Your holiday starts at the hotel in Kathmandu. Transfers from Kathmandu Airport are provided. Depending on your arrival time, you may have the opportunity to explore the immediate vicinity of the hotel and get acclimatised to this bustling city. Alternatively, you may prefer to recover from your journey by relaxing at the hotel. Your guide will take dinner with you and will provide an informal briefing about the days ahead.

After a 4am pick up from the Kathmandu hotel, we drive 5 hours to Ramechhap where we check in for a late morning, 20 minute flight to Lukla. (Outside of the peak trekking season, flights to Lukla may operate directly from Kathmandu). Landing at Lukla, on the narrow, sloping runway in the heart of the mountains, is a spectacular way to reach the Khumbu. Here, we meet our trekking crew and set off on the first stage of our trek which leads down to the river, then northwards through a number of villages to our lodge in Phakding (2610m).

A very pleasant walk by the river through pine forest leads to a short climb to escape a narrow gorge section. We pass the entrance to the Khumbu National Park where details of our permits are recorded and then drop down again to the river which we cross on a suspension bridge. We continue up the wooded valley on a good trail and cross the river again before reaching a confluence of rivers, one coming down from Thame and the other from the Khumbu. We make a final crossing here on a spectacular high suspension bridge and then begin an hour and half long ascent to Namche Bazaar (3440m) on a wide switch-back trail. This is the sting in the tail of today’s otherwise quite gentle ascent, and one of the steepest of the trek. Just over halfway up this last hill to Namche, we gain our first views of Everest. On arrival in the Sherpa capital, we check into one of the town’s many lodges. Namche has changed tremendously since trekking first became popular in Nepal. The Sherpa people are very adept at working out what visitors need. Many of the Sherpas that own lodges, cafes and shops in the town have visited cities in the USA and Europe and have brought back all sorts of concepts. Today you can find in Namche, German bakeries, Italian coffee, British pubs, pool halls, and hot tubs.

Namche Bazaar is tucked away between 2 ridges amongst the giant peaks of the Khumbu. An ancient market place where goods from as far away as Tibet used to be traded, Namche today boasts an abundance of lodges, cafes, bars and souvenir shops. It is an ideal place to spend a rest day, acclimatising to the new altitude before heading off towards Thame. Options for acclimatisation walks include the one-hour walk up to the Everest View Hotel above the village for the spectacular view of Ama Dablam, Nupste, Lhotse and Everest itself.

We first climb up to the gompa above the town and here we pick up a trail which contours the bounding ridge of Namche and then follows the Bhote Khosi river through the villages of Phunte, Thamo, Thomde and Somde. The walk takes us through woods of oak, birch and juniper and we pass several impressive mani walls built from tablets of stone intricately carved with prayers in Tibetan script. What will be very noticeable today after the trek from Lukla is the lack of other trekkers in this quiet valley. After approximately 3 or 4 hours walking we reach a suspension bridge slung high across the river and on the other side the trail climbs to Thame at a strategic location at the junction of routes from Rolwalling via the Tesi Labcha and from Tibet via the Nangpa La. There are tremendous views of Teng Kangpoche and the north side of Kwangde Ri. Overnight in a lodge at Thame (3820m).

The key to good acclimatisation is careful staging. The old adage of climb high, sleep low holds as true today as for those expeditioners of the nineteen fifties. Today we have a spectacular walk up the valley leading to the Tesi Labcha on a high trail above the Thame Khola, as far as the summer yak grazing settlement at approximately 4250 metres. On our return we will make a visit to the Gompa located high above the town. We spend a second night at the lodge in Thame.

The trail becomes even quieter today as we leave even the more adventurous Everest trekkers behind and head north beside the Bhote Khosi which means ‘River from Tibet’. We pass through the village of Tangmote and follow a wide trail which ascends gradually above the river. After approximately 2½ hours we pass through the village of Tharngga and a further hour of gentle ascent brings us to our lodge accommodation in Marulung (4210m). This is a relatively short day but it is vital at this stage of our acclimatisation that we do not make too great a jump in our overnight altitude.

We will spend 2 nights at Marulung to make sure we are sufficiently acclimatised to make the crossing of the Renjo La on the following day. Today, we will be able to hike up the valley of the Bhote Kosi as far as the simple teahouses at Arye (4400m) or even a little higher, towards the glacier which comes down from the Nangpa La. The views on this acclimatisation walk are superb and one of the excellent aspects of this itinerary is the opportunity to spend time in this beautiful unspoilt valley. We return to spend a second night at the lodge in Marulung.

Today, we make an early start for the trek up and away from the Bhote Khosi towards the ‘twin lakes’ below the Renjo La. Passing the lakes, we continue our approach to the Renjo La, following a well-made trail, with stone steps leading almost all the way to the top. We reach the summit prayer flags (5340m) after a long morning's walk and take time to enjoy the views across the ranges to Mount Everest - simply breathtaking. Then, after an initially steep descent, which may be snow covered, the trail becomes well managed once more with stone steps which descend towards the lakes of Gokyo. The third lake is known as Dudh Pokhari and on its east shore is the summer settlement of Gokyo (4790m). We check in at a lodge below Gokyo Ri after a long day.

After the long day crossing the Renjo La, there's the option today to take it easy. Those who wish to make the most of this high and wild place can hike up to the 'Fifth Lake' for the ‘Scoundrel's View' of Everest. We spend a second night at our Gokyo lodge.

Gokyo Ri lies at the northern edge of Dudh Pokhari, a classic viewpoint for Everest and Cho Oyu and for the magnificent panorama encompassing the lakes and the across the Ngozumba Glacier towards the Cho La. The ascent is quite strenuous and takes approximately 3 hours for the round trip. Group members wishing to make this ascent will have a reasonably early start and will be guided by the trip leader or one of the Sherpa staff. Returning to the lodge for an early lunch, we will then set off on the next leg of our journey. Descending to the ‘second’ lake, we then climb to the crest of the moraine overlooking the Ngozumba Glacier. The route across the glacier is well marked by cairns and takes around 45 minutes. We climb off the glacier at the place known as Dragnag (4700m) and check in at one of the teahouses there.

An early start for the long day across the Cho La (5368m). Approaching the pass, we cross a large boulder field. Beyond this ancient moraine, the climb to the pass is steep in places, involving some easy scrambling. The upper part of the route can be snow-covered, particularly after November. From the pass, there are excellent views including a completely different aspect of Ama Dablam, now seen from the north west. The descent from the pass involves the crossing of a small glacier (often snow-covered) which is fairly straightforward. We descend to the grazing pastures below, the trail becoming more and more defined as we approach our overnight lodge at Dzongla (4830m).

We have a reasonably short day today to set us up for the trek up to Everest Basecamp tomorrow. Leaving Dzongla, there's a short descent to a river, which we cross and then begin the traverse around above the lake of Chola Tso, with views across to two impressive 6000 metre peaks, Cholatse and Taboche. Crossing an open spur, we find ourselves in the Khumbu Valley and have views of the Khumbu Glacier as we arrive at the seasonal settlement of Lobuche (4910m). We reach our lodge accommodation here in the late morning and have the afternoon free to relax.

Lobuche is the traditional start point for the final day's trek all the way to Everest Basecamp. We begin by following a trail through the ablation valley at the side of the Khumbu Glacier, gaining height steadily. At this point the glacier is still hidden from us by the moraine, but as we climb to cross the rubble of a tributary glacier, we can see the great Khumbu Glacier stretching away down valley and also up towards the area of basecamp. Beyond this tributary we reach an island of sparse grasses below the famous hill known as Kala Patar. This place is Gorak Shep (5140m), once a summer yak herding meadow in the middle of nowhere, this remote spot now boasts several of the highest lodges in Nepal. Above Gorak Shep, it is a steady trek to Everest Basecamp (5364m), walking at first on the moraine crest and finally on the Khumbu Glacier itself. We will spend an hour or so in this inspirational place, close beneath the stupendous Khumbu Icefall, before returning to our lodge accommodation at Gorak Shep. As might be expected at this altitude and in this remote spot, the lodges here are quite basic but they do have heated dining rooms and offer a degree of comfort.

This morning there is an option to climb Kala Patar (5550m) one of the finest viewpoints for Everest and the Khumbu Valley. Aiming to make the most of the usually fine morning weather, we have another early start at first light to make the short (2 hour) ascent of Kala Patar. Returning to Gorak Shep, we have breakfast before retracing our steps to Lobuche (4910m) where we check in at our lodge accommodation.

From Lobuche, we make a crossing of the Khumbu Glacier. The glacier at this point is very slow moving, covered with rubble and moraine debris and usually has a good trail across. We then make the ascent to the Kongma La (5535m). The climb to the pass is steep, at first following a trail on a grassy hillside and then on a good path which zig-zags its way to the top of a scree slope. From the top of the scree the summit comes into view but we have another 45 minutes more level now, over boulders and scree to reach the prayer flags which stretch across from cairn to cairn. It will take a total of 3 hours or so from the glacier to the summit of the pass, but the views more than compensate for the expended effort. As well as the tip of Everest and the fantastic 8 mile-long Lhotse-Nuptse wall, the panorama includes Gauri Shankar, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Pumori and the distant peaks of Tibet. This relatively accessible Khumbu pass is not often crossed and is something of a hidden gem. A short distance below the summit we pass a usually frozen lake and follow an improving trail across yak pastures and down into the Imja Valley - one of the most beautiful walks of the trip. After a final steep descent mostly on grassy hillside, we reach the Imja Khola and our lodge in the settlement of Dingboche (4410m). This Sherpa village is spectacular located beneath Ama Dablam and just a little way down-valley from the spectacular south face of Lhotse.

We now begin our walk out from the Everest region. This is definitely no anti-climax as we have some beautiful country to travel through still. However, it is nice to be going down and into the land of warmth and abundant oxygen. Leaving Dingboche we soon join the main Everest Trail and follow the Imja Khola on an undulating path to Pangboche (3930m). The oldest monastery in the region is located here and it is well worth the extra effort to climb up to the upper part of the village where the gompa is located. From Pangboche, we descend to cross the river on a suspension bridge at a narrow gorge. Beyond, we enter a forest of birch and Juniper - the first real forest we have seen since leaving Namche and walking through the trees we come to the small settlement of Deboche (3820m) where there is a nunnery. We check in at a lodge here. Today’s walk should take around 5 hours including the visit to the monastery.

After an early breakfast we set off and make a short climb through the woods to Tyangboche Gompa spectacularly located on a ridge-top. The ridge affords a good view of the Everest/Lhotse massif and is also the classic viewpoint for Ama Dablam. Depending on what is happening at the monastery we can arrange a tour of this most impressive building. There is also an interesting and informative visitor centre here. Leaving Tyangboche we descend a steep path to the village of Phunki, where there is a bridge crossing the Dudh Kosi which flows down from the Gokyo Valley. We now have a steep climb to the lodges of Kangjuma from where we pick up a contouring trail which leads around the hillside bringing us to the top of the bowl in which Namche Bazaar nestles. A final steep descent on stone steps leads to the main bazaar. We will take our lunch here and there will be some time for shopping before setting off again. We have now completed our grand circuit of the Khumbu and all that remains is to walk back down the Dudh Khosi valley. This afternoon we go as far as Monjo – close to the entrance to the National Park. This is a longish day, mostly downhill but with one long uphill section.

We continue the descent of the Dudh Khosi Valley passing through Phakding. Though we are still going downhill, the day does have a sting in the tail and so remember to reserve some energy for the final climb up to the airstrip at Lukla. For our last night on trek we stay in a lodge at the airstrip. No doubt we will have a party to say goodbye to our trek crew after what is surely the best trek in the Khumbu.

After saying goodbye to our Sherpa crew, we board the flight to Ramechhap and from there transfer by road to Kathmandu. (Outside of the peak trekking season, flights may operate directly back to Kathmandu). Arriving late afternoon, the rest of the day is free for sightseeing or shopping amongst the streets and bazaars of the Nepalese capital. In the evening there will be a celebratory meal and time to reflect on our Khumbu adventure.

This is an important contingency day in case of delays to the flights from Lukla. If we have experienced no delays this is another opportunity for independent exploration amongst the colourful streets and temples of Kathmandu.

Your holiday ends after breakfast. Transfers to Kathmandu Airport are provided. To extend your holiday in Nepal, why not pre-book a day's sightseeing tour in the Kathmandu Valley, or a multi-day excursion to the wildlife reserve at Chitwan. Contact our office for details.