Lukla Airport also known as one of the most dangerous Airports in the world is the Gateway to Everest Region and Thousands of Trekkers , Mountaineers arrive here to conquer their dream Peaks but 1st they have to cross the major hurdle which is Flight to Lukla . This is not in their hands. Only option is to cross the finger and Pray that the weather will be good soon and everyone can board on their flights to Lukla
Cancellation of flights to Lukla from Kathmandu
Cancellation of Flights from Kathmandu to Lukla is the topic we will talk in the Blog
There are Three Airlines that have flights from Lukla to Kathmandu
All these flights have same policies in case of flight cancellation or delays
Cancellation of Flight to Lukla is very common with all the Airlines. Mostly due to weather related issues. Geography of Lukla Airport (Tenzing Hillary Airport ) is such that even if there is slightly wind or cloud then the signal is not received and the Airport is closed .
Most of the Trekkers when they come for Everest Base Camp Trek they have limited no. of Days holiday , This happens to be the major Problem in Terms of Everest Base Camp Trek
Nowadays this issue has been a greater one since in the season all the flights are diverted to Ramechaap instead of Direct Flight from Kathmandu to Lukla
Most of the Travelers don’t travel to wake up at midnight and take a 4 Hours long Journey and then take a flight. This part is a horrible experience. Kathmandu to Ramechaap is a 4 Hrs drive in a vehicle. All the Trekkers are going through this Journey. Most of the experienced Trekkers don’t get tired from Trekking but they get tired from the Bus ride to Ramechaap.
Flight delays sometimes is upto 7 days in a Peak season time and when in Ramechap the accommodation is not enough so the Trekkers sleep in Dining’s due to scarcity of rooms . There is no quality food or stay and taking advantage of Flight Cancellation in Peak season Hoteliers tend to increase the cost of everything. The situation is chaos in Ramechap . It is advised to Trekkers to take around ¾ Days extra while planning for Trip to Everest Region just to not miss the international Flight. Keep yourself updated regarding the weather of Lukla
When the Flight is canceled then your Lukla Flight Ticket is automatically canceled by the system and for the Next day the flight that was in queue before goes first. So the thing is that even if you have a 1st Flight Ticket your flight will not fly at first. The Flight that was canceled the day before will go first. Full refund is made when the flight is canceled. You can ask the agency that you bought your ticket through to make the full refund. If due to your own problem you have to cancel then you can let the Agency know 24 Hrs ahead and you can still claim the 50% of the total amount.
What happens to tickets after flight cancellation?
Alternatives ways after your Flights to Lukla get canceled,
There are major 2 other ways:
Flight to Lukla Flight by Helicopter :
Helicopter to Lukla instead of Flight is a costly option but it’s one of the easiest to get to Lukla . If you have limited time and a bit of money to spend then you can get to Lukla by paying 500 USD. So when you deduct the Flight to Lukla money then it will be 300 USD more for 1 way Flight . This seems to be very common when there are no Flights to Lukla due to any reason. The thing to be noted is that the cost of Helicopter tends to be higher when there is no Flights to Lukla . Also shortage of helicopters is very common when there are many Trekkers . Most priority is given to medical evacuation by Helicopter Company so the stranded tourist just has to wait and watch the weather forecast. There is many times that weather and visibility is so bad that even the Helicopter cannot Fly.
Kathmandu to Lukla via Salleri :
This option can be a bit lengthy and economical but when the flights to lukla are cancelled than this option can be a lifesaver. You can ask your Travel agency to book a Jeep Ticket to salleri . Jeep ride from Kathmandu to salleri is 9 Hrs. Nowadays the road to Salleri is very good. All the jeeps to Salleri leave at 5 AM. We can arrange the jeep to Pick you up from your Located hotel if you are 2 or more person. After reaching Salleri there are plenty of Hotels where you can make yourself comfortable. After Salleri we catch the Jeep to Thamdanda which is 5 Hrs of drive from Salleri . This is the last place till where the jeep goes . This road is very rough and off-road and only four wheel jeeps can Travel . We than have to hike for 1 and half hours to reach Paiyan from Thamdanda . Likewise the next day after 45 minutes of walk we can reach Lukla . Like this we can reach Lukla from Kathmandu without the help of any Flights. This is very budget friendly and used by Trekkers incase of Flight cancellation or delay.
Picture of Lukla Airport is Below :
