Six cities and one prefecture of Tibet Tours

Travel in Tibet Autonomous Region should be an organized tour and it is very important to get to know a general knowledge of Tibet from the point of geography before you go to Tibet. Tibet Autonomous Region is located in the southwest of the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, with an average altitude of more than 4000 meters, known as the “roof of the world”.

Lhasa is the capital of Tibet and the headquarters of the Tibet Autonomous Region which is one of the five ethnic autonomous regions in China.

Tibet Autonomous Region is the province with the least population and density in China. Today’s population of Tibet Autonomous Region is 2.8000 million and eighty thousand people. 

The population distribution of the whole region is very unbalanced, mainly concentrated in the South and East. The middle reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo River and its main tributaries, Lhasa River and Niangchu River Basin, are the most densely populated areas. Ali in the west of Tibet and Naqu in the north of Tibet have a very small population. The northern part of Qiangtang grassland is even called “no man’s land”.

It is essential to know how this big Tibetan high plateau is divided before the travel in Tibet Autonomous Region. Tibet Autonomous Region is divided into six cities and one prefecture. They are Lhasa city in the center, Shigatse city in the west, Shannan city in the south, Nyingtri city in the eastern forest region, Nagqu city in the north, Chamdo city in the far east and Ngari prefecture in the far west.

Lhasa, which means “holy land” or “Buddhist land” in Tibetan, has been the political, economic, cultural and religious center of Tibet. The magnificent Potala Palace is the symbol of the supreme political and religious regime and it is a must visit sights when you travel in Tibet.

 As early as the seventh century, after Songtsan Gampo annexed neighboring tribes and unified Tibet, Songtsan Gampo moved his capital from Yarlung valley to Lhasa, (now Lhasa), and established the Tubo dynasty.

Shannan ( Lhoka in Tibetan ) , a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of the Tibet Autonomous Region is located to the south of Lhasa city and lower reaches of the main stream of the Brahmaputra River ( Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan ) from Kailash ( Gangdise or Kang Rinpoche in Tibetan ) to Nyenchen Tang Gu la Mountain.

Shannan is considered as the origins of Tibetans and believe that the monkey and mountain ogress got married and gave birth to the six offspring. Those 6 offspring were multiplied to five hundred offspring and slowly, those offspring are believed to be transformed into human beings.

According to the legend, the monkey is considered as the manifestation of Avalokitesvara or the god of compassion and the supine ogress is considered as the manifestation of Tara. During your Tibet tour, you can see a big mountain called Wangpo Ri in front of Tsetang, the head city of Shannan which is the place where the monkey and mountain ogress used to give the birth.

Shannan has more than 600 kilometers long boundary line with a very important strategic position. Samye Is one of the main scenic spots of Yarlung valley, located in Samye Town under Shannan District of Tibet Autonomous Region.

Samye monastery was built in the period of Tubo Dynasty in the 8th century AD during the reign of Tibetan King Trisong Detsen. It is the first monastery in Tibet where seven wise men were ordained and become the first monks of Tibet.

The construction of Samye monastery was built according to the Buddhist cosmology, surrounded by beautiful different colored Buddhist stupa. The central Buddha Hall building has three styles of Tibetan, Han and India. Samye monastery is one of the most interesting scenic sights to visit during your Tibet tour.

Shigatse, a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of the Tibet Autonomous Region, is located in the southwest border of the People’s Republic of China. Shigatse has a population of 750,000 in 2017 and has jurisdiction over 1 municipal district and 17 counties. There is Mount Everest, in Dingri County, Shigatse city, the highest peak in the world. If you plan to travel in Tibet Autonomous Region, you should not miss to travel to Everest Base Camp from Tibet side.

There are many other cultural sights and scenic sights in Shigatse such as Shigatse and Gyantse fortress ( Dzong in Tibetan ), Tashi Lhunpo monastery, the seat of the Penchen Lama and a home to a giant statue of Maitreya Buddha or the future Budha, Palchoe monastery and Kubum Pagoda stupa, the biggest Buddhist stuap in Tibet, Shalu monastery, dominated by it’s unique green rooftop, Sakya monastery where it holds the largest Buddhist library in the world and five most beautiful Tibet trekking gorges in the world including Kangshung face valley.

Chamdo, officially Qamdo or Changdou in Chinese, a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of the Tibet Autonomous Region , is located in the Hengduan Mountain and the Sanjiang River ( three rivers )  (Jinsha River, Lancang River, Nujiang River) basins, located in the eastern part of Tibet, at the border between Tibet and Sichuan, Qinghai and Yunnan.

With Chamdo as the center, known as “Pearl of Tibet East” laudatory name. Ranwu lake is located in Ranwu Town, Bashoe County, Chamdo City, about 90 kilometers away from the county seat of Bashoe. It is the main source of PALONG Tsangpo river, a tributary of Yarlong Tsangpo River. Ranwu Lake in Tibetan means “goat milk like Lake”. The whole lake is like a narrow river valley, When the ice and snow melt, the snow water will flow into the lake, so that there is always abundant water here.

Chamdo was not opened to the tourist till 2019 so there are many nice and off the beaten trails to be discovered if you make a plan to travel to Chamdo during your Tibet tour. One of the most adventurous and beautiful Tibet adventure tours is Shangrila to Lhasa overland tour which takes you to many beautiful places in Chamdo. During this spectacular Tibet overland tour, you will drive along the beautiful villages of Tsakalo, salt field village, Ranwu lake and Chamdo Jampaling monastery so on.

Without making several travel in Tibet Autonomous Region, you cannot complete exploring the most beautiful parts of Tibet such as Nyingtri, a prefecture-level city of the Tibet Autonomous Region, is known as Gongbu .meaning “the throne of the Niang family or the throne of the sun “. Located in the southeast of Tibet, the middle and lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo River, Nyingtri has beautiful scenery, dominated by dense forest, snow-capped mountains, beautiful glacier and gorgeous lakes.

Many areas in Nyingtri are known as “the south of Tibet because they are located to the border between Tibet and India”. There are Nyingtri Peach Blossom Festival, rich and colorful Nyingtri ditch, etc. At the bottom of Metok County and Zayul County, there is the deepest canyon in the world – Yarlung Tsangpo River Grand Canyon and the third deepest canyon in the world – PALONG Zangbo Grand Canyon. If you are tired of visiting wilderness of the Tibetan plateau and dessert land, you can make a visit to Nyingtri during your travel in Tibet Autonomous Region.

Nagchu or Naqu officially, a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It is located in the north of Tibet and the eastern end of Changtang plateau or Qiangtang Plateau, the mountains are continuously distributed, divided by many lakes and basins, and the lakes are scattered. The average altitude is above 4500 meters. The climate is dry with high cold and lack of oxygen.

Nagchu, Naqu officially, was once called “black river” because of the Nagchu River in the upper reaches of Nujiang River passing through the territory. People in northern Tibet are enthusiastic, open-minded, generous and helpful. They are especially good at singing and dancing. They have melodious singing, beautiful dancing and bright rhythm, especially tap dancing and circle dancing.

Ngari, officially known as Ali, region is a prefecture-level administrative region of the Tibet Autonomous Region, located in the northern part of the Qinghai Tibet Plateau — the core of the Qiangtang Plateau, “Ali” is a transliteration of Tibetan, meaning “territory”,etc.

Until the beginning of the 9th century, it was still called Shangzhong “Xiang Xiong officially “. In Chinese historical records, different dynasties have different names for it. With an average altitude of more than 4500 meters, Ali area is known as “the roof of the roof of the world”, “the third pole of the world” and “the forbidden area of life”.

The main mountains in the territory are the great Himalayas, Gangdise or Kailash, Karakoram Mountain, etc., the main rivers are Senge Kabob or Shiquan River, Xiangquan River, Peacock River, etc., and the main lakes are Mansarovar lake, Zarina mucuo, Bangong Lake, Rakshastal lake, etc. The mystical Guge Kingdom and Tholing monastery which are the second highlights of Ali region when you make a travel in Tibet Autonomous Region.

Nepal Travel and Tourism by Tibet Shambhala Adventure

Zhangmu, Gyirong or Kyirong and Hilsa Borders

There are four ways to go to Tibet from Nepal. One way to go to Tibet from Nepal is by air ( fly to Lhasa from Kathmandu ) and another way to go to Tibet from Nepal is by land ( Nepal to Gyirong border, Nepal to Zhangmu border, Nepal to Hilsa border )

Zhangmu was one of the most popular ways to go to Tibet from Nepal prior to the earth Quake in Nepal in 2015.

Zhangmu, which can be known in three different languages as “Dram in Tibetan” “Zhangmu in Chinese” and “Khasa in Nepali” Language.

It is a custom town and a border between Nepal and Tibet which located in Nyalam County under Shigatse District. On Nepal side there is a town called Kodari. The friendship bridge is the border line between Nepal and Tibet, where tourist crossing the border and trade are happening between Tibet and Nepal.

The altitude of Zhangmu is 2300 meters ( 7546ft ) above sea level and have very pleasant climate of mild and humid, hot in summer, rainy, snowy but warm in winter as compare to other place in Tibet. It surrounds with bushed, trees and greeneries & flowers blossomed almost throughout the year.

Zhangmu was also quite noisy as well because of many trucks loaded with the things, transportation take place. You can find schools, banks, restaurant, bazaar, offices, hotels etc. besides the street. Everyday lots of trucks loaded with things from Nepal as well as China are going between narrow roads.

Zhangmu has become the most welcome sight both for Tourist as well as well as for traders.

For tourists who like to go to Tibet from Nepal, it was very exciting and convenient to go to Tibet from Zhangmu because in the one hand, they can reach Zhangmu border in 4 hours drive and in the other hand, they can get to Everest Base Camp from Tibet side in two days, magnificent Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world.

Because of the beautiful place and some custom paper work, it is worth to stay overnight in Zhangmu. There is 790km away from Lhasa city to Zhangmu and there are many cultural sights to visit between Zhangmu and Lhasa during your Tibet trekking tour. .

Unfortunately, April 2015 Nepal and the bordered towns of Tibet hit by the earth quake very badly and being a border Zhangmu and Gyirong also effected with loss of local people’s life and homes, which led the local people of Zhangmu were evacuated and stayed in Shigatse until now.

But in 29^th May 2019, the Zhangmu border was re-opened only for the small business. We are looking forward to the day announcement for reopening Zhangmu for the tourist and local people to return back to their hometown.

Zhangmu and Gyirong Border Bridge was badly damaged by the earth quake but Gyirong border experienced quicker recover & safer and open the border for trade as well as for tourists who travel to Tibet from Nepal or the tourists who can travel to Nepal from Tibet.

Gyirong was a restrict area until 2017 and it was closed to both tourists and trades. In around September 2017, Gyirong border was opened to both trades and tourists and it has become the most popular border for the tourists who go to Tibet from Nepal.

GYIRONG BORDER

Gyirong Border with the altitude of 2800meters ( 8900fts) has monsoon climate with warm weather. Gyirong has higher in altitude as compare to Zhangmu Border. It is under Shigatse District as well. On the other side, there have Rasuwa fort of Nepal. The Gyirong Border Bridge were reconstructed after damaged by the earth quake hit in 2015.

Thus, the tourist and trade are happening there since 2017. Most of tourists like to choose Nepal to Tibet Overland tour through Gyriong Border. Gyirong has a beautiful valley known as Gyirong Valley.

SIGHTSEEING IN GYIRONG

Gyirong is worth to stay overnight which you could enjoy the pleasant weather with greeneries all around. In Gyirong, You can also visit some sights like Pakba Lhakang (Monastery). The monastery was built by King Songtsen Gampo and the structure of monastery is very much like Nepali Temple.

The ruins of Gongtang Kingdom which was first found by King Songtsen Gampo. There is also an old temple called Dolma Lhakang.

Rigsong-Gonpo Statue which means statue of the three Bodhisattvas, the statue was carved on the rock. In the middle, there is Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, on the left there is Vajrapani Bodhisattva and on the next left, Manjushri Bodhisattva.

TRAVEL ROUTE TO EVEREST BASE CAMP FROM GYIRONG

If you want to visit Everest, then there is around 400km driving distance from Gyirong which will take about 7 hrs and on the way, you will see the most beautiful landscape of Pekutso lake, Shisha Bangma and Jo Oyu snow mountains.

The tourists can travel from Nepal to Tibet via Gyirong-Old Tingri-Rongbuk-Everest Base Camp from Tibet side-Shigatse-Gyantse Lhasa or the vise verse. By road, Gyirong has a distance of about 850 kilometers from Lhasa if you drive directly. The port is only 18km away from Gyirong Town which will take about 40min drive.

Tibet Shambhala Adventure will provide you the most popular tours like Kathmandu to Lhasa overland tour, Everest Base Camp Tour, Kailash tour, cultural tours and or a tailor made Tibet tour according to your choice.

WHEN TO VISIT TIBET VIA GYIRONG

It is the key point and very important to choose the best season to travel to Tibet from Nepal via Gyirong border. From May to Oct is the best time to go to Tibet from Nepal via Gyirong as well.

There is no much snow in winter in Gyirong. If you choose to do Tibet winter tour through Gyirong, then Gyirong has very pleasant weather.

ACCOMMODATION IN GYIRONG

There is no hotels or guest house at the border itself But there are some good hotels and guest houses in Gyirong town where tourists are allowed to stay.

We Tibet Shambhala Adventure will take care of everything like accommodation, transportation, food etc. throughout the Tibet trip. In Gyirong, you will get Tibetan, Nepali and Chinese meals.

OPENING AND CLOSING TIME OF GYIRONG BORDER

The custom at Gyirong Border opens at 10:00 and close at 17:30 Beijing Time. Gyirong Port is the largest Overland port in Tibet where trading are happening and handling thousands of tourists through this border. It is the only overland entry into Tibet Autonomous Region from Nepal.

Go TO TIBET FROM NEPAL VIA HILSA BORDER IN THE WESTERN TIBET

Another way to go to Tibet from Nepal is Hilsa border. Hilsa border is located close to Purang county. Purang county is one of the lowest areas of Ngari regions with a altitude of 3600mts above sea level, located to the south of Mount Kailash at the distance of 120km.

The things to see between Hilsa border and Purang county are Korzhak or Korcha monastery which has more than a thousand years history and different kinds of ethnic people including Nepali, Tibetan and Chinese.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO GO TO TIBET FROM NEPAL THROUGH HILSA BORDER

The best time to go to Tibet from Nepal through Hilsa border is from May-Mid October and many tourists choose the trekking route from Simikot to Hilsa border. They trek from Simikot to Hilsa border for around 7 days and cross the border and get to Mount Kailash. There are thousands of Indian pilgrims who fly to Hilsa border by helicopter and drive to Mount Kailash.

Hilsa border usually opens by around 10. Am Beijing time until 5.00 Pm but usually the Chinese army comes to the custom any time between this specific time if the local Tibetan travel guide requests them.

The distance from Hilsa border to Kailash is just around 160km with a very good road condition. On the way, you will have fantastic view of Mt Kailash, Rakshastal lake and Mansarovar lake. The distance from Hilsa border to Lhasa is 1365km through the wilderness of the western plateau and Shigatse city.

Tibet Shambhala Adventure is an expert to design you any kinds of tailor made Tibet tours or you can choose our readymade Tibet travel packages from our website. The Tibet trips that you book with Tibet Shambhala Adventure will assure to be a comfortable, interesting and authentic Tibet travel tour. So, don’t miss this precious opportunity to have your unforgettable lifetime Tibet travel experience with Tibet Shambhala Adventure.

8 days Nepal to Tibet tour

Nepal to Tibet Overland Tour

 8 days Nepal to Tibet Overland Tour is the most famous tour where you can visit two countries with different culture, traditions, variety in food, Religion etc. some are common for instant Religion like Buddhism are also practicing in Nepal and shares the world’s highest mountain. 

Nepal and Tibet are the closest neighbor where you can have breathtaking drive from Kathmandu to Tibet via Kyirong Border, for now the only border crossing between Nepal and Tibet is Kyirong Border. So, this Tibet tour will be the best option for you to experience with Tibet Shambhala Adventure. “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step”.

How to get to Nepal?There are two ways to get to Nepal. First way to get to Nepal is by Air. Nepal is very much flexible to the tourists to enter Nepal so if you just think of traveling to Nepal, you can easily book a ticket and fly to Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal. You don’t have to prepare visa before your arrival since Nepal government gives arrival visa to most of the countries’ tourist.

Usually, the shortest visa that you can get at the airport is 15 days Nepal tourist visa and it cost around 25US$. If you already plan to travel to Tibet from Nepal and back to Nepal after your Tibet travel, you might ask for a multiple entry visa so that you don’t have to ask again another visa to enter Nepal when you return from Tibet. The multiple visa might cost a little higher and longer days of visa.

How to look for a right travel agency in Kathmandu for Nepal to Tibet overland tour ?

There are thousands of travel agencies in Kathmandu and you will see several hundreds of travel agencies in Thamel Bazar of Kathmandu valley. Most of those travel agencies can help you to arrange Nepal to Tibet overland tour and can help you to get China group visa for Tibet travel.

Another way to look for a right travel agency is to search the best local Tibetan travel agency from google or other internet resources and you can directly deal with local Tibetan travel agency who can give you more accurate information and better Tibet trip cost prior to your arrival in Nepal or even from Kathmandu.

How to get China visa and Tibet travel permit for the Nepal to Tibet overland tour?

Make sure that you must have around a week time to wait in Kathmandu for the documents of China visa and Tibet travel permit if you book the trip in Nepal. The Nepalese agency has to get China visa invitation letter from the partner Tibetan travel agency and the application of China visa in Kathmandu takes you three working days.

Make sure that your passport is not a diplomatic passport and that you don’t enter Nepal with diplomatic passport because without Nepal visa on your normal passport, you will not be able to enter Tibet from Kyirong border.

Driving distance from Kathmandu to Kyirong border in Tibet ?

The driving distance between Kathmandu and Kyirong border is 150Km only but the road condition is not so good, especially during the summer because it is a heavy monsoon in Nepal and sometimes it is possible to have heavy landslides as well. An adventure four-wheel drive journey is started early in the morning in Kathmandu and arrive in Kyirong between 2-3.00 Pm Beijing time.

Kyirong is the bordered town between Nepal and Tibet. The total driving time is  around 8-9 hours. The landscape is beautiful, dominated by hillside villages, forested gorge, and green rise field and the Langtang national park.

How to cross Nepal Tibet border?

Once you arrive in Syaburibesi at Nepal side, there are Nepali border guides who can travel to China Tibet side with special license so our Nepali guides will introduce to the border guides and will take you to Tibet side. Just take a departure stamp from Nepal custom at Syaburibesi and walk over the friendship bridge between Nepal and China Tibet.

Meet your local Tibetan travel guide at China custom with all your necessary Tibet travel permits with him. Be in the queue, give the passports to your Tibetan guide. The guide will do necessary paper work from China custom and then give the passports back. Get entry stamp on your China group visa and drive to Kyirong town which is 18km from the border. The road condition is far better than the road in Nepal.

Is it important to spend a night in Kyirong border?

It is very important to have a night in Kyirong during Nepal to Tibet overland tour because in the one hand, the travel distance from Kathmandu to Kyirong is very long and tough. In the other hand, your Tibetan guide must make another Tibet permit from PSB (People’s Security Bureau ) by showing your original passports for the travel route from Kyirong to Lhasa. Another reason to spend a night in Kyirong is to acclimatize to the condition of high altitude in order to succeed your Tibet travel.

How far is the travel distance from Kyirong to Lhasa?

This Nepal to Tibet overland tour officially begins from Kyirong town. Kyirong is the birth place of Milarepa who is one of the most famous Buddhist Yogi, got enlightenment within his lifetime. If the time permits, you can also visit this sacred cave on a rocky mountain to the left side of the main road to Lhasa after around 20km drive from Kyirong. The total distance of 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour is around 1098km from Kathmandu to Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet.

What you can see during 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour?

This Tibet overland tour will take you through some of the highest mountain passes including Gungtang la pass, Gyatso la pass, Karola pass and Kampa pass. All those high mountain passes are above 5000mts above sea level and you will enjoy a panoramic view of different Himalayan Mountain ranges and beautiful lakes including Yamdrok lake.

You will drive through beautiful Tibetan villages, dominated by their unique Tibetan architects with white washed walls, colorful prayer flags raised onto the roof of the Tibetan traditional houses, fertile lands of barley and rapeseed flowers, great view of Mt Everest and other above 8000mts mountains including Shisha Bangma and Jo Oyu.

Visit Shigatse, the second largest city of Tibet and Tashi Lhunpo monastery, one of the six largest monasteries in Tibet and the seat of the successive of the Penchen Lama.

Gyantse town, one of the least influenced town from modernization and a home to Palchoe monastery and Kubum Pagoda stupa, the largest Buddhist stupa in Tibet with 9 stories high. The old town of Gyantse and the Tibetans who are into their traditional costume makes the town very unique and special. Old fortress of Gyantse Dzong and beautiful Tibetan traditional houses make it a real Tibet.

After Gyantse, your 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour takes you to Lhasa city via Karola glacier, located to the foot of Nechen Kangsang snow mountain ( 7200m ) and Yamdrok lake, one of the most beautiful and most sacred lakes in Tibet. You will be driving along the lake side and will enjoy seeing a fantastic view of entire Yamdrok lake and Nechen Kangsang snow mountain from the top of Kampala pass which is the last highest mountain pass during your 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour.

Driving down the zigzag road of Kampala pass, you will enter into the Brahmaputra river valley ( Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan ) The valley is created by Brahmaputra river which is the longest and largest river in Tibet, starts its source from the western part of Tibet near Mount Kailash, flows through Shigatse, Tsetang, the cradle of Tibet, located to the south of Lhasa city and continuously to the south and finally empties into the Bay of Bengal.

In the summer time, the valley is very beautiful by extreme green trees, barley field, and beautiful Tibetan villages and finally enter into Lhasa, seeing the Potala Palace standing still in front of you when you cross over the bridge of Lhasa river after Lhasa train station, Eventually, reaching Lhasa as your final destination of the 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour.

Lhasa is the center of Tibetan culture, religion, business and official headquarters. It is also the home to some of the most famous and greatest sights of the Buddhist temples, Palaces and monasteries. Some of them have been listed in the UNESCO world heritage sites. Visiting the highlights of the Lhasa city including the Potala Palace, Jokang temple as the UNESCO world heritage sites and Drepung and Sera monasteries, the largest Buddhist philosophical colleges in the world, dominated by beautiful Tibetan traditional buildings, old wall painting and lots of ancient culture and antiques inside the monasteries.

If you visit the monasteries during special occasions, you will witness monks chanting, musk dancing and of course monks debating in Sera monastery. During your Tibet tour, you can also see some of Tibetan festivals such as Shoton festival or Yogurt festival in the middle of summer, monks’ musk dancing festivals or Thangka display festivals if you are lucky to take Tibet tour for a right time of the festival.

During your Tibet tour, it is very important to take a walk around the Jokang temple and enjoy walking with local Tibetans around the Jokang temple and watching the Bazzar in Bharkor. In front of the Jokang temple, it is very interesting to spend some time to watch a big group of Tibetan pilgrims who are doing prostration in front of the joking temple to pay homage to the most sacred statue of Buddha Shakyamuni.

Condition of the Road from Kyirong to Lhasa:

The road condition in Tibet these days is very good and most part of the road in all the regions of Tibet is paved so it make the tourist to travel to Tibet more conveniently than before. Regarding on the road condition of this 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour, apart from Nepal side, the road for entire Tibet journey is paved so it is an easy and comfortable road journey except crossing some of the highest mountain passes of the Himalayas through many zigzag roads.

When is the best time to do 8 days Nepal to Tibet Overland Tour?

The best time to do this beautiful Nepal to Tibet overland tour is from April-October because during this period of time, you can see beautiful green scenery, warm and beautiful weather, comfortable temperature and many Tibetan traditional festivals also occur during summer time but you can do this Tibet tour throughout the year because of a good road condition and good facility on the way from Kyirong to Lhasa.

What kind of food you will get during Nepal to Tibet overland tour?

Nowadays, no need to worry about the food in Tibet during your Tibet trip because there are plenty of Chinese and Tibetan restaurants in every stop like Kyirong, Tingri, Shigatse and Gyantse. In Kyirong, Shigatse and Gyantse, you can also find restaurants which serve continental food as well.

Once you arrive in Lhasa, you will have a variety of food options that there are western, Chinese and Tibetan restaurants and many of them are high quality restaurants where you can get different kinds of imported wine and whisky.

What kind of hotel you will get during this Tibet tour?

Nowadays, the hotel facility in Tibet has been improved a lot for the last 10 years so there are different optional hotels available on the way during your Tibet trip.

In Kyirong, there are a few good 3* conditioned hotels, in new Tingri ( Shegar in Tibetan ), there are a couple of good conditioned 3* hotels, in Shigatse, there are optional hotels from 4 star to 1 star, in Gyantse, the best available hotels are 3* and in Lhasa, you can find the best hotel from Shangrila or ST Regis Lhasa Resort and Lubhum Tsang boutique hotel and Songtsam Choekyiling resort and many other optional different kinds of hotels from 5 star to 1 star.

What kind of guide you will get for the Tibet trip ?

Most of the time, you will get English speaking guides in Tibet but if you have a specific language speaking guide request, Tibet Shambhala Adventure can arrange you French, German, Italian, Spanish and Russian speaking guides for your Tibet tour. All the guides of Tibet Shambhala Adventure are local Tibetans and they are knowledgeable and very well know the culture, religion, lifestyle of the people of Tibet and so on. 

What kind of vehicle you will get during Nepal to Tibet overland tour?

In Tibet, you must have a tourist licensed vehicle and it depends on what kind of vehicles you will be provided. Normally, it depends on the size of your group. If the group number is above 4 people, we will arrange comfortable mini van, or van, mini bus or bus according to the group size. Tibet has the largest tourist bus as 29 seats. If your group is bigger than 27 people, then we will arrange two buses for the Tibet trip.

Is there high altitude problem for this Tibet tour?

Usually, having a little dizzy or headache in the beginning of Tibet tour, it is very common and usually, this kind of symptom will be gone after 2-3 days in Tibet. Drinking a lot of water is compulsory and you might take some high altitude herbal medicine, made in Tibet which really helps you to avoid from altitude sickness. In general, most of the tourists don’t get severe altitude sickness because this kind of Tibet tour is slowly moving around.

How is the travel Rescue and evacuation system for this Tibet travel tour?

Actually, there is no need of travel evacuation for this kind of Tibet trip because you are traveling through towns and cities so just incase you are sick from altitude, your guide will take you to the hospital nearby and they will take care of altitude problem. If they can not solve the problem, then they will send you to Lhasa or Shigatse for the further treatment. In Tibet, we don’t have helicopter evacuation service. You will be sent to the hospital by ambulance.

Does the trip cost cover Tibet travel insurance?

If you book Tibet trip with an officially registered travel company in Tibet like Tibet Shambhala Adventure, they all have travel agent liability and travel accidental insurance but we recommend you to buy personal and evacuation travel insurance to make sure that all your cost will be covered just incase you are sick from altitude.

Can we get Medical kit and Oxygen during your Tibet tour?

Tibet Shambhala Adventure always offers a big full cylinder of oxygen in your vehicle and medical kit including some altitude medicine, cold and headache medicine, bandages and other necessary equipment for the medical kits.

How much does it cost for 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour?

The cost of Tibet tour mainly depends on as below:

1. Which month you are traveling to Tibet?
2. Number of People in a Tibet travel group.
3. What type of accommodation you are requesting
4. If you want us to include all three meals etc

In General, if you take a private 8 days Nepal to Tibet overland tour, it will cost around 1300US$ per person approximately on the basis of 2 people group size but if you are looking for a low budget Tibet tour, you can join our fixed Departure tour from Kathmandu to Lhasa and this Tibet tour departure is guaranteed on every Saturday. To have more information of this Tibet trip, please check Tibet travel at Tibet Shambhal Adventure.

Can you extend the tour to mainland China after this Tibet trip?

Yes, we can definitely help you to extent this Tibet tour to any kinds of mainland China cities. You can travel to mainland China from Tibet by flights or train but the most important thing is that you must let your travel agency know when you book the Tibet travel because you must ask for a separate single China visa when we apply for the China visa in Kathmandu. Once you have a separate China visa, you can easily travel to mainland China from Lhasa.

About The Author:

This Article has been written by Dawa Tsering, Managing Director at Tibet Shambhala Adventure. Dawa Tsering, a resident of Lhasa city, has worked 20 years in the Tibetan tourism industry, traveling to every corner of Tibet including the western and eastern Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, Yunnan, Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Region. He has dedicated a lot to the Tibetan tourism industry especially, adventure trekking, motor biking, mountain biking and Tibetan home stay. He is fluent in Chinese, Tibetan and English. He can tailor you any type of unique Tibet tour and Tibet trekking tour throughout the region.

Contact Information:

Company Name: Tibet Shambhala Adventure

Contact Person: Dawa Tsering

Designation: Managing Director

Contact No.: +86-891-6386662

Fax: 86-891-6321655

Address: Nyangra Road, Xinfu xincun, 89

Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region,

China 850000

Email: sales@shambhala-adventure.com

Website: https://shambhala-adventure.com/

Essential Things You Should Know Before You Go to Tibet Tour

Even though there are many things you should know before you going to Tibet, here are 5 essential things you should know before you go to Tibet since Tibet is absolutely unique and different in its culture, religion, customs and the landscape so on, . Tibet is one of the five national autonomous regions of the People’s Republic of China. It is located in the southwest of China and the southwest of Qinghai Tibet Plateau. The land area of the whole region is more than 1.22 million square kilometers, accounting for 12.8% of the total area of the country. The oldest Bon religion in Tibet and the Tibetan Buddhism, which dominate the politics, economy and culture of Tibetan society, permeate all aspects of social life, thus forming the folk customs and aesthetic tastes different from other nationalities. Tibet’s folk culture is rich in content and rich in cultural relics.

Tibet not only has a unique high plateau with countless snow-capped mountains’ scenery, but also has a charming green natural landscape, beautiful lakes and vast grassland, inhabited by thousands of Tibetan nomads. Up to now, there are many Tibetan people whose living customs are far away from the modern people outside the plateau. Just because of the distance, everything in Tibet has an ornamental value.

1. How to get to Tibet?

One of the 5 essential things you should know before you go to Tibet is how to get to Tibet. There are three ways to travel to Tibet, you can choose by plane, train or by land. You can fly to Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet from almost all the cities in mainland China and internationally, from Kathmandu to Lhasa. You can also take train to Tibet from most parts of the cities in mainland China but the best way to get to Tibet by train is from Xining which is located in the northwest of China and the capital city of Qinghai Tibetan plateau. The train from Xining to Lhasa takes 21 hours and it is the best part of the high plateau train trip landscape. You can come to Tibet by land by taking Sichuan Tibet highway overland tour, Qinghai Tibet highland overland tour and Yunnan Tibet highway overland tour. Internationally, there are two ways to go to Tibet by land, one is from Kathmandu to Kyirong border and another is from Kashgar to Kailash.

• When is the best time to trip to Tibet?

The best time to go to Tibet is from April till end of October because during this period of time, the weather warms up, all the scenery turns into green and little bit of rain to fresh up and gives more oxygen for the sunny and dried weather in Tibet. The best time for trekking in Tibet is from May to June and September to end of October but for a short trekking around Mount Kailash is available from May till end of October.

• When is the cheapest and less touristic time when you go to Tibet?

One of the 5 essential things to know before you go to Tibet is to know when the cheapest and less touristic time when you go to Tibet. The cheapest and less touristic time when you go to Tibet is in the winter time and nowadays, we highly recommend Tibet winter tour because the tourism supply and nationwide facility has been improved a lot and in many major cities including Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet, Tsetang, cradle of Tibet located to the south of Lhasa city, Shigatse, fertile land and western cultural center of Tibet located to the west of Lhasa, Nyingtri, the eastern forest region of Tibet located to the east of Lhasa city, we can provide very good hotels with 24 hours hot water, rooms are heated for 24 hours as well.

There are also plenty of restaurants and most of the scenic spots are opened like summer. The price of the flights are 50% cheaper, it is very easy to get train tickets, most of the scenic spots and vehicle transportation is 30% cheaper and human resource including Tibet travel guide is around 20% cheaper. During winter in Tibet, the sun shines so brightly and during the day time, as long as there is sunshine, you never feel very cold. In every scenic spots, you will see thousands of Tibetan pilgrims coming from different regions of Tibet including Amdo, the far north eastern part of Tibet and Kham, the far south eastern part of Tibet. There are thousands of Tibetans, doing prostration in front of Jokang temple to do their daily Buddhist practices. There are also quite many religious and other Tibetan traditional festivals are going on during winter time in Tibet so traveling to Tibet in winter makes your Tibet trip more cheaper and gives more authentic experience of Tibet travel.  

• What are the things to see during your Tibet travel?

One of the 5 essential things to know before you go to Tibet is there are many beautiful natural scenic sights and famous monasteries and temples in Tibet. During your travel in Tibet, you can’t miss visiting the Potala Palace and Jokhang temple in Lhasa. The Potala Palace is located in the center of Lhasa city. The Potala Palace was built in 7^th century by the 33^rd King of Tibet called Songtsan Gampo during Tubo Dynasty. The king married two princes Princess, princess Bhrikuti Devi from Nepal and Princess Wencheng of the Tang court. Both princess brought the most sacred statues of Buddha Shakyamuni as their dowry. The Potala Palace was destroyed badly by fire in around 9^th century and in around 17^th century, the 5^th Dalai Lama rebuilt the Potala Palace into the present size and since then the Potala Palace has become the winter palace of the Dalai Lama and now it has been listed as the UNESCO world heritage site.  

Jokhang Temple also known as “zulakang” (In Tibetan, means Buddha Hall), located in the center of the old urban area of Lhasa, is a Tibetan Buddhist temple built by Tibetang King Songtsan Gampo, with a history of more than 1300 years, and has the supreme status in Tibetan Buddhism. Jokang temple is the most brilliant building in Tibet, and also the earliest Tibetan traditional building in Tibet.

There are many important and interesting monasteries and temples to visit in Tibet including Drepung and Sera monasteries, Ramoche temple, Ganden monastery inside Lhasa, Samye monastery, Palchoe monastery, Tashi Lhunpo monastery, Traduk temple and Yumbu Lhakang so on. During your Tibet trip, you should not miss visiting the most important scenic sights including the Mt Everest, Mt Kailash, several most famous sacred lakes of Tibet including Namtso lake, Yamdrok lake, Mansarovar lake, Dhangra Yumtso lake, Tso Ngonpo lake ( Kokonor ) etc.

• What are the etiquette and Taboos in Tibet that you should know before going to Tibet?

One of the 5 essential things to know before you go to Tibet is etiquette and Taboos. Tibet is divided into different regions but the most important place that you should not miss visiting when you are going to Tibet is Lhasa so today we are going to give some information about etiquette and Taboos of the Tibetans in Lhasa.

Lhasa has a pleasant climate and has long been the political, religious, economic and cultural center of Tibet. There are so many interesting scenic spots and cultural sights to visit in Lhasa. The area is known for its strict dress code. Lhasa women use wool to make short sleeved summer clothes.

Lhasa women wear the most beautiful Tibetan gowns made of the best used wool and the women who are married wear a waistlines or known as apron made of various colors of wool or silk. Whenever there is a traditional festival or during Tibetan new year, all the Lhasa women, including young generations will have to wear this beautiful Tibetan traditional gown and Tibetan traditional hat made of the best woolen cloth and a little bit murmured hair. In Tibet, to dress in a beautiful traditional way is to give a respect to the older ones, leaders or your friends. Especially when they have special celebration. Tibetans believe that people who come to your home with beautiful clothes can bring you good luck.

The people in Lhasa are very polite and when you are talking to older people, teachers, leaders, monks or nuns, you always speak softly and use the respectful words in Tibetan. The younger generations always touch their right hand on their head and as if they are scratching on their head when they are talking to older people, teachers, leaders so on, It is also another way of paying respect. People in Lhasa raise their hands and bow their head when they meet some friends or people they know in the market or street, that is to greet the people. Tibetans take off the hat during their visit to the monasteries or temples which is also respect to Buddha. Tibetans don’t have any entertainment or parties if someone dies in their family for 49 days. They also don’t sing or dance during those 49 days. Tibetans offer white scarf to Buddha or statues of Bodhisattva during their visit inside the monastery which is a respect to Buddha and symbol of displaying  their white and pure heart to Buddha in order to clear their sin.

When people have parties, Tibetans always touch the glass with each other before you drink. They never drink alone by themselves without making cheer to their party friends. Tibetans don’t go empty hands when they visit a relative, friend or work maters, they take fruit, milk, some Kg of meat or butter to the visiting family. Tibetans always go to visit the hospital if some of their friends or relatives are sick with some present or envelope. Tibetans always take good care of their old parents and most of the families live together with the parents even they are married.

The biggest taboo of Tibetans is to kill animals by themselves because in the Buddhist text, it is taught very strictly that people are not allowed to slaughter and kill animals so they don’t kill animals by themselves in this respect. Although they eat Yak meat, beef and mutton, they do not kill them by themselves. Tibetans are absolutely forbidden to eat donkey, horse and dog meat, and in some regions, they also do not eat fish. When you eat, Tibetans should not eat with full of mouth, bite or drink slightly. When drinking butter tea, the host pours the tea, and the guest can only take it. When the host’s hands are in front of you, avoid spitting on other people’s backs and clapping hands.

If you encounter religious facilities such as temples, stupas, etc., you must make a detour from left to right, while those who believe in Bon religion make a detour from right. Tibetans do not cross the magic weapon or incense fire pot. Do not cross the cushion inside the monastery. Do not jump on the books or scriptures. Do not walk over the prayer flags or wind horse. Don’t touch your hand on somebody’s head, especially the older people.

 When receiving guests, Tibetans offer white scarf which is the wish for good luck and happiness for the guess. When receiving guests, whether walking or talking, always give priority to the guests or the elderly, and use honorifics, such as adding the word “La” after the name, to show respect and amiability, and avoid calling their names directly without the word La. Welcome the guests, bow and bend knees, smile. Sit indoors, cross legged, not straight legs, feet facing people, not looking around. Accept gifts with both hands. For gifts, bow and raise your hands above your head. When offering tea, wine and cigarettes, you should put your hands on them, and your fingers should not be put into the mouth of the bowl. Tibetan people feed on grains such as wheat, rice and highland barley, which can grow on the plateau. Tibetans eat Tsampa made up from barley and Tsampa is the main food of Tibetan people.

How to celebrate Tibetan New Year- Festival tours in Tibet

Tibetan New Year, known as Losar is a very important festival for Tibetans which is held every year according to the Tibetan Lunar Calendar. The Tibetan New Year is always after the western new year and festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere in Tibet since ancient times to the present time. Most ancient Tibetan festivals would celebrate in the end of cold weather, or before planting in spring and harvest in autumn, it was formed for a long time and gradually has become a kind of tradition habit.

Nowadays, many people from country side go to work in the cities and many family members in the city work in different places do not get time to gather but Tibetan new Year is a really good time for family gathering together, almost everyone comes back home during Losar and it becomes kinds of habits for the family members, especially for paresnt to wait for the gathering of family members. Each parents hope their children will be reunited with them at home during Losar, housewives are waiting for their husbands come back to celebrate Losar. At these really special days, Tibetans also have many significant customs.

According to historical records, Tibetans had our own calendar, Hundreds of years later, the YongZhong Benism (the original religion of Tibet) can accurately calculate the winter solstice return time and take it as the beginning of the year, forming festivals and various rituals. Many customs and lifestyles of modern Tibetans are also handed down from the age of ancient Shangshong Kingdom. Shangshong Kingdom was before the king Songtsan Gampo reunited Tibet and they practiced Bon religion by that time .

Each year, at the beginning of the twelfth month of the Tibetan calendar, people begin to prepare new year’s products. In the middle of twelve month of Tibetan calendar, each household successively makes a kind of bun called, Kasai in Tibetan. The ingredient of Kasai is white flour, sugar, milk, water, deeply fried in the butter. There are many kinds of buns and every single family has buns to offer during Tibetan New Year as a snack which is the symbol of auspiciousness and good luck for the new coming year.

When Losar is very close to arrive, each family must prepare a rectangular Chema, a bucket is filled with Tsampa, fried wheat grain, ginseng fruit and other food mixed with butter, which is painted with highland barley spike, cockscomb and color flower board made of butter. Piles of Kasai which is made of barley wheat flour, deep fried in the oil called Derkha in Tibetan to offer the Buddha. And they also prepare a sheep’s head made of colored butter. All of these have the meaning of celebrating for having a good harvest and wishing good weather and prosperity for people and animals in the new year. Two days before New Year’s Eve, people will clean the house clearly, put new card pads and paste New Year’s pictures. On the gate, a symbol of eternal auspiciousness is painted with lime powder to show that life is abundant and safe. On that night, the whole family was busy until the night. This evening, each family will have the dough noodles (Gutu). We specially make some dough with different shapes, such as stone, pepper, charcoal, wool, etc. each shape has a saying. Example,  stone indicates hard heart, charcoal indicates black heart, pepper indicates spicy mouth, and wool indicates soft temperature. People who eat these different dough will spit out on the spot and see what they get in their dough ball. When everyone in the family opens it, it gives sense of humor and makes everyone laugh at the new year’s Eve. This is a kind of special family gathering supper and entertainment activity. In the evening of new year’s Eve, every family arranges all kinds of food in front of the Buddha statue.

Whatever kinds of festivals that Tibetans have, we always first think the God and so called three jewels of Buddha. Whatever we eat or drink or wear, we always must offer to the three jewels of Buddha before eating or drinking ourselves so during the Tibetan New Year, it is very important to make offering to the Buddha in the family’s chapel to pray for peace, happiness, prosperity, good luck for all the sentient beings in the coming New Year.  

At the first day of the new year, the young crops, oil seeds, different kinds of fruit, dried nuts, butter, cheese, milk, butter lamp, sheep’s heads, and five grain cups are placed on the tea table in the shrine before eating yourselves. In the very morning of the first day of the new year, the housewife carries back the “auspicious water” from the river, she wakes up the whole family, sits down according to the rank of generations, and the elders bring the five grain dipper to each of them to grab a few grains first, throw them to the sky to express the sacrifice to the gods, and then grab one point in turn and put them into their mouths. Since then, the elders have wished “Tashi Delek” (good luck) in order, and the descendants have congratulated “Tashi Delek Phunsum Tsok” (good luck and prosperity ). After the ceremony, they ate the ginseng fruit cooked in oatmeal and butter called Droma Dreisil which is the symbol of the auspiciousness and good luck and then toast each other with barley wine. On the first day of the new year, sweeping the floor is generally forbidden and unlucky words are not allowed, visitors are not allowed to visit each other. On the second day of the the new year, relatives and friends go to visit each other to celebrate the new year and give each other Khada, Tibetan scarf. Men, women, old and young are all dressed up for the festival. They meet each other and say “Tashi Delek” and “happy festival”. This activity lasts for fifteen days or even longer. During the Tibetan New Year, in the square or open grassland, everyone is singing and dancing in a circle and string dance. With the accompaniment of six stringed guitar, cymbals and other musical instruments, people step on the ground hand-in-hand to celebrate. Children set off firecrackers. The whole area is immersed in the festive atmosphere of joy, celebration and peace. Singing Tibetan Opera in urban and rural areas, dancing together In the pastoral areas, and singing all night long. People also engaged in wrestling, throwing, tug of war, horse and Yak racing, archery and other activities.

 As soon as twelfth of the Tibetan lunar calendar comes, every household begins to make New Year’s reserves. In the first few days of the New Year, no matter in the farming or pastoral areas, men of all ages should shave their hair and woman’s hair should be washed and braided. For example, if a man has long hair at the New Year, and a woman does not wash and comb her hair at that day, it means that her family or their heart is full of grief and she has no intention of dressing up in this year. Washing, combing and dressing are good luck for the coming year. From 28^th of twelfth Lunar month, Tibetans begin cleaning the inside and outside of the house, village walkways, corners, and even the drawers inside the house. When cleaning the ceiling and chimney, you need to choose a good day, such as 3, 5, 7, 9, etc. Then, the whole family kneaded a witch with Tsamba, and poured the leftover “Gu Tu” and bones into the bowl. Holding the witch and scraps of food, then running outside by a woman, a man lit a group of hay closely with the woman and read: “devil out, devil out!” Let the hay burn to ashes with the witch and the leftovers. At the same time, the children set off firecrackers to drive away demons and usher in the auspicious New Year. It is believed to drive all the evils spirit, bad luck and all the disease out of the family and bring all the good luck for the New Year.

In the new year, you should wear the most beautiful clothes and the most precious jewelry. Even those with poor financial conditions should prepare a new year’s robe and one or two decorations. Of course, come from the nature of Tibetan people’s love for beauty. However, it is said that wearing new clothes during the new year means pleasing God.

On the first day of the Tibetan New Year, the host held “Chema” in both hands to bless the guests. The guests pinched some Tsampa and highland barley from “Chema” and threw them into the sky. Then they tasted some in their mouths and said: “Tashi Delek” (good luck). Then, the hostess held the copper pot with Khadha in it and toasted the guests frequently. During the festival, blessings are everywhere, toasts are everywhere, singing and dancing are everywhere, whether you know it or not about the traditional habit, you can’t pass without drinking three bowls.

From the second day of the Tibetan New Year, people began to visit each other, start New Year’s greetings and treat each other. During the Tibetan New Year, people say “Losar Tashi Delek (happy New Year), etc. From the second day of the New Year, the performance team of playing traditional Tibetan drama.  Relatives and friends visit each other for three to five days or till 15^th of the first lunar month. The person holding the blessing of auspicious words and read loudly outside the door, then others hurriedly holds “Chema” and greets each other: “Tashi Delek Phunsum Tsok!” (wish you good luck and happiness!) “A Ma Ba Dro Gong Kam Sang!” Wish the hostess have a long and healthy life “.

On the third day of the Tibetan New Year, the “ridge God” was worshipped. On this day, people boarded the roofs of all houses, put brand-new prayer flags on the roofs, then simmered and burned cypress branches, threw Tsamba into the air, and the waving prayer flags and the rising “smoke” carried people’s wishes to the sky. On the third day of the first month, Lhasa people come in groups to a mountain or close to a river, where they planted Sutra flags and streamers to worship the mountain gods and water gods. Then they are singing, drinking and laughing in the leeward and sunny place.

The Tibetan New Year is the biggest festival of the year, to celebrate this festival as a good beginning of the new year. After the new year, people put into normal work and production. Celebrating the new year is the starting point and the beginning. People hope that this starting point and the beginning is so important for the New Year. Maybe this is a good wish for celebrating the  Tibetan New Year in the best way. Celebrating the Tibetan New Year is no exception. During this period , train and plane tickets will reduce the price, it will provide a convenient condition for people who want to travel to Tibet. If you plan a Tibet tour during the Tibetan New Year, you will indeed experience a real life of Tibetans and extremely have the best and authentic Tibet Festival Tour experience.

Travel to Mount Kailash – Kailash pilgrimage tour

Traveling to Mt Kailash is an extraordinary experience that every person likes to try. It reveals a whole new and exciting world out there, opens out your inner strength and presents with an unforgettable adventures once in a life time. Traveling to Mt Kailash is something that many people like to do once in a life time.

As we know there are different ways of traveling in the world, some take their travel as a relaxing family holiday, some takes an adventure holiday while many of the others take pilgrimage tours. Tibet is one of the most famous destinations for both adventure holidays and pilgrimage tours. There are many spiritual sites that you can visit in Tibet and traveling to Mt Kailash is one of the most popular destinations for the people to have a mixture feeling of Adventure holiday and spiritual journey.

Mount Kailash is one of the most sacred spot on earth and it is a very holy pilgrimages site for the people of the Buddhists, Hindu, Bon Religion and Jain. And it is also known as precious jewel of snow. Mt Kailash is located in far western Tibet called Ngari prefecture, more than 1200 km from the Tibetan capital city of Lhasa. it is not particularly high as far as peaks in the Himalaya go as it only rises to 6714 meters 22027 feet but there is no other peaks in Tibet that is as holy as kailash. Traveling to Mt Kailash is not only a Tibet adventure tour but also a great pilgrimage tour.

Each year, thousands of Buddhists, Hindus, Bon and Jains are traveling to Mt Kailash, starting their spiritual and adventure holiday from Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet or from Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, and then driving towards Nepal Tibet border, called Kyitong. Kyirong is also a very sacred place for Buddhist as it is the birth place of Mila Repa Yogi who is believed to get enlightenment in a life time.

All the tourists are recommended to drive slowly for traveling to Mt Kailash by acclimatizing to the high altitude, visiting Lhasa city and going through Yamdrok lake, Gyantse and Shigatse. After around 4-5 days acclimatization and enjoying the most beautiful landscape of western Tibetan plateau, you will finally reach Mansarovar lake and Mt Kailash.

 When you first see the lake Mansarovar and Mt Kailash, you are full of emotion with delight and excited. When you see the Mansarovar lake and Mt Kailash at first sight, you can not believe how blue and clean the lake water is, how beautiful and big the lake is.

The Mt Kailash is standing right in front of you, shining like a white crystal, the shape of Mt Kailash is a like a cake offering or an compassionate heart, showing to all the visitors. As scientists say that Mt Kailash is located in the center of the universe. People are given too much energy by the blessing of Mt Kailash when you are near it even if it is located at a very high altitude. Everybody is not afraid of the high altitude and full of energy to do the 52 km pilgrimage circuit around Mt Kailash, known as Mt Kailash Kora and they believe in different ways such as Buddhist believes Mt Kailash as the sacred seat of Samvara or Demchok in Tibetan which is one of the most important figures in Kalachakara or the wheel of life. Hindus believe Mt Kailash as the sacred seat of Shiva which is one of the most important figure in Hindu religion where the other two religions also believe in a similar way.

There are thousands of Indians who are Hindus followers, traveling to Mt Kailash every year, coming from Nepal for the purpose of only spiritual journey. Hindus believe Mt. Kailash to be the abode of lord Shiva. According to the legend, immortal Shiva lives at the top of Kailash where he spends his time practicing yogic austerities making joyous love with his divine consort Parvati and smoking ganja the sacred herb known in the west as marijuana. Hindus do not interpret Shiv’s behaviors as contradictory however but rather see in him a deity who has wisely integrated the extreme of human nature and thus transcended attachments to any particular and limited way of being. For Hindus, to make the arduous pilgrimage to Kailash and have the Darshan-divine view of Shiva’s abode is to attain release from the clutches of ignorance and delusion.

Pilgrims to Kailash after the difficult journey getting there are then confronted with the equally difficult task of rotating the sacred peak. For those of the pilgrims, traveling to Mt Kailash once in a life time is something that is the most important thing in their life and believe that they achieve a great blessing from their Mt Kailash pilgrimage tour.

The Buddhist, Hindus and Jains  followers walk around Mt Kailash as counterclockwise while the Bon followers walk around Mt Kailash as anti-clockwise. The local Tibetans can walk around Mt Kailash within a day where they start early in the morning from Dharchen and finish the Kora in the late evening but for those of the pilgrims who come from foreign countries, they take around 3 days to complete a Kora or known a Parikrama.

Some of the Indians Yogi do Mt Kailash full Kora on bare foot and they can finish the Kora within a day like other local Tibetans. Many of the Tibetans, no matter whether they are Buddhist or Bon follower, they do full body prostrations throughout the way. It is believed that a Pilgrim who completes 108 journeys, known as Kora around Mt Kailash is believed that they are assured to get enlightenment. Most Pilgrims to Kailash will also take a short plunge in the nearby highly sacred and very cold lake Mansarovar.

The word Mansarovar means mind or consciousness in Sanskrit and the lake is believed to be a mental creation of their own Gods in different way of belief by different religions. Visiting Mansarovar lake during Kailash tour is one of the most important activity and most of the tourists go to Chiu Gompa, located to the west shore of the Mansarovar lake from which you can also get a great view of Mt Kailash and Gurla Mandata, a snow mountain over 7000m.

Traveling Mt Kailash, a great sacred mountain of the world and this magical lake is a life changing experience and an opportunity to view some of the most magical scenery on the entire planet.

Mt Kailash is not only visited by the spiritual people, but also many tourists from all the over the world. Traveling to Mt Kailash is one of the most beautiful things in once life and according to many tourists or pilgrims to Mt Kailash, they get lots of mystical things or many interesting things in their life after they visit Mt Kailash.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people come to visit Mt Kailash and everybody finds walking around Mt Kailash, known as Kora is a challenging and difficult one but at the same time they find walking around Mt Kailash is once in a life time spiritual and adventure journey. Here is our Mt Kailash small group tour.

If you choose to travel to Tibet in the winter time, you will witness to the Lhasa city where the sun shines brightly mostly, the air is clean, and the sky is blue, so that you can enjoy the gift of nature and rewrite your impression of winter. During your travel to Tibet in the winter, many traditional festivals with strong local characteristics will be staged one by one in the winter, so that you an enjoy seeing different Tibetan customs and the festivals. In addition, when visiting Tibet in winter, air tickets, hotels and vehicles are all on sale, with less congestion and more leisure.

We suggest you to travel to Tibet in the winter time and the most popular and enjoyable destinations are those of Lhasa city, known as sunny city and the cultural center and the capital city of Tibet, Tsetang, located in the southern part of Lhasa and the cradle of Tibet where you can visit the first monastery of Tibet which has more than 1200 years history, the first castle of Tibet, Gyantse and Shigatse which are the most beautiful and cultural center of the western part of Tibet near to Lhasa and Nyingtri, the eastern forest region of Tibet, located to the east of Lhasa where you can see more nature, dense forest, snow mountains, lakes and beautiful green valley.

Tibet Shambhala Adventure prepares you several different kinds of good Tibet winter tours such as Lhasa to Nyingtri overland tour, dominated by the cultural heart of the Lhasa city and the Potala Palace, the world’s heritage protection site. You will drive to Nyingtri at the distance of 420km and the scenery is extremely beautiful with typical traditional Tibetan villages, Darksum lake, located in a dense forest and high deep valley on the upper reaches of Bahe River, about 36 kilometers away from the main highway between Lhasa and Nyingtri. Tibetans believe Darksum lake as a very sacred lake and they also go clockwise circumambulation around the lake and believe they will get good merit if they do circumambulation as many as possible.

The Chinese government rated Darksum lake as a national scenic spot in 1994, and listed as a world tourist attraction (spot) by the world tourism organization later.

In August 2017, it became the first and only national 5A level scenic spot of natural scenery in Tibet. The lake is so clear that you can even see groups of fish swimming under the depth of two or three meters below and even if the lake is a much smaller than those of other sacred lakes in Tibet such as Yamdrok lake, Mansarovar lake etc, the scenery surrounding the lake and lake itself is extremely gorgeous.

There is a small island called Tashi Island which has a history of 1500 years. In the island, there is a small temple of Nyingmapa school. There is a sacred cave of Guru Rinpoche, known as Padmasavawa who came to Tibet in 8^th century during the 38^th king of Tibet called Trisong Detsen. Tibetans believe turning the island in a clockwise direction can achieve great merit and you can also see the footprints left by Guru Rinpoche ‘ s horses and the traces left by his sword on the stones around Darksum lake. To have more information, please visit Tibet Shambhala Adventure Lhasa Nyingtri Tour

Travel to Tibet in the winter time is another advantage is that you can travel to those of the most popular tourists attractions such as Tsetang, the cradle of Tibet.which is located o the southern part of Lhasa at the distance of 160k. Why Tibetans call Tsetang as the cradle of Tibet is because prior to the 7^th century, Tsetang was the capital city of Tibet and it was the place where the origins of Tibetans, the first king of Tibet, the first castle of Tibet, the first religion of Tibet, the first monastery of Tibet, the first monks of Tibet etc etc, have been appeared in Tsetang that’s why it has to be called as the cradle of Tibet and very important cultural and historical place of Tibet before 7^th century. In 7^th century, the Tibetan King Songtsan Gampo, moved his capital city from Tsetang to Lhasa and since then Lhasa has become the most important cultural part of Tibet. To get more detailed information about Tibet Winter Tour, Please visit Tibet Shambhala Adventure

 

If you travel to Tsetang during the summer time, there will be full of tourists but if you choose traveling to Tsetang in the winter time, there are very few tourists but there are many more pilgrims who come from different regions of Tibet so you can get more authentic experience by traveling with local Tibetan people instead of mass tourists.

During your travel to Tibet in the winter, if you choose your next destination to Gyantse and Shigatse, it is also the same benefit that there are very few tourists and many more local Tibetan pilgrims inside the Palchoe monastery and Kubum Pagoda stupa in Gyantse. Inside Tashi Lhunpo monastery, you can travel with full of Tibetan pilgrims who come from far eastern part of Tibet, known as Amdo in Tibetan. Amdo is the birth place of the Dalai Lama and Penchen lamas so many Tibetans from Amdo take pilgrimage tour in the winter time to Tashi Lhunpo monastery since Tashi Lhunpo monastery is the seat of the Penchen Lama and it is more sacred to those Amdo people. At the same time, the road condition is still good during winter time because between Lhasa and Gyantse or Shigatse, the road is always opened even in winter since we don’t have heavy snow in those three places. All the hotels and scenic spots are not busy and prices are also much cheaper.

Another very important thing is that if you choose travel to Tibet in winter, Tibet Tourism Bureau is helping the local Tibetan travel agents to shorten the Tibet travel permit process and you can book a last minute Tibet trip as well. We can finish all your Tibet travel permits within a week or if it is necessary, we can also finish all your necessary Tibet travel permits within three working days as well so we welcome you to travel to Tibet in the winter time and To have more information about Tibet winter tour, we recommend you to visit our site at Tibet Shambhala Adventure

Things to do in Lhasa Tibet tours & best trek in Lhasa

Lhasa sightseeing tour is a cultural Tibet tour around Lhasa, during this tour, you can visit Lhasa, the historical capital city of Tibet, straddles the banks of the Kyichu river, where the valley opens out to its fullest extent. Lhasa is also the cultural, religious and political center of Tibet. As you know, the Potala Pace and Jokang Temple were famous historical buildings that represents the highlight cultural sightseeing of Tibet.

The Potala Palace was built on the mountain named Marbori in the center of Lhasa city. It is an outstanding representative of the Tibetan ancient architecture. The palace is more than 200 meters high, 13 floors in appearance. In front of the Potala Palace, there is the Potala Palace Square, which is the highest city square in the world. The Potala Palace was originally built by Songtsan Gampo, the 33^rd King of Tubo Dynasty in 7^th century and at that time, the Potala Palace was believed to be a 9 story high Palace. The present size of the Potala palace was built by the fifth Dalai Lama from the 17th century. The main building is divided into the” White Palace “and the” Red Palace”. The White Palace contains the main ceremonial hall with the throne of the Dalai Lama, his private rooms and audience hall are on the uppermost level. The Red Temple is the Dalai Lama’s stupa hall and various Buddhist halls.

Tickets for the Potala Palace are limited and you need to book before several days in advance. After a security check, follow the other visitors to the stairs up into the palace. Usually the price of the ticket is 200 yuan from May to October, the opening time is from 9.00 Am-4:30PM. During the summer, by around 9: 30 in the evening, you can enjoy a great view of the Potala Palace in a beautiful light and the beautiful fountain on the square which is infront of the Potala Palace. You can take evening walk around the square with local residents and enjoy the most beautiful bright light view of the Potala Palace.

After visiting the Potala Palace, you can go to Bharkor Bazzar which is located to the east side of the Potala Palace. It will take you around twenty minutes by walk. Bharkor is the busiest street where you can get all kinds of Tibetan souvenirs such as Tibetan tradition clothes, special jewelry and so on. Bharkor is also the place where all Tibetans gather together, especially lots of Tibetan pilgrims coming from different regions are walking around the Jokang temple. You will enjoy being in Bharkor Bazzar which is around the Jokang temple and you can also wear Tibetan traditional clothes and take photos here but if you want to take pictures of local people, please ask them first before you take photos just to pay respect to them.

During your Lhasa sightseeing tour, visiting the Jokang temple and Bharkor Bazzar is something that you should not miss to visit. Jokang temple was originally built in 7^th century during the reign of 33^rd King of Tibet for the most sacred statue of Buddha Shakyamuni which was brought to Tibet by Princess Bhrikuti Devi of Nepal. According to the legend, when the Jokang temple was built, the construction work that people did during the day time was destroyed during the night time. Later, the Princess Bhrikuti Devi knew that the Princess Wencheng was very good at geomantic calculation so she requested Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty to check what was really going on. As a result of her geomantic calculation, the Princess Wencheng told that the land of Tibet was located on a body of Supine ogress and the place where the Jokang temple was constructing was located on the heart of the Supine Ogress so those of the evil spirits did not want to have Buddhist temples on the heart of the Supine Ogress therefore they destroyed all the work that people did during the night time. Finally, King Songtsan Gampo decided to build 108 different temples all over Tibet in order to press down all parts of the body of Supine Ogress including arms and legs so on so they built 8 different small temples including Traduk temple in Tsetang that you can see today in order to press down the arms of the Supine Ogress and many other smaller temples. As a result of building all those small temples, finally they were successful to build the Jokang temple. There were some destruction for the temple by fire and even during cultural revolution but later in around 1980s, the government rebuilt the Jokang temple to the present site as well as many of the relics and statues inside the Jokang temple were renovated.

The entrance fee is 85RMB per person and, the opening Hours from 7:00 to 17:30, while from 7:00 to 11:30, it’s mainly opened for pilgrims.

During your Lhasa sightseeing tour, there are many other things to visit around such as Drepung and Sera monasteries which are the largest monasteries in Tibet and they are the most important monasteries of the Gelukpa school in Tibetan Buddhism. There is an extremely sacred and beautifully designed built statue of Buddha Meitreya or the future Buddha in Drepung monastery and the most sacred statue of Tamdrin, Buddha with horse headed one in Sera monastery. All the Tibetan Buddhists believe in Buddha Maitreya in Drepung monastery if you go to Drepung to pray to the Buddha in Drepung, you will fulfil all your prayer and will be reborn surrounding Buddha Maitreya during his period of the Buddha. At the same time, if you go to visit Sera monastery and pray to the Buddha with horse headed one, Tibetan Buddhists believe in that the Buddha will bless you with fortune and good luck and will disappear your misfortune, especially, when the children are sick and cry much in the night time, people take the children to the Buddha and ask the monks to get a black dot on the children’s eyes in order to get rid of the suffering of the children. Once the parents take the children to the Buddha, the children can sleep well and recover from their suffering. Another very interesting in Sera monastery is the monks’ debate that monks are having philosophical debate and you can also interact with the monks which really give you a unique experience during your Lhasa sightseeing tour with Tibet Shambhala Adventure.

If you like to visit more monasteries, temples and palaces, there are many more things to visit such as you can visit Norbu Lingka, the summer Palace of the Dalai Lama, Ramoche temple which was also built in 7^th century, Muru Nyingpa temple, Ani Tsangkung nunnery and many small temples and chapels around the old section of Lhasa city.

There are some nice hiking trips around Lhasa city as well. You can have a day hike from Pabongka temple which is near Sera monastery to the Sera Wutse. Sera Wutse was a small hermitage where Tsongkapa, the founder of Gelukpa school used to take meditation there in 15^th century and nowadays, there is a small chapel with hermitage and there are monks doing meditation. From this Sera Wutse peak, you can have a great view of the entire Lhasa city with a beautiful golden roof top of the Potala Palace and Jokang temple. The hike from Pabongka to Sera Wutse takes you around a half day and it is indeed a very interesting short trek around Lhasa city.

During your Lhasa sightseeing tour, not only visiting lots of temple and monasteries, you can also take a day excursion to a Tibetan nomad camp at the distance of around one hour drive to the east side of Lhasa city. There is a beautiful nomad camp where you can enjoy taking a short trek or riding Yak or Horses, visiting a Tibetan nomad camp. At the Tibetan nomad camp, you can taste real fresh Tibetan Yogurd and butter tea.

You can also visit different kinds of factories such as Tibetan incense factory, Tibetan Tahngka Gallery, Tibetan handicraft shops and factories, Dropenling artisan work etc. 

If you like to take a longer day excursion during your Lhasa sightseeing tour, Tibet Shambhala Adventure highly recommends you to have a day excursion to Ganden monastery which is located to the east side of Lhasa city at the distance of 60km. You can enjoy visiting beautiful Ganden monastery and on the way, you will pass by beautiful Tibetan villages and their green fields along the Kyichu valley. You can also have day excursion to Dark Yerpa cave which is around 45km distance from Lhasa and you can enjoy having a great view of the entire Kyichu valley. You can also take a beautiful short trek of around 2 hours to Derk Yerpa. If you like to see more nature and beautiful lake, a day excursion to Yamdrok lake is another every interesting day tour. Yamdrok lake is located to the southwest of Lhasa city at the distance of around 200km and you will have to cross Gampala pass at the elevation of 4700m. From the top of the pass, you will get a great and extremely beautiful view of Yamdrok lake and Noejing Kangsang snow mountain. Since the road condition is very good, it will only take you around two hours and half to reach Yamdrok lake.  To have more information about Lhasa sightseeing tour, please visit Lhasa sightseeing tour of Tibet Shambhala Adventure.

Trip to Tibet Everest base camp and Namtso tour

As everyone knows, summer is the best time to trip to Tibet and it is also the best time to trip to Tibet Everest Basecamp and Namtso tour. Tibet Shambhala Adventure provides a beautiful combination of a Tibet trip with a trip to Everest Basecamp and Namtso lake. The program of Tibet Everest Basecamp and Namtso lake tour is started in Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet including a visit to the most cultural and heritage site of Tibet including the Potala Palace and Jokang temple. Both the Potala Palace and Jokang temple are officially listed in the Unesco world heritage site. During your visit to the Potala Palace and Jokang temple, you will indeed see the beautiful and friendly Tibetan people, doing pilgrimage tour, offering lots of butter lamps, praying to the statues of the Buddha and God for the sake of all sentient beings. They wear different colorful Tibetan traditional clothes and turning hand prayer wheels and counting their rosary while they are whispering Mantra. You will indeed have an authentic experience of your Tibet trip while you are visiting the cultural highlight of Tibet in Lhasa.

After the sightseeing tour in Lhasa, you will continue your Tibet Everest and Namtso tour via visiting beautiful Yamdrok lake, Karola glacier, overnight in Gyantse which is a beautiful small Tibetan town where you can see lots of Tibetan traditional items  again such as the local Tibetans wearing in traditional dress, riding traditional horse carts while they are going to the market, visiting Palchoe monastery and Kubum Pagoda stupa is another highlight during your trip to Tibet Everest Basecamp and Namtso lake tour.

Continue your journey to Everest Basecamp with a visit to Shigatse. Shigatse is the second largest city in Tibet and it is the capital city of the western part of Shigatse. You will visit the largest monastery of Tashi Lhunpo in the western part of Tibet and it is also the seat of the Penchecn Lama. You will still drive to Everest Basecamp from Shigatse at the distance of around 340km with a very good road condition. You will enjoy seeing beautiful Tibetan villages. They are both farmers and nomads where they grow some barley, keeping their rear cattle and other livestock including Yaks. You will enjoy a fabulous landscape of the great Himalayan mountain range including Mt Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Jo Oyu, Shisha Pangma from the top of Pangla pass at the elevation of 5000mt above sea level. Of course, the view of Mt Everest from Everest Basecamp near Rongbuk monastery is an extraordinary and to spend a night at Rongbuk monastery is very much worthy since you can enjoy extremely a beautiful view of Mt Everest sunrise and sun set .

After the Everest Basecamp tour, the second highlight of Tibet Everest Basecamp and Namtso lake tour is trip to Namtso lake. You will take a loop to Namtso lake after passing by Shigatse city, crossing Brahmaputra river, passing by the most beautiful Jomo Kang Gar snow mountain while you are crossing over 4900mts high pass , driving through Yampachen herbal hot spring and a beautiful view of Tibetan nomad camp on the huge northern grassland. Before reaching Namtso lake , you will spend overnight at Damxiong county because nowadays, you can not stay at Tashido hermitage for the night since all the lodges and restaurants were moved down to Damxiong county in order to have a better protection for the environment of Namtso lake and Nyenchen Thangla mountain range but this does not matter for your Namtso lake trip quality as you can still spend as much of the time around Namtso lake and you can still walk around Tashido Hermitage and the shore of the Namtso lake as before.

The next morning, you will cross a 5000mt high pass called Lagaenla. From the top of the pass, you will get a fantastic view of Namtso lake and entire Nyenchen Thangla mountain range which is the second largest and longest mountain range after the great Himalayan range. There is desolate plateau, the vast expanse of the lake and towering snow-capped mountains, In general, during your Tibet Everest & Namtso tour, you can enjoy the unique landscape and culture of Tibet.

Namtso lake is located in the middle of Tibet Autonomous Region and to the northern part of Lhasa city- Namtso township, Damxiong county, Lhasa city, it is the second largest lake in Tibet and the third largest salt lake in China. The altitude of Namtso lake is 4718 meters above sea level, approximately rectangular in shape, more than 70 kilometers long from east to the west and more than 30 kilometers wide from north to the south “Nam” means “sky”in Tibetan and “Tso” means lake so together, it means Sky lake and for Tibetans, it is one of the three sacred lakes and also one of the famous Buddhist holy places in Tibet.

Nowadays, more and more people are attracted by the beautiful view of Namtso lake, visitors can ride the Yak and take photos, at the same time, you can take around 2-3 hours hike along the shore of Namtso lake, enjoying a spectacular view of entire Namtso lake and Nyenchen Thangla snow mountain range. Many Tibetans and Chinese young Lovers  come here and take a worship for their future life. Many of them come to Namtso lake and at Tashido, they take wedding photos and make their life’s wishes and promise for a new couple. There is a huge naturally stone made gate, opening to the sky and according to the legend, the natural stone gate is the incarnation of the goddess Namtso and Namtso lake is the mental creation of Goddess Namtso and her husband Nianqing Thangla Mountain. The Namtso lake and Nyenchen Thangla mountain is always close to each other so the young couple who is wishing for their wedding and taking lots of wedding photos is also wishing to have a beautiful and long lasting couple life as the as Namtso alke and Nyenchen Thangla symbolize their faithful love forever.

If you had more time to explore around Namtso lake, Tibet Shambhala Adventure highly recommends to take three days excursion around Namtso lake but you will have to bring all your camping equipment because on the way, you can not get guest houses to stay. You can camp near by Tibetan nomad camp, visit different Tibetan nomad camps and small nomad villages. At the same time, you can do at least around 4-5 hours walk during your Namtso lake round excursion. It is another extremely beautiful Namtso lake Kora where you hardly see other tourists and you can really take indeed off the beaten trail and walking in the northern plateau in the surrounding of a very quite nad beautiful nature landscape.

The best time to trip to Tibet Everest base camp and Namtso tour is from mid April until end of October. You can still travel to the Everest base camp and Namtso throughout the year if there is not a heavy snow on the mountain passes but it is very cold at the Everest base camp and lake side from mid December until end of February. Usually, there is snow over the pass in around January and February in Tibet, especially in those high altitude places of over 4500mt so before planning a trip to Tibet, it is always better to find a right local Tibetan travel agent and get the useful information about Tibet tour.  

Tibet trip-Hiking around Lhasa-Tibet trekking

When we talk about autumn, you may think about the fallen leaves, golden fields or pumpkins. As a fascinating season, autumn has a unique beauty of the nature. During your Tibet trip or just after the visit to the Potala Palace, we highly recommend you to take a walk around the Potala Palace and Lukang park because the Lukhang park is the most beautiful park in Lhasa city with a long history and lots of greenery and trees inside the park.

Walking around the Potala Palace and Lukhang park takes you around one hour and you will have a great view of the backside of the Potala Palace which is located in the rocky hillside, known as Marpo Ri in Tibetan which means a red hill. While you are walking around the Potala Palace, you will see lots of pilgrims walking around the Potala Palace, spinning the prayer wheals, whispering the Mantra of Avaloktesvara or the god of compassion because Tibetans believe walking around the temple or Palaces can gain merit for them. After around 15 minutes walk from the front gate of the Potala Palace, you will get to the entry gate to the Lukhang temple. The Lukhang temple (Zong gyob Lukhang in Tibetan) is one of the well-known ancient architecture in Lhasa, located in the center of the Lukhang park.

There is a beautiful pond in the center of the park and according to the history, the pond was made up of during the construction of the Potala Palace in around 17^th century. During the reign of the fifth Dalai Lama, the Potala Palace was rebuilt to the present site and at that time, they used soil for the construction of the Potala Palace from Lukhang park so the pond that we can see today was inside the Lukhang park since then.

In the middle of the pond, there is a small beautiful Naga temple which is considered to be the Palace of the Naga king. It is worthwhile for you to visit the temple during your walk around the Potala Palace because you can enjoying being with Tibetan pilgrims inside the temple and visit this small and unique sacred Naga temple.

In the olden days, Lukhang was a place where local Tibetans went to take pilgrimage to the Naga Kings but nowadays, it is not only the pilgrimage site for Tibetans but also a very famous park where people go for picnic, dancing, morning exercising etc. Younger people go to Lukhang park on dates where older people go to Lukhang temple for worship. While you are walking around the Lukhang park, you can also see some Tibetans who are selling their local products. Most of those products are very unique and organic where the villagers near Lhasa bring to sell because many Lhasa residents like to buy their goods especially, when they bring something to eat such as fresh vegetables, organic eggs, homemade breads, seasonal mushroom etc because they are homemade and organic. 

Walking around the Potala Palace and Lukhang park is a very interesting sightseeing because the walking pedestrian and Lukhang park is a very less touristic area where you can see lots of Tibetan pilgrims doing Kora around the Naga temple and there are lots of local Tibetans who are singing, taking Tibetan traditional circle dance. At the same time, you can also go to a typical Tibetan traditional tea house inside the Lukhang park and can have a great opportunity of being with locals, communicating with local Tibetans in the tea house. You can share the different culture and life experience between Tibetan and westerners which can give you an authentic experience during your Tibet trip.   

You can visit Lukhang temple and there is no entry ticket charge. The temple is usually opened from 9.30 in the morning till 2.30 in the afternoon. The main statue in the temple is a statue of Naga king and the three walls inside the temple has extreme beautiful Tibetan wall painting of tantric practice that tells about Yogis engaged in exercises. 

After visiting the temple of Naga King, you can continue your walk around the Potala Palace, exiting through the southern gate of Lukhang park. As soon as you exit the park, you can see a small chapel just on your right hand side, located to the foot of the south eastern hill of the Potala Palace which is the branch of Michong Ri nunnery. Michong Ri is a small nunnery located on the eastern hill side of Lhasa city and if you had more time in Lhasa during your Tibet trip, it is also recommendable to have a day hike to this small nunnery because from the top of the nunnery, you can enjoy an extremely beautiful view of the entire Lhasa city with an awesome golden roof of the Potala Palace and Jokang temple.

You can visit the chapel and there is no entry ticket charge. There are a few nuns inside the chapel and you can see nuns chanting everyday if you went there right time. There are some historical rock carving statues, such as statues of Buddha Shakyamuni, statues of Avaloktesvara, or the God of compassion in thousand arms and thousand eyes and they all are every unique and look very old and sacred to the Tibetans. After visiting the chapel, you will continue your walk around the Potala Palace and reach the Potala square again. You can enjoy a great view of the Potala Palace once again and you might like to take another photo with the Potala. After your one hour walk around the Potala Palace with local Tibetans, you can go back to your hotel by walk if you are staying in the old section of the city near Bharkor and Jokang temple because it is just around 20 minutes walk. If you are staying far away from the city center, then we recommend you to take a taxi which cost you 10RMB inside the city.