2019 Changes at Mt Everest in Tibet

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Updated February 2019: In 2019 China will continue doing a large clean-up project at Mt Everest. Read on to see if this will affect your journey.

2019 Tibet Side Everest Clean Up Project

China is going to continue doing a large scale clean up project on the Tibet side of Mt Everest throughout 2019. This clean up project began in 2018, where over 8 tons of waste was collected. The clean up effort will continue this year and will supposedly go as high as 8000 meters on Everest to try and remove bodies of climbers who died in the so-called “Death Zone”. As someone who has spent considerable time at Mt Everest each year for the past 16 years, this is a really good thing. In meetings that I have been to, China is planning to put eco-friendly toilets at Everest base camp, have a regular garbage service to the area, and has plans for a small medical clinic that would operate thru the tourism season.

How will this affect travel? 

While the BBC Headline on February 15, 2019 made it sound like Everest is off-limits to foreign travelers, in reality the changes are not nearly as drastic. This year, travelers without an Everest climbing permit will only be able to go as far as Rongphu (Rongbuk) Monastery. Last year, travelers without a climbing permit could go as far as the Dza Rongphu Hermitage (just beyond the “tent hotels”), located 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) beyond Rongphu Monastery.

Prior to 2018, non-climbers could go another 2 kilometers beyond the Dza Rongphu Hermitage to a place the China government designated as “Everest Base Camp”. Though there was a sign there stating it was Everest Base Camp, almost all climbing expedition teams would set up their camp a further 500 meters to 1 kilometer further, in order to avoid having tourists going through expedition tents.

For 2019, China is putting a limit on the number of climbing permits that will be issued. The China Tibet Mountaineering Association CTMA) will only issue 300 climbing permits for this year and might keep that number the same going into the future. CTMA seems to be saying these 300 permits are the number allotted for foreign  climbers and do not include the permits issued for Sherpa and Tibetan climbing staff. There will be no limit to the number of travelers who can go to Mt Everest. An estimated 45,000 people visited the Tibet-side of Mt Everest in 2018.

What will the view be like from Rongphu?

Though travelers to Mt Everest in 2019 can go no further than Rongphu Monastery, the view of Everest is still fantastic. I have been to the Tibet-side of Everest close to 40 times over the years. Those that have traveled with me on the journeys I lead all know that my favorite place in all of the Rongphu Valley is from the hill above Rongphu Monastery. Though the entire area offers a good view, by hiking just a few minutes above the monastery, you get a nice panoramic view. This view, in my opinion based on my many years of experience going to Everest, is just as good as the view from a few kilometers down the valley closer to the mountain.

Below are 3 pictures of Mt Everest:

  • The first is the view of Everest from Rongphu, which is as far as you can go in 2019
  • The second is from near the Dza Rongphu Hermitage, the closest you could go in 2018
  • The third is from Everest Base Camp, which you could go to from 2017 and before

Everest from Rongphu Monastery in Tibet. This is as close to Everest as you can go in 2019.

This is the view of Everest from near the Dza Rongphu Hermitage. This was as close as you could go in 2018.

Everest viewed from actual base camp. Non-climbers could go to this point until 2017.

What are the accommodation options?

Typically, there are 2 different basic accommodation options in the Everest Base Camp Region. Normally there is a group of 50 to 60 black, yak wool tents set up 3 kilometers beyond Rongphu Monastery. However, the government has told these “tent-hotel” owners that they will not be permitted to set up these tents for the 2019 tourism season. This means that the only accommodation option will be at the Rongphu Monastery Guesthouse, which is located directly across from the monastery. As I wrote above, the view of Everest from here is fantastic.

The Rongphu Monastery Guesthouse is relatively clean, but it is very basic as it sits at an altitude of around 5000 meters (16,400 feet). The bathrooms are separated for men and women. There are no showering facilities here. There is no heating, but plenty of blankets. The rooms have 4 to 6 beds inside them with plenty of boiled hot water provided. There is a good-sized restaurant here that is generally kept heated with a yak-dung stove (common in Tibet). The restaurant serves basic, but good food, including breakfast.

2019 Everest Clean Up Summary

Due to a massive clean up project, non-climbers will not be able to go beyond Rongphu Monastery in the Everest Region of Tibet in 2019. From Rongphu, you still get an amazing view of the world’s highest mountain, as the pictures above testify. The only accommodation option in the Everest Region of Tibet this year will be the Rongphu Monastery Guesthouse. This new regulation is not created by travel companies, but is handed down by the highest level of government in China.

If you have any questions about the new Everest regulation or any other travel related question on Tibet, contact us at: thelandofsnows@gmail.com