Everest Region

Overview

The Khumbu is a set of steep valleys draining south from the Tibetan border, inhabited for about 500 years by Sherpa families who arrived from eastern Tibet and who now run most of the lodges, expeditions and airline logistics that keep the region working.

For trekkers, the region has one great advantage and one great difficulty. The advantage is infrastructure: lodges with private rooms, bakeries at 3,440 metres, reliable phone signal, helicopter evacuation within the hour. The difficulty is the altitude profile — Lukla sits at 2,860 m and the standard route reaches 5,364 m in eight walking days, which is fast enough to need genuine acclimatisation discipline.

Getting there

Flights from Kathmandu to Lukla run in the early morning when the valley winds allow it, and are frequently delayed or cancelled. During the October and April peaks, flights are often redirected to Manthali in Ramechhap — a four-hour pre-dawn drive from Kathmandu. Check where your flight departs from before you book the hotel.

Lodges and costs

Lodge rooms are cheap and food is not: the price of a plate of dal bhat roughly doubles between Lukla and Gorak Shep, because everything above Namche arrives by porter, yak or helicopter. Budget £30–£45 a day for an independent trek here, more than any other Nepali region.