A first taste of the Everest trail in seven nights. You fly to Lukla, walk three short days up the Dudh Koshi to Namche Bazaar staying in Yeti Mountain Home lodges, see Everest from Hotel Everest View on your acclimatisation day, and return to Kathmandu by helicopter instead of walking back.
Everest Base Camp takes twelve days or more on foot. This journey gives you the best of the lower Khumbu in four nights: the suspension bridges over the Dudh Koshi, the Sherpa villages of Phakding and Monjo, the gate of Sagarmatha National Park, and Namche Bazaar at 3,440 m, the trading town in a horseshoe of mountains. Walking days are three to five hours. On the rest day at Namche you climb to Hotel Everest View at 3,880 m, where Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam stand in a line on a clear morning.
We use Yeti Mountain Home lodges throughout, the most comfortable rooms on the Everest trail, with private bathrooms, heated blankets and proper food. The sleeping altitude rises slowly, never more than about 600 m in a day, with two nights in Namche so your body can adjust. At the end, rather than two days walking back down to Lukla, a helicopter picks you up at Syangboche and has you in Kathmandu in about an hour. Two nights at Dwarika's Hotel before the walk and one after round it off.
Highlights
Why this route works
Dawn flight into Lukla's mountain airstrip
Suspension bridges and Sherpa villages on the Dudh Koshi
Two nights in Namche Bazaar at 3,440 m
Everest and Ama Dablam from Hotel Everest View
Helicopter return from Syangboche to Kathmandu
Day by day
The journey
Day01
Arrive in Kathmandu
Overnight: Kathmandu≈ 3 km · 15 minMeals: Dinner
We meet you at Tribhuvan International Airport and take you to Dwarika's Hotel in Battisputali. The afternoon is free. In the early evening your trek guide, a licensed guide who will walk with you all the way to Namche, comes to the hotel for a full briefing. We check your boots, layers and daypack, go over the altitude plan and agree how we will make decisions on the trail. Anything missing can be bought or hired in Kathmandu tomorrow. Duffel bags for the porters are provided. Dinner tonight is at the hotel.
Day02
Boudhanath, Pashupatinath and kit check
Overnight: Kathmandu≈ 20 km · 1.5 h in totalMeals: Breakfast, Dinner
A gentle day to recover from travel before the mountains. Your city guide takes you to Swayambhunath in the morning, then to Pashupatinath, the great Hindu temple on the Bagmati, where the cremation ghats are seen from the terraces across the river. After lunch there is time for any last shopping for kit. In the late afternoon we walk the kora at Boudhanath, the largest stupa in the valley and the centre of Kathmandu's Sherpa and Tibetan community, many of whom come from the Khumbu. Pack tonight and sleep early.
An early start for the 35-minute flight to Lukla, 2,860 m, one of the shortest and steepest airstrips in the world. In peak seasons many Lukla flights leave from Manthali airport in Ramechhap instead, a 4 to 5-hour drive from Kathmandu that starts in the night; check current status before you travel. From Lukla the trail drops gently through pine and Sherpa villages along the Dudh Koshi to Phakding, 2,610 m, three to four hours away. Tonight is at the Yeti Mountain Home lodge in Phakding.
Day04
A short day up to Monjo
Overnight: MonjoMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A deliberately short walk of two to three hours, crossing the river on suspension bridges hung with prayer flags, past mani walls and carved stones that you pass on the left. The first views of Thamserku appear through the trees. Monjo, 2,835 m, sits just below the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. The short day gives your body time to adjust before the big climb. In the afternoon your guide can walk you to a small village monastery, or you can rest at the Yeti Mountain Home lodge.
We pass the national park gate at Monjo, where permits are checked, drop to Jorsale and follow the river to the high Hillary suspension bridge. Then comes the main climb of the walk: about 600 m of zigzags through pine forest to Namche Bazaar, 3,440 m. On a clear day you get your first view of Everest about halfway up. Allow four to five hours and walk slowly; your guide sets the pace. Namche is built in tiers around a bowl, with bakeries, gear shops and a Saturday market. Tonight is the first of two at the Yeti Mountain Home lodge here.
Acclimatisation means climbing high and sleeping low. After breakfast we walk up above Namche to Syangboche and on to Hotel Everest View at 3,880 m, where tea on the terrace comes with Everest 8,849 m, Lhotse and Ama Dablam in one line. If you feel well, we continue to Khumjung, 3,790 m, a Sherpa village with a school founded by Edmund Hillary and a monastery. We are back down in Namche by mid-afternoon, about five hours in all. Your guide checks your oxygen saturation and pulse each evening.
Day07
Helicopter back to Kathmandu
Overnight: KathmanduMeals: Breakfast, Dinner
After an early breakfast we walk 45 minutes up to Syangboche, where the helicopter collects you on the first clear window of the morning. The flight down the Dudh Koshi valley to Kathmandu takes about an hour and retraces your walk from the air. If you would rather fly back by plane, we change the plan before you leave: you walk down to Lukla over two days and drop the Monjo night. By early afternoon you are at Dwarika's Hotel for a long shower and lunch. Dinner tonight is at Krishnarpan.
Day08
Depart from Kathmandu
Overnight: Departure≈ 3 km · 15 minMeals: Breakfast
A free morning before your international flight. If you have time, your guide can take you to Patan, 5 km south, for its Durbar Square and the Patan Museum, or to the Asan and Indra Chowk markets for tea, spices and singing bowls. We collect you from the hotel about three hours before departure. Because flights in and out of Lukla are delayed by cloud more often than any other in Nepal, we strongly suggest booking your flight home for this day or later, never on day seven.
Lukla flights are often delayed by weather; build at least one spare day before your international flight
In peak seasons Lukla flights may leave from Manthali (Ramechhap); check current status before you travel
Porters carry up to 15 kg per traveller in a soft duffel; your daypack carries water and layers
Never go higher with symptoms of altitude sickness; your guide may turn the group around
Park and municipality fees and guide rules change; check current status before you travel
Nights at Namche drop below freezing from November to March
Questions travellers ask
Good to know
How hard is the walk from Lukla to Namche Bazaar?
It is moderate rather than hard. Two of the three days are easy, three hours or less on a well made trail. The day into Namche climbs about 600 m over four to five hours and is the one real effort. If you can walk five hours on hilly ground at home, you can do this. Your guide sets a slow pace for the altitude.
Will I see Everest on this trip?
Yes, on a clear day. The first view comes halfway up the climb to Namche, and the best is from Hotel Everest View at 3,880 m on day six, where Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam stand together. October to December gives the clearest skies. From June to September cloud hides the peaks most days, which is why we do not run this walk then.
Is altitude sickness a risk at Namche Bazaar?
Some people feel mild symptoms at 3,440 m: headache, poor sleep, shortness of breath. Serious altitude sickness is uncommon at this height with a gradual climb, which is why we sleep at Phakding and Monjo first and spend two nights in Namche. Your guide checks your oxygen and pulse daily. Never go higher with symptoms, and tell your guide at once.
What are the Yeti Mountain Home lodges like?
They are the most comfortable lodges on the Everest trail: stone-built, with private bathrooms, hot water, heated blankets and dining rooms with a stove. They are not luxury hotels by city standards, and rooms are compact, but after a day on the trail they are a real comfort. The chain has lodges in Lukla, Phakding, Monjo, Namche, Kongde and Thame.
Why fly back by helicopter instead of walking?
It saves two days and avoids the Lukla flight, which is the most weather-delayed in Nepal. A helicopter from Syangboche reaches Kathmandu in about an hour. If you prefer to walk back down and fly from Lukla, we remove the Monjo night and add two walking days down, keeping the total at seven nights. Both versions are possible.
Do I need a guide to walk to Namche?
Yes. Since April 2023 Nepal requires foreign trekkers in most national parks and conservation areas to use a licensed guide, and the Khumbu has its own local rules on top. We always provide a licensed guide and porters. Rules can change, so check current status before you travel. Your guide also handles permits and lodge bookings along the way.
What permits are needed for the Everest region?
You need the Sagarmatha National Park entry permit, NPR 3,000 for foreigners, and the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality fee of NPR 2,000. We arrange both and include them in the price. Both are checked on the trail near Lukla and at Monjo, so carry your passport. Fees change from time to time, so check current status before you travel.
What if the Lukla flight is delayed?
We wait, and the plan shifts. Cloud in Lukla or Kathmandu can hold flights for hours or a full day, especially in the morning. If we lose a day, we shorten the walk, not the acclimatisation, and use the helicopter return to recover time. This is why we ask you to keep day eight free and not book your international flight on day seven.
What should I pack for the Everest trail?
Broken-in walking boots, a warm down jacket, fleece, waterproof shell, thermal base layers, warm hat, gloves, sunglasses, sunscreen and a 30-litre daypack with two water bottles. Nights at Namche drop below freezing in winter. Porters carry a soft duffel of up to 15 kg, which we provide. Most kit can be bought or hired in Kathmandu on day two.
A short Everest walk to Namche Bazaar7 nights · from ₹3,40,000 per personCheck dates and price
