Everest Trek: Gokyo Lakes and Cho La Pass

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Embark on the adventurous Everest Base Camp Trek via Gokyo Lakes and Cho La Pass. Discover turquoise lakes, majestic mountains, Sherpa culture, and breathtaking views of Everest and the Khumbu region.

Duration: 18 days

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Arrival in Kathmandu (1,350m/4,428ft)

Himalayan Glacier Trekking - Private Day Tours - Upon our arrival at the Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu, we will be greeted by a representative from Himalayan Glacier who will take us to our hotel. After checking in, we may take a rest or visit Himalayan Glacier’s office. In the evening…

What's Included

3-star hotel accommodation in Kathmandu with breakfast
Domestic flights (Kathmandu- Lukla -Kathmandu)
Porter service (2 trekkers: 1 porter)
Experienced, English-speaking, government-licensed trek leader and assistants
All meals included during the trek (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
Complimentary trekking bag, t-shirt, and map provided by…

What's Not Included

Nepalese visa fee
Excess baggage charge(s)
Extra night accommodation in Kathmandu because of early arrival, late departure, early return from mountain (due to any reason) than the scheduled itinerary
Lunch and evening meals in Kathmandu
International flights
Travel and rescue insurance
Personal expenses (phone calls, laundry, bar bills,…

Additional Information

The Everest Base Camp trek through Gokyo Lakes offers a scenic journey through the Khumbu region, known for its mesmerizing turquoise waters and the distinguished Cho La Pass. This journey takes you past towering mountains, hospitable Sherpas, vibrant monasteries, the bustling Namche Bazaar, and the renowned Sagarmatha National Park. Of course, it culminates at the foot of the imposing Mt. Everest. The path towards the world’s highest peak offers outstanding panoramic views from famous vantage points such as Gokyo Ri and Kala Patthar. It provides splendid views of the Khumbu Icefall as well. In essence, trekking to the Everest Base Camp via Gokyo Lakes is a truly unforgettable experience that affords captivating views of various peaks including Mt. Cho Oyu, Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Nuptse, Amadablam, Pumori, and the largest monastery in the Khumbu region of Nepal - Tengboche Monastery.

The Itinerary details is in brief due to word constraints. Please visit Himalayan Glacier website for more details.
During our trek, we can enjoy authentic Nepalese food as well the more common international cuisine (Tibetan, Continental, Italian, Indian, etc.). Breakfast and dinner will be served from the teahouse or from a lodge menu where we spend the night whereas lunch will be served on the way to the next destination. All meals will be provided during trekking while only breakfast will be available in Kathmandu. There will also be welcome and farewell dinners for guests.
Spring (March to May) and Autumn (September to November) are the best months for this trip.
In difficult treks you are likely to walk for 6-8 hours, cross steep hilly terrain and occasional high passes with daily ascend and descend of around 500-1000m. You are likely to be on a remote environment with extreme weather in some days where you might be facing high altitude air with low level of oxygen and only basic facilities on some nights. Previous trekking experience, physical fitness and positive attitude are therefore essential.
Your safety is of paramount concern while traveling with Himalayan Glacier. Please note that your leader has the authority to amend or cancel any part of the itinerary if it is deemed necessary due to safety concerns. Every effort will be made to keep to the above itinerary; however, since this adventure entails travelling in remote mountainous regions, we cannot guarantee that we will not deviate from it. Weather conditions, health condition of a group member, unexpected natural disasters, etc., can all contribute to changes in the itinerary. The leader will try to ensure that the trip runs according to plan, but please be prepared to be flexible if required. Please note that often the Kathmandu-Lukla-Kathmandu flight gets delayed by a few hours or may even be canceled for one, two, or more days due to unfavorable weather conditions. Such conditions may arise even in the best seasons. Hence, in such cases, you must be prepared for long waits either at Kathmandu or Lukla airports, as this can happen either at the start or end of the trek or even both! We will do our best to avoid such delays, and arrange the next flight for you. We also organize Helicopter rescue in such conditions, if it is available and upon request by our clients. The helicopter charges around USD 3500 and it can lift 4-5 persons per flight. Still, we suggest you to be prepared for possible delays/cancellations, and if possible to come with some extra buffer days (1-2 days) at the end of the trip to accommodate such delays. If everything runs smoothly and you still have a few days of your buffer days left then you may even engage yourself in optional activities which can be arranged by Himalayan Glacier upon request. The optional activities may include visiting places/landmarks of your choice, adventure sports, shopping, etc. In case the flight delay/cancellation happens at the start of trip and it goes so long that it disturbs your onward travel schedule, you are free to choose an alternative trip such as a trek in the Annapurna, Langtang, or any other region. If you are not interested in the alternative trip and would rather wait for your original preferred trip, you are welcome to wait in Kathmandu for as many days as it takes to get a flight to Lukla. However, please note that there will be no refund, if you lose time waiting at the airport and do not take an alternative tour or you only do a short trek later due to time limitation. If the cancellation happens before the trip, we will provide you accommodation and lunch in a guesthouse in Kathmandu. In case of the flight delay/cancellation after finishing of the trek, you will be responsible for all your expenses. Please also note that you will not be entitled to any refund for the services (such as hotel, transport, flight, etc.) included in the package that you would not use later.
We will be accommodated in Yatri Suites & Spa or Hotel Moonlight or Similar in Kathmandu and teahouses during the trek. All accommodations are on twin-shared basis. Single supplement will be served on request and will cost an additional USD 515. Himalayan Glacier will arrange rooms with attached washrooms; however, teahouses in some places only have shared washing and toilet facilities. Also note that single rooms are readily available in Kathmandu and the trekking regions at lower elevation but it might be difficult to find them at higher elevations.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

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(20 Ratings)

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Jimwj6534jk

Dec 1, 2024

Everest Base Camp Trek, overnight - Nov 2024 - WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE - Himalayan Glacier Adventure and Travel Company Everest Base Camp Trek, overnight - Nov 2024 When I decided to plan an adventure to trek to Everest Base Camp, I read reviews on a dozen trekking companies, and in conjunction to reviewing their trek packages and price options, I quickly narrowed my research down to 3 companies. I scheduled Zoom meetings with each of them to ask questions and “interview” them. The trekking adventure to Everest Base Camp is a commitment with a time and monetary investment and everyone needs to make sure to find a company that complements them and their goals. It is your adventure after all. Although all 3 companies were very qualified, Himalayan Glacier stood out allowing for more flexibility and customization to our schedule and wants for the trek. I selected Himalayan Glacier and have zero regrets. My buddy and I were anxious for our trip! From the very beginning, Reezu (Adventure Specialist Sales with Himalayan Glacier) was a fantastic communicator. She was always very responsive, detailed, and thorough in her emails, and was happy to respond no matter how many emails I sent with questions. Reezu made me feel to be an important client and she was invested to help made our trek as special as we wanted it to be. From the moment we stepped out from the Kathmandu Airport (KTM), our guide Subash was there to greet us and help us throughout our journey. Subash (14 years with Himalayan Glacier) taught us about the Nepal culture, local religion, monuments, traditions, and the landscape. During our daily treks, Subash was very patient with our needed breaks and us stopping to take a thousand pictures. (Note: in comparison, we overheard another guide with a different company tell their trekkers that when he said it was time to leave, it was time, no questions. As this was our journey, we greatly appreciated Subash’s patience, because having a strict schedule would not have been well received by us and would have negatively affected our experience. Thankfully, we didn’t have to worry about it!). We chatted throughout our trek, but Subash set aside dedicated time after every day’s trek (after dinner) to discuss the plan for the next day, always keeping us informed on expectations, terrain, difficulty, trek length, etc. As we progressed through our trek, Subash was accommodating to some schedule adjustments we wanted including changing 2 nights stay at EBC to 1 night and changing a short hike day and long hike day to be 2 medium hike days. The changes and flexibility were greatly appreciated. Suman was our porter, worked very hard (as did Subash), and had a smile on his face every single time we saw him. Subash and Suman had worked together numerous times in the past which was evident in the professional teamwork effort they put forth. They made our journey even better. All of our agreed contractual items for our trip/trek were maintained throughout our time in Nepal without issue and we appreciate the honesty and commitment from Himalayan Glacier. Not only would I recommend Himalayan Glacier as your trekking company, I would recommend Subash and Suman to be part of your team if you’re able to.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Williamhi5003bb

Oct 16, 2024

A tremendous tour and tour guide! - My guide Subash was outstanding. He helped me get the best photos and ensured I did all the right things to be successful in completing the trek. He also ensured I had the best rooms at the teahouses.

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Mohant670

Dec 8, 2023

Gokyo Ri and EBC - every trekker's dream comes true - We are the team of 18 friends, spread across the glose ( some in the USA, Singapore and India) with a friendship going back to 30+ years , had a dream , a dream every trekker has..!! We recently successfully completed Gokyo-ri and Everest base camp (EBC) treks - with Himalayan Glaciers ...!! Most beautiful trek - yet very challenging – (both are ~ 5300 meters )– extreme conditions but very satisfying. We were lucky to get an excellent weather. EXCELLENT ARRANGEMENTS BY HIMALAYAN GLACIERS really made this trek a great success. This was evident right from the beginning - the planning stage. Very impressed by the prompt responses to our questions and queries by Samten - she gave us confidence and helped us plan the trek , accommodation and food to suit everybody's varied taste ( and believe me, everyone of us is very choosy🙂 ) . I would like to thank Baburam Khatri - our tour guide - ever smiling and every ready to help...! This was really appreciated all along in this challenging trek and he really made the difference. It was a trek-of-a-lifetime and an inward journey – an effort to go beyond oneself - For me, an opportunity to reflect upon oneself and life as a whole .. in the lap of Majestic Himalaya and the warmth of mother goddess- Ama Dablam .. a rich and pure feeling of completeness and incompleteness at the same time ..! Now, back home, I am deeply enjoying life - even simple things like a wide bed to sleep, and simple 'dal bhaat' to eat and above all - abundant air to breathe - things that I otherwise had taken for granted. A new outlook indeed, but do not know long it will last .. 🙂 I would like to thank every one at Himalayan Glacier to help us realize our dream and would highly recommend them to those who are planning not just trek but any other adventure with Himalayan Glacier.. !!

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966seana

Dec 6, 2023

A trusted company with employees who care - From planning our trip (with Rayuna), having our adventure, to the departure, we would highly recommend HGA. We booked EBC including the Gokyo Lakes via the Cho La Pass trek, we chose the Luxury private trek. We were able to customize our trip as much as we wanted. We had Ashish Gurung as our guide and Char Bhadu as our porter and we absolutely loved them. Ashish was experienced, kind, attentive, and thoughtful. My partner ended up with altitude sickness in Dingboche, we decided to hike back down the mountain and take extra days to try enjoy the experience back down. Ashish was able to pivot and make all our new requests happen without fail. They have experienced employees that will not steer you wrong, will get done what you ask and make sure everything goes right and the way you want. Communication happens very well with their teams. I would give them a 4.5 out of 5 if I could. Simply for the fact that getting a perfect 5 is hard to do (perfect right). I would suggest an all inclusive package be available, you do not have to worry about tips, water, snacks toilet paper etc. I would also suggest upgrading the pick up vehicle, fixing the AC in the Suzuki (did not cool the car quickly), and not forgetting to give someone their welcome dinner :-)

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191wesm

Dec 4, 2023

Excellent trek visiting Gokyo Lakes/Ri, Cho La Pass, EBC and Ama Dablam base camp - I had a very nice trek lasting 22 days with wonderful weather, only had my rain coat on for 1 hour late one afternoon. We went to the Gokyo Lakes and village of Gokyo first. The early morning hike up Gokyo Ri was cold but the views were spectacular across the lakes, mountains and glacier east of Gokyo. The hike across the rock covered glacier east of Gokyo was rocky and tricky in a few spots but very cool. The hike up Cho La Pass was long but very nice views along the way and at the top. Some of the best views of glaciers was coming down from Cho La Pass to Dzongla. Beautiful views of the Mtn peaks, alpine glaciers and the beautiful glacial lake dammed by one of the glaciers ... Awesome ! Next we headed up to Gorak Shep for the hike to Everest Base camp, with cool views of the Khumbu glacier and mountains along the way and especially at EBC. The next morning we did a cold, early morninghike up Kala Patthar. We got to the top of the ridge just in time for the sun to come over the mountain peaks. Nice views of mountains, including Mt Everst, the lower 3 Gokyo Lakes and adjoining mountains and the Khumbu glacier. Heading back down the trail we caught a wonderful fall celebration/program at the buddhist temple in Tengboche. Then we stopped in Pangboche for a hike up to Ama Dablam base camp. Very cool base camp, actually more impressive than EBC this time of year.

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Deepakjw1298vj

Nov 19, 2023

Trip of a liftime, great work by the team - Hello Sagar, Thank you so very much for taking care of us. We are very fortunate that we chose Himalayan Glacier. The trip was simply amazing, through out the trek your engagement leader and guides did a a terrific job with keeping our large group together and were very flexible with the schedule. You have ability to choose excellent people as your employees, especially Babu and Nikesh. Babu took care of me like my son. Same with Nikesh ,he was also by my side or someone else who needed assistance. Both of them made me proud and I would love to see them be very successful in their Lives. Both of them they were looking towards our needs. Constantly reminding us about having water and how to breathe. Not many people have this amazing nurturing quality! They were helping us on our hike by holding our hands, carrying our day packs and giving positive energy and encouragement. Along the way they gave us time to take pictures and enjoy the scenery. We could successfully complete our hike because of them. Many of us did not have any prior experience of hiking. But they were by our side all the time and only because of them we could conquer our fears and gain confidence in ourselves. I can definitely see Babu and Nikesh climbing up in their lives due to their qualities like love and compassion. There is a proverb saying that love can conquer world. Himalayan glacier should be very proud to have Babu and Nikesh and other guides too as your loyal employees. The other guides on our trip Jeevan ( always a smile on his face), Bhakta and Ashish were very helpful. Our best wishes to you and all of your team. We will definitely choose Himalayan Glacier in future. We will highly recommend Himalayan Glacier and the same team what we had. Warm regards, Deepak & Sunila

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Paradise05176018302

Nov 6, 2023

Wonderful experience greatly aided by Himalayn-Glaciers - Right up front - this review is about Himalayan Glaciers - and not about the actual trip itself (which as just amazing - to put it shortly). HG was our tour operator. We were sixteen - a group of eight couples. Our primary part included a trek to Gokyo (and Gokyo-Ri!) and back while six of us were to go from Gokyo to EBC via Chola pass and then take a helicopter to Kathmandu. HG was selected from among many options by two of the friends after carefully considering the online reviews (which included TripAdvisor too!). The cost was a consideration. After we started speaking to the shortlisted couple of options, we quickly realized that HG was quick to respond to the queries, and was mostly sure about what could happen and what could not (or could happen at an additional cost). For our itinerary, they had possible tea houses identified, and the facilities that we could expect were (more than reasonably) clear. In short, for a stranger to an area (and here this trek was more of an experience) HG addressed most of the concerns. Their cost was not the lowest bid but considering other factors, we zeroed in on them. In a nutshell, as a group we were very happy with HG and its 'ground staff' - that includes guides, assistant guides, and porters. They were around us yet did not come in the way of our group activities (which was mostly the leg-pulling and associated laughter). They were observant - "your group seems to laugh a lot ..", one of the guides commented to me once. Anyone walking at a lower-than-usual pace and one of them would be with the person, encouraging him/her patiently. Overall they did a wonderful job - absolutely no complaints whatsoever about them. The Kathmandu, Day-0 experience was warm but a little bit chaotic, but we managed to get our money converted, down jackets, sleeping bag collected (both we rented from HG), duffle bags stuffed with our stuff (!) and arrived in Lukla. Very early on in our trek, we realized the value-add by the guides. We had two - Ashish Gurung and Babu Khatri. Both ensured that all that was left for us was to walk with our day-packs. Rest everything - everything - was taken care of without our explicit involvement - no hassles. Even though we are Indians, language and communication are a problem, so guides anticipating issues and handling them proactively was a great help. The tea-houses on the way lived up to our expectations. The food was good and though towards the end of it, some of us were weary of dal-rice, HG folks tried their best to offer whatever variety they could offer and humored us with our requests. One place where HG's 'value-add' was very evident was their ability to handle changes in the plans. At Dole, one of us had to be evacuated due to altitude sickness - that was managed efficiently. Then the team that was to proceed to EBC reduced drastically with a few members opting to fly back to Lukla directly from Gokyo, the same thing happened at Namche Bazaar on the way back - all this would have tested even a seasoned project manager; but the HG Guides - Ashish and Babu always handled them with "Yes, that can be arranged". On two occasions, when it was way out of the original plan they came back with "Yes, that can be arranged, though it will cost you extra!" At every night stop, the guides would ensure that all of us were comfortable, we have what we need, we are feeling OK in terms of altitude sickness (there was a post-dinner drill to measure SpO2 and pulse every single night of the trek), there were ample suggestions, briefing about the day-to-come. All these small things helped us a lot. We were more than happy to tip all of the team - guides and porters. There was not even a murmur of "but should we even be giving them a tip' - a few opted to top-up the tips for a couple of porters for their service. What could have been better? Chaos on arrival at Kathmandu about the money exchange could have been avoided for sure, HG could have asked us what size shirts we usually wear and kept appropriate down-jackets ready (with 100+ trips organized, I expected that kind of expertise), the evacuation at Dole has gotten into a disputed claim because we missed a simple step in SOP of the insurance agency. Something avoidable. We as a group, wholeheartedly recommend HG as a preferred choice for entrusting the tour operations in the Lukla-Gokyo-EBC region.

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Explore38000176979

Oct 31, 2023

Great Adventure near Everest! - We just returned from a trip with Himalayan Glacier, planning to see Gokyo Lakes and Everest Base Camp (EBC). Our guide was Subash, and we were happy with the company and especially happy with the guide. The mountains of Nepal are beautiful! We saw green forests, rushing streams, shaky suspension bridges, and (of course) tall snow-covered summits. We didn’t reach base camp, but we got great views of Mount Everest! We had weather delays at the start of the trip, requiring rescheduling, rebooking, and replanning our adventure. The office staff in Kathmandu and Subash were forthcoming and imaginative in offering alternatives to our cancelled flights to Luka. While on the trip, I got sick, requiring an extra day to recover and a few days of slower paced trekking. Again, Subash was helpful in finding alternative accommodations for us. We found Subash to be patient, understanding and was an invaluable guide and facilitator for our trip. He was friendly, communicative, informative, and funny. He was good to be with. He made sure our tea house experience (rooms, showers, meals) worked well. Our porter was incredible, carrying our large bags from teahouse to teahouse, even doubling back on occasion because of itinerary changes. Prior to our trip, we worked extensively with Samten in the office. She answered questions quickly and completely. Her English is good, and her communications were quire clear. She was responsive to itinerary changes and made everything work. Sagar, the CEO, was engaged and cared about our experiences. We didn’t complete the trip due to weather and health issues, but we found our guide and the office staff to be quite good to work with. We might go back next year to attempt EBC again, and if we do, we’ll go back with Himalayan Glacier.

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Melindak732

Oct 12, 2023

Phenominal Everest Trekking Adventure - Words can't describe just how amazing this trip was. Arrangements with Himalayan Glacier via Sajal Shrestha & Rayuna Shrestha were easy to coordinate & they were extremely flexible with making adjustments. My guide Subash Maktan was absolutely the best guide ever! Deserves a 5+ stars rating for his off the charts service. He was very in tuned to how I was feeling and constantly validating I was doing OK. I felt like I was doted on for every need you can think of. I think he would have lasso the moon for me if I asked. The trek is definitely challenging but Himalayan Glacier in particular Subash & my porter Bierre made it feel like a walk in the park.

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Josepg234

May 27, 2023

An excellent EBC/Gokyo/Cho La pass experience with Himalayan Glacier - I did this Trek end of April/early May 2023. It was a fantastic experience. Kudos to the Himalayan Glacier (HG) team for their excellent work on every detail of the trip. When I first reached out trying to decide what trek and company to choose, the sales team (Sriju in my case) was very responsive over email and WhatsApp, sharing lots of information about the itinerary, what to pack and other tips. This really helped me prepare well for the trip. I liked that HG starts and ends the trip with nice dinners. On the first evening dinner we went through the details of the trip with the Sherpa. On the last evening we reviewed the trip and the HG team (Deepesh, the operations manager) asked for feedback on what could be improved. The route is perfect. I really liked this itinerary for a few reasons: 1. There are less people going to EBC via Gokyo than the regular EBC route 2. Gokyo is a beautiful place and crossing the Cho La pass was a wonderful experience, just a bit challenging but very rewarding 3. HG does this route clockwise (first Gokyo then EBC) while most other companies do it counter-clockwise (first EBC then Gokyo). It makes the route feel less crowded My Sherpa was Nurbu. He is an amazing guy, with decades of experience. He has worked for HG over 20 years! He knows the mountains really well, keeps a regular eye on you, makes sure that you move at your own pace without over-exerting and takes really good care of you while at the tea houses. Our porter was ChinDu. A strong and friendly guy, he made sure that my bag was at the tea house ahead of arriving every day (heard from other trekkers that sometimes they had to wait 1-2 hours till their bag arrived). I also enjoyed that Sagar (the HG owner) met me for tea in the Kathmandu hotel on the first day to get to know me and wish me a good trip. I could see that he really cares for his customers and for his team. The fact that people like Nurbu have been working at HG for over 20 years is a really good sign. Kudos to Sagar on how he runs the company. What was my feedback to HG on what could be improved? Just a minor thing…it snowed quite a bit while we crossed Cho La pass. I had asked them if I would need crampons for the trip and they said no. I think that you really don’t need them with light snow or good weather but, in heavy snow, crampons are definitely a good idea! I look forward to my next trip with HG and to be in Nepal again!

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