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The pale yellow buildings of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute around a paved courtyard with a tall tree and hills behind
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Photo: Pinakpani · CC BY-SA 4.0
museum6 min from Darjeeling

Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling — the school founded after Everest

The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI), Darjeeling: founded on 4 November 1954 after Everest was first climbed, with Tenzing Norgay as field director.

What it is

The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, HMI to everyone in Darjeeling, is India's old school of mountaineering, on the hillside beside the zoo, about 6 minutes from the centre by road on our routing. It was founded on 4 November 1954.

Photos: Pinakpani (CC BY-SA 4.0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.

Founded after Everest

When Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary reached the top of Everest in 1953, climbing caught the imagination of the hills, and Jawaharlal Nehru backed a school for it in Darjeeling. N. D. Jayal was its founding principal, and Tenzing Norgay, who lived in Darjeeling, became its first director of field training. The American architect Joseph Allen Stein designed its buildings, the first work of a long career in India.

Today

The institute still trains climbers, with adventure, basic and advanced courses that Wikipedia says are heavily subsidised. Visitors come for its campus and museum next to the zoo. We have no verified hours or charges.

Combine it with

The half-day plan and the three-day plan both include it. Read things to do in Darjeeling.

Plans that include this

All 3 plans that stop here →
A red panda with russet fur curled asleep on a mossy tree branch among leaves at the Darjeeling zoo
A Darjeeling half-day — the zoo, the mountaineering institute and the botanical garden
Day plan · Family · leisure
A Darjeeling half-day for families: the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute and Lloyd's Botanical Garden.
Best Mar–May · Oct–Nov
See the plan →
A red panda with russet fur curled asleep on a mossy tree branch among leaves at the Darjeeling zoo
Darjeeling with kids in two days — red pandas, a toy train and a tea garden
1 night · 2 days · families with children · family
Darjeeling with children in two easy days: red pandas at the zoo, the mountaineering museum, a bird museum, the toy train over Batasia Loop, a tea garden.
Best Apr–May · Sep–Nov
See the plan →
Rows of tea bushes covering a rounded green hill at the Happy Valley Tea Estate under a cloudy sky, with prayer flags at the top
Darjeeling in three days — Tiger Hill and Senchal, the zoo and the tea, and the old town
2 nights · 3 days · Family · Classic
A three-day Darjeeling plan: Tiger Hill sunrise, Batasia Loop and Senchal Lake, the zoo and HMI, Happy Valley Tea Estate and the old town on foot. Copy it.
Best Mar–May · Oct–Nov
See the plan →

Nearby places

All of Darjeeling →
Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling — the high-altitude zoo
Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling — the high-altitude zoo
park · 56 m away
Happy Valley Tea Estate, Darjeeling — the town's second oldest tea garden
Happy Valley Tea Estate, Darjeeling — the town's second oldest tea garden
park · 1.2 km away
St Andrew's Church, Darjeeling — the town's oldest church
St Andrew's Church, Darjeeling — the town's oldest church
monument · 1.7 km away
Lloyd's Botanical Garden, Darjeeling — the Himalayan plants below the town
Lloyd's Botanical Garden, Darjeeling — the Himalayan plants below the town
monument · 1.8 km away
Mahakal Temple, Darjeeling — the Shiva shrine on Observatory Hill
Mahakal Temple, Darjeeling — the Shiva shrine on Observatory Hill
temple · 1.8 km away
Chowrasta, Darjeeling — the town square on the Mall
Chowrasta, Darjeeling — the town square on the Mall
area · 2.0 km away
Darjeeling Himalayan Railway — the toy train and its loops
Darjeeling Himalayan Railway — the toy train and its loops
monument · 2.0 km away
Peace Pagoda, Darjeeling — the white Japanese stupa on Jalapahar
Peace Pagoda, Darjeeling — the white Japanese stupa on Jalapahar
temple · 3.4 km away

Nearby destinations

All destinations →
The huge copper-coloured seated statue of Guru Padmasambhava on its painted base on Samdruptse hill under a grey sky
Namchi
16 km away · 2 itineraries · 3 places
A long snow-covered Kanchenjunga ridge in blue morning light above dark forested hills with a few wisps of cloud
Pelling
27 km away · 3 itineraries · 8 places
The seated golden and dark-blue Buddha statue on a stepped, richly painted base against a forested hillside and a cloudy sky
Ravangla
30 km away · 1 itineraries · 3 places
Pastel-coloured buildings of Gangtok climbing a steep, forested hillside, seen from a viewpoint across the valley
Gangtok
47 km away · 5 itineraries · 11 places
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Questions people ask

When was the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute founded?

On 4 November 1954, the year after Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary first climbed Everest. Wikipedia says the push came from Jawaharlal Nehru, with N. D. Jayal as founding principal and Tenzing Norgay as the first director of field training, to make mountaineering an organised sport in India.

Where is HMI in Darjeeling?

On Birch Hill beside the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, about 6 minutes by road from the centre of Darjeeling on our routing, so the two are usually seen together in a morning. We have no verified opening hours or entry fee; ask locally.

Does HMI run mountaineering courses?

Yes. Wikipedia says it runs adventure, basic and advanced mountaineering courses, highly subsidised to encourage the sport. For dates, eligibility and fees, check with the institute itself before you plan; we cannot verify them here, and they change from year to year.