Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek is a kind of its own complete trip that offers majestic views of the Himalayas along with the pristine beauty of three lakes— Longpongo Lake, Taboche Tsho, and Dudh Pokhari ( Milk Pond)—and a pass called Cho La (5,420m-17782ft). Witnessing Ama Dablam (6,812m-22349ft) from the Pass is the truly mesmerizing experience of life.
Trip Overview
Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek is a kind of its own complete trip that offers majestic views of the Himalayas along with the pristine beauty of three lakes— Longpongo Lake, Taboche Tsho, and Dudh Pokhari ( Milk Pond)—and a pass called Cho La (5,420m-17782ft). Witnessing Ama Dablam (6,812m-22349ft) from the Pass is the truly mesmerizing experience of life.
The view of Mt. Everest (8,849m-29032ft) from Kalapatthar(5,550m-18208ft) while on Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek will be cherry at the top as nowhere other than this place will reveal the beauty of Mt. Everest from this proximity. The hike begins from Lukla (2,860m-9383ft) where we reach by air from Kathmandu (1,400m-4593ft). Passing through a couple of Sherpa settlements such as Phakding (2,643m-8671ft), Monjo (2,835m-9301ft), and Jhorsalle (2,730m-8956ft) we enter inside Namche Bazaar (3,440m-11286ft). It is the biggest commercial area in the entire Khumbu region.
Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes TrekWhile proceeding toward Gokyo, we leave the main trail to EBC behind. Witnessing typical Sherpa culture, a lifestyle of people residing in the Khumbu region and monasteries—we arrive at Gokyo. Each site while on this trek will reveal to you the unique beauty of the Khumbu region. For instance, the trek will unfold the beauty of different mountains Lhotse (8,516m-27939ft), Nuptse (7,861m-25790ft), Makalu (8,463m-27765ft), and Cho Oyu (8,188m-26863ft) along with the longest glacier of Nepal—Ngozumpa glacier from different sites.
Itinerary
Northern Trekking Team warmly welcomes you in this land of Himalayas, Nepal. We will receive you at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) and drive you to the hotel in Thamel. You will be introduced with the guide or trek leader who will be with you throughout your adventure period—15 days trek. He will brief you about the trip and will dictate with essential things to bring for the trek. If time permits, you can roam around the streets of Thamel and enjoy this touristic destination of Nepal
Well, trekking begins from today but prior to that, we have to reach Lukla (2,860m-9383ft). It is a starting point of our trek. We get in Lukla by air. It is a scenic flight of 35 minutes. Built by Sir Edmund Hillary, the airport in Lukla—Tenzing-Hillary Airport—is one of the most dangerous airstrips in the world. He along and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa were the first to scale Mt. Everest in 1953. After arranging porters in Lukla, the much-awaited adventure of life begins—Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek. Witnessing traditional Nepali cultures and the lifestyle of hilly people, we proceed toward Phakding (2,643m-8671ft).
We head toward Namche Bazaar (3,440m-11286ft)—the biggest commercial hub of the entire Khumbu region, after breakfast. Walk today is not as easy as it was yesterday but the uphill climb will reward you with scenic beauty. As we proceed, we will be walking along the bank of the Dudh Koshi river. The two suspension bridges that you witness from a distance will make your mood. I bet you will not miss this moment to capture forever! If weather permits, you will also get a distant view of a couple of peaks—Khumbila, Kusum Kangaroo, Thamserku, and Mt Everest—while on the way to Namche. Normally, it takes seven hours to get to Namche Bazaar from Phakding.
The beauty of this hike—Everest View —begins from today. Yes, we will take you to Everest View Hotel on this rest day. On this walk of nearly two hours, the first half is a steep climb and the second is flat. We will sit in the hotel and enjoy coffee with the heart capturing a view of Mt. Everest ahead. This is the essence of this trip. We now proceed toward Khumjung. It is a small settlement and Sherpa are the natives of this village. The monastery called Khumjung is the major attraction of this place. You can observe Yeti scalp here. After spending nearly an hour here, we will get back to Namche Bazaar where we will be visiting a couple of monasteries and Sherpa museum.
It is going to be an interesting walk as we will be following the uphill trail followed by a downhill to reach Dudh Koshi river. We head toward the north from here, Dudh Koshi river. We arrive at Mong La. It is a birthplace of Lama Sange Dorjeewho is regarded as a reincarnation of a Lama from Rongbuk Monastery in Tibet. He is the one who spread Buddhism in this part of the globe, Khumbu region. Few hours of walk from Mong La will bring us in Phortse Thanga.
It takes nearly 6/7 hours to reach Machhermo from Phortse Thanga. We will reach here penetrating through a dense forest of rhododendron. The waterfall near Tonga village is beautiful. We will pass a few more villages—Dhole, Labarma, and Luza—to arrive at Machhermo.
The fact behind Gokyo is that you will witness the beauty of three blue lakes. The view of Kangtaiga and Mt. Cho Oyu (8,153m) will further trigger your excitement. We cross all three lakes—Longpongo Lake, Taboche Tsho and Dudh Pokhari (Milk Pond) to get in the village of Gokyo. The valley goes on widening as we reach Pangkha. Following descending riverbank trail for a few hours will get us at Ngazumpa Glacier but prior to reaching here, we need to climb as well. Crossing the iron bridge and observing silent Longpongo lake, we reach a place where you will see footprints of Lama on a stone. Similarly, the further walk will take us to another lake— Taboche Tsho.
On this day of acclimatization, we will lead you to several places that will unfold the beauty of Khumbu region. The spectacular views of Himalayas from Gokyo Ri is heart capturing. You will also visit fourth and fifth Gokyo Lake. The key attractions of the site are Mt. Cho-Oyu, Gyachung Kang, Mt. Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Makulu along with Ngozumba Glacier.
Walk today is quite short and we will get in Thagnak by the first half of the day. The view of Gokyo Ri is a marvelous view from Thangnak.
What a wonderful day of life! You will be experiencing another pass today—Cho La Pass. We will start our hike early in the morning because harsh weather condition during the late morning or noon can ruin the entire hike impacting our trek schedule. The view of Ama Dablam from the top of the pass is awesome. JUST AWESOME! A further couple of hours walk from the pass will lead us to Dzongla.
Thank god the hike today is relatively easy. By noon, we will be in Lobuche. It means we will be walking for nearly four hours. You will get a nice view of Lobuche Peak from here.
How exciting it is to imagine a day that makes your dream tangible. Isn’t it exciting? Yes, it is. Today, you will reach at EBC via Gorak Shep. The trail to Gorak Shep from Lobuche is rough and rocky. The view of Pumori (7,145), Nuptse (7,745), Lingtren (6,697) and Mt. Everest are the major attractions of Gorak Shep. On the same day, we hike to EBC and spend a couple of hours here. We retrace the path to Gorak Shep where we will spend a blissful night.
It is going to be one of the longest hikes of the entire trek campaign. We will head toward Kala Patthar early in the morning to get a sunrise view. Here, you will be surrounded by mountains in 360 degrees. The view of Mt. Everest is majestic from here. After spending nearly an hour here, we proceed toward Pheriche. It will take us roughly 6/7 hours to get in Pheriche.
The trail today is relatively easy and we pass through Pangboche and Tengboche to get in Namche Bazaar. Nearly a walk of six hours will get us in this commercial hub of Khumbu region—Namche Bazaar.
Leaving the beauty of Khumbu behind, we proceed ahead to get in Lukla. We will be walking for nearly 6/7 hours to arrive in Lukla and here ends our trip to Gokyo Lake Trek with EBC and Cho-La Pass.
We will try to catch the first flight to Kathmandu and this will get us in the capital by 8 am. From the airport, we will escort you to the hotel. You will have ample time to roam around Kathmandu. In the evening we, Northern Trekking team, will offer you dinner. We want you to share your experience along with feedback on the trip so that we can improve ourselves.
The Trip Cost Includes
- - Airport Pick up and Drop by car/van.
- - 2 Night’s Standard Hotel in Kathmandu twin sharing basis with breakfast(on the arrival day and after the Trekking).
- - Farewell dinner in Kathmandu.
- - Sagarmatha national park entry permits & Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality fee.
- - Domestic Flight Ticket (Ktm-Lukla, Luk-Ktm) / domestic airport Tax.
- - All accommodations in lodges/Tea Houses During the Treks.
- - Daily Meals (Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner) During the Trekking.
- - Local fresh fruits like orange, apple, banana, and grapes.
- - First aid kit will be Available.
- - Sleeping bag, Down jacket and Duffie bag. ( Refundable)
- - Trekking T-shirt, Trekking map and Waterdrop.
- - An experienced, helpful and friendly Guide with his Salary, Food, Drinks, - - Accommodation, Transportation and Insurance.
The Trip Cost Excludes
- - Lunch and dinner in Kathmandu.
- - Nepal entry visa fee.
- - Porter to carry your luggage, if you would like to take a porter it will cost USD 259/porter (Maximum luggage weight 20-25Kg)
- - International Airfare/Airport tax, City tour Sightseeing entry fees.
- - Alcoholic and cold drinks, hot showers.
- - Personal expenses laundry, telephone calls, snacks, camera, and mobile battery charging.
- - Travel Insurance.
- - Personal trekking gears.
- - Tips for trekking staffs.
- - Any others expenses which are not mentioned on Price Includes section.
For everyone who will plan to Trek in Nepal, it is highly recommended that you get travel insurance that covers added expenses that might result due to various health issues, injuries or accidents (together with the ambulance, helicopter rescue, and other treatment costs). Your insurance policy should cover the entire activities that you are planning to accomplish throughout your stay in Nepal.
In addition to this, the policy should also cover death, misplaced luggage, theft and liability, cancellations, medical treatment (counting hospital charges, cost of the medicine, doctor’s fees) as well as repatriation costs. Also, this trekking trail in Nepal takes you 5,000 m above the altitude, therefore, you also need to ensure that your insurance policy covers treks that go over 5,000 m.
We suggested that you buy your insurance policy from your home country before joining us, where it is difficult buying a local travel insurance policy for foreigners in Nepal.
While you’re in Kathmandu, your accommodation is at a standard hotel (Arrival time and departure time). Your accommodation is at the best local Lodge and Guest Houses where available. The Mountain local Lodges are clean and have comfortable beds. The Lodges are fairly basic and the room is spare with twin beds. Blankets are generally provided. There is a large dining hall and warmed fitted with a chimney duct, in which a log fire is lighted.
Eating is a big part of the Holiday. Travelling with Northern Trekking Team, you experience the vast array of wonderful Nepalese food, Italian, Thai, Chinese, and several local foods. While on the trek it will be on full board all 3 times meals (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, with Tea/Coffee) included in the package. Your guide will suggest delicious, hygienic special food during your trips. Generally, choose menu items are Nepalese meals (Dal Bhat), Tibetan fried bread, various types of soups, Momo’s (steamed dumplings), boiled and fried potatoes, kinds of pasta and even pizza. So, overall you have a different choice of foods on the trek. During this trek, you will usually have breakfast and dinner at the same guest house.
You should book the service at least 15 days before the trek departure date. After you confirm your trip with us, you should be transferring us a photocopy of your passport or your personal information. The personal information you have to provide us with your first name, middle name, and last name, passport number, date of birth, nationality, and gender. Importantly, you need to pay 20% of the total price in advance for the domestic flight tickets, hotel booking and permit process. You can pay the remaining balance before you start the trek.
How much money or cash you should be bringing with you depends on how you do the trip and the number of days you want to spend here in Nepal. Much also depends on your spending habits. Generally, you must have to take 10 to 15 USD for spending your expenses, such as laundry, telephone calls, snacks, camera, and mobile battery charging. How much you will be spending during your trekking depends on the standard of the package you have purchased.
Our guides are fully trained and licensed from Nepal Government Tourism Department, certified by TAAN & Nepal Mountaineering Association.
All our Trekking Guides are professionals with decades of experience in this field of adventure. They are trained specially for specified and various trips, to cater the flexible requirement of our clients from different nationalities, this will assure you that your trip will be enjoyable and in safe hands of professional experts.
On every trip, will be one Trek leader and an assistance leader on each additional 7 people in the group on treks, this arrangement would ensure that even if any of our guide/ assistance guides gets sick or clients may get sick and need to be evacuated or staying behind from the walks, it wills still works smoothly and there would non-impact with our original trek plan.
Every 7 trekkers will have one Sherpa helper for carrying your trekking bags.
Our porter is fully strong, helpful and friendly. Their salary, food, drinks, accommodation, transportation, and Insurance on each trip with us. As you know that we are very trustworthy and polite, while on trek thus we make sure that our porter is fully prepared for the trip. We are closely working with the International Porter Progress Association for the welfare and benefit of trekking porters.
The maximum load carried by our porter minimum of 20 to 25 KG maximum so be sure that your trekking bag is not more than the above figure.
This is a high altitude journey and elevation starts from a low of 2,860m-9383ft to 5,365m-17,601ft high, where symptoms of AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) might occur due to dry air, cold wind, and less oxygen. Generally, for The Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek, one needs to be in good physical with sound health to avoid other medical complications on the route of the journey, just follow our guide he will advise and suggest which keeps and makes you feel secure to enjoy this fabulous adventure with us.
Three best seasons for the trek to Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes Trek. Generally, the main trails are having with trekkers in the two regions, we suggest you join in at the right time of the year as far as possible.
High season- Autumn (September-November)
Shoulder-Spring (March-May)
Low season- Moonson (June-August)
Things To Know Before Trekking
The main flow of foreign visitors in Nepal is for trekking from moderate to adventurous or challenging treks, the most important is choosing the right trip as per your duration of holiday and fitness, for Everest Base Camp with Gokyo Lakes trekking adventure one needs to be in sound health and physically fit.
On booking with our preparation of fitness required like walking-jogging-Jumba-aerobic at least fifteen days before your departure from the home country.
Please send us your dietary list and medical history report so that we can arrange them well in advance respectively. Book the ticket from home for Kathmandu, Nepal to reach at least two days ahead and earlier from trek departure with much space in Kathmandu after the trek, this allows you with more time in Nepal to enjoy the culture and heritage sites of Nepal and also in case of a flight delay (Kathmandu-Lukla and Lukla-Kathmandu) which can happen sometimes due to bad and unfavourable weather.
What do you need to obtain A Nepal visa?
If you are thinking of taking a visa at the airport or immigration entry point, the following are your requirements:
A valid passport (The passport should have a validity of at least six months)
You should fill out the application form for visas available at the airport or immigration entry points.
Two passport size photos
Visa fees should be paid in cash.
Entry points to Nepal
Tribhuwan International Airport, Kathmandu
Eastern Nepal – Kakarvitta, Jhapa
Central Nepal – Birjung, Parsa
Northern Border – Kodari, Sindhupalchowk
Western – Rupandehi (Belhiya, Bhairahawa)
Mid-western – Banke (Jamuna, Nepalgunj)
Far western – Kailali (Mohana, Dhangadhi) / Kanchanpur (Gaddachauki, Mahendranagar)
Visa Fees
USD 25 or equivalent convertible currency for 15 days.
USD 40 or equivalent convertible currency for 30 days.
USD 100 or equivalent convertible currency for 90 days.
For the tourist of SAARC nationals, free visa up to 30 days.
Visa is not required for Indian nationals. However, if they enter Nepal via air, they will have to show a valid identification certificate (passport/ citizenship certificate). The children under the age of 10 do not need to show an identification certificate.
Visa Extension
If you want to extend the visa for 15 days or less, the visa extension charge is USD 30 or equivalent convertible currency
If you want to extend the visa for more than 15 days, USD 2 will be charged per day after 15 days. However, the visa can be extended a maximum of up to 150 days in a visa year (Visa year refers to the year starting January to December.)
Transit Visa
When a foreigner has to get down at Nepalese airport as a result of his/her transit point or due to any force landing for whatever reason, the foreigner can obtain a transit visa for a day after paying USD 5 or any other currency equivalent.
Entering into Nepal or staying in Nepal without a valid visa is illegal.
A tourist visa can be obtained either through the Nepalese embassy or consulate or other mission offices in your nation or at the immigration entry points in Nepal listed above.
Visa once issued cannot be amended and the visa fees are non-refundable.
You should pay the Nepal visa fees in cash. A credit card or cheque is not acceptable.
Visa charges are not applicable for children under 10 years of age, however, they must obtain a valid visa.
If you are obtaining a new passport or travel document, you are advised to contact the Immigration Department for the document transfer.
Always carry your passport and trekking permit while trekking.
Some of the areas are restricted for filming. Therefore, be careful not to do activities that are strictly prohibited.
The culture, tradition, and sentiments of Nepalese people should be respected. Do not perform any activities that would hurt their sentiments.
Do not perform any activities that would lead to moral turpitude.
