Trekking in the Everest region is the most satisfying walking holiday activity. It is the most popular activity to do in Nepal as well. However, for any kind of tourism activity to flourish, you need four components to the fullest. These components are Attractions, Accessibility, Accommodation & Catering, and Amenities. In today’s blog, let’s read out about these attractions, accessibilities, accommodations, and amenities available in Everest Trekking.
There are two types of attractions for tourism development. They are natural attractions and cultural attractions. The Everest region is blessed by both natural attractions and cultural attractions. The cultural attractions of the region are Sherpa villages, pagodas, suspension bridges, monasteries, and mountaineering museums. These places are enough to delight travelers and provide different dimensions to their holiday activity.
Natural attractions of the region are obviously mountains, rivers, glaciers, moraines, forests, lakes, and waterfalls. Moreover, the world’s tallest mountains like Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Amadablam and Cho You are in the region. These attractions are surely the most essential pulling factors for trekkers across the globe to visit the region. Relish the chance to knit the holiday moments that are full of natural wonders and cultural grandeur.
As for accessibility, the Everest region has only two options. The major accessibility facility also known as the transportation facility is the flight either by a twin otter plane or the helicopter. The next accessibility is by walking on the walking trail.
People carry their goods by themselves or use the yak for the transportation of the goods. Recently, the area is touched by road construction as well until the foothill of the Lukla. However, it is not accepted by the tourism entrepreneurs of the region. They fear that the availability of road transportation may tarnish the beauty of the region’s major holiday activity which is trekking.
The flight to Lukla is considered as the most adventurous and joyous. In fact, the airstrip of Lukla the Tenzing Hillary Airport is classed as the world’s most extreme airport. The terrain and the unstable climatic conditions make it a thrilling experience. Another popular means of transportation in the area is by helicopter. Some people prefer to do the Helicopter tour of the area as well.
The access to the helicopter is up to Everest Base Camp. However, for the regular trekkers, the helicopter is landed around the Khumbu valley. The means of transportation in Everest Trekking are either walking/horse riding or flight/helicopter.
There are different types of lodging facilities available in the Everest Base Camp Trek route or in any trekking route of the Everest Region. You can find the Spartan way of lodging to the regal way of lodging on the trekking trail. A few years back, there were teahouses with basic amenities only. Nowadays, there are numerous high-scale lodges and mountain resorts in the region.
In fact, the Hotel Everest is located at the top of the Namche Bazaar and is among the world’s highest 5* hotels situated at 3880m above sea level. In the basic teahouses, trekkers have to spend overnight on twin sharing basis. In some teahouses, you can find the attached bathroom as well but not in many teahouses or lodges. However, as you trek higher the accommodation style becomes more Spartan and basic. Nowadays, there are 1 – 2 luxury resorts under construction even in high-altitude places like Lobuche and Gorakshep. So, expect good and sound sleep during the trek of the Everest region.
As for the catering amenities available in Everest Trekking, there are many varieties. You can find the western style menu to the local delicacies. Therefore, choose the menu items from the menu by opting for the A’ La Carte style. Most of the lodges and teahouses offer similar kinds of menus. Please remember that you will have to use the catering services from the lodges or teahouses you are spending the overnight. You can’t eat outside other than the one you are staying.
It is the basic rule of the trekking trail in the Everest region. In fact, it is the same in almost every trekking route of Nepal. You can get the drinking bottled mineral water in every teahouse, so you don’t need to carry the purifying tablets. If you would like, you can carry the jug and fill up the warm water from the teahouses by paying extra few dollars.
The Everest region is fully equipped with the three basic components of tourism – attractions, accessibilities, and accommodation & catering. Regarding the amenities on the trail, here is a little information that I would like to share with you all. This will definitely help you to prepare for the trekking trip in advance. You can trek the region well-informed regarding the expected things available on the trail.
The frequently used phone networks in Nepal are either NTC (Nepal Telecom) or Ncell. Most of the trekkers visiting Nepal use Ncell SIM cards. It is easily available in the airport and offers the best internet services as well. Moreover, it is easy to acquire than the government-owned Nepal Telecom SIM cards.
The phone networks of both the sim cards are available up to Pangboche on the Everest Base Camp Trekking Trail. However, beyond Pangboche, there is no available phone networks until trekkers reach the Gorakshep and Everest Base Camp.
You can access to the internet via mobile data until Pangboche. Until this place, the network is strong for you to surf the internet. Almost every teahouse has a WIFI network. You can use the internet by paying a certain amount of money for certain data packs. The frequently used internet services in the trail are of the Everest Link Internet network. The cost of the internet is NRS. 600 for 1 GB of data.
In the Everest Base Camp Trekking trail, you will not find small shops beyond Pangboche Village. Until Namche Bazaar, you can find countless shops where you can buy a variety of goods. The major marketplace in the Everest region trekking is the Namche Bazaar. You can find lots of different kinds of shops in this place. If you have not bought any trekking gear or would like to buy local products then the Namche Bazaar is an ideal place.
In order to buy the souvenirs, you can ask for the teahouses and they can arrange for the local goods. Local Sherpa products like jackets, blankets, shawls, caps, etc. are possible to buy in these shops. You can also buy the food supplements like chocolates, drinks, and stationeries in these shops.
You can use the banking facilities or ATM facilities either in Lukla, Tengboche, or in Namche Bazaar. Besides these places, you won’t find anywhere to draw cash from the ATM machines. There are numerous banks in Lukla and Namche Bazaar but in Tengboche, you can find only one bank’s atm. It is of Siddhartha Bank.
Trekkers can find healthcare centers for immediate medical aid in the trekking routes of the Everest region. In the Everest Base Camp Trek route, you can find healthcare centers in Lukla, Monjo, Namche, and Pheriche. Please remember that these health care centers only perform immediate emergency medical aids.
In extreme cases, the trekkers are airlifted by helicopter. Therefore, there is a mandatory clause for the trekkers to get travel insurance that covers the helicopter rescue as well. Besides these places, you can also find healthcare centers in Khumjung, Khunde, and Thame Village as well.
Every teahouse or lodge of the Everest region provides the facility of hot showers. It is not free of cost though. Trekkers have to pay for the hot showers. In the Mount Everest Base Camp Trekking route, trekkers can get a running hot shower until Dingboche Village. Until Namche Bazaar in some lodges, you can get free hot showers included in the room price. It depends upon the style of accommodation that you have chosen for the trekking.
You will not get the running hot showers in Thukla, Lobuche, and Gorakshep. In these places, you will have to use the bucket hot showers. The cost of the hot showers until Dingboche is Nrs. 500 and for the bucket hot showers is Nrs. 700 per person.
On the trekking trail, if you don’t like to walk or if you are tired, you can hire a horse as well. These kinds of services are available in almost every overnight resting place. During emergencies at night, trekkers can use horse riding to descend and reach emergency medical aid. The cost of horse riding depends upon the distance traveled. Its costs range from 100 $ to 250 $.
These are the basic amenities available in Everest Trekking. If you would like to know more in detail about the finer things available in the Everest region, consult with our travel planners. We are 24/7 available to provide much-needed information regarding the trekking in Everest region.