Nepal Now / Treks / Everest Base Camp / Operators
Choosing an operator · Everest Base Camp
Everest Base Camp Trek Operators: How to Choose One
We sell no treks, so this page can say what a brochure cannot: what to check, what a fair package includes, and where the archive shows things going wrong. When you are ready, one enquiry reaches operators we have checked.
Nothing on this route depends more on a decision made before you leave home than the operator. Read together, the archive's diaries put the outcome of an EBC trek down less to fitness than to the people walking with the trekker. In 2014 it was a guide who saw Beinko Takashi struggling for breath below Dingboche and sat him down. In November 2015 it was guides who "took my hand and helped me climb from one rock to the next" over the Cho La when the we12travel trekker could no longer manage it alone. In 2020 it was a guide's contacts: "Without Kevin's local knowledge, his sheer determination and his contacts as a guide we wouldn't have achieved any of this trek."
Recorded · Dingboche · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Recorded · Cho La · Finally made it to the Everest Base Camp!!
Recorded · Lukla · An Epic Clan Wander: Lockdown Trek to EBC Part 3
What a licensed guide is, as the archive records it, is thinner than you would hope. The site's 2015 FAQ names the bodies: TIMS cards come from the Nepal Tourism Board, the Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal or "Government registered trekking companies". The Department of Tourism issues climbing permits through its mountaineering section. The Nepal Mountaineering Association rewrote its training syllabus in 2005 so that "only qualified instructors were allowed to teach mountaineering and climbing courses", and an IFMGA-certified instructor warned in 2016 that "guides without certification and practical training will not be able to compete in the adventure market." The archive does not describe how a trekker checks a company licence or a guide's card; the checklist above is what to ask for instead.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · Kathmandu · FAQ
Recorded · 202 Climbers Scale Everest On a Single Day
Recorded · Story of a Nepali Guide
Porters carry the trek, and the archive's record of their treatment is the bleakest thing in it. On the Namche to Lukla trail in December 2015 a Herald Sun writer passed "porters carrying 80-100 kg loads, bent over double with the sheer weight of it". The Intrepid group in September 2015 met "a teenage boy carrying a 113kg generator as cargo". Jagan Timilsina, who began as a porter in 1998 and stood on Everest in 2012, remembered lodges that "didn't treat them on the same level as guides though they worked as hard. He had to eat stale food and sleep outside in cold." A 2020 essay found little changed: porters "are forced to sleep and eat separately from paying clients, are turned back alone when ill or injured". The only load rule in the archive is the 17 kg limit for climbing staff above base camp, against which some agencies were sending people up with 35 to 40 kg. There is no recorded limit for trekking porters and no EBC day rate. And "Sherpa", the archive reminds readers, is an ethnic group, not a job.
Recorded · Namche Bazaar to Lukla · Return to Nepal
Recorded · Lukla · Trekking in Nepal-An experience of a Lifetime
Recorded · From being a porter to becoming an Everest Summiteer
Recorded · Another American Works as a Porter
Recorded · Everest Base Camp · A Call to Make Everest Safer
Recorded · 10 things you need to know before coming to Nepal
On insurance and rescue the archive is almost silent. Its 2015 FAQ says rescue and evacuation cover can be bought in Kathmandu, that medical cover was unconfirmed and that nothing bought locally would cover repatriation; the FAQ's own question "Is travel insurance necessary to go trekking in Nepal?" was left without an answer. The nearest thing to a rescue price is a Langtang charter at "around $1800 per flight" in 2016. What the 2026 quotes say an evacuation costs is in the questions below. We name no operator here as better than another; the archive gives us no basis to.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · FAQ
Recorded · Langtang · Tourism in Langtang improves gradually
Nothing on this route depends more on a decision made before you leave home than the operator. Read together, the archive's diaries put the outcome of an EBC trek down less to fitness than to the people walking with the trekker. In 2014 it was a guide who saw Beinko Takashi struggling for breath below Dingboche and sat him down. In November 2015 it was guides who "took my hand and helped me climb from one rock to the next" over the Cho La when the we12travel trekker could no longer manage it alone. In 2020 it was a guide's contacts: "Without Kevin's local knowledge, his sheer determination and his contacts as a guide we wouldn't have achieved any of this trek."
Recorded · Dingboche · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Recorded · Cho La · Finally made it to the Everest Base Camp!!
Recorded · Lukla · An Epic Clan Wander: Lockdown Trek to EBC Part 3
What a licensed guide is, as the archive records it, is thinner than you would hope. The site's 2015 FAQ names the bodies: TIMS cards come from the Nepal Tourism Board, the Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal or "Government registered trekking companies". The Department of Tourism issues climbing permits through its mountaineering section. The Nepal Mountaineering Association rewrote its training syllabus in 2005 so that "only qualified instructors were allowed to teach mountaineering and climbing courses", and an IFMGA-certified instructor warned in 2016 that "guides without certification and practical training will not be able to compete in the adventure market." The archive does not describe how a trekker checks a company licence or a guide's card; the checklist above is what to ask for instead.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · Kathmandu · FAQ
Recorded · 202 Climbers Scale Everest On a Single Day
Recorded · Story of a Nepali Guide
Porters carry the trek, and the archive's record of their treatment is the bleakest thing in it. On the Namche to Lukla trail in December 2015 a Herald Sun writer passed "porters carrying 80-100 kg loads, bent over double with the sheer weight of it". The Intrepid group in September 2015 met "a teenage boy carrying a 113kg generator as cargo". Jagan Timilsina, who began as a porter in 1998 and stood on Everest in 2012, remembered lodges that "didn't treat them on the same level as guides though they worked as hard. He had to eat stale food and sleep outside in cold." A 2020 essay found little changed: porters "are forced to sleep and eat separately from paying clients, are turned back alone when ill or injured". The only load rule in the archive is the 17 kg limit for climbing staff above base camp, against which some agencies were sending people up with 35 to 40 kg. There is no recorded limit for trekking porters and no EBC day rate. And "Sherpa", the archive reminds readers, is an ethnic group, not a job.
Recorded · Namche Bazaar to Lukla · Return to Nepal
Recorded · Lukla · Trekking in Nepal-An experience of a Lifetime
Recorded · From being a porter to becoming an Everest Summiteer
Recorded · Another American Works as a Porter
Recorded · Everest Base Camp · A Call to Make Everest Safer
Recorded · 10 things you need to know before coming to Nepal
On insurance and rescue the archive is almost silent. Its 2015 FAQ says rescue and evacuation cover can be bought in Kathmandu, that medical cover was unconfirmed and that nothing bought locally would cover repatriation; the FAQ's own question "Is travel insurance necessary to go trekking in Nepal?" was left without an answer. The nearest thing to a rescue price is a Langtang charter at "around $1800 per flight" in 2016. What the 2026 quotes say an evacuation costs is in the questions below. We name no operator here as better than another; the archive gives us no basis to.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · FAQ
Recorded · Langtang · Tourism in Langtang improves gradually
The 12-point check
Twelve things to ask before you pay a deposit. Each one has a document, a number or a written answer behind it. If an operator will not show it, that is the answer.
- Licence certificate with number and expiry
01Are you a registered trekking agency? Show the licence.
Nepal licenses trekking agencies through the Department of Tourism. A licence number can be checked; a logo cannot.
- TAAN membership number
02Is the company a TAAN member?
The Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal lists its members. Membership is not quality, but it is accountability.
- Guide licence card
03Is my guide licensed, and by whom?
Trekking guides hold a government licence after training. Ask for the guide's name and licence before departure, not on the day.
- Insurance policy naming staff, with the sum insured
04Are your guides and porters insured, and for how much?
Staff insurance is the operator's duty, not yours. Uninsured porters carry the risk you are paying to avoid.
- Written weight limit; equipment list for staff
05What is the porter weight limit, and what do porters get to wear and sleep in?
Loads over about 20–25 kg and no warm gear are the two failures the archive records most often.
- Written policy: rest days, symptom checks, turnaround rule
06What is your altitude policy? Who decides to turn back, and when?
Acute mountain sickness is the main cause of evacuation. The guide must be able to stop the trek without asking head office.
- Evacuation procedure; confirmation your insurance covers helicopter rescue to the trek's altitude
07How does an evacuation work, and who pays first?
Helicopter rescue is charged up front. Know whether the operator arranges it, how it is paid, and what your own insurance must cover.
- Inclusions and exclusions list in the quote
08What exactly is included, and what is not?
Flights, permits, meals, hot water, charging, a second porter, tips: each missing line is a surprise on the trail.
- Group limit and staff ratio in writing
09What is the maximum group size, and how many staff per trekker?
One guide for twelve people cannot watch twelve sets of symptoms.
- Written flight-cancellation plan
10What happens if the Lukla flight is cancelled?
Weather holds flights for days every season. The fallback — extra hotel nights, helicopter option, who pays — should be decided before you book.
- Payment and cancellation terms
11What is the deposit, the balance date and the refund rule?
Deposits of 20–30% are normal. Read what happens if you cancel, if they cancel, or if the trek is cut short.
- A recent, dated reference
12Can I speak to someone who trekked with you this year?
Reviews with dates beat star counts. A recent client will tell you about the guide, the food and the day it went wrong.
Checklist· built from the archive's operator, guide and porter records and the Source Context's vetting criteria
What a fair package includes
The archive holds one priced package. A Herald Sun piece from December 2015 describes a 15-day Everest Base Camp trek which "includes return flights from Kathmandu to Lukla as well as guesthouse accommodation, some meals, and local guides. Prices start from $1296 (excluding international flights)." Intrepid's own note on meals: "Meals eaten as a group are included; meals during free afternoons are at the guest's expense." Beinko Takashi's 2014 package with Icicles, as he lived it, ran from a marigold garland at the airport through hotel, city guide, entry tickets, the Lukla flight, the park permit at Jorsale and a private transfer back to the airport. A solo trekker in 2016 built her own: one porter hired in Lukla, who arranged the permits.
Recorded undated · capture 2015 · Recalling my trip to Nepal
Recorded · Trekking in Nepal with Intrepid
Recorded · Kathmandu · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Recorded · Lukla · Everest Trek Taught Her to Believe in the Impossible
The archive also records the pressure on prices. In the months after the earthquake the site's FAQ noted that "Most agents agree that to reduce costs is not an appropriate reaction to the situation", and that agencies were instead offering "a better quality of service" and "a percentage of your trip cost to a recovery fund". A year later an IFMGA guide was "concerned about the declining price of travel packages which has eventually affected the income of people involved in it." A cheap package is paid for by someone.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · FAQ
Recorded · Story of a Nepali Guide
The 2026 quotes describe a standard package more fully than the archive does. Nepal Hiking Team's "usually included" list: round-trip Lukla flights, permits, a licensed guide, one porter for every two trekkers, teahouse accommodation, three meals a day on the trail, a Kathmandu hotel in many packages and airport transfers. "Usually excluded": international flights, the visa ("USD 50 for 30 days"), travel insurance, personal spending on Wi-Fi, charging and showers, guide and porter tips, gear, excess baggage on the Lukla flight and "Emergency helicopter evacuation costs". Ace the Himalaya's 14-day inclusions add a second guide for groups over 7, staff wages and insurance, a duffel bag and an oximeter, and exclude beverages "including bottled and boiled water" and tips.
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
The excluded lines are where the money goes on the trail. In 2026 hot water was quoted at "USD 2 to 5 per liter" (Ace the Himalaya) or "NPR 150 to NPR 450 per liter" (Nepal Hiking Team, the top figure at Gorak Shep); a hot shower at USD 5 to 8, USD 5 to 15 or "500 - 600 NPR" (Intrepid); charging a device at USD 1 to 5, USD 3 to 10 or "250NPR (Per charge)" from the same three; an extra personal porter for the trek at USD 220; excess baggage at "NPR 150 per kilogram". Tips are the largest line. Nepal Hiking Team suggests USD 8 to 15 a day for a guide and USD 5 to 10 for a porter, "USD 100 to USD 180 in total"; Ace the Himalaya suggests a "minimum of 10% of the total trip cost", and asks a 20 per cent deposit. Every line item, with its date, is at /treks/everest-base-camp/cost/.
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted undated · capture 2026 · Intrepid Travel · Everest Base Camp Trek
The archive holds one priced package. A Herald Sun piece from December 2015 describes a 15-day Everest Base Camp trek which "includes return flights from Kathmandu to Lukla as well as guesthouse accommodation, some meals, and local guides. Prices start from $1296 (excluding international flights)." Intrepid's own note on meals: "Meals eaten as a group are included; meals during free afternoons are at the guest's expense." Beinko Takashi's 2014 package with Icicles, as he lived it, ran from a marigold garland at the airport through hotel, city guide, entry tickets, the Lukla flight, the park permit at Jorsale and a private transfer back to the airport. A solo trekker in 2016 built her own: one porter hired in Lukla, who arranged the permits.
Recorded undated · capture 2015 · Recalling my trip to Nepal
Recorded · Trekking in Nepal with Intrepid
Recorded · Kathmandu · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Recorded · Lukla · Everest Trek Taught Her to Believe in the Impossible
The archive also records the pressure on prices. In the months after the earthquake the site's FAQ noted that "Most agents agree that to reduce costs is not an appropriate reaction to the situation", and that agencies were instead offering "a better quality of service" and "a percentage of your trip cost to a recovery fund". A year later an IFMGA guide was "concerned about the declining price of travel packages which has eventually affected the income of people involved in it." A cheap package is paid for by someone.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · FAQ
Recorded · Story of a Nepali Guide
The 2026 quotes describe a standard package more fully than the archive does. Nepal Hiking Team's "usually included" list: round-trip Lukla flights, permits, a licensed guide, one porter for every two trekkers, teahouse accommodation, three meals a day on the trail, a Kathmandu hotel in many packages and airport transfers. "Usually excluded": international flights, the visa ("USD 50 for 30 days"), travel insurance, personal spending on Wi-Fi, charging and showers, guide and porter tips, gear, excess baggage on the Lukla flight and "Emergency helicopter evacuation costs". Ace the Himalaya's 14-day inclusions add a second guide for groups over 7, staff wages and insurance, a duffel bag and an oximeter, and exclude beverages "including bottled and boiled water" and tips.
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
The excluded lines are where the money goes on the trail. In 2026 hot water was quoted at "USD 2 to 5 per liter" (Ace the Himalaya) or "NPR 150 to NPR 450 per liter" (Nepal Hiking Team, the top figure at Gorak Shep); a hot shower at USD 5 to 8, USD 5 to 15 or "500 - 600 NPR" (Intrepid); charging a device at USD 1 to 5, USD 3 to 10 or "250NPR (Per charge)" from the same three; an extra personal porter for the trek at USD 220; excess baggage at "NPR 150 per kilogram". Tips are the largest line. Nepal Hiking Team suggests USD 8 to 15 a day for a guide and USD 5 to 10 for a porter, "USD 100 to USD 180 in total"; Ace the Himalaya suggests a "minimum of 10% of the total trip cost", and asks a 20 per cent deposit. Every line item, with its date, is at /treks/everest-base-camp/cost/.
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted undated · capture 2026 · Intrepid Travel · Everest Base Camp Trek
From the record
-
An Epic Clan Wander: Lockdown Trek to EBC Part 3
“Without Kevin's local knowledge, his sheer determination and his contacts as a guide we wouldn't have achieved any of this trek.”
Recorded · an unnamed contributor (Clan Wander, on guide Kevin Rai)
-
High passes of the Solu Khumbu in July.
“I used a tour company called socialtours (a member of the kimkim travel network) and they really went out of their way to put me at ease and take care of any hassles.”
Recorded · Subhasini Shrestha (Anita Purves)
-
Completed Everest Base Camp Trek with full of joy
“Nepal Hiking Team left no stone unturned to present the best services.”
Recorded · an unnamed contributor (Mavita Woods, Switzerland)
-
“Trainings like these are very important, because going forward guides without certification and practical training will not be able to compete in the adventure market.”
Recorded · Isha Balla (Pasang Sherpa, IFMGA guide)
-
“There are a couple of organisations that should not be there because they don't follow the rules and send people up with 35-40 kg on their backs,”
Recorded · Isha Balla (Jaco Ottink, on Everest climbing staff)
-
My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
“I felt relief as I had knowledgeable and friendly guide. I was completely stranger to locals and possibly couldn't have known what best to do in these situations.”
Recorded · Te Awhi (Beinko Takashi, 2014)
-
Trekking in Nepal-An experience of a Lifetime
“We were accompanied by our assistant guide- Sanjay, our lead porter- Surya and of course Ram. 3 of them were our guiding lights for the next 11 days.”
Recorded · Isha Balla (Intrepid group, September 2015)
-
From being a porter to becoming an Everest Summiteer
“The hotels were very partial towards the porter and didn't treat them on the same level as guides though they worked as hard. He had to eat stale food and sleep outside in cold.”
Recorded · Isha Balla (Jagan Timilsina, porter in 1998)
Questions people ask
Do I need a guide for Everest Base Camp?
Not in any year the archive covers. An NTB update posted on 11 August 2015 confirmed "the government has not made any mandatory restrictions regarding accompanied trekking for Free Independent Trekkers (FITs)", and the diaries include a couple who spent 22 days on the route with no staff and a woman who went solo with one porter. The archive ends in June 2023 and has no record of the licensed-guide rule announced that spring. What we know is on the route page: NTB announced the requirement from 1 April 2023, the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality said it would not enforce it on Everest trails, and it has been applied unevenly. The 2026 cost pages disagree on the related TIMS card; Nepal Hiking Team says it "is not required at present for the standard Lukla to Everest Base Camp route" while Ace the Himalaya still lists it. Check before you book. The archive's own advice, from a backpacker who went without: "If you can afford it, it is always a good idea to hire a guide or porter." See /guides/solo-trekking-rules/ and /guides/guide-vs-porter/.
Recorded · #NepalNOW News Update / August 11 2015
Recorded · Memories of Everest Base Camp Trek
Recorded · Lukla · Everest Trek Taught Her to Believe in the Impossible
Recorded · 10 reasons to hike in Nepal
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
How many guides and porters per trekker?
The archive records ratios, not a rule. The first Intrepid group after the earthquake was 5 trekkers with a lead guide, an assistant guide, a lead porter and 3 more porters. A party of 4 in September 2016 had 2 guides and 2 porters. A small CN Traveler team had a leader, 3 Sherpas and 2 porters. A solo trekker had one porter. The only staffing rule in the archive is a 2016 draft for mountaineers, not trekkers. In 2026 Ace the Himalaya quotes "1 porter for every 2 clients" and "2 guides for group size more than 7 people"; Nepal Hiking Team's standard package lists "One porter for every two trekkers"; Intrepid's trip page gives a group size of 1 to 16. Question 9 on the checklist asks for the group limit and ratio in writing.
Recorded · Trekking in Nepal-An experience of a Lifetime
Recorded · Reaching the top of the world at 71
Recorded · Things you need to know before hiking the Himalayas
Recorded · Lukla · Everest Trek Taught Her to Believe in the Impossible
Recorded · New Rules For Mountaineers
Quoted 2026 · Ace the Himalaya · Everest Base Camp Trek - 14 Days
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted undated · capture 2026 · Intrepid Travel · Everest Base Camp Trek
What does a porter carry?
More than they should, on the archive's evidence. Trekkers saw "80-100 kg loads" between Namche and Lukla in December 2015 and a 113 kg generator on a teenager's back in September 2015; those were commercial loads, not trekkers' bags. Porters' own accounts give 40 kg on a first trip in 1998 and about 50 kg for young porters on Kanchenjunga in 2015, "paid only approximately $50 for a total of 5 day walk". The archive records no weight limit for trekking porters. The 2026 quotes work from the Lukla baggage allowance instead: Intrepid includes "Porterage of One Bag (10kg/22lbs max)", Nepal Hiking Team gives the allowance as "10 kg checked baggage plus 5 kg hand carry" and Follow Alice as "15 kg checked baggage plus 5 kg carry-on"; in 2014 the diary figure was 15 kg in total. Question 5 on the checklist asks for the operator's limit in writing.
Recorded · Namche Bazaar to Lukla · Return to Nepal
Recorded · Lukla · Trekking in Nepal-An experience of a Lifetime
Recorded · From being a porter to becoming an Everest Summiteer
Recorded · Kanchenjunga · Trek to Kanchanjunga
Recorded · Kathmandu · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Quoted undated · capture 2026 · Intrepid Travel · Everest Base Camp Trek
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted · Follow Alice · How much does the Everest Base Camp trek cost?
Who pays for a helicopter rescue?
You do, at first, unless your insurer has agreed otherwise. The archive gives no evacuation price and no policy figure. Its 2015 FAQ says rescue and evacuation cover could be bought in Kathmandu but would not cover repatriation, and leaves its own insurance question blank; the 2020 reopening advice was for "Proper insurance to cover evacuation". A weather-bound party in September 2016 hired a helicopter into Lukla at its own expense. The 2026 quotes fill the gap. Nepal Hiking Team puts an evacuation at "USD 4,000 to USD 6,000" without insurance and lists "Emergency helicopter evacuation costs" as excluded from a standard package; it and Follow Alice put a 30-day travel policy at USD 100 to 250; Intrepid tells clients to have "an extra US$500 for emergencies". Question 7 on the checklist is how the operator arranges an evacuation and who pays first. Ask it before the deposit, and check that your policy covers helicopter rescue to 5,545 m.
Recorded undated · c. 2015 · FAQ
Recorded · Nepal Tourism Status Update - Aug. 6, 2020
Recorded · Kathmandu to Lukla · Reaching the top of the world at 71
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?
Quoted · Follow Alice · How much does the Everest Base Camp trek cost?
Quoted undated · capture 2026 · Intrepid Travel · Everest Base Camp Trek
Local agency or international operator?
The archive has both and prefers neither. Intrepid, from Melbourne, ran the first post-quake EBC group with "a group leader who spends time with each traveler to build rapport" and "skillful local guides who act as a mediator between guests and local people", and pledged its Nepal profits for the 2015 to 2016 season to recovery. Kathmandu companies appear through their clients: Beinko Takashi chose Icicles Adventure Treks after emailing several agencies because "I felt him genuine"; Mavita Woods was talked into Nepal by Nepal Hiking Team's managing director. In between sit marketplaces: Anita Purves booked socialtours through kimkim, a Californian company founded in December 2015. Rough Guides' 2017 advice, as the archive quotes it: "choosing independent homestays and grassroots tour companies ensures money ends up in local pockets." Nepal Hiking Team's 2026 cost page poses the same question under the heading "Is Booking With a Local Nepali Agency Better Value?"; we hold no verdict on its answer. Whichever you choose, the checklist above applies, and the method is at /guides/choose-an-operator/.
Recorded · Trekking in Nepal with Intrepid
Recorded · Return to Nepal
Recorded · My Everest Base Camp Trek Diary with Icicles Adventure Treks
Recorded · Completed Everest Base Camp Trek with full of joy
Recorded · Silicon Valley travel company sets its sights on Nepal
Recorded · High passes of the Solu Khumbu in July.
Recorded · 10 Things About Nepal
Quoted · Nepal Hiking Team · What does it cost to trek to Everest Base Camp?