Legendary mountaineer Reinhold Messner on Thursday derided climbs of Mt. Everest these days as mere "tourism."

"It is not mountaineering that is going on," said Messner, who carved his name in mountaineering history by climbing Mt. Everest without supplementary oxygen in 1978, followed by making the first solo climb of the world's highest peak two years later.

(Mt. Everest)

"There is a big difference between the ascent of (Edmund) Hillary and the ascents of today," Messner, 73, told journalists, referring to the New Zealand mountaineer who, along with Nepalese climber Tenzing Norgay, was the first to reach the summit in 1953.

He spoke at an event organized by the Nepalese government on the 40th anniversary of the 1978 feat, which he achieved with Austrian mountaineer Peter Habeler.

Messner, who is also the first person to climb all 14 peaks higher than 8,000 meters, added, "If alpinism is adventure, you should reduce technical aid."

The Italian said that in his time it was the climbers who fixed routes and did the climbing, while nowadays the Sherpas prepare everything and even guide climbers to the top.

Messner's comments echo the criticism made by many alpinists of lax regulations in Nepal for those wishing to make a name by climbing the 8,848-meter peak.

(Reinhold Messner, 3rd from right, in Kathmandu)

For years, alpinists have complained that cheap expedition operators are not only putting the lives of climbers and Sherpas at risk, but are also creating bottlenecks on the mountain that is climbed taking advantage of narrow weather windows in mid- to late May.

After climbing was called off in 2014 and 2015 due to an avalanche and an earthquake, respectively, the number of climbers surged to 451 people, including Sherpa guides, in 2016 and 445 last year.

For this spring season, the government has issued permits to 346 climbers for Mt. Everest. Usually, a climber is accompanied by one to two Sherpa guides right until the summit.

Nepal charges $11,000 per person for a permit to climb Mt. Everest.