewhere. the entire trek is crowded which takes most of the appeal away for me personally

[flatlander88]

there are hundreds of operators out of kathmandu that will run the whole hike for you, at the end of the day no matter if you spend 500 or 10k youll be staying in teahouses and carrying just the basics (clothes, snacks, personal items, sleeping bag) so a porter is optional. you will likely not get a "sherpa" but just a guide from kathmandu with a different last name and didnt grow up in the khumbu

you dont really need a travel agent to go to nepal, just show up to the airport and get your visa, i wouldnt buy health insurance or anything like that either personally. honestly you can pretty much just show up to kathmandu, pick an outfitter, and head out a few days later without any planning ahead of time

april, may, sept, oct, nov are good times, fall has more unpredictable weather. the plane to and from lukla is often delayed for days at a time if visibility is low

the religious sites are neat to visit on the way

if you arent dead set on everest, you would probably have a better time hiking elsewhere. the entire trek is crowded which takes most of the appeal away for me personally

Thanks for the input. I was researching G-adventures and they require a 200,000 policy to be taken out. So are the teahouses first come, first serve? Any risk of not getting one if it's very busy? I am just getting started in my planning so I do not know what to expect yet.

[cottonmountaineering]

there are hundreds of operators out of kathmandu that will run the whole hike for you, at the end of the day no matter if you spend 500 or 10k youll be staying in teahouses and carrying just the basics (clothes, snacks, personal items, sleeping bag) so a porter is optional. you will likely not get a "sherpa" but just a guide from kathmandu with a different last name and didnt grow up in the khumbu

you dont really need a travel agent to go to nepal, just show up to the airport and get your visa, i wouldnt buy health insurance or anything like that either personally. honestly you can pretty much just show up to kathmandu, pick an outfitter, and head out a few days later without any planning ahead of time

april, may, sept, oct, nov are good times, fall has more unpredictable weather. the plane to and from lukla is often delayed for days at a time if visibility is low

the religious sites are neat to visit on the way

if you arent dead set on everest, you would probably have a better time hiking elsewhere. the entire trek is crowded which takes most of the appeal away for me personally

Thanks for the input. I was researching G-adventures and they require a 200,000 policy to be taken out. So are the teahouses first come, first serve? Any risk of not getting one if it's very busy? I am just getting started in my planning so I do not know what to expect yet.

if you are in a guided group the operator will make teahouse reservations for your group ahead of time. if you are just 1 guide + you they will probably just show up and see who has space, for porters usually there is no reservation system, just showing up to lukla and hiring whoever is available. porters can sometimes be in short supply if expeditions are moving in or out (early april and a few days after whenever people have been summiting everest in may)

if you get injured or sick 99% of the time you are riding a donkey out to lukla instead of taking a helicopter

[flatlander88]

there are hundreds of operators out of kathmandu that will run the whole hike for you, at the end of the day no matter if you spend 500 or 10k youll be staying in teahouses and carrying just the basics (clothes, snacks, personal items, sleeping bag) so a porter is optional. you will likely not get a "sherpa" but just a guide from kathmandu with a different last name and didnt grow up in the khumbu

you dont really need a travel agent to go to nepal, just show up to the airport and get your visa, i wouldnt buy health insurance or anything like that either personally. honestly you can pretty much just show up to kathmandu, pick an outfitter, and head out a few days later without any planning ahead of time

april, may, sept, oct, nov are good times, fall has more unpredictable weather. the plane to and from lukla is often delayed for days at a time if visibility is low

the religious sites are neat to visit on the way

if you arent dead set on everest, you would probably have a better time hiking elsewhere. the entire trek is crowded which takes most of the appeal away for me personally

Thanks for the input. I was researching G-adventures and they require a 200,000 policy to be taken out. So are the teahouses first come, first serve? Any risk of not getting one if it's very busy? I am just getting started in my planning so I do not know what to expect yet.

if you are in a guided group the operator will make teahouse reservations for your group ahead of time. if you are just 1 guide + you they will probably just show up and see who has space, for porters usually there is no reservation system, just showing up to lukla and hiring whoever is available. porters can sometimes be in short supply if expeditions are moving in or out (early april and a few days after whenever people have been summiting everest in may)

if you get injured or sick 99% of the time you are riding a donkey out to lukla instead of taking a helicopter

Oh, ok. Thank you for the info so far!

[Scott P]

I would go with porters, but without a guide so you can do side trips and do your own thing. You don't need to book anything in advance and part of the fun is deciding what looks cool along the way and hiking or climbing to it.

Here's what I did with my ten your old son:

https://www.summitpost.org/a-return-to- ... aya/838418

[flatlander88]

I would go with porters, but without a guide so you can do side trips and do your own thing. You don't need to book anything in advance and part of the fun is deciding what looks cool along the way and hiking or climbing to it.

Here's what I did with my ten your old son:

https://www.summitpost.org/a-return-to- ... aya/838418

Scott - how do you get just porters? Just show up and hire someone?

I see you went in December. Good time to go? Weather a big concern?

[Scott P]

I would go with porters, but without a guide so you can do side trips and do your own thing. You don't need to book anything in advance and part of the fun is deciding what looks cool along the way and hiking or climbing to it.

Here's what I did with my ten your old son:

https://www.summitpost.org/a-return-to- ... aya/838418

Scott - how do you get just porters? Just show up and hire someone?

I see you went in December. Good time to go? Weather a big concern?

Any guest house in Kathmandu can arrange porters for you and have them meet you at the Lukla Airport.

In my own opinion, December is the best time to go. It's the clearest and driest month and there is no haze once you leave the Kathmandu Valley. It's colder, but once the sun comes up it's not bad.

The first time we went late November to early January we had 46 days of clear weather and one snow day. The next time we went early to late December and had one day of snowy weather and 29 days of clear weather.

October-December have the most stable weather for trekking and it is more stable than the Spring season if trekking only. This is because the jet stream comes from the north and the trekking areas are in the rain shadow for what precipitation comes from the north (which isn't much). Climbers of the really big peaks prefer spring since the jet stream lowers and blast the high peaks with high winds and sometimes instability and the high peaks tend to have tougher and colder conditions then. For the lower elevations (below 20,000-20,000 feet or so), the weather is actually better in fall than spring and fall is the most popular and crowded time.

December is still my preferred month for anything of moderate altitudes because the skies are so clear, the haze hasn't built up, and the crowds are much lower. October and early November are the most crowded times and lodges/teahouses can be filled to bursting, though they will find space for you. The only downside is that Kathmandu can get fog that time of year which can occasionally delay flights (but usually not for more than a day). Once January hits, precipitation begins to increase again. December isn't the best time for climbing the biggest peaks, but it is a great time for trekking and climbing the smaller peaks.

PS, buy this book. It has lots of great maps and side trips. It is especially useful for the off the beaten track side trips. For Sure don't miss Ama Dablam Base Camp, Ama Dablam Lakes, the south face of Lhotse, Chhukung Ri, and Nangkartshang Peak. Guided groups skip these places, but they are really neater than the main trek.

https://www.amazon.com/Trekking-Everest ... 7618&psc=1

[flatlander88]

Ok, thank you! I ordered the book. It seems like March is the best month that fits our schedule so far.