Ama Dablam Base Camp Trek — 10 Days

Ama Dablam Base Camp Trek brings you to the foot of Nepal's most photographed peak. Called the 'Matterhorn of the Himalayas,' Ama Dablam (6,812 m) towers over the Khumbu Valley with a silhouette so perfect it appears on postcards, posters and prayer flags across Nepal. This 10-day itinerary reaches base camp at 4,570 m and delivers extraordinary close-up views that trekkers on the standard Everest Base Camp trail never see.

Why trek to Ama Dablam Base Camp?

While thousands queue for Everest Base Camp each season, the Ama Dablam Base Camp spur stays blissfully quiet. You still walk the classic Khumbu — Namche Bazaar, Tengboche Monastery, Sherpa villages and rhododendron forest — but you peel off toward a base camp that sits directly beneath one of the most beautiful mountains on earth. It is the single best vantage point for photographing Ama Dablam, and at 4,570 m it is gentler on the body than the 5,364 m EBC trail.

Trek Highlights

• Ama Dablam Base Camp at 4,570 m — a rarely visited gem
• Namche Bazaar, the bustling heart of Sherpa country
• Tengboche Monastery, the spiritual centre of the Khumbu
• Panoramic views of Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse and Thamserku
• Authentic Sherpa culture and warm teahouse hospitality

Itinerary at a glance

Fly Kathmandu–Lukla, then trek to Phakding and up to Namche Bazaar (3,440 m) with an acclimatisation day. Continue past Tengboche Monastery (3,860 m) to Pangboche (3,985 m), then climb to Ama Dablam Base Camp (4,570 m) for sunrise on the peak before retracing the trail to Lukla and flying back to Kathmandu. Your guide adjusts the pace and rest days to your fitness.

Difficulty and fitness

This is the trek to base camp, not the technical climb to the summit — no ropes, ice axes or mountaineering experience are required. It is graded Challenging mainly because of altitude: you walk 5–6 hours a day on mountain paths and sleep above 3,400 m for several nights. Reasonable fitness and careful acclimatisation are all you need. Read our altitude-sickness prevention guide before you go.

Permits you need

Ama Dablam Base Camp sits inside Sagarmatha National Park, so you need the same two permits as the Everest Base Camp trek: the Sagarmatha National Park entry permit (NPR 3,000) and the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality permit (NPR 3,000). A licensed guide is mandatory. We arrange every permit for you — see our full Everest region permit guide for the details.

Best time to go

The prime windows are October–November and March–May, when skies are clearest and Ama Dablam stands out crisply against deep blue. See our month-by-month guide to trekking in Nepal to pick your dates.

Ama Dablam Base Camp vs Everest Base Camp

If your priority is the iconic mountain itself — with fewer crowds, a lower maximum altitude and a slightly shorter trip — Ama Dablam Base Camp is the smarter choice. If standing at the foot of Everest is the dream, read our Everest Base Camp trek guide or browse the full Everest region guide. Many trekkers combine the two.