EVEREST BASE CAMP TREK
WHAT TO EXPECT
18 Days
Imagine a trek that embodies the very essence of adventure. A trek that takes you on a journey through the most breathtaking landscapes and pushes you to your ultimate challenge. With 81 miles or 130 km to cover, at an altitude of 17,585-ft/5,360-m, this trek is not for the faint-hearted. You'll be hiking up and down steep hills and valleys, navigating twisting trails and footpaths, and crossing thrilling suspension bridges hanging over raging rivers and deep gorges. The rewards that await you are priceless.
"Tusker guides Mingma, Kombe and Shabane where all great. I had climbed Kilimanjaro with them and was very happy to be on this trip with them. All were professional and fun, making the trip very enjoyable. The entire team of Sherpas, cooks, porters and guides were all professional, helpful and a pleasure to be with." 5-Star Review by "Mark R."
YOUR GUIDES
A team of expert guides from around the world will lead your trek. Tusker’s highly experienced guiding team is made up of MINGMA, our lead Sherpa guide, supported by KOMBE and SHABANE, our top safety guides from Kilimanjaro, who have decades of high-altitude climbing experience. They conduct twice-daily health checks of your team to ensure that you’re healthy for your entire trek to Base Camp and back. You will enjoy fantastic meals prepared our well-trained chefs in our own traveling adventure kitchen.
While participants of all ages from 12-75 have achieved Tusker’s trek to Everest Base Camp, it demands that you are in top physical form. The terrain is rugged and steep, requiring a total ascent from 9,300 to 18,519 feet and you will traverse exposed areas. Hiking up to 8 hours daily includes substantial altitude gains and losses, with extreme weather adding to the challenge. Optimal physical condition and past comparable hiking experience are critical.
TUSKER'S ADVENTURE KITCHEN
Your meals provide you with the fuel you’ll need for your exhilarating days of hiking. They are prepared by our own cooking team throughout the entire trek. The menu has been meticulously designed by Tusker’s owner/guide Amy Frank, together with our Nepali chef, Shiri. You will enjoy delicious meals prepared by our cooking team in our hygienic adventure kitchen. You also have access to purified drinking water, to ensure you stay healthy and hydrated for the entire trek.
EDDIE TALKS...
"Nothing tastes better than a delicious hot meal prepared on the spot, after a tough day on the trail. Shiri and his crew do just that. And he makes Sushi! It’s like eating at a mobile Nepali restaurant.”
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LODGING IN KATHMANDU
Before and after your trek you stay at our getaway, the 5-star Marriott Hotel in the heart of Kathmandu. It has a modern atmosphere in the ancient bustling city, and is a great place to relax before and after your trek to Everest Base Camp.
LODGING AT LOWER ELEVATIONS
Phakding – Namche – Tengboche – Dingboche – Monjo
Every night along the trail in the Khumbu Valley you stay in comfortable family-run lodges that we have been staying at for many years. While the lodges are unpretentious, they provide you with all you need – a bed, a cozy place to rest after a hard day on the trail, and the occasional shower.
Namche is generally considered the gateway to Everest. You and the team spend two nights here and at Dingboche, a valuable strategy to help you acclimatize to the higher altitude, which is vital to achieving your goal of reaching Base Camp. The bustling Namche streets are also a great place to shop for local Sherpa handicrafts.
LODGING AT HIGHER ELEVATIONS
Lobuche – Gorak Shep – Pheriche
Once you pass Dingboche and start climbing to higher altitudes, the lodges are more remote and much simpler in design. As you will have acclimatized during the previous days, these are one-nighters before your approach to Base camp. Tusker’s cooking staff follows us all the way, preparing delicious hygienic meals and serving them up in warm cozy dining rooms. These are just some the locations you'll stay and visit during your 18-day trek. Your guides will reveal the wonders of Nepal in a way you cannot imagine.
"Mingma our Nepali guide was excellent. It was fun to see him revered by his peers. I feel like he gave us extra opportunities, such as meeting Peter Hillary, because he is known and respected. I believe we were so successful in getting nearly everyone to the end because of our guides. We all went to them with any issues immediately and they were able to take care of things" 5-Star Review by "Nancy S."
EBC TREK SUPPORT
Your trekking group is supported by a team with long trekking experience in the Khumbu. At the helm is our Sherpa guide, MINGMA, who has a profound knowledge of the Himalayas, and shares with you an intimate understanding of Nepali and Sherpa culture. We fly in our top duo of Kilimanjaro guides – KOMBE and SHABANE – who, with their long experience guiding at high altitude, ensure that you and the group stay well acclimatized and healthy all the way to Base Camp and back. The backbone of your trek is made up of our team of chefs, porters, and yaks, all of whom work tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure your trek is enjoyable, hassle free and truly rewarding.
TREKKING GEAR
Getting to EBC is pretty straight forward – you use your own two feet. Therefore, a great pair of comfortable boots will be your best friend. We’ve got decades of experience putting one foot in front of the other, and we’ll share some great boot advice with you before your trek. Then come your layers. Layering is the best way of dressing for the trail. This method uses a variety of clothes, each serving a distinct purpose; warmth, cooling, drying, and waterproofing. If you don’t have any experience layering, we’re here to guide you.
Question? Ask Us Anything • +1.775.833.9700 • 1.800.231.1919
"Guides Mingma, Kombe, and Shabane were excellent. Mingma was incredibly knowledgeable about the trek, the people, the culture, and knew how to be a strong leader with such a large group. He had amazing attention to detail. They all were dedicated and always available for any small problems. So grateful to everyone for all their hard work. " - 5-Star Review by "Teresa"
HEALTH and SAFETY at ALTITUDE
We all know that trekking in the wilderness to altitude has inherent risk, and to mitigate the risk you need to be knowledgeable, experienced, and prepared. That’s why we fly our safety guiding team from Kilimanjaro to Nepal, and they ensure that you and your fellow trekkers get properly acclimatized and stay healthy during your trek.
We developed our safety protocols and guide training by leading 47 years of high altitude climbs on Mount Kilimanjaro. Thousands of our climbers have reached high altitudes on our treks and climbs. Knowing that your guides have your back is the key to the enjoyment and success of your challenge.
EMERGENCY BACKUP SUPPORT
Even in the best climbing season environmental conditions can change unexpectedly for the worse, and we’ve learned the importance of “backup plans for backup plans.“ If you require an emergency evacuation, you are covered by Ripcord, the evacuation company we have relied on successfully for many years. They have extended inexpensive coverage for our trekkers, as they are familiar with the training and experience of Tusker guides. Ripcord helped us evacuate our entire group after the 2015 earthquake in Nepal.
TUSKER'S EARTHQUAKE RESPONSE - 2015
At 11 am on April 25, 2015, 16 Tusker trekkers, 12 porters and 3 guides were enjoying lunch at Gorak Shep at 16,942-ft/4,915-m before heading out for a 2-hour hike to Base Camp. At 11:56, as they were finishing up, they were rocked by a deafening boom and jarred by the force of a huge avalanche just a few miles away. Nepal had just been rocked by a massive 7.8 earthquake – the most powerful and deadly in living memory. Tusker’s seasoned guide, Mel Kaida took charge. She checked the group, and no one was injured, but all local communication and transport networks had been crippled.
We contacted the family of each trekker in the group, keeping them up to date about the safety of the group. Meanwhile, Amy contacted Ripcord, our evacuation company, and coordinated a perfectly executed evacuation for the group, involving a Nepalese military helicopter, specially dispatched Ripcord facilitators, and privately organized international flights.
They were the first group out of Nepal and in the air back home, everyone arrived home safely.
"Everest Base Camp with Tusker Trail 2015 Earthquake" - "I recently returned from a trek to Everest Base Camp with Tusker Trail. We were getting ready for our final push up to Base Camp from Gorak Shep when the 7.8 earthquake hit Nepal, followed up with a snow blast from the avalanche that killed several climbers at base camp. I cannot say enough good things about Tusker Trail guides Mel Kaida, Migma Sherpa and the crew in Tahoe. Mel was on the satellite phone with Tusker immediately and the motions were in action to get our group out and contact our families at home. Tusker has a contract with Ripcord Rescue and within 4 days we were in a Russian helicopter on our way back to Kathmandu. Mel 's professionalism and calm demeaner helped keep everyone focused on getting out safely. Mingma Sherpa was amazing, he found us lodging when our planned lodging had been destroyed. I had summited Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2012 with Tusker and would highly recommend them for any adventure travel. THANK YOU, TUSKER TRAIL, for keeping us safe!!" - Reviewer - "25tac1958"
PROFESSIONAL SAFETY ALLIANCES
All our guides are trained High Altitude Emergency First Responders with decades of high-altitude guiding experience. They are backed up by Ripcord. In addition to providing emergency air evacuation, Ripcord has a team of emergency doctors with whom we consult from the field by satellite phone during emergencies. Also, during our 47 years in adventure travel we have established enduring global alliances with the following professional organizations:
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