Everest base Camp with Gokyo & Cho-La Pass - 17 Days

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There might be very few trek loving people who might not have heard or known about the Khumbu Region. As most of you could have already known, this region has a handful of trekking routes, so it is quite confusing for trekkers to choose one. The Everest Base Camp-Chola Pass-Gokyo Ri trek route is a fairly challenging trek route that offers stunning views of high snow-capped mountains, insight to Sherpa culture and traditions, and high altitude pass trekking. If you are looking for a moderately challenging trek route, which consists of at least one high altitude pass, few glacial lakes, and the popular destination-the Everest Base Camp, then, this route is the most suitable one.

Overview

In this trek route, you start walking from an altitude of 2886m. (Lukla) and reach the peak altitude of 5,545m (Kala Patthar). During the trip, you reach Everest Base Camp (5,365m), Gokyo Ri (5,357m) and you hike a high altitude pass at 5,420m (Chola Pass). Gokyo valley offers you a serene view of glacial lakes inside the valley and a different perspective view of the mighty Everest and surrounding peaks such as Cho Oyu, Lhotse, and Makalu.

Once you complete your trek, you would have witnessed amazing peaks like Mt. Everest, Lhotse, Cho Oyu, Makalu, Amadablam, Kanchenjunga, Nuptse, Pumori, and so on. Moreover, you would have walked over snow, glaciers, high altitude pass, visited settlements of Sherpa people, walked across lush forests and many more things would have been discovered.

The whole trekking trip would be of 17days. However, the trip would consist of only 12 days of walking; the remaining 5 days would include flight trips and rest days. In addition to it, you can always add extra days of trekking if you chose to start walking from Phaplu or Jiri instead of flying to Lukla and starting your trip from there.

The best seasons for trekking this route would be Spring (March-May) and Autumn (September-November). During the spring season, you would discover much more of greenery all around and the temperature is also warmer in comparison to autumn. Moreover, if you do your trek in April, you can also enjoy the Dumje festival and Mani Rimdu dance which is performed in the monasteries of the Sherpa people. However, you can expect drizzle in late May due to pre-monsoon activities, but that might not really affect your trip. If you trek during autumn, the weather condition is very much favorable for views and scenic activities.

In addition to other permits, this specific trek route requires Sagarmatha National Park Permit, but you do not need to get concerned, as we will guide you through all the required procedures.

Trek Highlights:

  • Walk across one of the highest passes in the Khumbu region, Chola pass (5,420m)
  • Explore three different viewpoints, EBC, Kala Patthar and Gokyo Ri, which provide you three different perspective of the mountain peaks in the area.
  • Astounding views of peaks above 8,000 metres in addition to Mt. Everst.
  • Mesmerizing view of mountains like Amadablam, Lhotse Cho Oye, Kanchenjunga, etc.
  • Exploring the Gokyo Lakes inside the Gokyo valley.
  • Exploring Ngozumpa Glacier.
  • Discovering different Khumbu icefalls while you trek.
  • Experience the warmth of Sherpa hospitality and cultures.
  • Once in a lifetime experience flight to Lukla.

Itinerary

Day 1
Airport Pickup and Hotel Transfer

Our Representative will be waiting for you at the airport and welcome you to our typical Nepali culture. You will be quickly arriving at the hotel afterward where you can expect luxurious accommodation. There will be a welcome dinner tonight and afterward a proper sleep which is much needed after the long trip from home.

Day 2
Rest and Tour Day at Kathmandu

Today we will discuss our trekking and make necessary preparations and we take a quick city tour of Kathmandu as well. After all the briefings regarding the trek and acquainting necessary permits, we will arrange a short trip to a few UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the city such as Pashupatinath Temple, Swayambunath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa and so on. A quick stroll in the streets of Kathmandu and last minute gear shopping is a perfect thing to do in the evening.

Day 3
Flight to Lukla (2,800m) and trek to Phakding (2,850m)

The early morning 30 minutes flight to Lukla is definitely going to give you some Adrenaline rush. A quick tip: Try to sit in the right-hand side seat of the aircraft for mesmerizing views during the final approach to the airport. After landing, the trek begins where you follow Dudhkoshi River valley, cross Tharo Koshi River through a suspension bridge and make a final climb towards Phakding. We will walk about 5 hours today before arriving Phakding and stay overnight.

Day 4
Trek to Namche (3,440m), 6hours.

On our fourth day of the trip, today, we will walk about 5 hours, starting by following the same Dudh Koshi River. The first interesting destination of today would be Tok Tok where you will get a mesmerizing glance of Thamserku Peak. Another interesting destination will be Chomoa, which is the site of an agricultural project. This location will offer you an insight into the farming style of the people in this region. On walking further uphill, we will enter Sagarmatha National Park and we continue to finally reach Namche Bazaar. On our trip today we cross a suspension bridge that falls in 123rd position in the list of world’s tallest bridge. We stay overnight in Namche.

Day 5
Acclimatization Day

In the morning we make an acclimatization hike to Everest view hotel and during the afternoon we explore the local market of Namche Bazaar. There are a lot of things that Namche offers and a single day can be short enough for you to enjoy everything. For a short day of refreshment, you can go for a movie or to a bar for refreshment. There are also a few popular coffee shops in the area. And of course, if you want to have a refreshing massage before you really start climbing; Namche can be the perfect point to do it. Or, we have another choice of doing a quick hike to Syanboche, where you can get your first close-up of Mt. Everest, Lhotse, Amadablam and Thamserku.

Day 6
Trek to Tengboche (3,860m), 5hours.

Today, 5-6 hours of walk will take us to our destination: Tengboche. Leaving behind Namche Bazaar, we descend and walk along the Dudh Koshi River. Then we will hike uphill to reach Tengboche. You will see small Buddhist monuments and stupas on the way. On reaching Tengboche, you will see a monastery which is the largest monastery of the Khumbu region. We stay overnight in Tengboche.

Day 7
Trek to Dingboche (4,350m), 6hours.

Leaving behind Tengboche, eleven kilometers of trekking would be required to reach Dingboche. This should take us about 5-6 hours. We will be walking around the lane of the alpine forest. When the fragrance of Rhododendron hits your senses, you will get boosted. We will cross Imja Khola, climb to Pangboche and continue hiking up to Dingboche. Dingboche is a traditional Sherpa village. Here you will get astounding views of Lhotse, Island Peak, and Ama Dablam. The warmth and hospitality of local people will make you forget the tiredness of the day. We stay overnight here.

Day 8
Acclimatization Day

In the next few days, we will be climbing up to the Everest Base Camp, the Chola Pass and other high altitude trails. We will also be reaching our highest location of the entire trip. Therefore, today we will take a rest at Dingboche and acclimatize ourselves in the local weather conditions. It is essential for us to be mentally prepared for the rest of the trip as the most challenging sections of the entire trip are about to be encountered. During the day, we can make a short trek up to Chhukung.

Day 9
Trek to Lobuche (4,910m), 5 hours.

Today should not be a difficult day as we walk again for about 5/6 hours and we are used to it by today. Our trail will follow a moraine of the Khumbu glacier and pass across stone memorials for the climbers who had to face sudden demise on nearby summits. We continue our climb, getting escorted by the panorama of beautiful mountains and reach Lobuche. This place has very few settlements, lies at the foot of an enormous Lobuche peak and provides us the rest for the day as we stay overnight.

Day 10
Trek to Everest Base Camp (5,365m) and back to Gorak Shep (5,180m), 3 hours

You desperately wanted to reach Everest Base Camp, didn’t you? Guess
what, today is the day your dream comes true. We also walk a bit more hours than the previous days and the walk is also going to be quite difficult. We will hike up to Gorak Shep and continue walking to Everest Base Camp. This is the location where people can go closest to the peak of Mt. Everest, without any mountaineering equipment. The view you will get of the surrounding ridges and peaks will be so astounding that it will be pasted in your memories forever. After spending some time in EBC, we head back to Gorak Shep for our overnight stay.

Day 11
Trek to Kala Patthar (5,545m) and back to Dzongla (4,620m), 6 hours.

Also popularly known as Everest View Point, Kala Patthar offers you the most magnificent views of the mountain peaks in the entire trek. Hike of about 4 hours would take us from Gorak Shep to Kala Patthar. You will get a panoramic view of mountain peaks including the roof of the world, Mt. Everest and other peaks such as Nuptse, Pumori, Chagatse, Lhotse and others. Basically, you will be surrounded by gigantic snow-capped peaks. After the refreshing view from Kala Pathar we start our descent back to Dzongla via Gorak shep and Lobuche.

Day 12
Trek via Chola Pass (5,420m) to Thangna (4,650m), 7-8 hours.

We will hike the only significant pass of the trip, Chola Pass (5,420m). There are other passes also, but we would have to take a different route to hike across them. We start our day walking on a flat stone path passing through the arid valley. Then we hike steeply up to Chola pass in the icy trails of Chola glacier. Then we descend on the other side to reach Phedi and again descend down to Thangna. Thangna is a small village having few teahouses but would be enough for us to make our overnight stay. You can also get a view of Machhermo peak from there.

Day 13
Trek to Gokyo (4,750m), 3 hours.

After a few days of exhausting walks, we can expect an easy day where we hike all the way to Gokyo from Thangna. The trail follows the Dudh Koshi River. On the way, you will explore a lot of glaciers of the Khumbu Region. After a relatively short day of walking, we reach Gokyo and we guarantee you will be astonished by the beauty of Dudh Pokhari Lake in Gokyo.

Day 14
Trek to Gokyo Ri (5357m) and back to Machhermo (4,470m), 3 hours.

We will be exploring one of the highest locations of the trip, today. This is also going to be the last extremely fascinating destination of the trip because we will trackback to Namche tomorrow. After a short hike up to Gokyo Ri, you will find yourself in a place that feels not less than a paradise. A view of Everest from a different perspective and a lot of other peaks around the location feels exquisite. Finally, we start descending, today up to Machhermo and stay overnight.

Day 15
Trek to Namche (3,440m), 5-6hours.

We will be walking with a view of alpine forests and rhododendron. The views and vibes of today will be pretty much similar to the day when we walked from Tengboche to Dingboche. We will be meeting with a lot of Sherpa people and settlements on the way. We will be learning the cultures and rituals of the Sherpa people as we observe them while descending. Since we are returning, quick souvenirs shopping in the evening at Namche would be a good idea. This will help you recall your memories from the trek.

Day 16
Trek back to Lukla (2886m.), 6 hours.

By now, we would have collected awesome memories to rejoice. With a heart full of reminiscences we descend back to Lukla where our flight to Kathmandu would be waiting for us.

Day 17
Fly back to Kathmandu

Usually, the flights to and from are completed in the early morning because of the unpredictable weather patterns in the afternoon. So we can expect to be in our hotel in Kathmandu by early afternoon.

Cost Included

  • For both international and domestic flights: Airport transfer.
  • Luxurious hotel accommodations in Kathmandu
  • Variety of meal choices during the trek.
  • Guide and Porter services
  • Staff salary, food, insurance
  • Luxurious accommodation at teahouse in the trek route.
  • Domestic flight fare
  • Welcome dinner with cultural program.
  • All necessary permits.

Cost Excluded

  • Nepal entry Visa fees.
  • Travel Insurance
  • International Airfare
  • All Drinks and main meals in cities.
  • Tips for the staff
  • Any items of personal use like beverage drinks, telephone, etc.

You can send your enquiry via the form below.

Everest base Camp with Gokyo & Cho-La Pass
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Trip Facts

  • Tourist Vehicle, domestic flight
  • 1-20
  • 5555 meters.
  • Hotel and Tea House Lodges
  • Hard
  • Kathmandu Airport
  • Kathmandu Airport
  • Autumn & Spring
  • Trained Trekking Guide
  • Trekking
  • 3 Meals a Day
  • English