Tibet was opened for tourists only in 1985. Before this, it avoided influence from the western world and developed its unique culture & religion independently. To see a place like Tibet now, before many modern changes take place, is certainly a unique experience.
Its name, the “Roof of the World” is no idle statement. The valley bottoms of Tibet are higher than the highest mountains elsewhere. Its snow covered plateau are the highest in the world. Apart from the Everest, which Tibetans see from the other side, many mountain ranges are over 4,500m. Tourists can fly right into Lhasa from Kathmandu, taking one of the world’s most dramatic flights across the Himalayan range. Lhasa (3,650m) Tibet’s capital city lies in the highest plateau of the world amid arid wilderness.
Travelling to Tibet is an incredible journey in which one can see the world’s highest mountains, travel on the world’s highest plains, meet nomadic herdsmen and pilgrims and walk amidst the burning butter lamps & chanting monks of Tibet’s ancient and legendary Buddhist monasteries. This is a wonderful and amazing trip. However, if participants are not up for a bit of adventure or for accommodations & amenities that may be far from perfect, then perhaps this trip is not for them or their trip should be limited only within Lhasa city. “Cold & dusty” is the comment of many people who have visited Tibet. While the trip to Tibet is not easy, it is well worth the effort. Even the most jaded traveller may feel like a neophyte tourist.
Many of the conditions described here are still controlled by the Chinese government. The trip is considered “Luxurious” by Chinese standards, a definition with which it is very hard to agree. Travellers have sometimes been disappointed with accommodations, guide services and meals; Even writing about the lack of hot & cold running water or flush toilets seems rather trite, when the conditions tourists experience are far superior to local standards and hence, luxurious indeed in comparison. However, to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Most folks have better experiences, when they know what to expect.
Accommodations
The clients should not have high expectations of these and they will not be disappointed. Camping trek style might be a better alternative but currently it is not a Chinese-offered option, where the accommodation is available. The Chinese-built luxury tourist hotels that are found in Tibet are large, cold (figuratively & literally) cemented buildings set amidst fenced-in compounds.
The hotels in Zhangmu and Xegar and most guest houses in Tibet are poorly kept with dirty carpets, broken windows and a feeling of abandonment, that permeates the lobbies & bedrooms. Hotel Lhasa (former Holiday Inn) and few other hotels in Lhasa are comparable to average Western lodging. While all the hotels have rooms with bathrooms, some hotels/guest houses do not routinely have either hot or cold running water. Several hotels (except in Lhasa) have hot water for bathing available during certain hours in the evening only; these hours of availability are announced, when guests arrive in the hotel.
All hotel guest rooms are provided with a thermos flask of hot water for tea as well as comfortable beds with lots of warm blankets. While all the hotels are wired for electricity, power in some of the hotels/guest houses are limited to a few evening hours. Taking a flashlight along is a must. All hotels provide toilet paper, but for toilet stops during the day while on the road, it’s a good idea to take some toilet paper along. Except the Lhasa Hotel in Lhasa, none of the hotels are heated. People wearing down jackets & hats while eating dinner or breakfast is a common sight. In November, the mean temperature in Lhasa goes from -4°C to 12°C. In August, the mean temperature ranges from +8°C to +22°C.
Food & Snacks
While traveling in Asia, one must be careful about food & drink. Many travellers have problems with diarrhea in Tibet. Despite the most conscientious efforts, they may still come down with the dreaded ailment. Nevertheless, there are ways they can decrease the probability of getting sick and limit the bad effects of diarrhea once it has started. We recommend to carry iodine solution or tablets to purify drinking water. Normal concentration of chlorine tablets are not strong enough to kill giardia, a common cause of diarrhea in this region. No non-chemical filters eliminate viruses such as hepatitis & therefore should not be used alone to purify water. All boiled or tea water is probably safe. Ice cubes should not be taken unless one can be sure that they are made from boiled water. Many people forget that contaminated tap water used in brushing teeth could be a source of diarrhea. Any water going into the mouth should be purified with iodine or previously boiled.
Foods that come hot & recently cooked are best. Foods that are peeled or skinned are also usually safe to eat. Especially when visitors are not sure under what conditions the food has been prepared, they should avoid cold salads or other not recently cooked food that may have been sitting out for a long period of time. Salads cleaned & soaked in iodine are also safe. However, it is hard to determine whether or not the food has actually been soaked or whether the restaurant personnel just want to please the clients and tell them what they want to hear.
Good restaurants are not available on the highways in Tibet. Therefore, we recommend clients to carry lunch boxes. However, realizing that lunch stops during the tour can be a bit unappetizing, bringing own snacks would be a great idea. They should bring foods they like & can eat easily (i.e. crackers, cheese, cookies, chocolate bars, granola bars, soup mix or peanut butter). But it is advisable not to bring too much. Ascending to high altitude many people find their appetites greatly diminished. This is a mild symptom of altitude sickness, so they should not be surprised if they are not very hungry. Also, unlike trekking, they will not have a lot of exercise as they will sit in the bus and watch the passing scenery most of the time.
Guide
The Chinese/Tibetan guide provided for our groups may not speak very good English and may not know much about the local monasteries, history & culture. For best information, we recommend clients take a guidebook along on the tour. The Tibet Guide by Stephen Bachelor and the most recent one, Tibet Handbook by Victor Chan is an ideal book to take along. It gives general information about Tibetan culture as well as specific information about the usual sights. Unlike Lonely Planet’s Tibet: A Travel Survival kit, which gives more logistics about travelling around Tibet independently. The Tibet Guide & Tibet Hand Book concentrates more on Tibetan culture & sacred places. Both books are useful. Also quite useful is a route map, to know where they are going and have been each day.
Clothing
We recommend the following clothes to be brought along:
| November to April | May to October | |
| Down Jacket Thermal Underwear Warm Trousers, Sweaters Woolen shirts Gloves, Warm hat & Scarf Light leather Boots in case of Snow | Raincoat or Windbreakers Jackets , Sweaters Sunhat Shirts (cotton/woolen) Walking shoes Thermal Underwear | |
Altitude Sickness
As most of the places in Tibet lie over 4,500m, clients are likely to experience some of the minor symptoms and discomfort of altitude sickness (headache, mild nausea, and loss of appetite) until their body is adjusted to the elevation. This can take from few hours to a couple of days, depending on the individual. They should take it little easy first couple of days and take in plenty of non-alcoholic liquids. This helps the body to acclimatize faster.
Visa
To apply for China visa the passports must be valid for more than 6 months. A Group Visa is normally issued in Kathmandu. As per new regulations, the normal Chinese visa issued abroad is also good to enter Tibet from Kathmandu. We arrange for issuance of the Tibet permit, which is required in any case. For the Tibet Visa procedure, we require following information by fax/email at least 30 days prior to the arrival in Tibet: 1) Name as in Passport. 2) Passport Number. 3) Nationality. 4) Date of issue & expiry of the passport 5) Date of Birth. 6) Occupation. 7) Sex. We also require the photocopy of the passport by fax or email (as an attachment).
DAY-TO-DAY ITINERARIES – TIBET
Tibet Tour (fly-in/fly-out) (4 days/3 nights)
| Day 01: | Fly over highest mountains of the world to Gonggar Airport (approx. 1 hr 15 minutes). Transfer to hotel (2 hrs drive). Rest of the day is free for acclimatization to the altitude or visit local bazaars on own if time permits. |
| Day 02-03: | Guided tours of Potala Palace, Norbhulinkha Palace, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Bazaar, Sera Monastery & Drepung Monastery. |
| Day 04: | Transfer to the Gonggar Airport and fly to Kathmandu or Chengdu. |
Tibet Tour (fly-in/fly-out) (6 days/5 nights)
| Day 01: | Fly to Lhasa. Drive to Tsedang. Overnight at Hotel Tsedang. |
| Day 02: | Visit Yambulakhang & Dzendruk Monastery. Overnight at Hotel Tsedang. |
| Day 03: | Visit Samye Monastery & drive to Lhasa. Check in at your hotel. Rest of the day is at leisure. |
| Day 04-05: | Tour of Sera Monastery, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Bazaar, Potala Palace, Drepung Monastery & Norbhulinkha Palace. |
| Day 06: | Drive to the Gonggar Airport & fly to Kathmandu or Chengdu. |
Tibet Tour (fly-in/fly-out) (8 days/7 nights)
| Day 01: | Fly to Lhasa. Transfer to your hotel (2 hrs drive). Rest of the day is free for acclimatization to the altitude or visit local bazaars on own. |
| Day 02 & 03: | Guided tours of Potala Palace, Norbhulinkha Palace, Jokhang Temple, Sera Monastery and Barkhor bazaar. |
| Day 04: | After breakfast, drive to Gyantse, a small bustling town seeped in history. Drive along the Yarlung Tsangpo river & then over a high pass Khamb-La pass (4,794m) before descending to the Turquoise lake, Yamdrok Tso. Then ascend along a winding road to cross the Karo-La pass (5,045m) and then descend to the Gyantse valley. Overnight at the Hotel Gyantse. |
| Day 05: | After breakfast, visit Kumbum Chorten & the Pelkhor Monasteries. Then drive for couple of hours to Shigatse. In the afternoon, visit the Tashi Lhumpo Monastery, the largest and the most magnificent amongst all Monasteries in Tibet. Overnight at Hotel Shigatse. |
| Day 06: | Drive Shigatse to Lhasa via New Highway. Check-in at your hotel. |
| Day 07: | Guided tour of Drepung Monastery & rest of the day free for shopping. |
| Day 08: | Transfer to the Gonggar Airport and fly to Kathmandu or Chengdu. |
Tibet Tour (fly-in/fly-out) (8 days/7 nights with Tsedang)
| Day 01: | Fly to Lhasa. Transfer to your hotel. Rest of the day is free. |
| Day 02: | Sightseeing tour of Sera Monastry, Jokhang Temple and Barkhour Bazaar. |
| Day 03: | Guided tour to Potala Palace and Norbulingkha Palace. |
| Day 04: | After breakfast, drive to Gyantse. Overnight at the Hotel Gyantse |
| Day 05: | After breakfast, visit Kumbum Chorten & the Pelkhor Monasteries. Then drive to Shigatse. In the afternoon, visit the Tashi Lhumpo Monastery, the largest & most magnificent amongst all Monasteries in Tibet. Overnight at Hotel Shigatse. |
| Day 06: | Drive to Tsedang. Overnight at Hotel Tsedang. |
| Day 07: | Visit Yambulakhang, Dzendruk Monastery and Samye Monastery. |
| Day 08: | Drive to Gonggar airport and fly to Kathmandu or Chengdu. |
Tibet Overland Tour (fly-in/drive out) (8 days/7 nights) (fixed departure tour ex-Kathmandu)
| Day 1 (Sat): | Kathmandu – Lhasa (3,650m): Transfer to Kathmandu airport in time to connect your flight to Lhasa. This one hour fifteen minutes flight is perhaps the most spectacular as you fly directly over the great Himalayan barrier across Mt. Everest & its many surrounding peaks such as Nuptse, Lhotse, Cho Oyu, Makalu etc. Upon arrival at Gonggar airport you will be received & driven along the banks of the Yarlung river to Lhasa. Check – in at Hotel Lhasa. Rest of day is at leisure. |
| Day 2 & 3 (Sun/Mon): | Lhasa (3,650m): These two days will be spent discovering Lhasa – its magnificent palace residences, Monasteries & quaint bazaars. You will see the famous Potala Palace, Norbulinka-HH Dalai Lama’s summer Palace, Sera & Drepung Monasteries as well as the Jokhang Temple. Walk through the narrow lanes of Barkhor, the old market place of Lhasa, which has remained unchanged for centuries. |
| Day 4 (Tue): | Lhasa – Gyantse (3,950m – 261kms): After breakfast, drive to Gyantse, a small bustling town seeped in history. It takes about 8 hours to drive from Lhasa to Gyantse. Drive along the Yarlung Tsangpo river & then over a high pass Khamb-La pass (4,794m) before descending to the Turquoise lake, Yamdrok Tso. Then ascend along a winding road to cross the Karo-La pass (5,045 m) and then descend to the Gyantse valley. Overnight at the Hotel Gyantse. |
| Day 5 (Wed): | Gyantse – Shigatse (3,900m – 60kms): After breakfast, visit Kumbum Chorten & the Pelkhor Monasteries. Drive on for couple of hours to Shigatse. In the afternoon, visit the Tashi Lhumpo Monastery, the largest & most magnificent amongst all Monasteries in Tibet. Also visit temple of future Buddha which is 26 m high & gilded with gold. Overnight at the Hotel Shigatse. |
| Day 6 (Thu): | Shigatse – Xegar (4,350m – 240km): This day, you will drive along the flat Tibetan plateau via a few small settlements such as Lhatse & Lulu which are typical Tibetan villages. Cross Lhakpa-La pass (5,220m). Overnight at Hotel Qomolangma. |
| Day 7 (Fri): | Xegar – Zhangmu (2,500m – 244km): The drive from Xegar to Zhangmu is picturesque & offers one of the best views of the world’s tallest peaks such as Langtang (7,245m), Dorje Lakpa (6,980m), Makalu (8463m), Everest (8,848m), Lhotse (8,516m), Cho Oyu (8,201m) & Gauri Shankar (7,134m). Cross Lalung-La pass (5,050m). As the road approaches Zhangmu, it follows the deep Gorge of Bhotekoshi river with high and spectacular waterfalls. Overnight at Hotel Zhangmu or similar. |
| Day 8 (Sat): | Zhangmu – Kathmandu: Walk or drive down from Zhangmu to the friendship bridge where you will be met by our vehicle for the onward drive to Kathmandu (114 km). As the Tibet trips are conducted only during the summer/monsoon, it is quite possible that road conditions may be very poor in which case you will have to walk certain stretches of the road which have been washed away or have been blocked by land slides. If the road condition is very bad due to rain, you may also have to hire a 4 wheel drive vehicle for the drive from Lhasa to Zhangmu for which you have to pay extra directly to the agent (approx. US$ 100 per person). In Kathmandu, you will be dropped at a certain point close to the City center from where the transfer to the hotel will have to be arranged on own. |
Flight Details:
Kathmandu ~ Lhasa Every Tuesday, Saturday
Lhasa ~ Kathmandu Every Tuesday, Saturday
P.S Weekly departures will commence with the first Saturday of April & end with the first or second Saturday of November. At present, we propose to operate this tour on fly-in & drive-out basis. However, we reserve right to alter the programme making it drive-in to Lhasa and fly-out from Lhasa (depending on road conditions/flight booking etc;). In this case, the program will have exactly the same contents but in reversed order. This “seat-in-coach” tour is based on bed & breakfast. We use best available hotels/guesthouses en route. Single rooms are not guaranteed!
Kailash Pilgrimage
Mt. Kailash, claimed to be the apex of the Hindu religious axis is also one of the highest mountain in Tibet. This tour gives you the opportunity to make the “ultimate pilgrimage” to holy Kailash and Manasarovar. Starting from Kathmandu the tour includes travelling overland to the sacred Manasarovar Lake (4,700m) & Mt. Kailash (6,714m). You will have a chance to camp by the ethereal waters of the holy lake & to take part in a ‘3-day Parikrama’ around Mt. Kailash as a highlight of this spiritual journey through a holy and beautiful land.
The tour starting from Lhasa or Zhangmu includes rigorous overland driving, trekking & camping, through the remote, wild but picturesque western Tibet, in altitudes between 2,745m & 4,880m. If you are travelling via west Nepal, you have to will have to fly to Nepalgunj, a town in the southern part of Nepal and fly to Simikot the next morning. Besides the ‘Kailash Parikrama’ you will also need to trek for 7 days before crossing the border into Tibet.
This tour is generally supported by a Nepalese Sherpa team comprising of a cook and Sherpas. All camping equipment will be provided & will be led by a Nepalese guide. While trekking, you will have to carry your own daypack only. All equipment & luggage will be carried by porters and Yaks.
Festivals
| Festival | Month | Introduction |
| Tibetan New Year | February | It is the greatest festival in Tibet. In ancient time, when the peach tree was in blossom it was considered as the starting of a new year. Since the systematization of the Tibetan calendar in 1027 A.D the first day of the first month became fixed as the New Year. On the new year’s day families unite “auspicious dipper is offered & the auspicious words “Tashi Delek” are greeted. |
| Great prayer festival | February | It is the greatest religious festival in Tibet. Instituted by Tsong Khapa in 1409. The founder of the Gelukpa sect. Monks from the three great Monasteries of the Tibet of Tibet assemble in Jokhang for prayer to Shakyamuni’s image as if it were the living Buddha. Philosophical debates are held among candidates for the doctor of Metaphysics. Pilgrims come from every corner of Tibet & donations are offered to monks. |
| Butter Lamp | February | It is the last day of the great prayer festival. In order to celebrate Shakyamuni’s victory over non-Buddhist opponents. The lord of Neu Dzong a noted patron of Tsongkapa illuminated numerous butter –lamps in 1409. Ever since the festival has flourished. |
| Gyanste horse race & Archery | June-July | Horse race & archery are generally popular in Tibet and Gyanste enjoys prestige of being the earliest in history by starting in 1408. Contests in early times included horse race, archery & shooting at gallop followed by a few days’ entertainment or picnicing. Presently, ball games, track & field events, folk songs & dances barter trade are in addition to the above. |
| The world incense day | July | Gods in heaven are believed to descend to the mortal world on this day. Incense is burnt in large scales & picnicing take place in public parks. |
| Six-four festival | July-August | It is believed the Buddha gave his first sermon on this day. People celebrate the festival by paying visits to holy mountains. |
| Shoton Festival | August-September | It is the Opera festival and one of the greatest festivals in Tibet. In ancient times pious folks went into mountains hermitages to do penance and on the last day of which yogurt was served for meal followed entertainment of folk songs & dances. Since the 7th century, Opera performances were held for days in Norbulinka. Presently opera contests & distribution of prizes are held for seven days. |
| Bathing week | It is believed when the sacred planet Venus appears in the sky the water in the river becomes purest & can cure diseases. During its appearance for one week in the sky all town people in Lhasa go into the river for bathing. | |
| Death of Tsongkapa | Tsongkapa, the great reformer of Tibetan Buddhism & founder of the Gelukpa sect, died on this day in 1419 AD. In his memory every household burns countless butter lamps on roof-tops & chant prayers in his honour. Late in the evening Tibetan dumpling is served for supper. | |
| Driving off Evil Spirits | February | On the eve of Tibetan New year, 29th of the twelve month religious dances are performed in monasteries for driving off evils spirits of the past year. At night in every household traditional means of driving off evil sprits is carried on by burning bundles of straw by throwing rubbish on crossroad. “Year-end dumping” is served for supper. |
