Guide: This is a mountain guide, licensed by the Ministry of Tourism. Their expertise will have to do with the trails, weather conditions, high altitude, the mountains around, respect for local traditions and rituals. They will also have the educated Nepali's knowledge of the different kinds of ethnicities along the trail. But they are not - and this point is very important - cultural guides. They generally won't be able to tell you in great detail about religion, people, habits, development, history etc. If you anticipate wanting to know a lot more about the people and places you see, we suggest you take along a cultural guide as part of a supplement.

Climbing Guide: On 'trekking peak' expeditions the person who will help you navigate the mountain, ropes etc.
Sirdar: The boss. Responsible for the running of your entire trek, supervision of the team of staff etc.

Cook: There's a reason for the pre-occupation with meals here - one, trekking is really hungry work, two, getting used to a new kind of cooking can take more time and energy than some people have, and three, the last thing you want is to get sick on a trek. This is why our cooks are highly experienced and knowledgeable about cooking styles and hygiene. They make sure that you get the freshest, cleanest, and most appetising food possible with tasty Nepali, Tibetan, and continental meals.

Sherpa: The person responsible for the equipment, such as tents etc, also acts as a night guard and in case of sickness or accident, carries the client/ staff member to the nearest place where medical help is available.
Kitchen boys: They assist the cook in turning out all the delicacies, serve the tea and meals, and do the washing up.

Porters: Porters with Design Himalaya are well taken care of. They carry not more than 25 kg each (equipment, tents, kitchen supplies, your belongings etc). For porters - who tend to be the least privileged of all trekking staff - are often ignored and unaware of the dangers of high altitude, frostbite etc, our agency provides its porters appropriate clothes, shoes, sunglasses etc.

All our Nepali trekking staff are covered by agency-paid medical and health insurance.