Ultimate Everest Base Camp Kitlist

By Pete | Nov 22

Hiking in Nepal and specifically to Everest Base Camp is a once in a lifetime experience for many people, like any adventure or long trek it requires some pre planning. This is where i struggled as every blog post that i read was different. In this Ultimate Everest Base Camp Kit list i will include all the Documents, Equipment, Clothing, Footwear. toiletries and first aid kit. We carried our own packs so i was very conscious on what i needed to bring and what i didn’t think was necessary

Permits

Most permits and admin need to be sorted out in advance but on the Everest base camp trek they are very easy to obtain and require no pre planning at all, all you need to do to get the two necessary permits are queue up at the desks on the outskirts of Lukla and Monjo with your money and passport in hand. You can’t miss these desks so don’t worry about going to far.

Permits Needed

Local permit cost – nepalese Rupee 2000 ($20)
Sagarmatha National Park Entry Permit Nepalese Rupee 3000 ($30)

Season

This could be one of the biggest factors on your trip and what you need to pack as it can vary quite a lot on your Everest base camp trek. There are two main seasons for trekking the EBC The best being pre monsoon so March-May. During this season you will see the camps at base camp as that is when most people summit Everest. The second season to trek is Post monsoon so september-November. we started our trek on the 5th of october and we were told by many locals that the seasons are changing making it rainy and foggy later into october, not only will you not be able to see much on your trek, it may make it hard to get your flight to Lukla so allow some spare days either side of your trek. We didn’t do this and had a one day delay flying out which shortened our trek, this wouldn’t have been so bad but i also got AMS ( altitude sickness) which held us up an extra day.

October- i found this month to be very mild, at the beginning of the trek i wore Light trekking trousers with a t-shirt. and as we got higher i added a fleece and then my rain jacket and warm hat. i only used my down jacket once or twice but i was glad to have brung it.

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Insurance

Travel insurance that covers you for high altitude trekking is one of the most important things on this trip. learn from my mistake, i didn’t take extra cover and after getting altitude sickness i was constantly worried if i would get it worse resulting in a rescue helicopter back to Kathmandu.

Altitude sickness is very common amongst trekkers and as there are no roads on the mountains the likelihood is that if you don’t acclimatise properly you have a very good chance of getting sick. resulting in mountain rescue via helicopter which can be very expensive! A much cheaper option is insurance that covers you for 6000m (base Camp 5364m) or a little higher if you intend to do one of the peaks.

Get a quote here before you travel. This is the biggest regret of my trek not taking insurance.

Tips And Tricks

The range of items you will need for the trek is quite varied and can potentially be expensive. However it doesn’t have to be – if you are unlikely to use any of these items after, you can either hire some of the more expensive items/ or purchase in Kathmandu. there are so many outlets offering cheap but very good fake hiking gear so this is another good option.
Buy good quality footwear and make sure they are properly worn in. getting blisters would not be fun on this trek!
make sure you grab some travel insurance
Leave some spare days either side of your trek for Access to Lukla airport and leaving. wWe had one day delay but met people with up to 5 days delays.
combined luggage allowance on board your internal flight is 13kg-15kg and you will be charged if you are above this.
We didn’t book a guide or porter, which is fine to do but make sure you pack as light as possible as the higher you get the harder it is.
make sure you have a big enough power bank as the further you get up you have to pay to charge your phone/camera etc
The higher you get the more expensive everything will be. Showers/charging/food/snacks. at gorak shep i think i bought an emergency snickers for 600 NR. so stock up lower down on snacks etc
Bring water purifiers with you as there are many streams on the trek and it will save you a lot whilst protecting the mountains from extra plastic.
Treat yourself to a luxury hotel when you arrive back in kathmandu.

If you have any questions about the ultimate everest base camp kit list then leave a comment below and i’ll do my best to get back to you.