The Everest Region is the second most popular trekking region in Nepal located in the northeast of Nepal. The most visited part of this region is Solukhumbu district, home of the legendary Sherpas as well as the highest peak of the world, the Everest at 8848 meters. To the north of Solukhumbu is Everest National Park; while to the east is the Makalu Barun National Park. Everest Region is recommended as an introduction to the hills of Nepal and their inhabitabts.

The major ethnic groups that live in the Everest region are Sherpa, Rais, Tamangs, Brahmins and Chhettris. Diverse range of wildlife and vegetation are seen in the region. Animals to be observed are mountain goat, musk deer and barking deer in the forests. Birds include Impeyan Pheasant [Danfe], ravens, crows, choughs and snow pigeons. The best time to visit is spring and autumn. The national bird, danfe (a kind of pheasant), and mountain goats are common in the Khumbu area, and because the Sherpas do not kill animals or birds, people can have a closer proximity with these animals and birds. Musk deer and snow leopards are also natives of the Khumbu Mountains.

Namche Bazzar is the remarkable town in Everest Region. As the administrative center for Khumbu, Namche Bazzar has many officials and offices including the police check post. Everyone will be attracted by the clean air, good accommodation and impressive views. Namche Bazzar used to be a trading center where grain from the south was exchanged for salt from Tibet, and it remains the trading center even though the salt trade has ended. The weekly market held on Saturday is colorful and well worth seeing and there are lots of interesting shops.

It is possible to trek in the Everest Region year round. Occasional flights operate to Lukla during the monsoon, and the summer can be a lovely season to visit Everest region. The best weather is in autumn, but it can be frightfully crowed. There will be clouds and occasional rain during spring, but the weather will be warmer and the days are longer than in autumn. It can be bitterly cold in winter but the days are comfortable.

Accommodation:
There are lodges of varying degrees of sophistication all the way from Jiri to Everest Base Camp and there are some few places where you will walk more than an hour without finding some kind of facility. In Lukla and beyond, the competition among lodges is intense and the facilities are better than those on the trek from jiri. Almost all lodges have both private and dormitory accommodation and you will find lot of varieties of facilities.

Getting There:
You can either fly or walk to the Everest Region. Buses to Jiri leave from the old bus park [Ratna Park] in Kathmandu. Jiri is a ten hours drive from Kathmandu. By air, there are three options. The most convenient for Everest trek is Lukla, which is serviced by many airlines with daily flights from Kathmandu. Another option is the airstrip at Phaplu, near the district headquarter which is serviced by daily flights from the capital, Kathmandu. From Phaphlu, it is three days walk to Lukla or four days to Namche Bazzar. The last choice is the small airstrip at Syangaboche, which is located above Namche bazaar at 3730 m.

Permits and fees:
Special trekking permits are not required to visit this area. Entry fees are charged for access to Everest National Park and Makalu Barun National park. Entry fees can be paid at the National Park desk at
Thamel in Kathmandu.

Supplies and Equipment:
In this region, you can rent almost everything including sleeping bags, down jackets and climbing gears from shops to Lukla and Namche Bazzar. There are also large supplies of sunscreen, batteries as well as candy bars.

The popular trekking of this region is as follows:

• Everest Base Camp Trekking
• Everest Kalapattar Trekking
• Gokyo Lake Trekking
• Gokyo Cholapass EBC Trekking
• Gokyo Rinjo Pass Trekking
• Ama Dablam Base Camp
• Everest Panorama Trekking
• Everest Classic Trekking