A Christmas cake at 3,440 metres
A proper decorated cake, carried up the valley with the team and cut in Namche on Christmas night.
25 December
RouteThe ascent
CelebrationWhat is included
ItineraryDay by day
SafetyHow we run it
IncludedWhat is covered
BookPrices and payment
KitWhat to bring
About usWho you climb with
Book a call with the founders
Message us on WhatsApp
Kalapatthar Trek & Expedition · Khumbu, Nepal · 23 Dec 2026 to 4 Jan 2027
Christmas in Namche, New Year at Everest.
Thirteen days in the Khumbu across the turn of the year. Christmas Day in Namche Bazaar, and New Year’s Day at Everest Base Camp.
13Days
5,364mEverest Base Camp
2Celebrations
LimitedSeats
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The ascent
Thirteen days from the valley floor to 5,364 metres.
Every stop on this route is chosen for acclimatisation, not for speed. Two full rest days are built in, at Namche and again at Dingboche, before you go anywhere near Base Camp. Here is the whole profile.
Rest days are built in at Namche 3,440m on 26 December and Dingboche 4,410m on 29 December. Everest Base Camp at 5,364m is reached on the morning of 1 January. On the VIP package the helicopter lifts from Gorak Shep the same day.
What makes this trip
Most people spend the turn of the year indoors. You will not.
This is not a December departure with a discount on it. It was built around two dates, 25 December in Namche and 1 January at Base Camp, and everything else is arranged so that you arrive at both in good shape.
Champagne at the foot of Everest
Special drinks laid on by us at Everest Base Camp on New Year’s Day, with the Khumbu Icefall above you.
1 JanuaryA gift from us on Christmas morning
A memorable gift from us to mark the journey. We are not telling you what it is.
25 DecemberTwo dinners worth flying for
Christmas dinner in a warm lodge in Namche, and a New Year's Eve table at altitude with drinks, music and the team you have walked with.
25 and 31 DecemberLimited seats on this departure.
Talk it through with the people running the trip before you commit to anything.
Day by day
Where you will be, and on which night.
Dates are shown as they fall. The three festive days are marked in gold. Walking times are honest averages for a group at this altitude, not best cases.
The route in three dimensions
See the whole valley before you walk it.
The real terrain of the Khumbu, from Lukla up to Everest Base Camp. Drag to turn it, and tap any waypoint to see what happens there.
Drag to rotate · tap a waypoint
Loading the terrain
What your place covers
Full board, from the airport to the airport.
Included
All ground transportAirport pick up and drop off in Kathmandu, and every transfer in between.
Two nights in a five star hotelKathmandu, bed and breakfast.
Welcome dinnerAuthentic Nepali food with traditional music and dance.
All permits and entry feesSagarmatha National Park and local government permits.
Professional English speaking guideExperienced, first aid trained, and from this region.
Porter serviceOne porter shared between every two trekkers.
Three meals a day on trekBreakfast, lunch and dinner, plus hot drinking water, tea and coffee.
Single occupancy where availableYour own bed, a deluxe double for couples, attached bathrooms where the lodge has them.
The festive drinksSpecial drinks and refreshments at Namche Bazaar and at Everest Base Camp.
First aid kit with the teamCarried the whole way, with essential medicines and supplies.
Not included
International flightsTo Nepal and home again.
Nepal visaA 30 day tourist visa is usually USD 30 to 50 on arrival.
Tips for the guide and portersNot included, and genuinely appreciated.
Personal clothing and equipmentBoots, jackets, sleeping bag and the rest. Most of it can be hired in Thamel.
Lunch and dinner in KathmanduOther than the welcome dinner.
Personal drinks and snacksAside from the festive drinks we provide at Namche and Base Camp.
Insurance is required
Every guest must hold travel insurance covering high altitude trekking in Nepal to 5,400 metres, emergency medical treatment and helicopter evacuation. We ask for proof before departure.
Secure your place
Two ways to walk it, and one to fly home.
4.9
Trusted by 100+ travellers in the HimalayaLimited seats on this departure
Package A
Standard
13 days · 23 Dec to 4 Jan · trek both ways
$2,100USD
Per person, full board
- Christmas Day in Namche Bazaar
- New Year at Everest Base Camp
- Two nights, five star Kathmandu
- Trek out to Lukla and fly
- Festive gift, cake and drinks
Package B
VIP
11 days · 23 Dec to 1 Jan · helicopter return
$3,950USD
Per person, full board
- Everything in Standard
- Helicopter from Gorak Shep to Kathmandu
- Aerial pass of Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam
- Home three days sooner, no trek out
- Priority lodge rooms on the way up
Package C
VVIP
Private departure · built around you
On request
Price quoted per group
- Everything in VIP
- Private guide, one to one
- Best available room at every stop
- Helicopter both ways, on request
- Your own dates, and your own group
Looking for something more exclusive, or want it built around your own dates?
Message us on WhatsApp or email info@kalapatthartrek.com
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Cancellation and payment terms
Your deposit secures your place and is used immediately to book permits, flights and lodges. It is refundable in full within 14 days of payment.
After 14 days, the deposit is non refundable. The balance is due no later than 30 November 2026, and your place is confirmed once it clears.
If we cancel the departure for any reason, you receive a full refund of everything you have paid. If the weather closes the Lukla flight or the helicopter cannot fly, we will always find a way to get you moving, and any unavoidable extra cost is discussed with you first.
Trekking dates and the daily schedule may shift for weather, health or safety. Decisions on the mountain are made by your guide, and they are final.
Licensed and insured
Fully insured operator
You are booking with a licensed Nepali company, not a middleman.
Kalapatthar Trek and Adventure Pvt. Ltd. is a registered trekking operator in Nepal and carries full liability insurance for its operations. Our guides, porters and kitchen staff are insured for medical treatment and rescue on every trip they work, which is a legal requirement in Nepal and one that not every operator honours.
Your payment goes to a registered company with a bank account in its own name, and your booking is covered by the terms set out above. If anything goes wrong on the mountain, you are dealing with the people who run the trip.
Public liability coverThe company carries liability insurance for its trekking and expedition operations.
Every guide and porter insuredMedical and rescue cover for all Nepali staff working on your trip.
Registered since 2016Company registration 400825/80/81, Kathmandu.
Payments handled by StripeCard details never touch our servers. Stripe is PCI DSS Level 1 certified.
Registered with and affiliated to
Government of NepalMinistry of Tourism
TAANTrekking Agencies Association
Nepal Tourism BoardLicensed operator
NMAMountaineering Association
Kalapatthar Trek and Adventure Pvt. Ltd. · Kapan, Akasedhara, Kathmandu 44600, Nepal
Company registration 400825/80/81
Registered and insured
You are booking with a licensed Nepali operator.
Fully liability insuredCover held for every departure
Kalapatthar Trek and Adventure Pvt. Ltd. is a fully liability insured company, registered with the Government of Nepal and licensed by the Department of Tourism. Every guide and porter who walks with you is insured for medical treatment and rescue, as Nepali law requires.
We are members of the Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal and the Nepal Mountaineering Association, and registered with the Nepal Tourism Board. If you want to check any of it before you pay us a penny, ask and we will send the certificates over.
Company registration400825 / 80 / 81
Registered officeKapan, Kathmandu 44600
TAANTrekking agencies
Government of NepalRegistered
Nepal Tourism BoardLicensed
NMAMountaineering
Safety at altitude
Walking to 5,364 metres in winter is a serious undertaking.
We say that plainly because most people booking this will be doing it for the first time, and the honest answer is that it is very achievable with the right plan and genuinely dangerous without one.
Everything on this route is arranged around one thing: giving your body enough time. That is why there are full rest days at Namche and Dingboche, why the day above 5,000 metres is deliberately short, and why the schedule has slack in it. Altitude is not a test of fitness or willpower. It is a matter of time, and we have built plenty of it into the plan.
When a guide says stop, we stop. When a guide says turn back, we turn back. Nobody is ever pushed beyond what the team judges safe on the day, and no summit or viewpoint is worth an argument about it.
Daily health checksOxygen saturation and resting pulse taken every evening from Namche upwards, recorded and tracked so we see a problem forming rather than react to it.
Time built into the scheduleFull rest days at Namche on 26 December and Dingboche on 29 December, with climb high and sleep low hikes on both, before you go anywhere near Base Camp.
Oxygen and a first aid kit on the trailBottled oxygen and a comprehensive kit travel with the group from Namche, carried by guides trained to use them.
Helicopter evacuation on standbyThe Khumbu is one of the best served valleys in Nepal for rescue. We hold the contacts, we make the call, and your insurance must cover it.
Small group, high guide ratioA limited number of guests, one porter shared between every two trekkers, and enough guides that if somebody needs to descend they go down properly supported.
Winter, honestlyDecember nights in the high Khumbu drop well below freezing, and the trails are quiet. The cold is the trade you make for clear skies, empty lodges and the mountain to yourselves.
What to bring
Do not own a down jacket? That is fine.
Nobody should spend a thousand pounds on kit for a trip they have not taken yet. Almost everything you need for this trek can be hired or bought properly in Kathmandu on your preparation day, and we will come with you and check it fits.
Tell us what you have when you book. We will send you a full list, mark the things that genuinely matter, and arrange the rest so that it is waiting for you.
The one thing to bring yourself
Boots. Bring walking boots you have already worn in, because a new pair bought two days before the trek is the most reliable way to ruin a fortnight. Everything else on the list can be sorted in Kathmandu.
Down jacket, rated for minus 20Hire in Kathmandu, roughly two pounds a day.
Four season sleeping bagEssential above Dingboche in December. Hire or buy.
Duffel bag for the portersProvided by us, yours to keep afterwards.
Trekking poles and a head torchBoth worth owning. Both cheap in Thamel.
Insurance covering 5,600 metresMust include helicopter evacuation. We will tell you what to look for.
Come and talk to us
Interested in coming along, or have a few questions?
Book a short call with the people running the trip. Ask about altitude, fitness, kit, the guiding team, the two celebration nights, or whatever is on your mind.
No pressure and no script. If it is not the right trip for you, we will say so and point you at something that is.
Book a call with the founders
Message us on WhatsApp
Prefer email? info@kalapatthartrek.com
Kathmandu office, seven days a week.
Who you are walking with
A Nepali company, running its own trips.
Kalapatthar Trek and Expedition is based in Kathmandu. We are not an agency that sells your booking on to somebody else once you land. The people who answer your questions are the people who meet you at the airport, walk the valley with you and pour the champagne at Base Camp.
Between us we have spent more than twenty years working in these mountains, on treks like this one and on expeditions to Himlung, Manaslu, Ama Dablam and Everest itself. In April 2023 one of our team led the largest group of veterans ever taken to Everest Base Camp, ninety per cent of them differently abled.
Twenty years in the KhumbuThe same guides, season after season.
Our own guides and portersFairly paid, insured, and known to us personally.
Straight answers on the phoneIncluding when the answer is that this is not for you.
A little something for you