Nepal / Everest (Khumbu) / Namche BazaarNamche Bazaar
Sherpa Capital and Gateway to Everest
The horseshoe-shaped Sherpa town at 3,440 m, two days' walk up from Lukla (via Phakding and the suspension bridges over the Dudh Koshi), where every Everest trekker spends a second night to acclimatise. The days here include that walk in and out: arrival at Lukla, two walking days up, an acclimatisation day to the Everest View Hotel and Khumjung (the first sight of Everest and Ama Dablam), and a long day back down. Namche has bakeries, gear shops, ATMs and the Sagarmatha National Park museum; beyond it lie Tengboche and Everest Base Camp.
Highlights
- First view of Everest and Ama Dablam from the Everest View Hotel
- The Hillary suspension bridge
- Khumjung monastery and school
- Saturday market
- Sherpa culture museum
- Day walk towards Tengboche
Things to do
- Acclimatisation hike to the Everest View HotelMorning · 4h
- Khumjung & Khunde villagesAfternoon · 3h
- Sagarmatha National Park museumAfternoon · 1h 30m
- Trek from Phakding up to NamcheMorning · 6h
Tours & tickets
Tourisma may earn a small commission if you book — it never changes your price.
When to go
Best time: March – May, October – November
Worth knowing
Monsoon on the Trails: Leeches, Landslides, Cloud
June to September is the monsoon. Trails are wet and slippery, leeches are everywhere below about 3,000 m (carry salt and leech socks), landslides block roads and paths, and cloud hides the mountains most days. Flights to Lukla are cancelled often. Treks are possible but this is the worst time for views; October–November and March–May are the seasons.
Heads up
Peak Trekking Season
October–November (clearest skies) and March–May (warmer, rhododendrons in bloom, some haze) are the trekking seasons. Trails and teahouses are at their busiest: book flights and lodges in advance, walk early, and expect higher prices for rooms with attached bathrooms.
Worth knowing
Lukla Flights Are Often Cancelled
Lukla's airstrip is flown only in clear weather; cloud or wind grounds the planes, sometimes for several days, worst in the monsoon and on spring afternoons. Keep two spare days before your international flight, buy insurance that covers delays, and know that a helicopter seat out costs several hundred US dollars. In the busy seasons most flights leave from Ramechhap (Manthali), 4-5 hours by road from Kathmandu, so check where yours departs.
Worth knowing
Everest Region Winter Cold
December to February, nights at Namche fall well below freezing and above it to about -15 to -20 °C; many higher lodges close, water pipes freeze and passes can be snowed in. Days are often clear. Bring a -15 °C sleeping bag and a down jacket, and expect fewer flights after snowfall.
- Mani Rimdu at Tengboche — Masked dances by the monks of Tengboche Monastery, a day's walk above Namche, over three days in the autumn trekking season. Treks timed for it fill Tengboche's few lodges; book through an agency or plan to sleep in Deboche or Pangboche.