The Everest Base Camp trek isn’t easy but I can promise that it’ll be well worth the effort.
Decide if you Want to go With a Group/Guide
There are several ways that you can trek up to Everest Base Camp: you can go with an organized group, hire a guide and/or porters for you and your group, or do it on your own. It was also nice having all the teahouses booked ahead of time. The main downsides were that we often had to go slow to accommodate all team members and it was much pricier than the other two options. Hiring a guide and/or porters is a great option because you are still supporting the local economy and have someone there who can show you the way and teach you about the area. It is very possible to carry your own backpack and just hire one guide. The trail is also very straight forward so it’s possible to do the trail on your own. This is clearly the cheapest option which is ideal if you’re traveling on a tight budget. We met a group of four men doing the trek on their own and they said all they had to pay for was food at the lodges and got to stay for free. Each option has its pros and cons so you just have to decide what’s best for you!
Pick an Itinerary with at least 1 or 2 Acclimatization Days
Altitude is no joke. Countless people have needed to be helicoptered down or died from altitude related illnesses. The best way to avoid this is through taking acclimatization days and even then there’s no guarantee you won’t be affected by the altitude. Most treks have an acclimatization day in Namche Bazar and another in Dingboche which adds two days to the trek length but increases your chances of making it to the top. On these days you do a shorter hike to a higher elevation and then come back down to sleep for the night. Don’t skip them!
Bring lots of Snacks
Bring snacks either from home or buy them in Kathmandu. You’ll want them. One of the best feelings is lying down after a long day of trekking and eating a chocolate bar. While you can find many of these treats along the way they will be much more expensive than in Kathmandu. A snickers bar will cost around 75 cents in Kathmandu and $2-3 in Namche Bazar. Protein bars and candy were my two go-to’s but bring whatever you think you’ll want! However, if you run out of snacks, don’t worry you’ll still be able to find plenty along the way.
Bring Cash with you
There are some ATM’s in Lukla and Namche Bazar but they charge crazy fees and so you’re better off getting rupees out in Kathmandu. You can use cash for every meal, snack, and tips for your guides and porters.
Bring a Camera
This would seem like an obvious point but around half the people on my trip didn’t bring a camera with them. You will be blown away by the views every day and will want a way to capture it. The trick is to find a balance between being present and enjoying the views and also spending time capturing it in photos. But trust me, you’ll not only want pictures to show off to your friends and family when you get home but also to keep as memory of your time.
Bring Extra Batteries/Charging Packs
In the cold, your batteries will die much quicker than they do at home. This holds true for basically every kind of electronic you’ll be using from phones to cameras to kindles. While some of the tea houses allow you to charge things, they all charge you for it (some more than others). An easy way to avoid this is to bring spare batteries and a portable charger.
Bring a Card Deck, Book, and any Other Games you Like to Play
While you will spend some long days trekking, you will never get in to camp/your tea house any later than 4 or 5 pm. This leaves a lot of time open for activities and trust me, you’ll want something to entertain you. Some tea houses actually had board games to play but it was nice to have our own to entertain ourselves! There will be days where you just want to lay down and do nothing after trekking all day but it was always nice to have the option to do various activities.
Bring a Wide Variety of Clothing
Needless to say the temperatures vary greatly and can change quickly. It’ll be blue skies and sunny one second and completely cloudy and cold 10 minutes later. The only way to be ready for this is if you have enough layers. You aren’t going to be changing outfits every day so use the room in your backpack to bring clothing for all different temperatures that you can layer underneath one another. It’s also nice to have trekking clothes and then “clean”, warm clothes you can change into after you’re done hiking for the day.
Pick up ALL Your Trash
Apparently the trash situation is much better than it used to be as there was a massive clean up after the 2015 earthquake. There are trashcans along the trail and at every rest stop so just keep your trash in your backpack until you can throw it away in a designated area! If you’re feeling inspired, it’s also pretty easy to pick up at least a couple of pieces of trash that others have left.
