Walk the Himalaya.
Then see the world.

The acclimatisation plan is the whole difference

I had turned back at Dingboche on a previous trek with another company. HighPass built in two proper rest days and I walked to Base Camp without a headache. The guide checked oxygen saturation every evening and actually explained the numbers.

They warned us about the Ramechhap drive

Every other operator I contacted glossed over the Lukla flight situation. HighPass put the 2am drive to Manthali in writing at the quotation stage, so it was an inconvenience instead of a shock. Small thing, but it set the tone.

Muktinath with my parents, handled properly

My father is 74 and I was nervous about the altitude at Muktinath. They arranged the Jomsom flight rather than the jeep road, kept the walking short and had oxygen in the vehicle. He completed the darshan comfortably.

Poon Hill was the right call

I wanted Annapurna Base Camp; Sujata talked me down to Poon Hill because I only had five days. She was right. Nobody in travel talks you out of the more expensive product, so that stuck with me.

Gokyo instead of the EBC motorway

They suggested the Gokyo and Renjo La route when I said I wanted quiet. Turquoise lakes, maybe a tenth of the traffic, and the Everest view from Gokyo Ri is arguably better. Excellent teahouse choices too.

Schengen approved on the first attempt

Bikash rebuilt my whole document file after I had already been rejected once. He explained exactly why the first application failed. Visa came through in nineteen working days and the Switzerland trip went ahead.

Honest about the weather risk

Our Everest helicopter day was cancelled twice for cloud. They rebooked without arguing and refunded the difference when the third attempt flew as a shared charter. Frustrating weather, faultless handling.

Upper Mustang in August, and it worked

Booked for monsoon on Tashi's advice because Mustang sits in the rain shadow. Two light showers in eleven days. Lo Manthang was extraordinary and we passed maybe six other trekkers the whole way.

Honeymoon that wasn't a schedule

Two completely free days in six, which sounds like laziness until you have actually been on a honeymoon that was run like a school trip. The private boat on Phewa at sunset was the best hour of the week.

Kailash handled with real care

Dawa has clearly done this many times. The group visa, the acclimatisation nights before Darchen, the horse arrangement over Dolma La for my mother — all sorted before we asked. Physically the hardest thing I have done.

Chitwan with young kids, well judged

Short drives, a pool at both hotels, and the jeep safari timed so the children were not in the vehicle at their worst hour. We saw two rhinos on the first drive. The Tharu evening was a genuine highlight.

Manaslu is hard and they said so

The quotation described Larke La as challenging and it absolutely was. Being told the truth beforehand meant I trained for four months instead of two. Guide-to-group ratio was better than the permit requires.