Trekking in the Everest region

Bookings will be possible from mid-January 2026. 

Please send me an email at info(at)shantitreks.com if you would like to be notified as soon as booking opens.

What to expect

Over the past two years I have been especially drawn to the lower Everest region, Solukhumbu, for its gentle hiking trails at mostly lower altitudes, its vibrant cultural villages, and the warm hospitality of the Sherpa community. In conversations with many local guesthouse owners, I learned how this beautiful region has been somewhat forgotten by tourists since the construction of the airport in Lukla, which shortens most treks in Sagarmatha National Park by around ten days. In contrast, Solukhumbu has preserved its original charm, offering an authentic glimpse into Sherpa life—descendants of migrants from Tibet who settled here decades ago. The trek is rich in picturesque villages, Buddhist monasteries, and stupas, with snow-capped peaks ever-present in the background.

Why trek with us

Deep Knowledge & First-Hand Experience
I have spent over 100 trekking days in the Himalaya, exploring all major multi-day routes in Nepal including Annapurna, Manaslu, Everest, Langtang, Tsum Valley, and more. I am also completing a Master’s in South Asian Studies at the University of Bonn, where I focuse on religious city planning and Himalayan art. This allows me to enrich our treks with cultural and architectural insights beyond the typical route.

Trusted Local Partnership
 On my first Nepal trip in 2019, I met Surya—a local guide with over 30 years of experience. We guided our first group together in 2024 and share values of community support and fair treatment of staff. We ensure above-average pay, full insurance, proper equipment, and accommodations that treat porters with the same dignity as guests. Our giests often remark on how respectfully our entire team is treated and how seamlessly porters are integrated into the group.

Your Well-Being Comes First
Through my many solo treks, I have learned the importance of proper acclimatisation. Besides, I have completed training with the German Mountain Leader Association for safety above 3,000 m and previously attended a one-month mountaineering course in India. My top priority is that you feel well—not just symptom-free. We take a slow, careful pace and work with two guides, so if anyone needs to rest or descend, you're never alone. Someone will always stay with you and ensure you receive the support or care you need.

Support Every Step of the Way
Trekking in the Himalayas and traveling to Nepal can feel overwhelming. That is why I support you not just on the trail, but also during preparation. I am happy to answer all your questions—whether by phone, email, or message—and no concern is too small. Many of my guests stay in close contact before the trip, and I welcome that.

Empowering Women in Nepal
One of the goals of Shanti Treks is to support young women in Nepal in entering the male-dominated trekking industry. We partner with Akasha Academy, a German NGO based in Kathmandu, which offers a 10-month empowerment program for young women. We aim to sponsor participants to complete the official trekking guide license. As part of their internship, they join our trek to gain practical experience, improve their English, and learn cross-cultural communication. In return, they share powerful, personal insights into what it means to grow up as a woman in Nepal.

Physical requirements

The trek is quite different from the hut tours in the Alps. While we only hike on non-technical hiking trails, the difficulty of the tour lies in the length of the trek and the higher altitude. Please also read the section on altitude sickness in the Health section. We hike almost continuously over 3000 meters and sleep at up to 4200 meters, which means it is quite cold at night and in the early morning and evening hours. The bedrooms can have temperatures around 0 °C at night. Food at such altitudes is generally sufficient, but not as rich in minerals and nutrients as in the valley. In general, you should have done multi-day treks in the mountains before, have solid basic fitness and (be able to) prepare your body for the tour. You should have no severe health problems or known problems with altitude, hike consistently and steadily at your own pace, and be hardy against the cold. In addition, your physical condition should not suffer easily due to simple accommodation and food.

Please note that it is your responsibility to make sure that you are fit enough and able to participate in this trip. If you have never hiked with me before or are unsure whether you meet the physical and technical requirements or whether you have the right equipment, I’d be very happy to speak over the phone with you about the trip in advance.

Service included

• Organised trip by a registered travel company
• Organized trekking by two guides, a qualified UIMLA Mountain Leader and a local guide
• Luggage transport on the trek by porters (max. 10 kg)
• An info-package after sign-up with general information about Nepal, and details on things to prepare, such as flight booking, visa requirements, vaccinations, a packing list etc.
• An info-package three months before the tour with more practical info about your stay in Nepal
• Online info-event a month before departure including getting to know the group
• Unlimited individual travel advice over the phone before departure, i.e. on flight booking, visa requirements, vaccinations or if you wish to extend your trip
• A group of max. 10 guests
• Airport transfer to the hotel on the day of your arrival and departure
• All hotel nights including breakfast in Kathmandu in double or twin rooms
• All group transport in Kathmandu
• All accommodation, three meals a day, and unlimited tea during the whole trek
• All trekking permits for Solukhumbu region
• Transport by jeeps from the hotel to the start and from the end of the hike back

Extra costs on tour

• Travel to Kathmandu
• Visa (approx. 50 €)
• Hot showers, Wi-Fi or phone battery charging fees on the trek if applicable (approx. 2-5 € each)
• Lunch and dinner in Kathmandu (approx. 5 € to 20 €)
• Tips for the local guide, drivers and porters

Additional costs may vary and are for guidance only.

Accommodation

In Kathmandu we sleep in a very nice hotel with a beautiful and peaceful garden, surrounded by a lively neighbourhood where a lot of restaurants, cafes and shops are located. Here we can prepare perfectly for our trek and end our time together after our return.

On the tour we sleep in teahouses run by locals from the region. There is usually a room where cooking takes place with an adjoining dining room that is heated and where people spend the day and evening. The bedrooms are usually twins and sometimes multi-bedrooms in the same or adjacent buildings. These rooms are generally not heated and are equipped with simple wooden beds including a mattress, a pillow and a blanket. Washrooms provide cold running water and there are usually Asian style toilets (directly in the ground). Some accommodations offer (warm) showers at an additional cost. The higher you go, the simpler the accommodation becomes. Besides hot showers, you often have to pay extra for Wi-Fi, if available, and charging power devices.

Food

The cuisine in the teahouses is surprisingly diverse, from traditional Dāl bhāt, fried rice and delicious soups to pizza and pasta. Porridge and muesli are also very popular alongside the typical bread with scrambled eggs for breakfast. Vegetables and fruits become less available above 3500 meters and must be treated before drinking.

Travel

Kathmandu has an international airport and You can join up with other guests to travel to Kathmandu together. The tour price includes an airport transfer on the day of your arrival and departure. I am happy to give you an overview of the best airlines and flight routes to reach Kathmandu and reveal some valuable travel hacks. 

To enter the country, you need a passport (which is valid for at least 6 months beyond the duration of your trip) and a visa, which you can get with most nationalities upon arrival at the airport in Kathmandu. Further information can be found on the Nepalese immigration authority website.

Health and Safety

On the trek we hike up to an altitude of 4600 meters and sleep up to 4200 meters. Although we take a lot of time to acclimatize, some people may experience problems with the altitude, which at worst may lead to descending early from the trek. You can find further information about altitude sickness on the website of the UK’s national health service (NHS).

There are no special vaccination regulations for Nepal. However, a yellow fever vaccination certificate is required if you are traveling from an infected area. I provide further information on vaccines after your booking but generally recommend to speak to a medical professional well in advance of the trek.

You find more information about health on the NHS fit for travel website and about travel and safety on the UK foreign office's website.

Programme

Day 1 – Arrival
We meet at the hotel in Kathmandu, where we also sleep the last two nights of our trip, so we can leave additional luggage at the hotel during the trek. You can arrive any time. In the evening we have a joined dinner. If you arrive early that day, you can join an optional sightseeing tour in Kathmandu.

Day 2 – Visit Akasha Academy
We drive to the outskirts of Kathmandu to visit the Akasha Academy, where the women that are interested in becoming mountain leaders are attending their one-year traineeship. They will show us their project and its beautiful premisses, we have lunch at their artisan bakery, and they will take us for a gentle hike in the surrounding hills.

Day 3 - Getting ready
Today we get organised and ready for our trek. We start with a detailed tour briefing in the hotel’s garden and discuss the packing list. After that you can take your time to pack and get last things you need from the market.

Day 4 – Drive to start of the trek
We start very early to take private jeeps to a small town in the Himalaya and the starting point of our trek (8-12 hrs).

Day 5 to 14 – Trekking
A detailed itinerary will be published in the beginning of 2026.

Day 15 – Drive back
For those of you bound to a two-week holiday, a private jeep will bring you back to Kathmandu today (12 hrs). For the rest of us, the trek continues deeper into the wild side of the Himalaya up towards a holy lake where Shiva is known to have meditated once upon a time.

Day 16 / Day 22 – Departure
You can start your travel home or onwards at any time.

Note that our hiking days may differ from the described programme due to weather and path conditions or the physical ability of the group.