Can You Visit Mount Everest without Climbing

Mount Everest climbing is the dream for many climbers and mountaineers. But it costs lots of time and money to do so. Not everyone can afford the high cost of climbing Mount Everest. Is that the only way to visit Mount Everest?

Can ordinary tourists visit Mount Everest without climbing?

The answer is YES.

Instead of climbing the highest mountain in the world, you can get close to the world’s top by trekking on both sides of Mount Everest in Tibet and Nepal. And in the northern face of Mount Everest in Tibet, there is even an eco-bus that could take you to the base camp directly at 5200m above sea level.

Visit Mount Everest by Trekking in either Tibet or Nepal Side

Located on the border between China and Nepal, Mount Everest is a popular tourist site in both Tibet (China) and Nepal. There are base camps on both sides of Everest, where you can enjoy trekking in the Mount Everest region.

Mount Everest Trek in Tibet

There are several trekking routes to the base camp in the Mount Everest Natural Reserve in Tibet. Among them, the easiest one is the popular trekking from Tingri to Everest Base Camp. It takes 4 days to trek

Another popular Everest trek in Tibet is the Gama Valley Trek. Located on the east slope of Mount Everest, Gama Valley is praised as the most beautiful in the world in the book Exploration of Mt. Everest, written by British explorer Barry. It takes 8 days to complete the Gama Valley trek, during which you can experience the grandeur of Mount Everest and see the summit of the Everest en route.

Enjoy the landscape of Mount Everest by trekking along Gama Valley in Tibet

A more challenging trek in the Everest region in Tibet is the trekking from the Everest Base Camp to the Advanced Base Camp. The 28kms trek is recognized as the highest trek in the world, since you need to trek from the EBC at 5200m to the ABC at 6500m above sea level.

It is the closest way to see Mount Everest without climbing to the summit. However, it is the hardest trekking route on the Tibet side of Mount Everest.

Mount Everest Trek in Nepal

The South Base Camp in Nepal is at 5365m above sea level. The Everest trek in Nepal is much more challenging with dramatic altitude changes.

Nepal trekking tours in the Everest region usually take weeks to complete from 10 days to almost 20 days.

Due to the influence of the southwest monsoon from the Indian Ocean, the south slope of Everest has abundant precipitation and more luxuriant vegetation, which offers a completely different landscape from the North Slope in Tibet.

Tips for Visiting Mount Everest by Trekking

1. The best time to take an Everest Trek tour in Tibet is from April to October (Except for July and August), while the best time to trek Everest in Nepal is from March to May and from Late September to November.

2. If you visit Everest Base Camp in Tibet, you need to apply for Tibet Travel Permit, as well as the Alien’s Travel Permit. Both of these required travel documents will be included in the Tibet tour package offered by us. So you don’t need to worry about getting the permits to Everest in Tibet.

3. If you trek to the Everest Base Camp in Nepal, you need to get two permits, namely the Khumbu Rural Municipality Permit and the Sagarmatha National Park Permit. However, you can apply for all the permits in Nepal by yourself on the trails and do not need a travel agent to do it for you.

4. When trekking in the Everest region, please pay attention to the high altitude sickness.

Visit Mount Everest in Tibet without Trekking

Besides taking days trekking to the base camp, joining an Everest Base Camp tour is an easier way to visit Mount Everest and have a close view of the mountain peak without any trekking.

You will take an overland tour from Lhasa to Shigatse, visiting all the essentials en route, like the turquoise Yamdrok Lake, the ancient Gyantse Kumbum Monastery, and the famous Tashilunpo Monastery.

Once enter the Mount Everest National Nature Reserve, you can enjoy a panoramic view of the Himalayas at Gawula Pass (5,1980m), the only viewing platform in the world where you can see five mountain peaks over 8000m.

The eco-bus served by the natural reserve will take you to the base camp at 5200m, where you can stay overnight and see Everest up close from the closest place accessible to regular tourists.

If you are not a kind of trekker or mountaineer, and just want to visit Mount Everest without climbing, then, a Tibet Everest Base Camp tour could be your best choice.

Visit Mount Everest by Flight in Kathmandu, Nepal

If you plan to visit Mount Everest in Nepal, you can even take a helicopter tour to the base camp. It is only available on the Nepalese side of Mount Everest.

The Everest Helicopter tour starts from Lukla. You need first get to Lukla Airport and then take a helicopter to the base camp at 5364m.

You will see the Himalayas from the air. This is a unique perspective to see the top of the world.

However, though this way allows you to visit Mount Everest in the shortest possible time and in the most relaxing way without climbing, the cost of an Everest Helicopter tour is very high.

Mount Everest Helicopter Tour in Nepal

Conclusion

Climbing Mount Everest is not the only way to visit Everest. You can either trek to the base camp in both Tibet and Nepal sides. The sightseeing overland trip from Lhasa to Everest Base Camp in Tibet is the easier way without any trekking or climbing to the base camp to see the summit of Mount Everest, while visiting Mount Everest by helicopter in Nepal is the fast and most expensive way to travel.

With years of experience in arranging trips to the Himalayas destinations, no matter whether you prefer to visit Mount Everest in Tibet or in Nepal, we can help you arrange a fascinating Mount Everest tour according to your requirements. Just contact us for more information.