After breakfast, you will be escorted to the domestic terminal of Kathmandu airport for an early morning flight to Lukla (2,800m/9,186ft), the gateway destination from where our trek begins. 

After a 40-minute flight above the breathtaking mountains, we reach the Tenzing-Hillary Airport at Lukla. This is one of the most beautiful air routes in the world, culminating in a hillside landing that welcomes you surrounded by high mountain peaks. 

Upon arrival at Lukla, you will meet our other crew members and after some planning and packing, we will start our trek through the prosperous village of Lukla to Phakding. To assist in acclimatization, we will only have a short hike today. However, if interested in additional activities, we can take a side trip to a nearby monastery.

Walking through a beautiful pine forest, the track leads us along the Dudh Koshi River and crosses many suspension bridges, one of which is the famous Hillary Suspension Bridge. Our first mighty mountain is the glistening Mt. Thamserku (6618 m). 

Then through the settlement of Benkar, Chumoa, and Monjo, we come to the check post and entrance to Sagarmatha National Park. We pass through the last village of Jorsale before reaching Namche Bazaar, where the trail climbs through forests and bridges until it reaches the Dudh Koshi where it joins the Bhote Koshi rivers. 

After a final steep ascent, taking about two hours, we get our first sight of Mt. Everest peering over the Lhotse-Nuptse ridge. Upon this juncture, we stop at Chautara to admire the view before hiking our final 1.5 hours and reaching Namche Bazaar, the gateway to Mt. Everest, and the main trading center of this region.

Today is the scheduled ‘acclimatization’ day for this trek. However, health experts recommend that we stay active and moving during the rest day too so we can either spend the day hiking to Thame, we can visit Khunde, or can relax and explore Namche Bazaar itself. 

Namche Bazaar is the main center of the Everest (Khumbu) region and has government offices, ATMs, Internet cafes, shops, restaurants, a bakery, and a colorful market each Friday evening and Saturday. 

Trekking a few hundred vertical feet during the day helps us to properly acclimatize, so our guides will take us to the Tourist Visitor Centre near the headquarters of the Sagarmatha National Park, where we can observe an assortment of features related to the first Everest ascenders and Sherpa culture, as well as learn about the various plant and animal life of the Everest region. 

We will also take an interesting side trip up to Khumjung before further climbing up to the famous airstrip at Syangboche. Just above the airstrip is the Everest View Hotel, a deluxe hotel with great views of the highest mountains on Earth. 

The Khumjung valley, surrounded by the snowy peaks of Kongde, Thamserku, and the sacred peak Khumbila, hosts a well-known monastery that houses a yeti scalp, before having lunch and walking back down to Namche Bazaar.

Upon having breakfast, we start our trek towards Tengboche enjoying a superb view of Mt. Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Ama Dablam, and Thamserku along the way. Our trek follows this gradual trail, complete with a few ups and downs, overlooking magnificent views of the great Himalayas. 

Along the way, we can spot various wildlife such as pheasants, musk deer, and herds of Himalayan Thar. The trail then gradually goes down up to Kayangjuma, eventually reaching Sansa, the major trail junction to Gokyo valley and Everest Base Camp. The track then follows through the pine forests and, after crossing the prayer-flag festooned bridge over Dudh Koshi River, reaches Phunki Thenga; a small settlement with a couple of teahouses and a small army post amidst the alpine woods. 

After having a relaxed lunch at Phunki Thenga, we will then have a tough little climb that goes up steeply through the pine and rhododendron forests until it reaches Tengboche a great place for close-up views of Ama Dablam, Nuptse, and Everest, and it has the biggest Buddhist monastery in the Khumbu region.

We start our trek after our morning breakfast. We pass through several chortens, main walls, and small villages. While on the journey, we enjoy lunch with fantastic close-up views of Ama Dablam. 

In the afternoon, we go north to Pheriche or take the eastward trail beneath the towering north face of Ama Dablam. From here onwards the walk is fairly moderate as we enter the Imja Valley. The valley ahead will begin to open up as we approach the confluence of the Lobuche River. 

Then after the confluence, we descend into the river and begin the last and steepest climb of the day up to Dingboche. Upon arrival in Dingboche, we enjoy the beautiful array of fields enclosed by stone walls to protect the barley, buckwheat, and potatoes from the cold winds and grazing animals.

After breakfast, we will start our day by hiking to Chukumg or Nagargun hill, where you can see good views of Ama Dablam along with such peaks as Island Peak, Peak 38, Balu, and Imja Lake – a  famous lake in the Khumbu region. After that, it’s back to the hotel to have a rest.
 

From Dingboche, we trek up the steep terminal moraine of the Khumbu Glacier. We will find our way through the boulder-strewn slope as we ascend Chupki Lhara, an eerie ridge top with dramatic mountain views. 

At the top of the ridge, we will find an array of stones with prayer flags used as memorials to Scott Fischer (American mountaineer) and 10-time Everest submitter Babu Chiri Sherpa (mountain guide from Nepal) who perished on a mission to climb Everest. As the trail drops to the Khumbu Glacier moraine, we find ourselves face to face with several great peaks – Khumbutse, Lingtren, Pumori, and Mahalangur Himal. 

We are now in the vicinity of Everest but the great mountain still remains hidden. Nuptse towers to the right as the trail crosses the Khumbu Glacier and we enter high altitude.

The trail to Gorak Shep goes ahead through the lateral moraine of the Khumbu Glacier. We pass through the pyramid signpost and head on the trail and see the crest of the north ridge of Everest, along with Mt. Pumori, Mahalangur, Lingtern, Khumbutse, and Nuptse. 

A small ascent will then take us to Thangma Riju, from where we can perceive a 360-degree vista of the snowy mountains. Upon climbing to the top, through the torrent of the Changri glacier, we catch our first glimpse of Kala Patthar, a grey-green knoll beneath Mt. Pumori. As we reach Gorak Shep, we will be surrounded by snow-capped mountains looming all around us, including Mount Everest, the top of the world. 

After a brief lunch and rest, we take the trail to Everest Base Camp through the once-vast Gorak Shep Lake. Continuing straight ahead, we come through the Indian army mountaineers’ memorials and as we reach Everest Base Camp we cannot help appreciating the Everest climbers that take the hazardous route through the Khumbu icefall. 

As we reach the peak of our trip, we can view Nuptse, Khumbuste, and Pumori. Please note that the sunset view from Kala Patthar is more admirable than the sunrise view, so it is recommended that we visit Kala Patthar today during sunset. 

As the setting sun strikes the snow-capped mountains, the resulting scenery is incredible. For those trekkers who wish to continue to Kala Patthar, the Himalayan Glacier guides and Sherpas can coordinate our hike for an amazing sunset view today rather than tomorrow.

Today is the climax of our trip. We will start early at dawn to catch the dramatic views from Kala Patthar, witnessing the first light of day as it shines on Mt. Everest. However, we need to be prepared for a cold, dark, early morning departure first with potential chilly winds. 

Familiar peaks such as Lingtren, Khumbutse, and Changtse tower to the east as Everest begins to reveal itself emerging between the west shoulder crest and Nuptse. During the ascent to Kala Patthar, we can pause to catch our breath and admire several outstanding viewpoints to snap pictures. After several hours of ascent, we will finally reach Kala Patthar. 

From here, we scramble to climb the rocky outcrop near the summit marked by cairns and prayer flags. As we reach the top, we sit on the Kala Patthar rocks and our eyes take in the unbelievable Himalayan Panorama, wandering from one mighty massif to another, before returning to Gorak Shep, where we have breakfast and waiting for the other participants to return back. 

Those visitors who plan to visit Everest Base Camp today will have an early breakfast to start as the Everest Base Camp hike takes longer (4-5 hrs) than the Kala Patthar hike. Upon returning back to Gorak Shep, the group will have lunch together and the afternoon will be used to descend down to Pheriche for a good night’s rest.

We begin by trekking down through a hillside blanketed by rhododendron and juniper trees it is spring, and pink and red rhododendron flowers will fill our surroundings. We will then either have lunch in Pangboche or wait until we reach Phunki Tenga. After crossing the prayer-flag festooned bridge over the Dudh Koshi River, the trail then follows the Dudh Koshi gorge as it descends rapidly through pine forests. 

The path eventually reaches Sansa, the major trail junction in the region and we will stop at Kyangjuma (3570 m/11,710 ft) for a relaxed lunch while appreciating the epic Ama Dablam, Thamserku, and Nuptse. After lunch, the trail to Namche Bazaar clings to the steeply wooded slope beyond Kyangjuma, and we can look out for wildlife such as mountain goats, snow leopards, and colorful pheasants while passing through the forest. 

Upon passing a Chorten, we reach the army camp at Namche Bazaar where we can take one last long look (and picture!) at Lhotse, Tengboche, and the tip of Everest.

The trail today descends steeply downward so we will need to walk slowly as we battle the rocky terrain. Upon crossing the suspension bridges over the fast-flowing Dudh Koshi and its tributaries, the trail begins to level out. 

Although we will be traveling the same route down, we will have completely different views, with a mixture of open plains, rhododendron, and pine forests, and in the distance, snow-covered peaks. 

We walk through the Sherpa villages’ noticing a strong faith in Buddhism and a culture of prayer stones and flags. Upon arrival in Lukla, we stretch our legs and recall the experiences of the last couple of weeks.

Today, we fly back to Kathmandu after our long mountain journey. The early morning flight drops us in Kathmandu where we can rest and relax throughout the day at our hotel, or spend the day exploring the city, before a farewell dinner in the evening.