Everest Base Camp trek distance and days
About 42 km (26 miles) each way on foot, from the airstrip at Lukla to Gorak Shep, the last lodges below base camp.
A typical plan takes 12 days from Kathmandu, 11 of them on the trail, walking 3 to 8 hours a day.
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- Plan and heights checked on 1 October 2026 against guidebooks and the Nepal Tourism Board
How long is the Everest Base Camp trek?
12 days from Kathmandu and back is the usual plan, and Lonely Planet puts the trek at 12 to 14 days.
You spend 11 of those days on the trail. Base camp comes on day 8, after two rest days to acclimatise (to give your body time to get used to the thinner air), and the walk back down to Lukla takes three.
- From Kathmandu and back
- 12 days
- On the trail
- 11 days
- Walking each day
- 3 to 8 hours
- Longest day
- Day 8, 7 to 9 hours
- Rest days
- 2
- Base camp
- Day 8
Sources: Lonely Planet and Nepal Tourism Board; checked 1 October 2026.
How far is it from Lukla to Everest Base Camp?
About 42 km (26 miles) each way from Lukla to Gorak Shep, the last lodges below base camp, by the stage lengths Wikivoyage gives. Base camp is a walk along the glacier from there, and the way back follows the same valley.
We have not measured the trail ourselves, and the walks on rest days come on top. Height sets the pace more than distance does: the way up takes 8 days and the way down three.
- Lukla airport to Monju
- 6 miles (about 10 km)
- Monju to Namche
- 3 miles (about 5 km)
- Namche to Tengboche
- 3 miles (about 5 km)
- Tengboche to Periche
- 6 miles (about 10 km)
- Periche to Lobuche
- 5 miles (about 8 km)
- Lobuche to Gorak Shep
- 3 miles (about 5 km)
- Lukla to Gorak Shep
- 26 miles (about 42 km)
Source: Wikivoyage; checked 1 October 2026.
Everest Base Camp trek day by day
The standard plan, put together from guidebooks and other companies’ itineraries. Your guide adjusts it to the weather, the flights and how the group is doing, and your quote confirms your own plan.
| Day | Route | Overnight | Altitude | Walking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kathmandu to Lukla, then Phakding | Phakding | 2,610 m | 3 to 4 hours |
| 2 | Phakding to Namche Bazaar | Namche Bazaar | 3,440 m | 5 to 7 hours |
| 3 | Rest and acclimatise: Namche Bazaar | Namche Bazaar | 3,440 m | 3 to 5 hours |
| 4 | Namche Bazaar to Tengboche | Tengboche | 3,860 m | 5 to 6 hours |
| 5 | Tengboche to Dingboche | Dingboche | 4,410 m | 5 to 6 hours |
| 6 | Rest and acclimatise: Dingboche | Dingboche | 4,410 m | 4 to 5 hours |
| 7 | Dingboche to Lobuche | Lobuche | 4,940 m | 5 to 6 hours |
| 8 | Lobuche to Gorak Shep, then Everest Base Camp and back | Gorak Shep | 5,164 m | 7 to 9 hours |
| 9 | Gorak Shep to Kala Patthar, then Pheriche | Pheriche | 4,371 m | 6 to 8 hours |
| 10 | Pheriche to Namche Bazaar | Namche Bazaar | 3,440 m | 7 to 8 hours |
| 11 | Namche Bazaar to Lukla | Lukla | 2,860 m | 6 to 8 hours |
| 12 | Lukla to Kathmandu | Kathmandu |
Day 1
- Route
- Kathmandu to Lukla, then Phakding
- Overnight
- Phakding
- Altitude
- 2,610 m
- Walking
- 3 to 4 hours
Day 2
- Route
- Phakding to Namche Bazaar
- Overnight
- Namche Bazaar
- Altitude
- 3,440 m
- Walking
- 5 to 7 hours
Day 3
- Route
- Rest and acclimatise: Namche Bazaar
- Overnight
- Namche Bazaar
- Altitude
- 3,440 m
- Walking
- 3 to 5 hours
Day 4
- Route
- Namche Bazaar to Tengboche
- Overnight
- Tengboche
- Altitude
- 3,860 m
- Walking
- 5 to 6 hours
Day 5
- Route
- Tengboche to Dingboche
- Overnight
- Dingboche
- Altitude
- 4,410 m
- Walking
- 5 to 6 hours
Day 6
- Route
- Rest and acclimatise: Dingboche
- Overnight
- Dingboche
- Altitude
- 4,410 m
- Walking
- 4 to 5 hours
Day 7
- Route
- Dingboche to Lobuche
- Overnight
- Lobuche
- Altitude
- 4,940 m
- Walking
- 5 to 6 hours
Day 8
- Route
- Lobuche to Gorak Shep, then Everest Base Camp and back
- Overnight
- Gorak Shep
- Altitude
- 5,164 m
- Walking
- 7 to 9 hours
Day 9
- Route
- Gorak Shep to Kala Patthar, then Pheriche
- Overnight
- Pheriche
- Altitude
- 4,371 m
- Walking
- 6 to 8 hours
Day 10
- Route
- Pheriche to Namche Bazaar
- Overnight
- Namche Bazaar
- Altitude
- 3,440 m
- Walking
- 7 to 8 hours
Day 11
- Route
- Namche Bazaar to Lukla
- Overnight
- Lukla
- Altitude
- 2,860 m
- Walking
- 6 to 8 hours
Day 12
- Route
- Lukla to Kathmandu
- Overnight
- Kathmandu
Sources: Lonely Planet and Nepal Tourism Board; checked 1 October 2026.
Everest Base Camp map and altitude
The trail climbs from Lukla at 2,860 m to Gorak Shep at 5,164 m, the highest night, and comes back down the same valley. Kala Patthar, at about 5,644 m, is climbed on the morning of day 9.
- Phakding, 2,610 m
- Namche Bazaar, 3,440 m
- Namche Bazaar, 3,440 m
- Tengboche, 3,860 m
- Dingboche, 4,410 m
- Dingboche, 4,410 m
- Lobuche, 4,940 m
- Gorak Shep, 5,164 m
- Pheriche, 4,371 m
- Namche Bazaar, 3,440 m
- Lukla, 2,860 m
Route highlights
Five places mark the way: Lukla, Namche Bazaar, Tengboche, Everest Base Camp and Kala Patthar.
The chart below shows the height where you sleep each night, from day 1 to day 11, and the numbered list opens each place.
| Day | Overnight | Altitude |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phakding | 2,610 m |
| 2 | Namche Bazaar | 3,440 m |
| 3 | Namche Bazaar, rest day | 3,440 m |
| 4 | Tengboche | 3,860 m |
| 5 | Dingboche | 4,410 m |
| 6 | Dingboche, rest day | 4,410 m |
| 7 | Lobuche | 4,940 m |
| 8 | Gorak Shep | 5,164 m |
| 9 | Pheriche | 4,371 m |
| 10 | Namche Bazaar | 3,440 m |
| 11 | Lukla | 2,860 m |
Day 1. Kathmandu to Lukla, then Phakding.
- Overnight
- Phakding
- Altitude
- 2,610 m
- Walking
- 3 to 4 hours
The walk starts at Lukla, 2,860 m.
Days 1 to 11 run from Lukla back to Lukla. Day 12 takes you from Lukla back to Kathmandu.
LuklaDay 12,860 m
The flight lands at Lukla's Tenzing-Hillary Airport: about 30 to 35 minutes from Kathmandu, or 17 to 21 minutes from Manthali in busy seasons.
2,860 m is the town. The airstrip is given as 2,845 m.
Lukla
2,860 mSources: Nepal Tourism Board, The Himalayan Times and Wikipedia.
Namche BazaarDays 2 and 33,440 m
Two nights: the climb in, then a day to get used to the height, with a walk up to the Hotel Everest View, 3,880 m.
Some sources give 3,450 or 3,500 m, because the town climbs a hillside.
Read our Namche Bazaar guide.
Sources: Nepal Tourism Board, Hotel Everest View and Wikipedia.
TengbocheDay 43,860 m
A steep climb from the Dudh Kosi brings you to Tengboche and its monastery.
Source: Nepal Tourism Board.
Everest Base CampDay 85,364 m
From Gorak Shep you walk along the Khumbu Glacier to base camp and back: the longest day, 7 to 9 hours.
The camp sits on moving ice, so its height is approximate.
Everest Base Camp
5,364 mSources: Nepal Tourism Board, Wikipedia and Lonely Planet.
Kala PattharDay 95,644 m
The trek's highest point: a pre-dawn climb of 1.5 to 2 hours from Gorak Shep to the prayer-flag summit, for the view of Everest.
Some maps and the Nepal Tourism Board print 5,545 m. That is the lower southern top of the same ridge; the prayer-flag summit is about 5,644 m.
Read our Kala Patthar guide.
कालापत्थर
Kala Patthar
5,644 mSources: Lonely Planet, Wikipedia, Nepal Tourism Board and Rough Guides.
Why our 2023 itinerary ran 16 days
The 12 days count from the morning you leave Kathmandu to the day you fly back. Arrival and departure days, and any spare day for flights, come on top.
Our 2023 itinerary, the one the guide price was quoted for, ran 16 days, and its notes include two nights in a Kathmandu hotel and a sightseeing day in the city. A spare day for the Lukla flights is worth keeping in any plan: they only fly in daylight and good weather, and they are often a day or more late.
Sources: Our 2023 trip page, as saved by the Wayback Machine, Lonely Planet, Rough Guides and Wikipedia; checked 1 October 2026.
More guides for the Everest Base Camp trek
See every planning guideEverest Base Camp trek cost
From US$1,419, our 2023 price for 16 days. Permits come to NPR 6,000 for a foreign trekker.
Best time for the Everest Base Camp trek
October to November and March to May, steadiest from early October to mid November and late March to late April.
How to get to Everest Base Camp
Fly to the mountain airstrip at Lukla (2,860 m), then walk; you reach base camp on the eighth day.
Everest Base Camp trek difficulty
No climbing, but 3 to 8 hours of walking a day and five nights above 4,000 m.
How to train for the Everest Base Camp trek
12 weeks of steady walks and strength work, aimed at 11 days on foot and a longest day of 7 to 9 hours.
Everest Base Camp packing list
Layers, a warm sleeping bag and broken-in boots for five nights above 4,000 m, and the Lukla flight’s 10 kg hold limit.
Everest Base Camp elevation
About 5,364 m on the moving Khumbu Glacier; our 12-day trek reaches it on day 8.
Kala Patthar
The prayer-flag summit is about 5,644 m, a lower top about 5,545 m; our trek climbs it on day 9.
Namche Bazaar
About 3,440 m. You climb in on day 2 and rest there on day 3.
Sagarmatha National Park
Nepal’s Khumbu national park, established in 1976 and inscribed by UNESCO in 1979. Our Everest treks enter at Monjo.
Lukla airport
Tenzing-Hillary Airport, about 2,845 m at the airstrip. Everest treks start here after a flight from Kathmandu or Manthali.
Tell Narbin’s team how many days you have, and we will fit the Everest Base Camp trek to them.
WhatsApp or call +977 985-1180155, email info@high5adventures.com, or see the Everest Base Camp trek first.