A few weeks ago, a Beijing newspaper announced that the Chinese government was building a new mountaineering center and hotel near the north side of Everest. …

The mountaineering center will be located in Old Tingri, a town 40 miles northwest of Everest, and will house much of the infrastructure we currently associate with the French Alps: a heli base for rescue operations on the mountain, a mountaineering school for high altitude workers, and a fully stocked hotel. …

The mountaineering center is scheduled to be completed by 2019, three years ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

Outside

I hiked Tingri (Dingri) to Everest in 1998. Dingri was one crappy town at that time. Seems it’s not improved much in the years since.

Dingri 2011

As always, there will be pros and cons in commercializing Everest in Tibet.