Compare Gokyo Lakes With Everest Base Camp Trek by We Ramblers vs Nepal in 10 days - Kathmandu Valley & Captivating Himalayas - Charm by Exoticca

Day 1: Kathmandu

Arrive at the historic city of Kathmandu and check into the hotel. Our support staff will meet you to give the details about next day’s plans as well as discuss the trekking plan. Remaining part of the day is at leisure and you can explore the city and its famous shopping street called Thamel.

Day 2: Fly from Kathmandu to Lukla (2,800m / 9, 184ft) and trek to Phakding (2,651m / 8,700 ft). 3-4 hours

Today we will check out early and head to the airport for a flight to Lukla. This is a unique flying experience on a small Dornier aircraft, which are used in these mountain ranges. The total flying time, will be of 40 minutes with some great taking views of snow capped mountains and the Himalayan Ranges. Landing on this tiny airport is a thrilling experience. Our guides and porters will be waiting from you at the Airport. We will have a quick breakfast and start our trek for Phakding. It is a small downhill trek that passes through some scenic villages, monasteries and Buddhist Stupas. We will be crossing the very first hanging bridge during of our trek and it surely is a thrilling experience to cross one of these.

Day 3: Phakding to Namche Bazaar (3,438m / 11,280 ft). 6-7 hours

We will start trekking after breakfast and it will take us about 6 to 7 hours to reach Namche. The trekking trail from Phakding will go along side of the Dudh Koshi river and will pass through several Sherpa Villages till we cross a place called Monjo. After Monjo we will get a village called Jorsale, which is the last village before we reach Namche. We will have our lunch at Jorsale, as there will not be anything available after this point. We will get about 5 hanging bridges before we reach Namche. As we trek for a while, we will see a gigantic view of Mt. Thamserku. We will enter the Sagarmatha National Park after Monjo and the same park covers the entire Everest and Khumbu Glacier zone. This protected zone and just before Namche there is a check post which will verify our permits before they let us in. En route, we will cross the large hanging bridge that is very popular and a lot of people take photos at this point. The trek begins to get tougher as it sets on an incline trail after this bridge and till we reach Namche. The trail between Jorsale and Namche Check Post will be a little tough and we recompensed that you walk at your own pace. if the weather permits, you may be able to get your first glimpse of Mt. Everest from the Namche Check Post. We will take several steps from Namche Post to reach Namche Bazaar.

Day 4: Rest day at Namche Bazaar.

Today’s day is reserved for acclimatization in this high altitude region. We will stay at Namche and explore the place. Namche has many attractions such as the Museum with a beautiful flat ground, The Tenzing Norgay Statue, Hike to the non operational Syangboche Airport, Visit to Sir. Edmund Hillary School, Khumjung Village and many more.

Day 5: Namche Bazaar to Dole (4, 038m / 13, 248 ft). 6-7 hours

We will start the trek a little early today and head for Dole. We will proceed on broad trail from Namche and till a village called Kyangjuma. After this point, we will get an inclining trail till Mongla. The portion between Kyangjuma and Mongla will be the difficult part of today’s trek. The trail to Mongla may seem like an endless hike.  Mongla is a very beautiful place.  We will get very nice views of Mt. Thamserku and Khangteka. We will have our lunch at Mongla and then proceed further to Phortse Thanga. We will cross the famous Phortse village that comes on our left hand side. The trail will begin to get tougher once we cross Phortse Thanga; however it is less difficult in comparison to the Mongla trail. The trail after Phortse Thanga will go through a Rhododendron forest and if you are lucky enough, you may get a chance to sight a muck deer or a Himalayan Monal. En-route to Dole, we will cross several waterfalls. We will take about 2.5 hours to reach Dole once we cross Phortse Thanga. Dole is a very small settlement and the place has some nice views of gigantic mountains.

Day 6: Dole to Machhermo (4,470 m/ 14,663 ft). 3-4 hours

A very small distance at the beginning of the trek be little tough and post that it will be an easy day of trekking.  Once we ascend on the trail from Dole, we will get huge view of Mt. Cho Oyu (8,188 m /26,864 ft). In fact, we will get the views of Cho Oyu through the trek. We will also get to see Thamserku and Khangteka on our back on this trail while Cho Oyu’s view will be on our front. We will take about 3 to 4 hours to reach Machhermo and it is an easy trail. Once we reach Machhermo, we can either take rest for the remaining part of the day or explore the surroundings.

Day 7: Machhermo to Gokyo (4, 800 m / 15,744 ft). 5- 6 hours

We will start early today for Gokyo. The trail will be of moderate difficulty level. The views from this trail are really beautiful. The trail will descend to a river and get a steep incline till the moraine of Ngozumpa glacier. En-route to Gokyo we will see 3 Gokyo Lakes. The very first lake is a small one and as we trek further we will get the second lake that is relatively bigger to the first one. We trek a little more to reach the 3rd lake, which is really big and the best looking lake among all Gokyo Lakes. The tea houses are placed on the bank of this 3rd lake. Stay over at a tea house with mesmerizing views of the Gokyo Lake.

Day 8: Gokyo to 5th Gokyo Lake.

We will be visiting the 4th and 5th Gokyo Lakes today. The 4th Gokyo is very close by from the 3rd lake. After visiting the 4th lake, we will trek further for another 1.5 hours to reach the 5th lake. The views from the 5th Lake can be considered as the best view in the entire region of Mt. Everest and is an experience of life time which you should not miss. You get to see the course of the Ngozumpa glacier and some mesmerizing views of Cho Oyu and Gyachung Kang (7,952 m / 26,089 ft). The Ngozumpa glacier is the longest glacier in the Himalayan zone. We spend some time at the 5th Lake and then return to our hotel in Gokyo.

Day 9: Thangnak (4,750m / 15,580ft) after hiking Gokyo Ri (5,357m / 17,575 ft). 6-7 hours

We will start early for the hike to Gokyo Ri. In morning, the views of high peaks are much clear from Gokyo Ri. The views of Gokyo Lakes are simply breathtaking from Gokyo Ri.  The sky scarping Himalayan ranges, that are placed as single line will be much clearly visible from this point.  We will return to Gokyo and trek further for 2 to 3 hours to reach Thangnak that is situated at the other side of Ngozumpa Glacier. The trail to Ngozumpa glacier will pass through the third Gokyo Lake and goes down on to the glacier, the trail goes and down on the glacier.  Once we cross the glacier, the trail is mostly flat.

Day 10: Thangnak to Zongla (4, 830m / 15,850 ft) via Chola Pass (5, 368m / 17,611 ft). 6-7 hours

This is the toughest day of our trekking expedition as we set ourselves to cross the mighty Chola Pass. It is one of the highest mountain passes in the Khubu Region. Threfore, it is best we start early and give ourselves enough time to trek at our pace. One we cross Thanganak, the trail begins to ascend and goes along side of stream. After a while, we will get flag pole and need to come down from this point. The view of the glacier on your left and the Chola Pass are mesmerizing from this point.

The trail then goes over rocks and becomes steep incline to Chola Pass, making it the toughest part in today’s trek. Please be little careful as this portion will have many lose scree that can cause you to slip. While it may appear an endless task to reach the Chola pass the scenic beauty it offers makes this effort a rewarding one. Some of the high peaks such as Lhotse and Baruntse are visible clearly from this pass. The pass is filled with prayer flags and is favorite spot of trekkers for photography. The view of the glacier that is below this pass is really spectacular. We will start descending the pass after spending some time at the pass. While descending, it is better be too careful as some places might be slippery. The trail is a complete downhill trek till Zongla.

Day 11: Zongla to Lobuche (4, 940 m / 16,207 ft). 3-4 hours

It is going be a short and easier trek in comparison to the previous day. We will trek from only 3 to 4 hours and reach Lobuche. On our way we will get to see the Chola Tso Lake and Thokla Pass memorials. The train then goes past a river bed and merges with the bigger trekking trail that is coming from Pheriche.  We will reach Lobuche and take rest in a tea house

Day 12: Lobuche to Gorakshep (5,164 m / 16,942 ft) and visit Everest Base Camp (5,364 m / 17,598 ft). 7-8 hours

The smallest part of trek in beginning will be a flat trail till the Lobuche pass. After we cross Lobuche pass, the trail becomes uneven till we reach Gorakshep.  You will get to some gigantic views of Mt. Nuptse and Pumori. One we reach Gorakshep, we will keep our bags at the hotel land proceed for Everest Base Camp.  The trail will be very much like the one we just got before Gorakshep. Mt. Everest is not fully visible from the base camp and only a portion can be seen from the Base Camp. We will get down to the Khumbu Glacier to reach the Base Camp.  The base camp is at the glacier and has several flags are there. You will always find many trekkers forming a queue to get picture around the flags and signboards.  We will then return to Gorakshep after spending some time at the Everest base camp.

Day 13: Pheriche (4,371 m / 14,340 ft) after Kala Patthar (5, 645m / 18,520ft) hike. 7-8 hours

We will start early and hike to Kala Patthar. It will take about 3 hours to reach atop Kala Patthar. You will get a panoramic view of the Himalayan ranges from this point and also get a full vertical view of Mt. Everest.  If we can reach really early, then we can see the beautiful sight of sun rise falling on the Mt. Everest. After spending some time at Kala Patthar, we will begin downhill trek till Dughla and then trek on a flat trail to reach Pheriche.

Day 14: Pheriche to Namche.6-7 hours

This is going to be an easy trail, till Namche. The trail will go past the villages of Shomare, Pangboche, Deboche and Tengboche.  The trail between Deboche and Tengboche is an uphill trek where we to climb several steps to reach Tengboche. The village of Tengboche is very beautiful and is famous for the monastery.  We will be having our lunch at Tengboche. The trail will be downhill till Phungi Thanga. We will get a hanging bridge at Phungi Thanga and post that it will be an inclined trail, making it the toughest part of today trek. We will cross some more villages like Kyangjuma and reach the Namche Bazaar.

Day 15: Namche to Lukla. 6-7 hours

It is our last day of trekking in this journey. The trail is downhill trek for most of the part and goes along side of the Dudh Koshi River. We will pass by small villages like Jorsale and Monjo. While the trail is a very moderate one, the potion just before Lukla may be a little tough as we have to climb several steps.

Day 16: Kathmandu.

We will fly back to Kathmandu on the same flight that we took while coming. Most of the flights are in the morning and we can reach in Kathmandu before 10 AM. Spend the day at leisure and explore the historic city.

Day 17: Departure.

Kindly check out before 12 noon and we will drop you at the airport for your further journey. We will hand over the trekking completion certificate after your check out.

Day 1: US - Night on board

Arrive at your US departure airport ready to check-in for an overnight flight to Kathmandu. Night on board. * If either your outbound or inbound flights depart in the early hours (before 4:00 a.m.) you must arrive at the airport the night before the indicated departure day.

Day 2: Kathmandu

Arrive in Kathmandu and transfer to the hotel. The largest urban area in Nepal, with 2.5 million inhabitants, consists of the core of the metropolitan city of Kathmandu and its sister cities Patan, Kirtipur, Thimi and Bhaktapur, including the urban areas of Shankhapur, Karyabinayak, Champapur, Banepa, Dhulikhel and Panauti. The capital of the country is located at 1,400 meters above sea level in a picturesque bowl-shaped valley in central Nepal. Spend the day discovering the city at your leisure. Overnight stay in Kathmandu.

Day 3: Kathmandu - Bhaktapur - Kathmandu

Breakfast at the hotel. Today, visit Bhaktapur, known as the 'City of the Devotees', to admire the great architectural beauty of the third of the three royal cities of the Kathmandu Valley. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Bhaktapur's Durbar Square is the best preserved in the valley. The Royal Palace stands out, whose entrance door is a masterpiece in embossed art, as does the Nyatapola Temple, known as the Temple of the Five Roofs for it's five magnificently sculpted floors, making it one of the highest in the country. Later, continue to the oldest temple in the Kathmandu Valley, Changu Narayan Temple located in the Changu village and dedicated to the god Vishnu. From here, take in the amazing views of the surrounding valley. Return to the hotel and overnight stay in Kathmandu.

Day 4: Kathmandu - Patan - Kathmandu

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning we recommend an optional Mount Everest flight-seeing excursion.* Head to the Kathmandu Valley through Asan Tole, the main street of the capital's oldest shopping area, which offers a vivid display of local Nepalese life. Discover Nepalese culture and experience everyday life through the bustling and narrow streets and courtyards of the city. Visit Durbar Square in Kathmandu, where you can see the Kumari Temple and the exteriors of the Taleju Temple and Kala Bhairav. In the afternoon, explore Swayambhunath Stupa, located at the top of a hill, to contemplate the beautiful landscape of the Kathmandu Valley. Later, discover the old city of Patan and visit its Durbar Square, the oldest of the three in the valley. See the Royal Palace, home to beautiful patios and ornate windows and sanctuaries dedicated to Shiva, Ganesh and Vishnu. Afterwards, head to the Temple of the Living Goddess Kumari, who looks out onto the balcony to receive the greetings of the devotees. Return to the hotel and overnight stay in Kathmandu. * Optional Mount Everest flight-seeing excursion: One-hour long sightseeing on a fixed-wing aircraft for an experience of a lifetime. All the spectacular glaciers, snow-capped peaks and gorges glide below as you fly towards Mt. Everest. Includes a flight certificate awarded at the end of the excursion. Return to Kathmandu to begin the rest of the days sightseeing.

Day 5: Kathmandu - Chitwan

Breakfast at the hotel. Set off by road to Chitwan, passing by scenic landscapes during the approx. 4-hour journey. Arrive and get settled at the hotel. In the afternoon, set off on a 1-hour nature walk to explore the beautiful surrounding area, scattered with cabins inhabited by the indigenous Tharu tribe, who have lived in the forests surrounding Chitwan for hundreds of years. After a delicious dinner, enjoy a Tharu Stick Dance Show, performed by local farmers, for an insight into Chitwan’s cultural roots. Overnight stay in Chitwan.

Day 6: Chitwan

Rise early in the morning and enjoy a coffee/tea break before heading off to Chitwan National Park to seize the day and the tranquillity of the natural environment during the quiet hours of the morning. The area surrounding Machan Country Villa is a true paradise for birdwatchers, so keep your eyes peeled for some of the rarer species. Enjoy a nature walk with a naturalist expert who can point out the abundant birdlife before returning to the hotel for a well-deserved breakfast. Afterwards you will get to know the behaviours and characteristics of the majestic Asian elephant. Lunch included. Continue your adventure with a 3-hour jeep safari through the jungle until arriving at the shores of the Narayani River where a traditional boat awaits to take you on a tranquil boat cruise. Look out for local wildlife such as crocodiles and water birds before returning to the shore. In the evening, enjoy an informative presentation by a jungle expert to learn more about this unique eco-system. Return to the hotel for dinner. Overnight stay in Chitwan.

Day 7: Chitwan - Pokhara

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning, set off for Pokhara, a journey of around 3.5-hours long. En route, visit Bandipur Village, a small hilltop settlement and an amazing example of Newar culture. This charming village is home to precious 18th-century architecture, a number of small cafes and shops. Continue to Pokhara, nestled in a quiet, forest-covered valley. Arrive, get settled at the hotel and spend the remainder of the day at your leisure, soaking up the fantastic views of the Himalayas and the five Annapurna peaks. Overnight stay in Pokhara.

Day 8: Pokhara

Breakfast at the hotel. Set off early in the morning to Sarangkot to see the sunrise over the Himalayas, if weather conditions permit. Located at 1592 meters above sea level, it is the most popular spot to enjoy the magnificent views of the Pokhara Valley and the mountains. Afterwards, take a boat ride on Phewa Lake, see the beautiful Devi Waterfall and explore the Sacred Cave of Gupteshwor. Continue to the bustling Old Bazaar of Pokhara, a pleasant traditional place, full of merchants selling fabrics, food and gold, among other authentic Nepalese products. Return to the hotel and overnight stay in Pokhara.

Day 9: Pokhara - Kathmandu

Breakfast at the hotel. Today, head back to Kathmandu, enjoying the spectacular scenery along the way. Arrive in Kathmandu and transfer to the hotel. The rest of the day is free to enjoy the city at your leisure. Overnight stay in Kathmandu.

Day 10: Kathmandu

Breakfast at the hotel. Today, enjoy a guided visit to Boudhanath and Pashupatinath. The Buddhist stupa of Boudhanath, one of the largest in the world and icon of Nepal, sits on an octagonal base and is surrounded by the houses of Buddhist Lamas. Afterwards, discover Pashupatinath Hindu Temple on the east bank of the river, the most important and oldest of the Kathmandu Valley, dedicated to Shiva and surrounded by an exuberant natural environment. Enjoy the remainder of the day at your leisure to stroll through the city or make some last-minute souvenir purchases. Overnight stay in Kathmandu.

Day 11: Kathmandu - Night on board

Breakfast at the hotel. It's time to bid farewell to captivating Nepal. At the indicated time, transfer to the airport and check-in for your return flight back to the US. Night on board.* * Dependant on the choice of flight, you may arrive back in the US today.

Day 12: US

Arrive in the US and end your trip.