Everest Base Camp Yoga Trek – 12 Days

Leaving Namche Bazaar, you’ll begin trekking upstream along the Dudh Koshi River. A steep hike takes you towards Phunki Tenga village. The trail continues alongside the mesmerizing view of Ama Dablam (6,856 m). The ascent to Tengboche is steady and challenging as altitude increases. Once you get to Tengboche, you’ll find yourself in the home of the famous Tengboche Monastery, the largest monastery in the Khumbu region.

Tengboche, the sacred site, adds profound depth to the yoga session, surrounded by towering Himalayan peaks, and aligns naturally with meditation. This evening’s yoga is special as you’ll do it in the Tengboche monastery, which provides you with a connection to Himalayan Buddhism with yogic mindfulness. The day’s overnight stay is at Tengboche’s teahouse.

Wake up to the beautiful view of Ama Dablam (6,856 m) in the east. You’ll perform a yoga session with gentle Pranayama and Sun Salutations (Surya Namaskar). After that, you’ll enjoy your breakfast and continue the EBC Yoga Trek. Leaving Tengboche, you’ll begin trekking uphill along the Dudh Koshi River to reach Debuche village. You’ll leave the forested path behind and begin climbing the rocky terrain.

The trail takes you to the pristine Imja Khola (River) and begins to rise again to get to Pangboche village. Also, you have to walk past thousands of Mani stones to Shomare, a small settlement, before getting to the day’s destination. After reaching to Dingboche, you’ll practice altitude-adaptation breathwork and yoga Nidra (deep relaxation). Overnight at Dingboche.

Today, you’ll spend another day acclimatizing at Dingboche. However, the day starts with a Pranayama, Nadi Shodhana, Sun Salutations, standing grounding poses (Warrior II, Tree pose), and a 10-minute silent mountain meditation. Afterward, you’ll have hearty morning meals, and then you can go for a day hike to Nangkartshang peak (5,083 m), named after the century-old Nangkartshang monastery.

From the top of Nangkartshang peak, you can catch the surreal sights of Mount Taboche (6,367 m), Ama Dablam (6,856 m), Island Peak (6,189 m), Lhotse (8,516 m), and Mount Everest (8,848 m). After a while, you’ll return to your path back to Dingboche village overlooking the beautiful Mt. Pumo Ri (7,165 m). As usual, the day ends with a yoga session and a hot and yummy dinner. Overnight in Dingboche.

Today, you’ll practice a gentle breathing session that prepares your lungs for thinner air. Afterward, you’ll have a morning meal and leave Dingboche, heading towards Lobuche village. The trail on this day’s trek goes past Pheriche and Thukla village. As you get to Thukla, you can witness the Climber’s Memorial Park, built in memory of climbers who lost their lives while climbing Mount Everest, which remains the highlight of the region.

Beyond the pass, the path becomes rocky and winds along the edge of the Khumbu Glacier. Yoga principles of balance and drishti (soft focus gaze) are helpful on this uneven landscape. As you get to Lobuche, you can experience the change in the atmosphere with thinner air, colder temperatures, and barren surroundings. Due to the harsh conditions, we have included extremely gentle yoga practices. Overnight in Lobuche.

Before leaving for Lobuche, you’ll practice a short seated breathing session to help prepare for the long day ahead. Also, we’ll make sure you avoid intense movements to conserve energy for the high-altitude effort ahead. From Lobuche, the trail climbs along the Lobuche and Khumbu Glaciers towards Gorak Shep.

As the journey takes you to high altitude, the oxygen level decreases. In this situation, follow yogic breathing: inhale for 2-3 steps, exhale for 2-3 steps, and maintain an upright posture to allow full lung expansion. After a while of trekking, you’ll reach Gorak Shep, where you’ll have lunch, leave your bag, and make your way to Everest Base Camp.

The trail rises to the east and follows the Khumbu Glacier to Everest Base Camp. Along the way, enjoy the pristine sights of the climber’s base camp, Khumbu Glacier, and Khumbu Icefall from the base camp. As you get to Base Camp, your eyes will be in awe of the sights of Mount Pumo Ri (7,165 m), Lingtren (6,749 m), Khumbutse (6,608 m), and Nuptse Peak (7,861 m).

Take a moment to enjoy the stunning scenery from Everest Base Camp, congratulate yourself for making it to the ultimate destination, then retrace your path to Gorak Shep for the overnight stay. In the evening, you’ll participate in a guided body-scan meditation and breathing exercise.

This is another remarkable day on which you’ll hike to Kala Patthar, the highest location and a prominent viewpoint of the Everest region. The day starts before sunrise, but before making way to the viewpoint, a short indoor breathing session at Gorak Shep will be held. The climb to Kala Patthar is not technically difficult, but the low oxygen makes it challenging.

As you get to Kala Patthar, you can catch the excellent view of Mount Everest (8,848 m), Nuptse (7,861 m), Lhotse (8,516 m), Khumbutse (6,608 m), Pumo Ri (7,165 m), Ama Dablam (6,856 m), and other surrounding peaks. Another special thing about reaching Kala Patthar before sunrise is that you can witness the first sunlight touch Mount Everest and other peaks, with its golden color spreading across them.

After enjoying the beauty from the top of Kala Patthar, you’ll return to Gorak Shep. There you’ll have breakfast and begin the descent to Pheriche. Getting to Pheriche is long but not very challenging. Still, continuous descent may hurt your knee, so you must be careful. As you get to the day’s destination, you’ll practice deep hamstring and hip stretches, calf release, gentle spinal twists, and Nidra-inspired relaxation. Overnight in Pheriche.

As usual, the day starts with a short activation session like light hip openers, ankle rotations, and 5 minutes of calm breathing. After that, have breakfast and head to Namche Bazaar, your destination for the day. The first section involves descending from the high alpine zone, where you should take short yet controlled steps. As you descend, the landscape shifts from alpine to greener surroundings.

The trail drops towards the Imja River and climbs again. Make a brief stop at Debuche village before arriving at Tengboche. After enjoying a delicious lunch, you’ll continue on the trail. The final walk involves descending downstream along the Dudh Koshi River and crossing Phunki Tenga to reach Namche Bazaar. Overnight in Namche.

Wake up to the mesmerizing view of Kongde Ri Peak (6,137 m). Before departing from Namche to today’s destination, you’ll practice 5 minutes of seated breathing. As you leave Namche, you’ll begin a downhill walk and cross Jorsalle along the way to Monjo. There, you’ll exit Sagarmatha National Park. After exiting, you’ll begin climbing down to Phakding village, where you can enjoy your lunch.

A short trek from Phakding will bring you back to Lukla. After some rest at the lodge, you’ll practice a short meditation session, which will be the last for this EBC Yoga Trek. Moreover, spend the evening celebrating the completion of the arduous trek. Overnight in Lukla.

Today, you’ll catch an early morning flight back to Kathmandu. Enjoy the beautiful mountainous panorama from the flight as you leave Lukla. Before landing at Kathmandu, you can catch the stunning aerial view of the entire city, including a few of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. However, please note that, if you are flying in peak season, you may need to fly from Lukla to Manthali, then take a ride to Kathmandu, which takes an extra 4-5 hours. Overnight in Kathmandu.