Everest access via Tibet
China Allows Foreign Climbers Access to Mount Everest via Tibet After Pandemic Restrictions
In a significant development, China has reopened access to Mount Everest via Tibet for foreign climbers, marking the first time since the onset of the pandemic. This decision allows climbers to ascend the world’s tallest peak from the north, a route favored by many Western guides including Adrian Ballinger, who will lead a group of climbers through his company, Alpenglow Expeditions.
Unlike previous years where passes were distributed by tourism officials in Beijing, all permits to use the Chinese route up the mountain, locally known as Qomolangma, are now managed by the China Tibet Mountaineering Association (CTMA). Surprisingly, there has been no official announcement from the Chinese government regarding the issuance of these permits.
According to Ballinger, the indication of the Tibet side of Everest being open comes when the CTMA releases a price list for the season, detailing costs for services like yaks, local guides, translators, and transportation from Lhasa, Tibet’s capital, to Everest Base Camp.
Foreign climbers seeking to access Tibet must obtain an additional permit, separate from their tourist visas for China, as Tibet is a semi-autonomous region. The CTMA assists climbers in obtaining this permit, with a maximum of 300 permits available annually for non-Chinese climbers.
The climbing window for Everest is typically small, spanning from late April to mid-May. Ballinger’s team plans to arrive in China on April 25 after pre-acclimatizing at home to optimize their time.
While Nepal’s route to the peak of Everest is more renowned and photographed, it also attracts a larger number of visitors, resulting in increased environmental issues such as trash, erosion, and human waste. However, this wasn’t always the case, as Ballinger explains that the Chinese route was more popular and perceived as safer until 2008.
In that year, China hosted the Summer Olympics in Beijing, leading to the closure of Everest for the entire season just days before climbers were set to arrive. This unexpected decision shifted business to the Nepali side, a trend that may now see a reversal with the reopening of the northern route through Tibet for foreign climbers.
