Everest Base Camp on the Khumbu Glacier

Everest Base Camp in Khumbu sits on the Khumbu Glacier, where ice, moraine and the Everest south side meet in open view.

Everest Base Camp in Khumbu is a high-altitude staging place on the Khumbu Glacier, below the south side of Mount Everest. Its fixed point is a marker on a shifting glacier, with ice, rock and tents sharing the same ground.5,364 m

A camp on shifting ice

The Nepal side of Everest Base Camp sits at 5,364 m (17,598 ft) above sea level. It lies on the right lateral moraine of the Khumbu Glacier, inside Sagarmatha National Park in Solukhumbu District.Khumbu Glacier The camp marks the southern approach to Mount Everest, and the name usually refers to the Nepal side rather than the Tibetan one.

The setting is dominated by the glacier surface, moraine ridges and the broad wall of the mountain above. The camp belongs to the world of trekking and expedition logistics rather than to a settled village, and that makes its appearance spare and temporary.Solukhumbu District

Khumbu, Sagarmatha and the south side of Everest

Khumbu names the Himalayan region around the approach to Everest, while Sagarmatha National Park contains the upper part of the route. The place sits within a landscape shaped by the mountain, the glacier and the icefall higher up the valley.Sagarmatha National Park

For many visitors, Everest Base Camp is less a destination than a threshold. It is a working ground used by trekkers and expeditions, with the Khumbu Glacier underfoot and the summit route extending far above it. The visual appeal lies in that meeting of scale: the camp is small, the mountain immense.south face of Mount Everest

1953 and the route to the south side

The South Base Camp became part of Everest history through the 1953 British expedition led by Colonel John Hunt. That year links the place to Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, whose ascent is the event most closely associated with the southern approach.1953 British expedition

The historical meaning of Everest Base Camp rests in its role at the foot of the climb. It is a place of passage, with the glacier, the moraine and the long line of the Everest route shaping its identity more than any built structure ever could.South Base Camp

Visiting Everest Base Camp: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• Everest Base Camp lies in the Khumbu region of north-eastern Nepal, reached on foot from the Lukla side through the Dudh Koshi valley and Sagarmatha National Park.
• The terrain is high and uneven, with glacier debris, moraine and exposed altitude rather than streets or paved ground.
• Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
• The official language is Nepali and the currency is the Nepalese rupee.

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Frequently asked questions about Everest Base Camp

Where is Everest Base Camp?

It is in the Khumbu region of north-eastern Nepal, on the Khumbu Glacier inside Sagarmatha National Park. The name usually refers to the southern base camp below Mount Everest.

What should visitors expect there?

A high, bare campsite on moraine and glacier debris, reached by trekking rather than by road. The setting is defined by altitude, rock and ice.

What makes Everest Base Camp distinctive?

Its identity comes from its position on a glacier at 5,364 m (17,598 ft) and its association with the 1953 British expedition. The place is part campsite, part historical waypoint.