Ice climbing in January

This is a technical climb, not a hard walk

Roped glacier travel, crampons and an ice axe you can actually use. If you have not been taught crevasse rescue, you are relying entirely on somebody who has.

Check what your insurance excludes

Most travel policies stop covering you above a stated altitude or exclude mountaineering by name. A helicopter off a Himalayan peak is the traveller's bill, and it is a large one.

The summit is optional and the weather decides

Turnaround times exist to be obeyed, and a team that has paid a great deal of money is exactly the team most likely to ignore one. Agree the turnaround before the summit night, not on it.

Acclimatise on the schedule you were given

At these heights the difference between the published rotation and a faster one is not toughness, it is pulmonary oedema.

Who is actually running this trip?

The operator you picked on the compare screen. You book and pay MyAdventure; the operator runs the trip for us. MyAdventure handles refunds, and steps in if the batch is cancelled.

What if I cannot complete it?

Ask the operator what their turn-back protocol is — it varies by trip, and the good ones publish it.

Is the batch mixed-gender and solo-friendly?

Most departures take solo travellers and share accommodation by gender. Confirm with the operator for this batch.