A Trip Guide to Everest Base Camp

A Trip Guide to Everest Base Camp: Here is the story of our adventure on one of the iconic treks in Tibet.  We did our Everest base camp trek recently and the memories of this awesome experience will live with us forever. Read on for  an honest and detailed account of the highs and lows of the trek! Scroll to the bottom for practical information.

Can you visit Tibet on your own?

No, I’m sorry, but you can’t go alone. The Chinese law is quite strict with this. The only way to visit Tibet is to go with a licensed travel agency that can provide you with the permits required in Tibet.

In particular, a trip to Everest Base Camp from Tibet requires a permit, TTB (Tibet Tourism Bureau Permit) and a permit from PSB (also called Alien Travel Permit).

The permission of TTB is issued by the Tourism Bureau of Tibet in Lhasa before you start your trip.This is often referred to as the “entry Permit in Tibet”, and is required to take the train or flight to Tibet.

The Permission of PSB or Travel Permit for Foreigners, a special permit for foreign tourists to visit the areas “not open”, such as the region of Mount Everest, and are obtained easily in Shigatse [a city in the middle of the way between Lhasa and Everest) by your guide. The process is very easy and only takes around 1-2 hours, so that’s usually not going to affect much to your visit to Shigatse.

When you’re getting closer to the Everest, it is very likely that there are control points in which passports, photos and permits will be reviewed by the local authorities. Be prepared.

The cost of your tour should include all the necessary travel documents, as part of the rate. Keep in mind that when you’re applying for your chinese visa, it is best if you do NOT mention that you are planning to travel to Tibet.

When to visit the Everest Base Camp?

Everest can be visited throughout the year, but the best time is from mid-April to early June and from mid-September to mid-October. In both cases, there are good odds of enjoying clear skies and an unobstructed view.

Many people are dying to see the sunrise over Everest, but the sun does not rise over the mountain. However, if you and offers a spectacular view.

What to wear?

You do not need any special equipment to visit the Base Camp of the Everest. Take a good jacket, shoes, and decent sunglasses.

How many days are required to visit the Base Camp of Everest?

In my opinion to go to the Everest Base Camp eight days are enough, including back and forth to Lhasa and the stops in the most popular places.

However, I recommend that you reserve at least ten days. These two days of difference, imply a huge difference for the following reasons:

• You’re traveling to more than 3,000 meters and, unless you’re a marathon runner or hiker altitude experienced, your body will not operate at full performance. A ten-day trip allows you a more progressive increase of the altitude of 3650 meters in Lhasa up to the 5150 meters from the Base Camp North.
• All routes to Everest from Lhasa going through the Road of Friendship China-Nepal. With the extra time the back one may venture through Daktuka cross the Brahmaputra river and the mountain pass Shuege-the more than 5,300 meters. Allowing you to discover the less visited part of Tibet, formed by valleys remote, full of traditional villages, Tibetan.
• Stop at one of my favourite places, the Lake Namtso, one of the three sacred lakes in tibetan buddhism and a spectacular place at sunrise.
• Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the trip to Tibet is long and heavy, so why not take the time to enjoy one of the most remote places in the world?

Tibet Airlines currently offers flights to and from Shigatse three times a week. so that you can abandon Tibet from Shigatse, reducing the trip in a day. I do not advise that you fly to Shigatse and go straight to the Base Camp: The risk of altitude sickness is too high and could be very dangerous to your health.

Choose between a private Tour or in group

When planning your trip to Tibet one of the most important questions that you will have to formularte is if you go on a private tour or in group .

A group tour offers the advantage of sharing the expenses of the trip with other travelers, but it limits the ability to adjust the route. The travel agency usually offer group travel to mount Everest with the option of returning to Lhasa or continuing onto Nepal.

A private tour gives you a complete control on the route to do. If you are traveling in a group of three or more persons I recommend a private tour. With a group of this size, the price will be more or less the same.

You can also choose to design your own private tour and to find others with which to fill the vehicle and therefore the costs. Combined the advantages of the two options.

A mixed approach is to book a group tour, but arrive or leave Lhasa before or after the scheduled date. Most of the travel agencies have no problem with this request. So you’re going to have more time to explore the capital and perhaps give small walks private to other places nearby.

A single warning: do Not expect to be able to visit any monastery, temple or other tourist place inside or outside of Lhasa on your own. According to the current policy of travel for foreign tourists, it requires a licensed guide.

In the case of being discovered, the consequences can be serious, you will lose your permit and immediately you will be transferred to the airport for leaving Tibet. In addition to the travel agency and the staff who requested your permission will face serious problems.

How to get to the Base Camp of the Everest

• By train from cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu. Most of the routes will take around two days. The train journey offers spectacular scenery along the line of the railway Qinghai-Tibet and deserves another article by itself.
• By plane from any of the major cities in China or from Kathmandu in Nepal.
• Hire a Jeep to Tibet from Nepal through the border at Zhangmu.

The most popular route: From Lhasa to Kathmandu via Everest Base Camp

The most popular route goes from Lhasa to Kathmandu via Everest Base Camp. Both options 8 and 10 days above mentioned, will travel along it. The state of the roads is quite good and also offers several places of historical and cultural interest, so that makes it the obvious choice for most travelers.

When you reach the mountain pass of Gyato-the to 5.220 meters you will have the first view of Mount Everest. It is not until 2 to 3 hours later, when you reach the mountain pass Gawu-la, which you can see Mount Everest in all its splendor.

If you are going directly to the Base Camp, we reach the step of Gawu-the afternoon of the second day from Lhasa. That is to say if you leave Lhasa on Monday morning you will spend the first night in Shigatse, and at the end of the second day you will cross over the step of Gawu-la.

In addition, in the step Gawu-la, if the clouds allow, you’ll be able to see the amazing formation of peaks of over 8,000 meters, from left to right, Mount Makalu, Mount Lhotse, Mount Everest, Mount Cho Oyu and Mount Shishapama. It is not until the evening when one reaches the Base Camp of the Everest.

Food and accommodation in the Base Camp

When you reach the Base Camp, one of the first things that you’ll see, a part of Mount Everest, is the Monastery of Rongbuk. The Monastery of Rongbuk and your guest house is one of the only sites that can host tourists and climbers.

The food options are scarce in the Base Camp of the Everest. The monastery has a small restaurant, but to call it a restaurant is very generous. They have instant soup, pancakes and other snacks. I suggest to bring some food, which you can compare in Shegar/Old Tingri, which is the last village before Base Camp, about 100 km away.

The accommodation in the Base Camp offers both private rooms and shared dormitories, but all the bathrooms are shared. The bathrooms are not exactly five-star, basically, are the latrines!

There are three options for those who choose to sleep here. All of them are the accommodations pretty basic:

• Rongbuk Monastery Guesthouse is Open all year. It offers double rooms, triple rooms, or shared bedrooms.
• Everest Tent Guesthouse Only in the summer. Its location varies each year and the shops are quite spacious.
• Zhufeng Hotel is Open only during the summer months. Be sure to check with your agent to confirm if you are available or not.

What to do in the Everest Base Camp?

Perhaps one of the most frequently asked questions is “how far away can I get from Everest?”

You are only allowed to reach approximately 8 km from the base of the Everest. To the south of the monastery of Rongbuk you will find the only signs that mark the Base Camp, not going to mention the Mount Everest. Just going to say “Mount Qomolangma Base Camp”, written in tibetan, chinese, and finally English.

This signal marks the point until which you can get, with the exception of those who have a special permit. Here is where you can enjoy the best view of the mountain.

There are two ways to get to the guest area in the Base Camp. The first is to travel by car or bus, depending on the season. In the summer, the government will enable a bus (the ticket costs 15 Yuan). In winter, however, allows vehicles to go directly to the Base Camp.

The alternative way is to walk along the path. The short hike takes about an hour. Personally, I think it has nothing special to walk along this dirt road. There are plenty of other trails that are much more interesting to walk around in Tibet and not far from the Everest, so better take the bus!

The majority of people will be thirty minutes or less in the Base Camp. Waiting for their turn to take the desired picture or maybe that will be the clouds and able to see the top. It will then become Old Tingri.

Frequently asked questions:

Where is the Everest base camp in Tibet or Nepal?

Currently, there are two Base Camps on mount Everest the North in Tibet and the South, which is located in Nepal. Everest can be scaled by the two base camps although the most popular is the Camp South since the permissions are usually easier to obtain. The pictures shows how they look from North (Tibet) and South (Nepal).

What you can do trekking in the Everest Base Camp?

Unless you have special permission, you can’t go far from the Base Camp of the Everest. However, the good travel agencies can organize trekkings in the areas adjacent to the Everest very interesting.

What is the price to visit the Everest Base Camp?

If you want to visit the Everest Base Camp get ready and cover the costs of international flights, internal travel, food, and accommodation. Here you can find a breakdown of the total expenses.

What is the temperature in the Everest Base Camp?

There is a great difference between the daytime temperatures are usually above 0 degrees Celsius throughout the year and nighttime temperatures that in winter can reach -20 degrees.

How to organise and arrange your trip to Mount Everest and Tibet?

Organize a trip to Mount Everest is fairly easy. So if you’re planning to travel to Tibet, you can contact us here and we’ll help organize your trip both from Nepal and Tibet. Everest a life’s desire of every individual to climb on, to visit, or to see. Every Himalayan lovers from around the world want to book their  Everest Trip with reliable tour operator. Travel Pinto is a reliable Tour operator in Nepal. It operates sustainable tours keeping in mind the theme of responsible tourism. Basically Everest can be seen in 10 Days starting the from Kathmandu. The trekking packages of Everest takes various routes.