Sunrise on Everest from Namche's park hill

From inside Namche's bowl you see Kongde Ri and Thamserku, but not Everest. For that you climb the stepped path at the east side of town, past the last lodges and an army post, to the grassy ridge at Mendalphu where the park headquarters stands. On a clear morning the view runs up the valley: Everest's dark summit pyramid above the long Nuptse–Lhotse wall, Ama Dablam's sharp ridge to the right, and Thamserku close across the gorge.

Go at dawn. In October, November and December the sky is often clear early, and sunrise lights the summits gold while the valleys stay in shadow. Bring a thermos of tea and a down jacket, because frost is normal. Himalayan tahr, the shaggy wild goats, graze on the slopes below, and you may hear or see Himalayan monal, Nepal's national bird, in the scrub.

After breakfast, return to look around the visitor centre, which has displays on the park's creation in 1976, its UNESCO listing in 1979, Sherpa culture and the wildlife of Khumbu. Nearby small private museums show a traditional Sherpa house and mountaineering photographs. The walk up and back counts as a short acclimatisation outing before a bigger hike later in the day.