We could not visit Jokang temple for a pretty long time. The Jokang temple was closed for around 6 months after the Covid-19 has been spread all over the world even though Tibet does not have Corona virus at all.

The Jokang temple was founded in the 7^th century by the 33^rd kind of Tibet called Songtsan Gampo who married Princess Bhrikuti Devi from Nepal, Princess Wencheng from Tang dynasty and his Tibetan princess from Toelung county.

Jokang temple nowadays, is considered as the most sacred temple of Tibet and all the Tibetans from Kham, Amdo and central Tibet come to Lhasa and visit Jokang temple. There are hundreds of old statues and lots of old paintings in the temple and the most sacred statue inside the temple is the statue of Buddha Shakyamuni, brought by Princess Wencheng from Tang Dynasty in the seventh century as a dowry of the princess Wencheng.

Visit Joking temple during your Tibet tour is a must because it is located in the center of the old section of the city and it is listed in the UNESCO world heritage site. The temple is surrounded by the ancient Bharkor Bazzar with lots of colorful shops and restaurants. You can see lots of different people from different regions of Tibet, wearing different kinds of Tibetan traditional clothes, walking around Bharkor Bazzar, known as Khora, doing prostration in front of the Jokang temple to pay homage and respect to the statue of the Buddha Khakyamuni.

During high season, there are thousands of thousands tourists visit Jokang temple and if you are lucky enough, you can see monks in the temple are chanting and doing monastery ceremony. There is a very big ritual ceremony in Jokang temple during the winter time that all the Tibetan women gather inside the Jokang temple on 15^th of 10^th Lunar month of Tibetan calendar. It is the day of offering to the deity of Pel Lhamo and many Tibetan women in a beautiful dress, gathering inside the courtyard of the Jokang temple, singing songs, dancing, offering Chang ( Barley beer ) to Pel Lhamo deity and after that they celebrate the day by considering as a women’s day in the present day.

If you like to buy souvenirs from Tibet, the best place is to go to the Bharkor Bazzar near Jokang temple and you can walk around through the Bharkor Bazzar which is around the Jokang temple. You can get different kinds of souvenirs from Bharkor Bazzar. Whenever you visit Lhasa city, the Jokang temple is something that you always want to visit.

Even though Tibet does not have any cases of Covid 19, the Potala Palace has been closed to the tourists and local pilgrims for more than 4 months in order to protect the safety of the local pilgrims and tourists Since the codvid 19 has been spread in China and the rest of the world.

For the last few months, the Chinese government has worked very hard in order to control the virus spreading and today, the entire China has achieved a great result of fighting against to the disease and almost all the cities including Wuhan could control the Covid 19 and the daily lives of the people in China are back to normal and people are starting to travel in China from here and there again.

At the same time, there are more and more individual tourists are traveling to Tibet nowadays since most of the scenic spots in Tibet have already been opened to the tourists.

Today the administration bureau of the Potala Palace decided to re-open the Palace to both the tourists and local pilgrims from tomorrow which is 3^rd June 2020 so all the local pilgrims and tourists can book the tickets of the Palace as before.

The local Tibetan pilgrims can queue in front of the Palace from 7.00 Am and buy the tickets at 9.00 Am. They can visit the Potala Palace from the main entry gate. The tourists who come as individuals, they need to book the tickets in one day advance from the administration bureau of the Palace.

The administration of the Potala Palace requires that all the tourists and local pilgrims should wear face musk while visiting the Palace and at the same time, the administration of the Potala Palace will check the fever of each and every single visitors to make sure that there won’t be problem of spreading the disease.  

For the tourists who come to Tibet, visiting the Potala Palace is a must when they travel to Tibet because in the one hand, the Potala Palace was historically not only the winter Palace of the Dalai Lamas but also the most important pilgrimage sites and the greatest cultural relics of the Tibetan people.

At the same time, the Potala Palace was listed in the world’s heritage sites and it has also be chosen into the list of Seven Wonders of the World. The unique architecture of the Palace and the most beautiful, and historical cultural relics inside the Palace including the giant golden stupa of the fifth Dalai Lama and the most sacred and the oldest statue of the Avalotesvara, the god of compassion attract thousands of thousands tourists every year from all over the world.

Visiting the Potala Palace is the highlight of the Lhasa sightseeing tour. When tourists travel to Tibet, they always include 2-4 days Lhasa sightseeing tour and the Potala Palace is a must visit place in their program. If you took a trip to Tibet without visiting the Potala Palace, then your Tibet trip is not completed and you must come back to Tibet again.

In accordance with the spirit of the Chinese Central Government, and according to the overall arrangement of the epidemic prevention and control work of the district and municipal party committees, after the Buddhist Association of Lhasa City fully solicited the opinions and suggestions of the temples and monasteries in Tibet.

it was decided that all temples and monasteries in the city and the main urban area except the Jokhang Temple has gradually been reopened from May 20, 2020 after more than four months closure since the Covid 19 was spread world wide even though Tibet does not have the cases of the disease.

After the temples and monasteries around Lhasa city are opened to the public, the local people are required to show ID cards to enter the monasteries or temples for worship and the tourists are required not only to show the ID cards or passports but also they should scan the QR code for the ID card and epidemic prevention and control itinerary to enter the temple for visiting.

Another important kind notice is that Please wear masks consciously when visiting temples and monasteries, and cooperate with the health workers and security guards for body temperature detection, disinfection and other prevention and control work.

The Buddhist association of Lhasa city also urges all the pilgrims and the tourists that Crowding, staying close to each other and gathering are strictly prohibited.

All temples and monasteries are required to strictly implement the overall prevention and control requirements for external input and internal rebound, strictly control the entrance to religious activities, and deepen the prevention and control measures such as temperature measurement, mask wearing, disinfection, and regular ventilation inside the temples and monasteries to ensure the safety and healthy environment of the visitors.

All temples and monasteries in the city are temporarily required not to hold any kinds of  religious activities with the participation of believers and also not allowed to have religious ceremony or monks chanting in the assembly hall.

Jokhang Temple is currently not opened to the public due to the implementation of the overall safety and renovation of fire immigration systems of the temple and the upgrading of electricity and the protection work of cultural relics.

Opening time of the Jokang temple to the public will be notified separately. After hearing this good news, I think slowly Tibet travel business will be picked up and there will be more FIT domestic tourists from mainland China.

We request the majority of pilgrims or tourists to give their understanding and support of this announcement.

Lhasa Buddhist Association

May 19, 2020

Visit Bharkor Bazzar in Lhasa Tibet, the bustling Lhasa market is one of the must visit during your Tibet tour and a very important pilgrimage circumambulation for local Tibetans.

Bharkor Bazzar is located around the Jokang temple in Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet. Tibetan pilgrims believe that Bharkor Bazzar is one of the most sacred pilgrimage circumambulation which goes clockwise direction around the Jokang temple.

Jokang temple has been dedicated to the most sacred statue of Jowo Shakyamuni, which was brought to Tibet by the princess Wenchang of the Tang court in the 7^th century as her dowry when the King Songtsan Gampo invited her to become his princess. 

The statue was built by the time when Buddha was alive and blessed the statue by Buddha himself with more than 2600 years history so the Tibetans believe that the statue is the most sacred object inside the Jokang temple and walk around Bharkor Bazzar to make a Kora around the Jokang temple.

For the tourists, to visit Bharkor Bazzar in Lhasa Tibet during their Tibet trip is a must because they can see lots of Tibetan pilgrims around Bharkor and in front of the Jokang temple and it is also the best place to buy souvenirs when you visit Tibet.  

After Corona Virus spread all over the world, since end of January till 28^th April, Bharkor Bazzar was closed to both tourists and local people. All the shops inside Bharkor Bazzar were also closed till then.

April 28^th 2020, Bharkor Bazzar was again opened and there are thousands of pilgrims queuing to go to Bharkor Bazzar. Everybody was very happy that they can go back to visit Bharkor Bazzar in Lhasa Tibet like before and do their ritual Buddhist practice in front of the Jokang temple. You can again see hundreds of people, doing prostration in front of the Jokang temple and doing meditation.

All the shops around Bharkor Bazzar are also opened and the owners of the shopkeepers are very glad that they can come back to their shops and do the business as usual. Lots of pilgrims and domestic tourists already begin to visit Bharkor Bazzar in Lhasa Tibet again and enjoy the beauty of Bharkor Bazzar.

On April 20, China Mobile officially launched the “5G Network on the Everest” since April this year, which made substantial progress for both China Tibet Mountaineering and Tibet Travel to Everest. As of April 19, China Mobile has completed the opening of three 5G base stations in the 5300m Everest base camp and the 5800m Everest acclimatization Base camp.

It is expected to complete the construction and opening of two 5G base stations at Everest advanced Base camp at the elevation of 6500m before April 25 and all points, which will become the 5G base station with the highest altitude in the world.

At that time, the 5G signal of China Mobile will cover the whole climbing route of the of Everest and the summit of Everest from Tibet side.

“5G network on the Everest” launched by China Mobile plans to build five 5G base stations in Everest including the acclimatization Base camp at the elevation of 5800m and Everest advanced basecamp at the elevation of 6500m.

Therefore, China Mobile has sent more than 150 employee to take charge of building new 5G stations on the Everest and maintaining the internet transmission trunk line, covers of 177 km around the preservation area of Everest, and newly laid 25 km optical cable.

More than 40 yaks and 60 workers transfer 8 tons of network construction equipment and life support materials by carrying cattle on their shoulders; 12 network maintenance and optimization personnel stick to the 7 * 24-hour duty in the area above 5300 meters above sea level to ensure the smooth network and good performance in the Everest area.

In order to preserve the ecological environment of the core area of Everest, China Mobile does the construction in method of laying armored optical cables with least damage to the natural environment to ensure that no excavation and damage are carried out in the core area ,set up a living area during the construction, and centralized treatment of garbage.

 “5G network on the Everest” is not only an extreme challenge in the forbidden area of human life, but also a solid foundation for the later development of 5G Wisdom tourism which will give a great dedication to both trekking to the Everest Base Camp and climbing to the top of the Everest.

According to the Tibet tourism vehicle company of Tibet Autonomous Region, it is said that Tibet Autonomous Region is going to re-open all the tourist scenic sightseeing spots from the 1^st Of April 2020 including the Potala Palace and Jokang temple which have been listed in the UNESCO world heritage site. Tibet tourism Vehicle Company is a Lhasa government owned Vehicle Company and it is the largest Tibet tourism vehicle company.

After the Corona Virus has been spread in mainland China and the rest of the world, Tibet Autonomous Region closed all the tourist scenic spots in Tibet to the public in order to prevent the residents from this severed disease. By doing a great action against to this very bad virus, Tibet has got a great result of preventing from the Corona Virus and there is not any Corona virus case in Tibet now after Tibet has cured only one case of mainland China’s tourist who came from Hubei province.

Tibet tourism vehicle company announced today that they are going to re-start their company’s tourist vehicle transportation from 1^st April and they are going to provide the tourist vehicles to the local Tibetan travel agency any time when there is a Tibet travel tour group booking.

At the same time, the government of Tibet Autonomous region is also convincing the local residents who own restaurants and hotels to re-open slowly and do business as usual so through a great effort and hard work of Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet slowly will bring the life back to normal and will be ready to receive the tourists from the all over the world.

Tibet Shambhala Adventure, as being a local officially registered Tibetan travel agency, we are pleased to inform this good news to all our partners around the world and will be updating more information about Tibet tour and Tibet travel permits.

Source: The management bureau of the Potala Palace

Since the Corona Virus has spread all over the world and Tibet has got it’s single virus case confirmed in the end of January, travel Tibet & visit Potala Palace has totally been closed but luckyly after around 18 days medical treatment given to the patient by the number three people’s hospital in Lhasa, the patient was compeletely cured and sent back to mainland China. Since then Tibet does not have Corona virus any more. However all the tourists sites including the Potala Palace are still remained closed so the Potala Palace co-operated with Taobao flat form to show the live online visit to the Potala Palace. The Potala Palace will be the first webcast on Taobao Live

In order to actively respond to the guidance from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage on “continuing to use digital resources, and continuously enrich and improve the display and content through online exhibitions, online education, and online public courses, etc., to provide quality digital cultural products and services” as well as in order to slowly start travel Tibet & visit Potala Palace, there is a good Tibet travel news which says,  From 14:00 to 15:00 on March 1, 2020, the Potala Palace Management Office will open a live broadcast tour of the Potala Palace for the first time in the form of a Taobao Plat Form live which makes a new record to the travel Tibet history.

The Potala Palace is a world cultural heritage site and is loved by tourists at home and abroad so it is an ideal place for travel Tibet & visit Potala Palace. The Potala Palace administration or management office said “ We sincerely invite the majority of tourists to visit the Potala Palace in a panoramic way through Taobao’s online platform live show to get a more unique and interactive experience. At the same time, Taobao’s live show will also bring new development directions to the digitalization of the travel Tibet and the Potala Palace’s touring. Until the Corona Virus was gone away from us, The Potala Palace will keep on this live broadcast Potala Palace tour and hope that the majority of tourists and Tibetan pilgrims like this. At the same time, we are willing to have your valuable feedback through the interactive platform. We will further enhance the experience of online tours’’.

We wish you all a pleasant visit! Tashi Delek!

 Potala Palace Management Office

February 29, 2020

There is a good news about Tibet travel today after the Corona Virus has been spread. It has been more than twenty days since the Corona Virus been spreading all over China. Tibet was really hoping and trying it’s best not to happen this bad Corona Virus disease in Tibet but sadly, 18 days back, Tibet had to report it’s report of first Corona virus case confirmed. A tourist who came from Hubei province in mainland China where the Corona virus came from and where it has very badly spreading. Tibet has been trying it’s best to control the Corona virus spreading and it has closed all the tourists since Tibet has got this first and last Corona Virus case.

Today, there is a very good news for Tibet that the person who has been effected by Corona Virus has successfully been cured and discharged from number three people’s hospital in Lhasa after 18 days medical treatment. The patient was very happy and thankful to all the members of the number three people’s hospital. The patient went back to Hubei province by train today.

Tibet is a high plateau region in China and most parts of Tibet are at the average elevation of over 3600mts and usually Tibet does not get any kinds of strange disease or virus like this in the history. In the one hand, people believe it is because Tibet is on a very high plateau and Tibet has a very strong sunlight all the time. It is said that many virus has been killed by the strong sun light. In the other hand, people say that Tibet does not get any kinds of strange disease like Corona Virus because Tibetans don’t eat any kinds of strange sea food or wild lives. Instead of eating those animals and insects, Tibetans are very compassionate to them and don’t kill any kinds of wild lives.

The Chinese government has been trying their best to control the virus and recently the Chinese top medical experts recently said on news conference that the Chinese government will control the Virus completely in the end of March and will try their best to bring every thing back to normal in the end of March so it is a very good news for Tibet travel since today, the first and last case of Corona Virus in Tibet has been cured and discharged from the hospital and the Chinese government also says that they are going to try their best to control the Corona Virus in the end of March therefore we are hoping to bring everything back to normal and can start our Tibet travel in the beginning of April.

Tibet has another name known as land of snow or the land that is surrounded by snowcapped mountain. Lhasa is thecapital city of Tibet and it is one of the lowest altitude places in Tibet. It is a must visit place during your traveling to Tibet in winter.

During the winter in Tibet, the early morning and late evening is very cold and in the higher places of Tibet like Ngari, the western Tibet and Qangthang, the northern Tibetan plateau. Both places are at the average elevation of 4600mts above sea level and it falls heavy snow quite often but the city like Lhasa has been a pretty long time that did not have a heavy snow fall and the winter has been very dried.

While all the residents in Lhasa have been waiting for a snow fall. 18^th December 2018, Lhasa had it’s first day winter snow fall and the temperature drops down but better and more fresh air. Lhasa had snow fall of 5-centi meters thick and the entire city covers with beautiful snow as if the city is offering a white scarf.

During the traveling to Tibet, It is a great welcome of the winter and gives the great fresh air to the residents of Lhasa city and the dried weather turns into fresh, wet and more oxygen. Traveling to Tibet in winter becomes more beautiful and unique. The Potala Palace is covered with a very beautiful snow and the tree leaves in the Lukang park are full of white snow. The surrounding mountain of the Lhasa city is fully covered by snow which gives Lhasa another different beautiful view.