If you are a vegan, please rest assured that you will easily survive the Everest Base Camp Trek. With the increasing number of vegans, hotels and restaurants (in Lukla and Namche Bazaar) have vegan options for trekkers.
For breakfast, popular options include Chapati, Oat porridge, fried, or mashed potato. Lunch and dinner have a bunch of options. ‘Dal Bhat,’ the staple food for Nepalese, that comes with cooked rice, boiled lentils, vegetable curries, and pickles, can be your best friend during the trails. It is filling, healthy, and tastes great. Besides, there are nutritious soups of all kinds, fried rice, veg noodles (soup and fried), potatoes, veg momos, veg pasta with tomato sauce, etc.
If you want to try Sherpa food in the Everest Base Camp Trek, you can go for Tsampa or Tibetan Bread for breakfast and Veg Shakpa (Sherpa Stew), Veg Thukpa (noodle soup), Riki Kur (potato pancakes), Tmomo and Rildhuk (soup with potato lumps).
An exit poll at Kathmandu’s International Airport showed that 68% of people suffered from some form of diarrhoea. Here are some ways to make sure you don’t become one of them:
During your Everest Base Camp Trek, food is something you don’t have to compromise on at all. There are a variety of options from typical Nepali dal-bhat, soups, snacks, momos, fried rice, to Chinese and continental dishes like noodles, spaghetti, spring rolls, and steak.
With IAM Trekking & Expeditions, three meals are included in your package cost; breakfast with a cup of tea, lunch with a hot drink, and dinner. Additionally, a cup of hot drink will be provided upon your arrival at the rest stop for the day. You will also find some bakeries at Tengboche, Dingboche, Pheriche, and Lobuche and alcohol drinks (beer, local spirits, imported spirits) all along the trail, but these are not included in your package cost.
Most of the tea houses along the trails in Everest Base Camp Trek sell biscuits, candies, and Pringles. Besides, there are small convenient stores in Lukla, Phakding, Namche Bazaar, Pangboche, Dingboche, and Pheriche with a lot more options like Granola Bars, Dry fruits, Candies and Coke.
If you’re worried about whether or not you should bring snacks from your home country, given the weight of your backpack, you can consider buying them in Kathmandu or directly in Lukla. The rates are way less in Kathmandu than Lukla, and the prices increase with the altitude.
The accommodation on your Everest Base Camp Trek depends on the service you are looking for. There are a wide range of options trekking to Everest Base Camp.
There are good lodges and there are poor lodges on the trek to Everest. We use the same lodges on every trek. The lodge owners know us and we know them. This helps us offer you consistency for your trek. We have been building relationships in the region for years to make sure you have the most comfortable experience on your journey to Everest Base Camp. Our service is second to none. We don’t cut corners and give you the best service and experience on your journey to Everest Base Camp.
When thinking about the weather on the Everest Base Camp trek - think ‘change’. There are weather patterns throughout the year which affect the Everest Region and so it’s important to plan accordingly, and to select your trip date based on the best possible trekking weather for you!
If you’re trekking with us, we’ve done a lot of the thinking for you - we only run trips to Base Camp when the weather and the trekking is at its best. We run most of our trekking season during March/April/May and September/October/November which are some of the most moderate times to visit EBC.
The Summer weather in the Everest Region (June to August) is influenced by the Indian Monsoon which brings frequent rainfall and cloudy days. You might find solitude during this time but clouds and rain generally obscure the peaks and it’s not a good time to visit the Everest region.
Nepal comes out of monsoon season at the end of August, so early September will still be a bit rainy, but things warm up and dry off by the end of September. You will see temperatures getting close to 20°C (68°F) on the trek in September. Don’t be fooled though - the temperature does drop considerably during the night, so you will still need to bundle up!
Weather on the Everest Base Camp in Spring & Autumn
Generally, the Spring and the Autumn months make for the best possible Everest Base Camp trekking experience. The days in Spring are warm and clear, and temperatures are comfortable throughout the Autumn months. You will often see trekkers in T-shirts and shorts during these months, and you’re more likely to meet some future summiters as the Spring in particular (May especially) has some of the best weather for going all the way! We also run some trips in the Winter months, which is a great time to go - but it’s definitely a bit colder. When November comes around, the temperature can drop to -10°C (14°F) in the evenings.
Winter weather (Nov to Feb) is dominated by the southward migration of the northern hemisphere jet stream which brings high winds, cold temperatures, and on occasion heavy snow falls. Winter can be a great time for trekking as the trails are really quiet and there is something challenging about reaching Everest Base Camp in the coldest time of year.
Day temperatures are comfortable with sunny skies generally prevailing, although it can get well below freezing - even as low as -20°C (-4°F) near Everest Base Camp.
There are two distinct trekking seasons in the Himalayas; pre-monsoon (February, March, April and May) and post monsoon (late September, October, November and December). It is possible to make the journey in January and early September. We suggest the above for our treks into Everest base camp. My personal favorites are March, late October and November.
You can trek to Everest Base Camp in January and February. It can be cold higher up (-20C/-4F to – 30C/-22F). Snow can fall at anytime of the year in the region. It is more likely during this time and the summer months. If you are planning on trekking to Everest Base Camp in these months, you are definitely going to need more time for weather delays. Weather conditions can be more challenging in these winter months.
February and March are generally colder months to be in the region. However these can be some of our favorite times to be there! February and March generally have less people on the trail. Colder temperatures usually bring crisper and clearer views along the way, making it a great time to be there as long as you are prepared with the correct gear for the cold.
April is one of the busier months to be in the region, but there is a reason for that! Generally, the weather is stable and the views are clear, with less heat haze, that can impede the views. You will be contending with a lot of other trekkers and climbers in the region in April. Many choose this to be the month they will travel. The trails can also be busy with porters/animals that are maintaining the large number of climbers in Everest Base Camp. This is the time climbers are preparing for their summit attempts.
May is traditionally the warmest month to visit Everest Base Camp. However, sometimes the warmer temperatures can also bring in more clouds, and heat haze, which obstruct your views. During this time in Nepal, the monsoon is moving north from India, bringing warmer temperatures and potentially more cloud cover. If you are worried about the colder temperatures in the region, then going during May could be the right choice for you. With this said, we can never guarantee the weather in the region and it can change from year to year. While we normally see warmer temperatures in May, we have also seen years where it has snowed on the trail and been quite cold along the way!
Traditionally, you will find late September, October, November and December will provide better views of the mountains, less heat haze, less cloud cover and overall more consistent and better views of the mountains. This is not always the case but the trend usually follows this pattern.
In September the monsoon can linger a bit, causing there to be more precipitation on the trail. If there are more cloud cover, it can cause more issues with getting in/out of the mountains as well, so having some extra time built into your schedule for these possible delays are important. The temperatures are generally warmer in September and the lush and green landscapes can be quite spectacular in the lower parts of the trail.
Once you move into October, you are going to see one of the busiest months on the trail. The reason it is busier is because this months generally brings clear skies and the temperatures have not yet dropped, making it quite comfortable to trek at this time.
Another one of our favorite times to be in the region is in November, where the crowds start to dissipate and the temperatures are a bit colder, bringing the crisper and clearer views. This weather pattern will go into December as well, however the temperatures can definitely get colder as you head towards the end of the year.
Trekking during the monsoon season of June, July and August can be quite challenging in the Himalayas. The biggest challenge is going to be getting in or out of the mountains. There may not be flights in or out of Lukla for days on end. You could experience torrential rains lower on the trail, making it difficult and challenging terrain to trek in. If possible, we suggest avoiding this time of year as your views most likely will be impeded, there is more risk of land-slide and an overall more challenging time to be in the Everest region.
If you're a regular long distance walker, especially used to hills; if you do aerobic sport regularly, such as swimming, cycling, athletics; if you're a regular gym attendee and comfortable for half an hour on a stair climber or running machine set to a steepish gradient; if your back’s strong enough to carry a rucksack that weighs, roughly, 15kg (although once on the trek porters will carry your gear); if you're comfortably able to walk longish distances (12km) on consecutive days. These are just a few of the activities that you should be able to do if you're contemplating a trek to EBC.
Having said that, you might know someone who said the trek was easy or might have read somewhere on the interenet that the trek is heard. Just because someone has one experience, one time, does not mean that it will be the same for others! Therefore, you need to assess the information you read on the internet. If someone says it was easy, then look at their situation, age, experience and hiking history. Likewise, if someone says it was the hardest thing they have ever done. You will need to look at their itinerary, age, prior training, pacing and lodges they stayed in. You need an honest assessment of your fitness, age and how much preparation is needed to enjoy the overall experience. Call Us or Email Us and we can help you get the correct information to make a safe and successful trek to Everest.