Everest Base Camp Trek Packing List – Exactly What You Need To Bring

As the first layer of clothing you wear, the base layer is important for higher altitudes and colder parts of the trek. This means you will probably not wear it during the first and last parts of the trek.

The fit and material are the most important considerations when deciding on a good base layer.

We recommend Smartwool base layers for men and for women as they are very good at wicking moisture away from the body and are retailed at an affordable price.

The second layer is the insulation layer and it is usually made from a fleece type material. They are sold for both legs and torso but we only believe a torso second layer is necessary.

We recommend a Polartec 200 Fleece Jacket for men and for women, which is very lightweight allowing for easy movement when trekking. They are also warm but still breathable and well-priced.

This layer consists of warm and waterproof jacket and trousers often called the outer core layer. These will mainly be used for higher altitudes of the trek or if the weather gets very cold and/or rainy.

As one of the more important and lasting pieces of clothing you will buy, paying a bit more money for a good quality winter jacket should be viewed more as an investment than an expense.

We recommend taking 1 x pair of hiking trousers and 1 x pair of hiking shorts (for the lower / warmer stretches of the trek). There are many good trekking trouser brands, including: Craghoppers trousers (for men), (for women) Trespass trousers (for men), (for women) and Columbia trousers (for men), (for women).

You will need around 5-6 shirts that will be worn on most days. Avoid cotton as it absorbs moisture instead of wicking away sweat, resulting in bad smelling shirts after a few uses. Ideal fabric is a breathable, lightweight and quick-drying polyester, merino or nylon. Make sure that your shirts are not cotton. A combination of short and long sleeve shirts are recommended.

Our partner, Mountain IQ, have an awesome selection of branded EBC hiking apparel. Get 10% off Mountain IQ gear with our discount code ‘EBCTrek‘. See their full EBC collection.

Other recommended brands include Hanes trekking shirts or Icebreaker trekking shirts.

Encountering rain on the trail is always a risk, especially if you plan on hiking from June to September (we definitely don’t recommend trekking in the region during these months). As a general precaution we recommend that you bring along some rain clothing – ideally a gore-tex membrane hard shell jacket. The North Face make really good waterproof gear. Check out the North Face Resolve Jacket (for men), (for women).

As for trousers you can usually get away with a cheap pair of waterproof pull-overs.

Underwear also needs to be breathable and moisture wicking so we recommend 5 pairs of sports underwear for men and sports underwear for women with 2 sports bras.

You will need a good, wide brim trekking hat that offers protection from the sun. Best options are ones that are lightweight, easy to pack and cover your neck such as these trekking hats for men and trekking hats for women.

A beanie is a must for when it gets cold at night or when you get closer to Everest Base Camp. North Face Beanie (unisex) and Berghaus Beanie (for men), (for women) make great beanies that will keep your head and ears protected from the elements.

A buff is another great piece of cheap yet irreplaceable clothing. It will keep your face and neck warm while also preventing the infamous Khumbu cough as you breathe in the cold mountain air.

If you plan on travelling in the winter months, you may want to consider a balaclava (unisex).

Light inner gloves can be used when the temperature is moderate or when performing intricate tasks such as tying shoe laces. We recommend Pearl Izumi Thermal Lite Gloves (for men), (for women).

Your outer gloves or mittens must be warm, waterproof and durable. They don’t need to be super well insulated unless you plan to do some climbing in the region, for example Island Peak, but they should keep your hands nice and toasty when in sub-zero temperatures. Ideally you are looking for a mid-weight fleeced glove. The following brands make good outdoor winter gloves:Black Diamond (for men), (for women), The North Face (for men), (for women) and Outdoor Research (for men), (for women).

Getting a comfortable boot that is the right size is probably more important than the brand of shoe. You should be able to fit one finger behind your heel to ensure proper fit. Too much space for your finger means too big a boot and not enough room means too small.

Find a middle to light-weight hiking boot that offers good ankle support and that has waterproof uppers. Make sure you can tie and untie the laces with ease and check that the boot has deep cut traction on the sole.

Goods brands of boots include: Salomon boots (for men and for women), Hi-Tec boots (for men and for women), Berghaus boots (for men and for women) or Karrimor (for men and for women).

If you want top of the range, check out Meindl (for men and for women) or the Scarpa Kailash (for men and for women).

We recommend that you hike in boots instead of shoes as the former provide a lot more support. The last thing you want is a twisted ankle!

However, you would need a lightweight and comfortable pair of shoes to wear in and around the tea houses after every day’s trekking.

If you are a sandals person check out these trekking sandals (for men and for women) that can be worn with socks or, if not, here are some great trekking shoes (for men and for women).

Good hiking socks should be breathable and moisture wicking, so don’t choose anything made from cotton.

Merino wool is our preferred material for trekking socks. Good brands include: Bridgedale (for men and for women), Coolmax (for men and for women), Smartwool (for men and for women) and Point6 (for men and for women).

We recommend bringing 5-6 pairs of socks.

Thermal socks are slightly thicker than standard trekking socks and are used for colder conditions, such as those experienced near or at Base Camp.

Bring 1-2 pairs of thermal socks.

Gaiters cover the ankle-high opening to your boots and are designed to prevent water, mud, rocks and basically anything else from getting into them. From our experience, gaiters are not an absolute necessity for trekking during peak season when it is warmer.

That being said, they are not a large expense and some people swear by them. Check out this range of gaiters for men and this one for women.

A duffel bag is the best option if your gear is going to be carried by porters. Your duffle bag should be waterproof, durable and lockable.

The iconic and most popular duffel bag is the North Face Base Camp Duffel, make sure it is about 80L. Helly Hansen also make a pretty good duffle bags.

If you don’t have the luxury of porters on your trek, a good backpack with an opening at the top will be needed.

Any backpack that is 50-65L from either Osprey (unisex) or Black Diamond (unisex) should be perfect.

If you do have a porter, you will still need something small to carry water, rain gear, your camera, snacks and other personal items or things that you will want to have access to on the trek.

The Osprey Talon 20-22 (unisex) is the perfect size hiking daypack for carrying things such as water, sun cream, camera, hats and snacks.

Along with your hiking boots, your sleeping bag is another critical piece of gear. Teahouses along the route usually provide basic sleeping facilities with blankets but they are generally not clean and certainly not warm enough!

Once you get above 3,000m in altitude the temperature inside teahouses, especially during the dead of night, is very cold. Most teahouses are not well insulated and do not have heating outside of central yak furnaces in the common lounge areas. Therefore a warm 4-season sleeping bag (rated for at least -10°C) is a must. The best sleeping bags are generally made from duck or goose down, but nowadays there are good quality synthetic options too.

Your bag should be a good fit to the shape of your body (mummy-shaped is ideal) and should have an insulated hood for added warmth.

Our recommendations are the Marmot Trestles (for men and for women), North Face Snow Leopard (unisex) or the Mountain Hardware Lamina.

For most trekkers, the use of trekking poles is recommended as they significantly reduce the impact and stress on your joints. If you have trekked with poles before and don’t like the experience then they are not a mandatory requirement.

Lightweight, packable poles such as those from Black Diamond are recommended.

A good pair of UV protecting sunglasses are a necessity due to the higher strength of UV at altitude and the glare from snow-covered peaks as you approach EBC.

100% UV protection and at least 80% light reduction glasses such as those from Julbo are recommended.

A headlamp for getting around the teahouses at night should be brought along as many of the teahouses are poorly lit.

A Petzl Tikka headlamp with some spare batteries should prove to be useful. For more information see this article on the best hiking headlamps.

As dehydration contributes to altitude related sicknesses, proper hydration is vital on the trek.

You should aim to drink between 2-3L of water a day. Some people like water bottles, but we prefer water bladders. In terms of the latter we recommend the Platypus Hydration water bladder, which fits snuggly into the back of most daypacks. Alternatively, if you prefer water bottles then bring 2x 1L standard Camelbak water bottles made from hardened plastic.

Please make sure you purify all water you drink (more on this below!).

A smallish towel is useful for drying yourself after a wash. Quick drying trekking towels such as these are recommended.

All teahouses have toilet facilities, ranging from the most basic squat ceramic toilets to actual flushing loos. Nonetheless, as you get higher up on the route, facilities inevitably get more and more basic. Coupled with super cold nights and poor lighting, the thought of making a toilet run can be a little frightening! A pee funnel is one way you can answer the call of nature without having to leave the warmth of your room. Freshette Pee Funnels are pretty good.

You will definitely want a good camera to document and remember your time in the Himalayas. A smartphone, despite being really good nowadays, will just not do justice to the amazing mountain scenery in the Everest region. If you want to invest in a DSLR camera, check out this one for a more a more affordable price. The prices for good DSLR cameras usually start from $250.

For something more modern, light and trendy, try out the Go Pro, and perhaps you can create an awesome EBC trek diary like these on Youtube.

If you plan on bringing anything electronic like your phone, camera or Kindle, a USB charger is highly recommended! In the 21st century there is nothing worse than running out of battery and having no means to recharge.

Some tea houses have charging facilities but they will likely make you pay and reliability isn’t great.

As there is a lot of free time, especially towards the night, a book or e-reader can pass some free time and also allow you to sharpen your knowledge on the Himalayas! Just make sure you get one with a backlight!

Check out the Kindle eReader and our favourite Mount Everest expedition book, Into Thin Air.

You need to make sure that all water that you drink on the Everest Base Camp trek is purified before it touches your mouth (this includes water you brush your teeth with).

There are many methods to purify water, including boiling, reverse osmosis and treating with iodine tablets. Some tour operators will purify water for you. In all cases we still recommend that you use water purification tablets before drinking water. These water purification tablets will do the job!