Everest View Trek

Met at Tribhuvan International Airport and transferred to your hotel. Evening welcome dinner and briefing. The Everest View trek reaches 3,870 m rather than 5,545 m, so it suits people with less time, less trekking experience, or a preference for comfort over altitude.

Altitude: 1,400 m.

Guided sightseeing at Boudhanath, Pashupatinath and Swayambhunath, then permits and a gear check with time in Thamel for anything missing.

Walking: 3 to 4 hours of sightseeing.

An early flight to Lukla, from Ramechhap in peak season, and the landing on the short sloping runway at Tenzing-Hillary airport. Then a gentle walk down the Dudh Koshi valley through Chheplung and Ghat to Phakding.

Distance: 6.2 km. Walking: 3 to 4 hours.

Five suspension bridge crossings including the high Hillary Bridge, park registration at Monjo, then the steep two-hour climb to Namche. A first view of Everest between Lhotse and Nuptse partway up on a clear day.

Distance: 10.5 km. Walking: 5 to 6 hours. Altitude gain: 830 m.

A rest day spent walking gently. Up to the Everest View Hotel at 3,880 m for the panorama over breakfast, and the Sagarmatha National Park visitor centre above the town, which has good displays on Sherpa culture and Khumbu natural history. Saturday is market day in Namche if your dates coincide.

Walking: 3 to 4 hours. Climb high: 3,880 m.

A short, beautiful day up to the plateau behind Namche. Khumjung and Khunde are the two largest Sherpa villages in the Khumbu, sitting beneath the sacred peak of Khumbila with green-roofed houses and stone-walled potato fields.

We visit the Hillary school, the hospital at Khunde, and Khumjung monastery, which keeps what is said to be a yeti scalp in a glass case.

Distance: 6 km. Walking: 3 to 4 hours. Altitude gain: 350 m.

Down to Sanasa and along the contour trail with Ama Dablam, Everest and Lhotse in view, then the drop to Phunki Tenga and the two-hour climb through rhododendron forest to Tengboche.

The monastery is the largest in the Khumbu and the spiritual centre of the region. Afternoon prayers are usually at 3 pm and visitors may sit quietly at the back. Ama Dablam stands directly behind the courtyard, and sunset on it from the monastery lawn is the highlight of this trek.

Distance: 10 km. Walking: 5 to 6 hours. Altitude gain: 80 m net.

Back down through the forest to Phunki Tenga and up to the contour trail, stopping at Kyangjuma, a small settlement on the hillside with one of the best Ama Dablam views on the route and considerably fewer people than Namche.

Distance: 8 km. Walking: 4 to 5 hours. Altitude loss: 300 m.

Through Namche and down the steep hill to the Hillary Bridge, then along the river through Jorsalle to Monjo, just below the national park gate. Warm, green and thick-aired after a week above 3,000 m.

Distance: 12 km. Walking: 4 to 5 hours. Altitude loss: 730 m.

The last walking day, an easy one along the valley through Phakding and Chheplung with a final short climb to Lukla. Crew dinner in the evening.

Distance: 13 km. Walking: 4 to 5 hours.

Morning flight to Kathmandu or Ramechhap, weather permitting. Afternoon free, farewell dinner with the team in the evening.

Flight: 35 minutes, or 25 minutes plus a 4 to 5 hour drive.

Transfer to Tribhuvan International Airport about three hours before your flight, or onward arrangements if you are extending your stay.