Phakding is a stop on the standard Everest Base Camp Trek. It's roughly 85 miles (137 kilometers) north-east of Kathmandu. There is no motorable road to Phakding, so travelers must first fly or trek to Lukla, and then continue trekking to Phakding.
By Plane & On Foot
Duration: 30-minute flight, then a 4-hour trek
Most people travel between Kathmandu and Lukla by plane. The Tenzing-Hillary Airport is notorious, as the runway is short and there are no fly-around options here, but the vast majority of flights arrive and leave from there without a problem. However, weather-related delays are very common, so build some buffer days into your itinerary in the Everest region to account for setbacks.
From Lukla, Phakding is half a day's walk away. Most people spend their first night on the Everest Base Camp Trek in Phakding.
By Road & On Foot
Duration: 5-7 days
To avoid the flight to Lukla, it's possible to take a Jeep to Jiri or Phaplu (about a day's journey) and then trek to Lukla and onwards to Phakding. This is known as the "Pioneers' Route" because it's how pioneering mountaineers used to reach the Khumbu region before there was an airport in Lukla. Nowadays this is an uncommon way of accessing the region, which means that travelers who do come this way will be rewarded with quiet trails.
The trek from Phaplu to Lukla takes three days, and Jiri to Lukla five, with another half day's walk to Phakding. However, you may not need to stop in Phakding at all if you come this way. Most trekkers will spend a night in Phakding because after the time it takes to fly from Kathmandu to Lukla, a half-day of walking is all there's time for. If you were to trek to Lukla, spend an night there and then get started early the next day, you could bypass Phakding and push on to Namche Bazaar. However, this is quite a tiring option, so only do this if you're really fit.
Check out some other Everest-region trekking options that include a stop in Phakding in the following articles:
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