Traveller reviews

“Our tour with HSJ exceeded even our lofty expectations in terms of service, care and an awesome experience. Travelling in winter meant there were limited numbers of other trekkers on the route to base camp. This meant no wait time while trekking and excellent service at all the tea houses. The only down side to this was a couple of the places we were meant to eat or stay were closed when we arrived. It didn’t matter however as we just went on to the next place. Our guide Mingmar was incredible. He was kind, experienced, knowledgeable, extremely thoughtful and above all downright funny. He made the trip the eye opening experience that it was. The actual trekking was fantastic. We had a couple of days of snow on the way up which made it tough at stages but the terrific weather we had at other times ensured amazing views and incredible photos. We had good views of Everest up Kala Pather and awe striking sights throughout. Our porters Umesh and Gautam were fantastic. Despite their limited English they did their best to engage and never stopped smiling. Overall a fantastic experience and travel idea for a wide range of people. In my eyes the pros of trekking in winter outweigh the cons and would recommend to those who can handle the slight cold of -27 degrees celsius. Amazing trip, fantastic company!”

“Himalayan social journey offered a cheap once in a lifetime opportunity and they did not disappoint! Mingmar Sherpa our guide was better than what we would have expected and made the experience enjoyable for all. He was happy to make changes to the itinery if the group agreed and formed a tight bond with the group. As a guide Mingmar would do anything to ensure we were satisfied clients. Our porters Umesh and Gautam were clearly well looked after by the company. When booking a trip with Himalayan Social Journey ask for Mingmar Sherpa and he will guarantee that you will reach your destination with ease!”

“I went on this trek in mid January, and it was one of the best trips I've ever taken. Our guide Mingmar Sherpa took excellent care of us, and always made sure we knew what to expect from each day of trekking and what the overall plan was. Mingmar also helped us to trek from Loboche to Gorek she, the to Everest Base Camp and up to Kala Patthar in a single day - a brilliant result. Our porters Umesh and Gautam were excellent, somehow always arriving at our next days accommodation well before we got there. I'd definitely recommend this trek to everyone, and particularly going in the off-season (Dec/Jan/Feb) as even though it was cold there were very few crowds around which made the trekking experience even more memorable.”

“My husband & I booked the 14 day tour & were lucky enough to be the only two on the tour. This gave us a lot of flexibility with our itinerary, meaning instead of trekking 42kms, we ended up trekking 80kms & seeing so much more! We even trekked through snow, which was amazing! Everything was well organised & communicated, with a nice mix of ‘local experiences’, such as an adventurous bus trip, & some more luxuries, such as Kasara Resort in Chitwan. Our guide Binod & our porter Rubus were both wonderful! They even organised a surprise birthday cake for me, which they carried to Poon Hill to present to me at sunrise. Best birthday cake I’ve ever had! My husband & I are now looking forward to conquering Everest Base Camp with Himalayan Social Journey sometime in the not too distant future.”

“There are so many tour operators doing base camp, the only reason I ended up choosing HSJ in the end was because a friend had done the Annapurna circuit with them and raved about them. From the start they were prompt with email responses (within 24 hrs), and answered any queries I may have had about the trip. I feel like anything I say about Mingmar Sherpa is just rehashing what everyone else is saying, but he was an excellent guide, (along with Dipak). I was the oldest of a young group (52, approx 20 years older than the next youngest) and at times felt like Mingmar and Dipak were making sure that i wasn't overexerting myself which was a nice touch. "Slowly, Slowly" was their favourite saying. A couple of people got sick on the trek and mingmar was quite happy to carry their packs until they felt better. One of the nicest things about doing a group tour is meeting other people from around the globe or even from your own country and you feel a real sense of achievement getting to base camp with them, and the guides are a big part of your success.”

“If you are still looking at other services let me help you right now by letting you know that you must look NO FURTHER! This IS the company you want to book with! my husband and I did a joint honeymoon trip to do the EBC trek but Himalayan Social went above and beyond our expectations. We were picked up by our designated driver DILIP, who is a charm to be around and off we went to a fun welcome local dinner. The next day we headed off to Lukla where we had the pleasure to hike with the one and only Bishnu Bashnet. He is such an incredible person because not only did he make our experience safe and enjoyable but it felt like we were hanging out with an old time friend. His attention didn't end at the trail, he went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable at all times and made our nights enjoyable by playing endless rounds of UNO! Not to mention that his wife makes the best food of the entire EBC trek! After our trek we had the pleasure of staying at GOKARNA RESORT, you will forget you are in Kathmandu the moment you enter this little piece of heaven. The food was exquisite, the drinks are at par with any drinks you may try anywhere else in the world hint: MOJITOS!, and the service was superb! You must try the massage ( 30 mins is included with your stay). Rameshwar, the manager at Himalayan Social was helpful at all times and his attention made our trip easy going despite my 1000 whatsapp questions! We did upgrade the trip because we wanted a luxury treatment so know that you can customize your package anyway you want according to your budget.”

“Didn’t know what to expect but from the minute we were met at the airport by Mingmar Sherpa he made it a wonderful experience. Along with Dipak , Kubir and Parsonz they made a great caring team who worked well together to make sure the whole trip was successful and we all made it to Base Camp. Lovely guys great to be around. Thank you all.”

“We just got back from a wonderful 16 days with Mingmar Sherpa leading, Kubir and Dipak assisting. They looked after us brilliantly the whole time, they were full of information, kind and supportive and got us all there safe and in good spirits!! Mingmars father Parson also guided and took care of our yaks and was great, very kind and helpful and supportive. I would recommend these men and this company to anyone looking for a brilliant Himalayan adventure - it was the trip of a lifetime and I can’t wait to get back!”

“This trip is definitely a physical and mental challenge but also very rewarding!! The guide Mingmar Sherpa was fantastic and so was Dipak,Kuby and Parson.All of the team go out of their way at all times to make your experience the safest and best it can be! Thanks guys!!”

“We researched every company that did this trek and ultimately decided to go with Himalayan Social, and I am glad that we did! Every step of the process was easy and their communication was great! Everyone who works for the company is incredibly nice and helpful! Our guide was AH-MAZING!! His name is Bishnu Basnet and he was the main reason our trip was so wonderful. He was incredibly nice, super knowledgeable, and just a fun person to hang out with. Our porters were also awesome and so was our driver, Dilip. I really could not have asked for a better trip. If you are looking to do the EBC trek, I highly recommend Himalayan Social, you will be glad that you did!”

“Had an amazing time with MingMar Sherpa, Prakash and Kaji Pasang. All were amazing guides and helped out in every way possible, going the extra mile to make sure our trip was fully enjoyable. Very friendly and provided laughs at all times. Would 100% recommend these guides for your trip with Himilayan Social Journeys! We had 17 in our group, and all were looked after with professional service and individual needs catered to.”

“This trip was absolutely incredible! From the moment I stepped out of the airport, Himalayan Social Journey were there to look after me. The trip was very well organised with strategically planned acclimitisation days. The tour guides: Mingmar sherpa & prakash were both experienxed guides who looked after our group very well. If I had any problems (healthwise or other) they tried their best to attend to it. I would reccomend HSJ to anyone who wants to complete the EBC trek succesfuly.”

“We had a great time exploring the Himalayas and making it to base camp. Our guides Bishnoo and Prakash were the best. They kept us safe, they arranged for everything, they kept us fed, the kept boosting our morale and guided us all the way, including some impromptu dancing along the way. They also guided us on attitude sickness and help decide if I needed dimox or not, which thankfully I did not thanks to them. The places we stayed were good and some awesome food. I was one of the slowest on the trek but they made sure everyone was ok. I would love to get my daughter next time. The only feedback for improvement would be that they carry property radios or satellite phones as mobile coverage is unreliable but that's what they depend on. Great experience. Thank you. Maneesh”

“I did the Everest base camp trek with Himalayan social journeys and it was a flawless experience! Our guide Prakash and assistant guide Pradip were absolutely amazing and very attentive throughout the whole trip. Even after I finished the trek, Prakash offered to help me with my bus ticket to Pokhara and drive me to the bus station in the morning. The trek itself was beautiful and our guides made it even better. I would recommend them 100% to friends and family. Thank you so much for this wonderful, once in a lifetime adventure!”

“Himalayan Social Journey and Mingmar Sherpa have provided the best trekking experience to Everest Base Camp! The experience from the pickup at the airport, welcome dinner, and all accommodations on the journey were top notch. However the trip was made perfect by our expert guide, Mingmar Sherpa, and yak man Pasang. From the beginning of the trip to the end the detail to attention by Mingmar went above and beyond what would be required. Mingmar was constantly ensuring everyone was safe, well taken care of and they everyone made it to our destination. Thank you HSJ and Mingmar for making this the trip of a lifetime.”

“Any one thinking of travelling to Nepal I can only highly recommend Himalayan Social Journey as your tour group. Highly organised and very professional. Our guide to Everest Base Camp was Mingma Sherpa who was above professional in his care of our group, his high regard for our safety was at all times apparent. He shared his love of the country and showed us many sites. He encouraged us all to achieve our goals within our abilities and we never felt pushed. Paseng our porter was also of great help, getting our gear from place to place and also helping when needed. Can't recommend the company more highly....”

“Hello, We had the most amazing time with Himalayan social journey, for the most part due to our incredible guide Mingmar Sherpa, nothing was to hard for him, he was always there when you needed something or when encouragement was required. He lead us in such a friendly way he felt like part of our group a bunch 8 people, 2 Americans one living in Korea, a couple of cousins from QLD, a wonderful gentleman from WA, a lovely lady from Melbourne, and my wife and I. Mingmar United is as a family in the first day and made us feel completely at home with him, the county and each other. We were all give or take a few years similar in age which helped a lot, but it was our guides expertise that made it all work, Some in the group were faster hikers and some a bit slower but Mingmar worked it out so we all meet and stuck together throughout our many days supporting each other and growing together. The walk is tough don’t be fooled you cannot get up off your lounge and do this hike, you will need to train pretty well, and the more training you do before you come the better experience you will have when your here. Mingmar organised all our food and made sure we ate well and at “safe to eat” places as hygiene and food prep are not strong points for this place. The accomodation he organised was at the better end of what is available, But don’t come into this blind the higher you go the worse things get, no showers, share squat toilets etc, and tiny rooms that are freezing at night, There is NO heating anywhere and anything heated food water etc is done by gas which a poor Sherpa carried 40km up these tracks on his back!! So be thankful for the little you have, it’s much more than some! I would recommend Himalayan social journey to anyone thinking about doing EBC but ask for Mingmar Sherpa, you will not be disappointed with him as your guide, We all made it to EBC and back which is more than I can say for a lot of other groups we saw fall to sickness or altitude sickness. Give it a go it will truly change your life!!”

“Definitely a trip of a lifetime. From start to finish the HSJ group were great. We met our Guide Mingmar at the Kathmandu hotel before enjoying our first night at our Cultural Dinner. That the heavens opened up but luckily that was it for the rest of the tour. The rest of the trek went off without a hitch. We met our YAKMAN Paseng at Lukla you would carry our belongings to each stop. Now I cant stress enough how well our guide (Mingmar) and Yakman (Paseng) treated everyone on this trek. Their knowledge and skill has to be seen to be believed. It is of great peace of mind that while we are aimlessly walking along narrow tracks and steep sets of stairs that these guys always have one eye on you and the other on the surrounding areas keeping an eye out for yaks and donkeys. The trek itself is what you make it. Listen to your guides! If they say drink for litres, you drink four litres. As much as they are you best new buds remember that your safety is their main concern too. Its a beautiful country and if you ever get the chance, do it. I will definitely be back and I'd hope, no i will request Mingmar and Paseng as my guide and yakman. Great job team. Till next time........”

“We just finished the 16 Day Trek to EBC and it was an awesome experience. Helping to make it that way were Binny and Kubir our amazing guides. Their attention to detail was spot on as we progressed up and down the mountains. I would highly recommend HSJ and our two guides! Thanks for making this bucket list trip so memorable.”

“Even though HSJ promised the group size would be limited to 10 people, we had 17. Fortunately we had two guides for this size. It was quite unorganised at the beginning and we started the tour one day earlier than planned for some reason. We also did not receive the cultural dinner as promised to begin with. When we finally made it to the mountains to commence the trek I found the guides, particularly Mingmar to be very supportive and encouraging. I was constantly 'bringing up the rear' because the group was very fast and fit, but he was patient and encouraging. Mingmar and Prakesch were also very organised so it meant that we left in plenty of time to reach our destination and also arrived before any adverse weather set in for the night. I found it a challenging hike but was able to reach base camp through Mingmar's support. I found by following their advice it gave me the best chance of success. The guides were also monitoring us regularly for altitude sickness. All of our group achieved base camp, with the exception of one who seemed a little under prepared for the challenge. Yes we suspect there are probably commissions paid and deals done, but it seems the way things are done there, similar to Thailand or Bali, so be aware of that. Those things aside, overall it was a great experience and Mingmar was fantastic and also a kind, genuine person. 5 stars go to Mingmar alone. He is highly recommended.”

“My husband and I recently walked to EBC with Himalayan Social Journey. Our guide was Sherpa Mingmar and he had taken on the services of a Yak Man called Pasang (excuse my spelling error!). Everything was organised effortlessly for us riohgt from the time we arrived at the airport and were met by Mingmar, to the day we left Nepal. Mingmar, despite being under 30 years old and our group ranging from 40 - 65 yrs old, gained the respect of all in our group. He was a great leader and started by telling us we had to be a family and look after each other. He told us he would also get 100% of us to EBC if we followed his instructions - and we did all get to EBC. Mingmar had an extremely friendly attitude and spent the time to talk to each of individually on many occasions. He did absolutely everything for us from ordering all of our food, drinks coffees etc for the whole trip to reminding us daily not to leave anything behind (and then picking up the things we had left behind!), looking out for bags with zips open that we should close, picking up our poles if we dropped them, reminding us about purifying our water each time we filled up with tap water etc etc. He would have done up our shoe laces if need be. He even carried our day bags when we were tired and on several occasions had two bags other than his own. He also gave us load of tips about avoiding altitude sickness and reminded us every night to drink lots of water, eat this and that etc. Our 'Yak man' Pasang was an absolutely lovely man. Whilst his English was not as good as Mingmar's he tried his best to listen in to conversations and follow along, always smiling and willing to lend a hand. We could see that he was enjoying his job. Technically his job was to take the yaks ahead with our luggage but he came walking back down every day to meet us and walk with us in case anybody needed help. Most days he carried one or two bags for us which was very helpful when we were tired. I would completely recommend Himalayan Social Journey. Try to ask for Mingmar and his Yak Man - they truly went above an beyond all the time and made the journey as fantastic as it was. I would definitely travel with HSJ again and if possible I will request Mingmar. regards, Alex J.”

“I am now two weeks removed from my incredible EBC trek. Just getting to visit the region was spectacular, but our guides were exceptional and easily the x-factor of my group's trek. Benod, PK, and Sonam did a fantastic job and were able to successfully lead all 22 members of my group (yes 22!) to Everest Base Camp. The three of them worked tirelessly to ensure that everyone received excellent service. My next trekking trip will absolutely be through HSJ.”

“We spent 20 amazing days in Nepal, 19 of those were with Himalayan Social Journey. Everything was managed extremely well by our guides, and our expectations were exceeded by the service we received. We were fortunate to receive more attached rooms than was advertised as part of the package, and our group regularly received meals before other groups. Even our porters were on the ball to ensure to we received the best service! We were blessed with amazing views on the way up, and mostly rain on the way down, however as we were expecting this anyway it didn’t hamper our trip at all. Our guides regularly offered to carry our day packs, and offered us their gear, for example one particularly cold day, my husband didn’t pack his gloves in his day pack, so our guide provided him with his own gloves. I fell slightly ill on the day we visited base camp, and opted to rest after returning from base camp, and our guides were insistent that I take the medication and continued to check in with myself and my husband through the evening and into the next day. Luckily I recovered upon the descent. While we were used to faster pace than set by the guides, we didn’t feel that we couldn’t go ahead, then rest as we needed, particularly on the way down. Our guide stayed with the slower group member, and we were happy to go ahead. On arrival back in Lukla, we knew there had been no planes in or out for 5 days. We were concerned, and we were delayed, and expecting to get out on one of the last flights the next day - however our guides came through again and we were able to fly to Kathmandu the day after scheduled and in the morning. As we missed one of our scheduled days at Gokarna, we were offered another night there, to be included in the package, however due to other plans we didn’t take HSJ up on this offer. Another member of the tour group did however. Whilst on the EBC trek, Himalayan Social Journey also managed our trip afterwards to Chitwan National Park, and we thoroughly enjoyed this safari adventure. We were initially booked on the tourist bus to get to Chitwan but on the drivers suggestion opted to take the private car-good choice! This was a much more pleasant experience. Experienced, caring and fun - couldn’t have asked for a better experience for our tenth wedding anniversary celebrations! Thank you to Bishnu, Binod and the HSJ team!”

“We did this trek in 2 people, and we needed a customized package due our time constraints, and HSJ was able to fulfill all our requirements. Communication was very easy and clear from day one, and the reception in KTM was very warm. We were introduced to our guide, Tenzing, a guy with a heart as big as the mountains. We had issues to reach Lukla, the monsoons came late this year and Lukla was closed for airplanes for several days. We decided to take a jeep to Phaplu, which was another adventure (it took more than 10 hours, large parts of it off-road). This option added another 3 days to the trek and it was somewhat challenging. Once reaching Phakding, everything started falling in place and our only issue now was the weather (rainy most of the time). Last two days though, weather cleared up and we had amazing views from the mountains. Our trip required lots of last minutes changes, regarding lodging and transportation, which were accomplished in a very satisfactory way. We reached our goal (EBC) and we were very happy with the company chosen for the task. Special commend for our guide, Tenzing, always smiling and very patient to accommodate our requests.”