Trekking Holidays
Premium trekking is not about luxury for its own sake. It is about a higher standard of leadership, planning, and care. At Life Happens Outdoors, premium means small groups led by experienced Team Leaders and trusted local experts, with a thoughtfully curated route, strong accommodation choices, and airport to airport logistics that remove friction from the experience. You get more space to focus on the trail, the people, and the moments that stay with you long after you return. Come Back Different.
HOW IT WORKS
1. Choose the trek style that matches your goal, from iconic hut to hut trails in the Alps to deep Himalayan journeys.
2. Prepare with clarity. We provide straightforward guidance on fitness, kit, pacing, and what the days actually feel like.
3. Arrive and settle quickly. We coordinate the key logistics from arrival so you can relax into the experience and the group.
4. Trek with calm leadership. Professional local teams lead on the ground, and Life Happens Outdoors Team Leaders support the group rhythm, communication, and care.
5. Come back different. Not because it was easy, but because you were supported to do something meaningful.
Buying for someone who loves the mountains? Our adventure gift vouchers let them choose an eligible LHO trek and departure, with guidance from Base Camp if they need help deciding.
CLIMB KILIMANJARO
Climb Kilimanjaro on our nine-day guided Machame Route trip, with seven trekking days on the mountain and two hotel nights in Moshi. This expedition is designed for active first-time climbers and ambitious hikers, with expert support from arrival to departure. Kilimanjaro rises to 5,895 metres above sea level, making it the highest mountain in Africa and one of the world’s great non technical high altitude climbs. You do not need previous mountaineering experience, but you do need the right preparation, a sensible route profile, strong local support, and a team that understands how to manage altitude, pacing, safety, and morale. At Life Happens Outdoors, we have refined this climb through years of successful expeditions. Our approach includes experienced Kilimanjaro guides, an LHO Expedition Coordinator, regular health checks, a nutritious mountain menu, private camping facilities, quality meals, and a team environment designed to help you keep moving when the mountain asks more of you. This is more than a summit attempt. It is a journey through rainforest, moorland, alpine desert, and high altitude wilderness, ending at Uhuru Peak on the roof of Africa. For many LHOers, Kilimanjaro is their first major high altitude adventure and the moment they discover what they are capable of.
Before choosing your departure, use our complete Kilimanjaro planning guide for the full route, altitude, training, packing, safety and cost context.
This is a nine-day organised journey in Tanzania, with seven trekking days on the Machame Route. It can suit a prepared first-time high-altitude trekker who wants a meaningful mountain challenge with a guide team, camp support and an LHO community around them. Expect consecutive walking days, camping, cold conditions higher on the mountain and a demanding summit attempt followed by descent. Technical mountaineering experience is not required for the standard route, but training, patient pacing and willingness to follow guide decisions are essential. Reaching the summit is never guaranteed. Included: Seven trekking days on Machame within nine scheduled days; two hotel nights in Moshi Your preparation: Add international travel and agree arrival/departure timing before booking flights Included: LHO Team Leader, certified mountain guides, support crew and porters Your preparation: Share relevant experience and preparation questions with the team Included: Tents, foam mats, private portable toilets, meals, safe water, permits and listed transfers Your preparation: Bring the personal clothing and equipment required by the current kit instructions Included: The inclusions shown for your selected departure Your preparation: Budget for flights, entry costs, insurance, personal gear, tips and extras outside the itinerary Start with the training plan, packing list and complete-budget guide if you are still preparing your decision. Use the Kilimanjaro insurance checklist to prepare questions for your insurer. Comparing a seven-day route with a nine-day trip? Our Kilimanjaro duration guide shows how arrival, mountain days and departure fit together. Ready to choose your dates? Review the departures below. If you are still assessing readiness, speak to an Adventure Specialist before reserving.Is this Kilimanjaro journey right for you?
GUIDED TOUR DU MONT BLANC TREK
LHO’s Tour du Mont Blanc is an eight-day guided journey with six selected walking stages and planned transport connections. You walk through contrasting sides of the Mont Blanc massif, cross mountain passes and share the experience with your group. This itinerary is not a continuous full circuit on foot: transfers connect parts of the route, allowing the journey to focus on the selected mountain stages described below.
Our all inclusive Life Happens Outdoors Tour du Mont Blanc delivers a world class hut to hut trekking experience across the French, Italian and Swiss Alps. We curate the route to showcase the most stunning sections of the TMB, including Lac Blanc, Val Veny and Champex Lac, giving you the highlights many standard itineraries miss. Your journey combines high mountain huts with charming Alpine villages, offering both authentic adventure and comfortable rest. Included meals add a memorable culinary touch throughout the trek. This is one of our most popular LHO adventures, known for its thoughtful pacing, spectacular viewpoints and community driven atmosphere that sets it apart from typical Tour du Mont Blanc packages. The original overview was reviewed by Lucía Guichot Martín, AMM trekking guide and IFMGA mountain guide, on 23 August 2026. Meet the qualified Tour du Mont Blanc trekking guides who work with LHO.
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TOUR OF THE MATTERHORN
Experience our Tour of the Matterhorn, a challenging trek that immerses you in picturesque valleys, high mountain passes, and charming alpine villages in and around Zermatt, including stunning trails on the Italian side. This exclusive LHO Original adventure features a carefully crafted route that showcases not only iconic Zermatt hiking trails, but also trails through the famous Arolla, Herens, and Valpelline valleys, some of the most breathtaking landscapes in the Alps. Guided by our LHO team leaders alongside selected local experts, this journey offers an unforgettable blend of adventure, culture, and natural beauty. The Tour of the Matterhorn route combines the best hiking in Zermatt and the region. Meet the qualified Alpine trekking guides who work with LHO across our nontechnical walking programmes in the Alps.
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ANNAPURNA BASE CAMP TREK
This is an eight-day guided trek from Kathmandu to Annapurna Base Camp at 4,130 metres, with five consecutive days on foot, tea-house accommodation, meals, permits, porters and airport-to-airport support. It suits active first-time Himalayan trekkers with no technical climbing experience, although steep stone steps, sustained ascent and altitude still require training. If you prefer a quieter ridge journey, compare the Mardi Himal trek.
Curated by Rami Rasamny Reviewed by Shiva Raj Bastakoti
Still choosing your first Himalayan trek? Use our Nepal trek chooser to compare Annapurna Base Camp with Mardi Himal, EBC and Gokyo by duration, terrain and accommodation.
Traveller fit: Best for active first-time Himalayan trekkers who will train for five consecutive days on foot, long stone stair sections, sustained ascent and descent, and altitude up to 4,130 metres. No mountaineering or technical climbing experience is required. This trip is not suitable for: anyone unwilling to prepare for long walking days, accept simple tea-house accommodation and shared facilities, or follow the trekking team’s pace and altitude decisions.
Thinking about a future Himalayan climb? Our Nepal progression guide explains what ABC can prepare you for, and which altitude experience and climbing skills still need to be developed and assessed.
A shorter itinerary still deserves serious preparation
- Five consecutive walking days, Days 2–6
- Prepare for repeated effort, not only one long day out
- Stone steps, substantial ascent and descent
- Practise hills, steps and controlled downhill walking
- An overnight at Annapurna Base Camp, 4,130 metres
- Treat altitude as its own consideration and follow the guide team's decisions
- Four mountain tea-house nights
- Be comfortable with simple accommodation and shared facilities
- Two Kathmandu hotel nights and one Pokhara hotel night
- The published hotel single-room upgrade applies to these nights, not the tea houses
- Guided logistics and porter support
- You still carry the daypack and personal items you need while walking
This can be a first Himalayan trek for an active person willing to train. It is not a technical climbing trip, and it is not an effortless introduction. The aim is to arrive ready for the walking, open to the community around you and realistic about mountain conditions.
Use the ABC versus EBC difficulty comparison if you are choosing between the two base camps.
For total spending beyond the departure price, use the Annapurna Base Camp budget guide. Work through the Nepal trekking insurance checklist before asking your insurer to confirm cover for the complete itinerary and optional activities.
Review the itinerary and available dates below. If you want to discuss the daily walking or your preparation time, talk to our team before reserving.
EVEREST BASE CAMP TREK
Life Happens Outdoors runs Everest Base Camp as a 16-day guided trip from arrival to departure in Kathmandu. The route reaches Everest Base Camp at 5,364 metres and includes two planned acclimatisation days, tea-house accommodation, meals on the trek, porter carriage of a personal duffle up to 12 kg per guest, permits, airport transfers, local ground transport and one helicopter sector between Kathmandu and Lukla. The other Lukla sector is normally completed by fixed-wing flight, subject to weather and airport operations. The 12 kg duffle allowance is per guest; it is not a porter’s total carrying limit.
Curated by Rami Rasamny Reviewed by Shiva Raj Bastakoti
This is a challenging, non-technical trek for prepared first-time high-altitude trekkers and experienced hikers who can walk for several hours on consecutive days. You do not need mountaineering skills, but you do need consistent training, patience with altitude, comfort with simple mountain accommodation and flexibility around Himalayan weather.
The live dates and prices below show the current departure options. International flights, visa, insurance, tips, personal equipment, trail extras and any optional high-altitude helicopter return are not included. Read the complete Everest Base Camp cost guide for the wider travel budget, or speak to us if you are unsure whether this is the right trip for you.
Still deciding how to approach the Khumbu? Use our Nepal trek chooser to compare EBC with Gokyo, Annapurna Base Camp, Mardi Himal and Three Passes by time commitment, altitude and terrain. Compare the quieter Gokyo Lakes route. If your next step is a first technical Himalayan summit, explore the Island Peak expedition. For departure planning, read when to trek to Everest Base Camp.
Shorten your return from Everest Base Camp
Add a helicopter return from Lobuche to Lukla for £1,700 per passenger on any public or private Everest Base Camp departure.
After reaching Everest Base Camp and completing the normal opportunity to visit Kala Patthar at sunset, you leave the standard trekking group the following morning. You descend from Gorak Shep to Lobuche, take the helicopter to Lukla and continue to Kathmandu on the trip’s included Lukla–Kathmandu sector. A seasonal aircraft change may be required in Pheriche.
This changes the planned trip length from 16 days to approximately 12 days. Mountain aviation remains weather dependent, so the shortened end date cannot be guaranteed.
Choose a departure and add at checkoutHow weather, baggage and refunds work
Traveller fit: Best for prepared first-time high-altitude trekkers and experienced hikers who can walk for several hours on consecutive days. No mountaineering skills are required, but consistent training, patience with altitude and comfort with simple mountain accommodation are essential. This trip is not suitable for: anyone unwilling to prepare, communicate altitude symptoms early, follow the trekking team’s pace and safety decisions, or accept weather-related itinerary and aviation changes.
Considering a climb after EBC? Use our Nepal trekking-to-climbing progression guide to review what your trek demonstrates, the technical skills still needed and the decision gates before Island Peak, Lobuche East, Mera Peak or a later expedition.
Understand the commitment before choosing your dates
- Who should consider it?
- A prepared walker who wants the Khumbu journey and can commit to repeated walking days, high altitude and simple mountain accommodation
- How much time is organised?
- 16 days in Nepal, including a 12-day mountain block and planned acclimatisation days in Namche and Dingboche
- Where do we stay?
- 12 tea-house nights and 3 Kathmandu hotel nights; the hotel single-room option does not cover tea houses
- What support is included?
- The LHO and local guide teams, porters, accommodation, meals, permits and transport listed in the full inclusions
- What does the helicopter inclusion mean?
- One sector between Kathmandu and Lukla, inbound or outbound according to operations, with a fixed-wing flight for the other sector
- What needs extra budgeting?
- International flights, entry costs, insurance, tips, personal equipment and services or changes outside the inclusions
The included Lukla helicopter sector is not a helicopter return from base camp and is not emergency evacuation cover. The optional upper-valley helicopter arrangement has its own price, route, baggage and weather conditions in the itinerary; read those terms before choosing it.
If a shorter journey may suit your time better, compare ABC and EBC by difficulty and commitment. If you are deciding among several routes, use the Nepal trek chooser.
Use the Nepal trekking insurance checklist to ask your insurer about the complete itinerary, optional high points, transport and disruption arrangements.
Before choosing your dates, work through EBC planning questions about the journey, accommodation and preparation.
Explore the day-by-day journey and departures below. To discuss your hiking background, time away or the transport options, speak to an Adventure Specialist.
GOKYO LAKES TREK
The Gokyo Lakes Trek is a 16-day guided circuit through the quieter western Khumbu, reaching Gokyo village at 4,756 metres, Gokyo Ri at 5,357 metres and, when conditions allow, Renjo La at about 5,360 metres. It is a challenging, non-technical high-altitude trek for well-prepared walkers who want lakes, glaciers and broad Everest views rather than Base Camp itself. The trip includes acclimatisation, tea houses, meals, porters, permits and one helicopter sector between Kathmandu and Lukla.
Curated by Rami Rasamny Reviewed by Shiva Raj Bastakoti
Fly back from Gokyo Lakes
Add a helicopter return from Gokyo Lakes to Lukla for £1,800 per passenger on any public or private Gokyo Lakes departure.
After completing the normal opportunity to climb Gokyo Ri for sunset, you leave the standard trekking group the following morning. You fly from Gokyo Lakes to Lukla and continue to Kathmandu on the trip’s included Lukla–Kathmandu sector. A seasonal aircraft change may be required in Pheriche.
This changes the planned trip length from 16 days to approximately 12 days. Mountain aviation remains weather dependent, so the shortened end date cannot be guaranteed.
Choose a departure and add at checkoutHow weather, baggage and refunds work
Still weighing up the routes? Use our Nepal trek chooser to compare Gokyo with EBC, Three Passes and other Nepal treks by duration, altitude, terrain and accommodation.
Traveller fit: Best for well-prepared walkers who want a challenging, non-technical high-altitude circuit with long days, Gokyo Ri and, when conditions allow, Renjo La. This trip is not suitable for: anyone unwilling to train for sustained ascent and descent, use trekking poles on the steep Renjo La descent, accept simple tea houses, or remain flexible when altitude, weather or route conditions change the plan.
Looking beyond Gokyo? Our Nepal progression guide explains how to assess your trekking experience before a climbing objective. Record the route you actually completed, your recovery and altitude response; a high pass does not demonstrate glacier or rope competence.
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EXPLORE THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS & SKYE
Our LHO exploration adventure to the Scottish highlands allows you to discover a variety of dramatic and atmospheric Scottish landscapes, including sites of historical interest, Caribbean like beaches, fairy tale castles, rugged mountains, native wildlife and many more. You will also have the opportunity to sample the best whiskies in the world and to taste the world renowned Scottish cuisine. This trip will stay in your memory forever!
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MARDI HIMAL TREK
The Mardi Himal Trek is a nine-day guided journey in Nepal’s Annapurna region, with six days on foot through forests and high ridges to a 4,120-metre viewpoint. It is non-technical and suitable as a first Himalayan trek for active people, but sustained ascent, steep steps, simple tea houses and altitude still require preparation. The trip includes local guides, porters, meals, selected accommodation, permits, domestic flights, photography and LHO support.
Curated by Rami Rasamny Reviewed by Shiva Raj Bastakoti
Choosing between a shorter trek and a longer Himalayan journey? Use our Nepal trek chooser to compare Mardi Himal with Annapurna Base Camp, EBC and Gokyo by duration, altitude and accommodation.
Traveller fit: Best for active first-time Himalayan trekkers who will train for six days on the trail, repeated steep ascent and descent, uneven paths and altitude up to 4,120 metres. No climbing skills are required. This trip is not suitable for: anyone expecting an easy walking holiday or unwilling to prepare for consecutive trekking days, simple tea houses and a long descent.
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MACHU PICCHU TREK
Our LHO Machu Picchu adventure is far from just a trek to this ancient citadel. It is a perfectly curated adventure travel immersion that combines incredible food, vibrant cultural experiences, and the highlight trails of the Cusco region and is all tied together by our dedicated LHO Team Leader in collaboration with our expert local guides. We've gone above and beyond, from the carefully selected accommodation to the safety-focused trekking schedule developed from our years of experience in high-altitude environments, to bring you an adventure travel experience like no other in this region.
Both route options lead to a Machu Picchu experience, with different journeys along the way. Use the route selector to read the matching itinerary and inclusions, then check which route is attached to your chosen departure. Use our Salkantay versus Inca Trail comparison and Q&A to work through the choice in more detail. Read Is the Inca Trail right for me? for preparation context. Review the route and departure below or ask the team about your dates, preparation and permit position.Choose the route as well as the destination
Salkantay: mountain scenery, a high pass and a valley approach towards Aguas Calientes.
LEBANON MOUNTAIN TRAIL TREK
Our Lebanon Mountain Trail trip is a unique blend of incredible hikes, picturesque guest houses, an unparalleled menu of Lebanese cuisine, all perfectly curated into an epic adventure experience.
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