Gorakshep
5,164 m
Lukla
2,845 m
25 mins
6:30 AM
8:30 AM
11:00 AM
$600
per seat
$1,800
aircraft
CAAN licensed
Free weather reschedule
Gorakshep to Gokyo helicopter flight
Gorakshep
5,164 m
Gokyo
4,790 m
- Flight time
- 15 mins
- Seats
- 3
- Baggage
- 8 kg
- From
- $500
Flight overview
Flying Gorakshep to Gokyo helicopter flight
| Route | Departs | Seats | Flight time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gorakshep to Gokyo helicopter flight | 8:00 AM | 3 | 15 mins |
Fifteen minutes across the Cho La, from the lake bed at Gorakshep to the lakes at Gokyo. It links the two great valleys of the Khumbu without four days of walking and without a pass crossing on ice.
This is a specialist flight and a small one. Three passengers, eight kilos each, and a genuinely clear morning required along the whole track.
What it is for
Trekkers who have reached base camp and want to see the Gokyo lakes, but who do not have the days or the appetite for the Cho La. Photographers working both valleys. Occasionally a group repositioning to meet the rest of a party.
What it is not for
Anybody who is feeling the altitude. This flight leaves you at 4,790 metres having taken off from 5,164. There is no relief in it. If your head hurts at Gorakshep, the flight you want goes downhill.
Expect cancellations
We are straightforward about this: it is the least reliable route in our rate card. Two narrow valleys and a high pass between them need more cooperation from the weather than a simple descent does.
- From
- Gorakshep
- To
- Gokyo
- Aircraft
- AS350 B3e / H125
- Passenger insurance
- Included
- Flight rules
- Visual, daylight only
Pilot advisory
This is a high-to-high transfer with no altitude relief at either end, flown across the Cho La between two narrow valleys. It needs a genuinely clear morning and it is the first flight we stand down when conditions are marginal.
Pricing
What this flight costs, and what it does not include
Both figures are the price we quote on WhatsApp. A shared seat puts you on a scheduled departure with other travellers. A private charter is the whole aircraft on your schedule.
Included
- Confirmed seat or aircraft on the stated departure
- All government taxes on the charter
- Passenger liability insurance
- Pilot and crew
- Free rescheduling if the flight is held for weather
Not included
- Personal travel and medical insurance
- Meals, accommodation and ground transport
- National park permits and TIMS cards
- Excess baggage above the stated allowance
- Anything arising from a delay outside our control
We publish how these prices are set and when they move. Read the price transparency policy.
Operators
CAAN licensed operators
We charter aircraft only from operators that hold a current air operator certificate from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Each one below is reviewed by us before we put passengers on their aircraft.
Air Dynasty Heli Services
Manang Air
Simrik Air
Mountain Helicopters
Altitude Air
Heli Everest
Prabhu Helicopter
Kailash Helicopter Services
Upcoming departures
The next flights on this route
All departures are subject to visual flight rules and weather. Seat counts are confirmed with operators each morning.
Landing site
Where you land at Gokyo
- Helipad
- Gokyo village helipad
- Area
- Gokyo valley, Everest region
- Altitude
- 4,790 m
- Coordinates
- 27.95530, 86.69420
The pad sits beside the lodges on the shore of the third lake. The valley is narrow and the approach is made along the lake. Morning only in practice.
Safety
What you need to know before you board
Both ends of this flight are near five thousand metres, so the payload is the tightest of any route we publish. Three passengers is the realistic maximum and eight kilos is the baggage allowance.
You stay at altitude. Unlike every descending flight in our rate card, this one gives your body no relief, so if anyone in the group is feeling the altitude, this is the wrong flight and going down is the right one.
The crossing is made over the Cho La between two narrow valleys. A clear window is required along the whole track, not just at the pads.
Questions
What travellers ask about this route
Because at these altitudes there is no meaningful difference between a full aircraft and a private one. Three passengers is effectively the whole machine. Ask us and we will quote the trip.
No. You will fly over it in about four minutes. People who wanted to cross it on foot should cross it on foot.
Physiologically it is neutral: you neither gain nor lose much altitude. What it does not do is help anyone who is already struggling. If that is the situation, fly down instead.
More than anything else we sell. It needs a clear track between two narrow valleys over a high pass.
Yes, Gokyo to Gorakshep, same price and same constraints. Tell us which direction you want.
Hold a seat
Request this flight
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