A complete guide of Everest Base Camp Trek

There is no need to introduce Everest to the world. Everyone is familiar with the mighty Everest and its status. Likewise, there is a sea of trekkers dreaming of reaching the lap of the highest mountain in the world.

Many wonder how one can reach one of the beautiful places on the earth. But no worries, we are here for you. We have jutted down all the information for you related to Everest Base Camp Trek.

This trail is one of the most anticipated trekking trails in the world. Most of the interested trekkers have varieties of questions regarding the Everest Base Camp trek. For instance, food, lodgings, shower, internet, electricity are some of the few things trekkers would like to know about.

But worry not because here in this blog, we present you with all the necessary information regarding the Everest Base Camp trek.

Accommodation in Everest Region

Everest region is one of the highest places in the world. The home of the world’s Highest mountain- Mt. Everest (8848m), is the dream trekking trail for many trekkers. Likewise, the trail is opted by many trekkers around the world.

As the base camp of the tallest mountain in the world is opted by many trekkers, there to be some housing facilities on the trail. And it is only a warning for you because the range of facilities that one can experience on the trail is commendable.

Moreover, since the trail is the popular touristic track, you might find all sorts of shops up to Namche too. For instance, café, restaurants, grocery shops, bars, bakeries, trekking gear shops, money exchange booths, and many more.

In the Himalayas of Nepal, the hotel has a very different meaning and understanding. As opposed to the definition of the hotel- an establishment providing accommodations, meals, and other services for travelers and tourists. In the Himalayas, it simply means a place to eat; thus, you will be able to see lots of lodges and teahouses with hotel names attached to them. Likewise, a lodge generally means a place to sleep.

One will be overwhelmed to discover the wide range of categorical hotels in the Everest region. From simple rooms with two single beds to luxury rooms furnished with all necessary things can be found in the Everest region. Everest luxury lodges will surely surprise you. The rooms of the luxury lodges in the Everest region are equipped with comfortable beds and furniture while keeping the clients' comfort in mind.

For instance, brightly sun-kissed rooms attached bathrooms with western-style toilets and with running waters. And we have to say, in the mountain to get such facilities is luxury that can’t compete with any other hotels in the world. However, this luxury is limited up to Namche Bazaar.

Rooms

You can find varieties of rooms while trekking through the trail of Everest Base Camp. But please be mindful that the styles of accommodation change as you go up and up. Higher the altitude your reach, the simple the accommodation gets.

Rooms at Tea-house:

You can find tea houses from Lukla to Gorakshep and at all the stops while coming down.

What to expect:

A simple room with two single beds and a table. The bed will be set with a mattress with a bedsheet, a pillow, and a blanket. Also, no electricity plugs are available in the rooms after Namche.

Rooms at Luxury lodges:

On the Everest trail, you will find Luxury lodges like Yeti Mountain Home and Everest Summit lodges. These lodges are branched out in Lukla, Phakding, Namche, Mende, Monjo, Kongde, Thame, and Tasha. Not all of the above-mentioned places are set for an overnight during any trek towards Everest Base Camp.

What to expect:

Varieties of rooms with balcony, attached bathroom with 24 hr. running hot water, beds with comfortable mattresses and electric mat.

Bathroom and Hot shower

Simple in-house bathrooms with squat-down toilets or western-style toilets are found in tea houses. At some places, cold running water will be available in the toilet; however, there will be a big bucket of water at some places.

On the other hand, a bathroom is attached with rooms in luxury hotels and will have 24 hrs—hot and cold running water.

And as per the hot shower, in tea houses, you can have a hot shower if you pay an extra fee. For a hot shower in a tea house, it cost around USD 4 per shower. The price changes depending upon the place and altitude you are at.

Don’t get surprised if you have paid for the hot shower and you happen to have a cold shower. In tea house, you will have to take a shower by pouring water on yourself. And by the time you get yourself accustomed to the new bathing style, your water will get cold. So, a tip for taking a hot shower while in the mountains is to learn to take a quick shower.

Nevertheless, in the luxury lodges of Everest, you can have a hot shower in a western-style toilet.

Some other things to know before getting ready for the Everest Base Camp trek are as follows:

Electricity

Likewise up to Namche, with good tea-houses and better facilities, electricity is no exception. You can get electricity wherever you choose to stay. Yes, certain fees will be obliged to you, but still, you will get to use sufficient electricity.

Please note that Nepal has an electrical voltage of 200V/ 240 V, and it supplies the current at 50 Megahertz. So bring the power adapter that has a capacity of 50 Megahertz.

And above Namche, there will be solar panels through which electricity is supplied. Usually, the power socket is round two-pin types of plugs are found. Therefore, bringing a universal travel adapter is highly recommended.

Meals

All kinds of meals if found in Everest trek. Namche the more busy market has a variety of shops in the meals section. From breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they have their own section. Likewise, all categorical food- vegetarian, non-vegetarian and vegan meals are also found. In addition to that, if you require gluten-free meals, then they will also be organized for you. According to the menu available in the tea houses, you can choose your own set of foods based on your dietetic preferences.

Veg meals over non-veg. Why?

We suggest you have veg meals over non-veg meals while on the trek. Yes, it is your choice, and you require protein in your body too. But eating nonveg meals at high altitudes is not recommended.

At high altitudes, digesting a heavy meal full of protein is hard because our digestive system will be under pressure and is trying hard to adapt to the surrounding environment where air pressure is already so low.

Internet and Network

People often asked us, “Is there internet on the Everest Base Camp?”

In addition, people also ask, “Is there cell service on Everest trail?”

The answer is yes to both questions. There is perfect internet as well as cell service on the Everest trail.

The easiest way to get internet and network service in Nepal will be to get a SIM card. There are several telecom companies in Nepal. The one that works in the Everest region more efficiently is the Ncell SIM card.

Along the trail of the Everest region, the company has built eight 3G stations.

And with the provision of different data packs, users can use the internet service in Everest at a reasonable price.

Wi-Fi

Besides cell phones and data packs to access the internet, Wi-Fi is also available in the trail of Everest. You can purchase Wi-Fi at the tea houses you are staying in. The signal and the prices of the Wi-Fi change with its altitude. The price ranges from USD 2- 12 per hour. In some places, you can get excellent Wi-Fi, while in some poor. It depends on the place, though. Places, where Wi-Fi are available are Lukla, Phakding, Namche Bazaar, Khumjung, Tengboche, Dingboche, Gorakshep, and Pheriche.

Furthermore, a group of young Nepalese entrepreneurs has started an internet service called Everest Link on the Everest Base Camp Trek.

Everest Link is a wireless internet service that can be purchase as a card. The card can be purchased at almost every major stops on the Everest trail. There are several internet services provided by Everest link. And they are as follows:

10 GB for 30 days at just Rs. 1999 & 20GB for 30 Days at Rs. 2999

How to purchase an Everest link card?

As mentioned above, one can purchase the card in the shops or tea houses they are staying at. And login to the information provided on the card and used a reliable and faster internet.

Laundry

“How to do laundry while on the Everest trek?”

“Is there Laundry service available on the Everest Base Camp trek?”

Above are the few questions all the interested trekkers have. And we are here to answer your queries.

Laundry is not an exception among numerous services available in Namche. The price also varies according to the service giver. Afterward, Namche, Laundry service is the last thing you will get.

Hand washing your clothes is one of the ways to do laundry while on the Everest trek. However, water will be icy, and you will need to be extra careful. You can use sinks or washbasins available at the tea house to wash your clothes.

Water

There are many ways to get on the trek. You can buy bottled water at tea house. Similarly, you can also buy hot water at the tea house and fill up your thermos. Besides that, you can fill your water bottle from the near tap or spring and use a water purification tablet to purity it.4

It cost USD 1-5 for a bottle of water.

Travel Insurance

Visiting the Everest region is no joke. People all the time faces some sorts of complications while on the trek. So to not be overtly damaged due to untimely events having travel insurance while traveling to a foreign country is very important. For the Everest Base Camp trek, your travel insurance should cover the altitude of 6000m and emergency helicopter evacuation.

Lukla Flight from Ramechap

This is one of the biggest concerns of trekkers. They are not aware of this situation. Or why is this happening?

Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has announced that flights to Lukla will operate from Manthali Airport in Ramechap. This is arranged to avoid the traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport. So, all the flights to Lukla are being operated from Ramechhap.

“How to get to Manthali Airport, Ramechap?” is another of the most asked question by our clients.

If you are an independent traveler, you can get to Ramechap by taking a local bus a day before the flight and staying overnight in Manthali. But if you are traveling with a travel agent, then no worries from your transportation to accommodation if needed will be handled by your agents.

Another way would be to wake up early in the morning, like 2 AM, and take an early private vehicle to Ramechap. It takes about 5 hours to reach Ramechap on a vehicle.

And if you are wondering about guest houses, then yes, guesthouses are available there too. However, you will find modest rooms with two single beds and a table. Likewise, the food department is also simple.

Flight Cancellation and Delays

Due to any circumstances, your flight to/from Lukla is canceled or delays. There are few options to handle this situation.

Firstly, if you have spare few days, you can stay back in Lukla and fly to Kathmandu when the weather clears.

Secondly, you can take a helicopter to fly from Lukla to Kathmandu to avoid having to miss your international flight. It cost approx. 2500.00 per helicopter for a one-way flight, and the helicopter allows only 5 people maximum on the flight.

Luggage Weight

The weight limit on the flight to Lukla is 15 kg per person which includes Hand carriers too.

Porter

The superheroes of the trek, Porter, will carry your duffel bag. One porter will attend the luggage of two trekkers.

And more important Health concern

Know about Altitude sickness

Altitude sickness is also known as mountain sickness. It occurs when you are taking higher altitudes too quickly. So, we suggest trekkers walk at a slow pace.

How does this happen?

When you are walking further in the higher regions, the pressure of the airdrops and oxygen level also decreases. Altitude sickness commonly happens to people who are not used to the air pressure of higher altitudes and can’t adapt to the surrounding environment.

There are 3 types of altitude sickness, and they are:

• Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) - In this type, you will have trivial symptoms like body pain, nausea, headache, and light-headedness. It is common and can be avoided.
• High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) is dangerous than the above one because this type of fluid is present in the lungs.
• High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE) – This type of altitude sickness is more serious and life-threatening. In this type, there is a presence of fluid in the brain. Therefore it has to be careful of right away.

What to do if you suffer from altitude sickness?

If you are going through mild altitude sickness, you can prevent it from elevating by drinking lots of water. Also, if you have not hiked to a great height, we suggest you take a halt until you are recovered; however if you have already reached a great height, we suggest you hike down.

But if you are suffering through HAPE and HACE, immediate evacuation is necessary. There is no point in staying there for a longer time. Those conditions are one of the severe types, and getting immediate treatment should be the foremost priority of the patients and the guide.

You can contact your travel insurance company to send you an emergency helicopter evacuation. Once you have been rescued, you will be taken care of at the hospital in Kathmandu.

Tip Guidance

Generally, tipping is not mandatory, and it entirely depends on you too. However, if you are satisfied with the service, you can happily tip them, depending upon your budget scale.

All things considered, above mentioned are mostly questioned topics by interested trekkers all over the world. The information we provided may not be accurate to the experiences you are going to get. Nonetheless, the main purpose of this blog is to send out a rough idea about the services you can get and at what cost. Considering the constantly changing market, there will not be much difference in the prices we mentioned above.