Tibet Tour w/ Everest Basecamp – Jul 2022

& epic train to Xi’an or Beijing

At A Glance

Join us for our magnificent tour of the gorgeous Buddhist heartland of Tibet and consider coming along to our (optional) Everest Base Camp extension, for a chance to experience the most famous and largest mountain on Earth! This tour will take in the magical city of Lhasa, also featuring some of the world’s most remarkable scenery with an added adventure to Namba Villages and Namtso Lake. After a few busy and exciting days of exploring Lhasa and discovering the wonders of Potala Palace and other ancient outlying monasteries, we will take in the Tibet Museum learning about the history of Tibet from a Chinese perspective and the less known role of British influence here.

For those taking the Everest Base Camp extension (Group B) on the Tibet Tour we will continue onwards passing through some jaw dropping Tibetan valleys and mountain ranges to arrive at the beautiful towns of Shigatse and Gyantse. Experience views of Tibets’ longest river and highest lake before we catch the train out of Tibet on the world’s highest railway line, sure to provide plenty of stunning photo opportunities.

We employ the best local guides, giving us an authentic Tibetan insight to the country and its people. Feel free to ask plenty of questions and get to know them as well as your fellow travelers! Getting to talk one-to-one with the locals is an unparalleled experience for opening the world of another country.

The Tibet Tour starts and finishes in Beijing/Shanghai or Xi’an/Chengdu all of which have connections with major international airports in Europe. If you wish to start from another city in China, just let us know.

We also highly recommend combining this tour with our North Korea Victory Day tour or Mt Paektu Tour. Huge discounts offered for booking these tours together!

Dates & Pricing
Jul 10th – Jul 21st 2021
12 Days
€1,995
Group Starting Point End Date Price
1 1Xi’an / Chengdu July 10th: €1295
2 Beijing /Shanghai  July 21st:  €1995
Tour Highlights
  • Walk the gorgeous streets of Lhasa, Tibet’s majestic capital city with our expert guide showing you around some of Lhasa’s best sights including Potala Palace and Sera Monastery.

  • Enjoy hearty, authentic Tibetan food at many different restaurants as well as the chance to try some local beers and barley wine

  • Take a trip to the spectacular Namsto Lake with various road trips featuring some of Tibet’s most breathtaking scenery

  • Visit the second largest city in Tibet, Shigatse and from here, head up to Everest Base Camp for incredible views of the world’s tallest and most famous mountain!

    Itinerary
    • Sunday 10th July – Lhasa

      Morning

      • Group meets at Xi’an Airport by the check-in counter for our Lhasa bound flight on Tibetan Airlines – time will be confirmed closer to tour departure date. Possible to arrange train trip into Lhasa, please contact us for further details.

      Afternoon

      • Arrive into Lhasa and receive a traditional Nada welcoming ceremony from our local Tibetan guide
      • Drive and check-in to Tashikatge Hotel located in the heart of old town of Lhasa city
      • Free afternoon to climatise and adjust to Lhasa’s 3800m altitude by exploring old town by foot
      • Group regathers for our first feast in Lhasa and get your first taste of Tibetan Yak, the most common meat in these parts.
      • Overnight in Lhasa at Tashikatge Hotel

      Monday 11th July – Lhasa

      Morning

      • Drive out and explore Drepung Monastery – this is the largest monastery in Tibet, built in 1416 and houses up to 10,000 monks. This monastery sits at the base of a mountain with spectacular views of West Lhasa below.
      • Explore Norbulingka also known as the Summer Palace of Lhasa – serving as a traditional summer residence of the former Dalai Lamas from the 1780s and onwards

      Afternoon

      • Lunch at a local restaurant
      • Visit Sera Monastery – here we’ll watch student monks partake in public debates within the courtyard of the monastery where one monk stands making clapping actions asking questions and the other sits and answers.
      • Dinner at local restaurant
      • Overnight in Lhasa at Tashikatge Hotel

      Tuesday 12th July – Lhasa

      Morning

      • The major highlight of exploring Lhasa – Explore Potala Palace – this was the residence of the 14th Dalai Lama until he fled to India in 1957, and previously was used as the main seat of Tibetan government for centuries. We’ll climb our way to the very top of the palace and gain access inside to see numerous waiting and prayer rooms, as well as large golden tombs of previous Dalai Lamas. The view from the top is breathtaking.
      • We’ll make our way all the way down joining the pilgrims on the Pilgrim Path to the viewing platform of the Potala Palace from the famous view that’s also seen on the Chinese 50RMB note

      Afternoon

      • Walk to Monument to the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet and explore Liberation Square located in front of the palace
      • Local lunch
      • Visit Jokhang Temple – this temple is actually considered the most important of Lhasa’s temples by Tibetans and was built for the Nepalese Princess of the Tibetan King
      • Have the afternoon to explore Barkor Street market – this part of the old town is a major pilgrimage site and we can see locals prostrating themselves as they make their way clockwise around the roads
      • Group regathers for dinner
      • Overnight in Lhasa at Tashikatge Hotel

      Wednesday 13th July – Namtso Lake

      Morning

      • Wake up early and begin our four-hour drive to Namtso Lake – the highest and largest lake in Tibet at 4718m. We’ll drive by stunning plateau scenery and pass a peak that tops 5190m, incredible for photo opportunities.
      • Once arriving at Natmso Lake we can make our way down to the water for reflective views and have a further understanding why this lake is known as ‘Heavenly Lake’ to the locals.

      Afternoon

      • Head back to Lhasa stopping in a small local village for lunch
      • Arrive back in Lhasa for dinner
      • Overnight in hotel at Tashikatge Hotel

      Thursday 14th July – Namba Tibetan Village

      Morning

      • We’ll head an hour out of Lhasa to explore Namba, a rural Tibetan village where Nomads base themselves during summer. Explore a barley mill, see how the locals live, and we’ll try our luck to be invited into a home to try some local barley snacks and Tibetan butter tea.
      • We can take this opportunity to hike higher into the mountains and keep a look out for possible Nomad tents and their livestock. During our gentle hike we can take in the fresh air, blue sky and stunning scenery.

      Afternoon

      • Head back to Lhasa and visit the Tibetan Museum with exhibitions on Tibetan culture and history and a section on British imperialism in the area before 1949, a good chance to learn the Chinese interpretation of Tibetan history.
      • Group gathers for local dinner and hit the Tibetan bar street scene
      • Overnight in Lhasa at Tashikatge Hotel

      Friday 15th July – Shigatse

      Morning

      • Group A members depart Lhasa by overnight train back to Xi’an, Xining, Lanzhou or a two-night journey to Beijing arriving at 8:30am on Sunday 21st July. The Tibetan railway is the highest in the world and is a must experience. We can arrange your flight out please contact us to confirm additional costs.

      Group B members continue to Mt. Everest Base Camp

      • Early wake up and check out of hotel. The majority of today will be spent on the road as we make our way to Shitgatse city located halfway between Lhasa and Mt. Everest Base Camp.  During our drive we’ll pass along the Yarlung Tsangpo – the longest river in Tibet stretching over 2800km long
      • Continue making our way up to the top of a snowcapped mountain 5000m high with an unrealistic view of Yamdrok Lake from below – one of three sacred lakes in Tibet. Locals have their Tibetan Mastiffs on display for photos, the world’s most formidable dogs on display at the peak.

      Afternoon

      • Make our way down the pass towards the lake and enter a small town for local lunch
      • Drive up another peak to have a stunning view Karola Glacier that sits 5560m above, exceptionally unique photography opportunity.
      • Head through Nyangchu Valley and briefly stop at Gyantse city – the third largest city in Tibet that holds Gyantse Dzong Fortress that comfortable sits overlooking the city. The fortress went through a few rough patches after being invaded by both the British and Chinese during the Cultural Revolution.
      • Explore Palcho Monastery – most famous for having a tower several floors high with 108 different chapels located inside
      • Arrive in Shigatse – the second largest city in Tibet with population of over 80,000 in the city directly and 700,000 in total in the countries surrounding it.
      • Check-in to Sakya Hotel
      • Dinner at local restaurant
      • Overnight in Shigatse at Sakya Hotel

      Saturday 16th July – Mt. Everest Base Camp

      Morning

      • Wake up early and check out – we can leave larger luggage behind at the Sakya hotel to make our trek to Mt. Everest Base Camp a lot easier.
      • Drive to Mt. Everest Base Camp on Highway 318 most notorious for being China’s longest highway as we stop for a photo a the 5000km marker. The highway begins all the back in Shanghai People’s Square.
      • We’ll pass over another peak this time going as high as 5248m

      Afternoon

      • As we’re about to enter Mt. Everest Nature Reserve or Qomolongma as it is known to the locals as we’ll have lunch before swapping to an electric bus to take us 20km to Mt. Everest Base Camp
      • Trip highlight: Arrive in Mt. Everest Base Camp – you’ll know when we arrive if weather permits as Mt. Everest stands before us at 8844m high, the highest mountain the world.
      • Check into our guest house at Rongphu Monastery
      • Have the afternoon free to walk around the base camp for photos of this mighty mountain
      • Dinner at Rongphu Monastery Guest House, we will warm ourselves up and brace for what is a fairly cold night at this altitude as we sleep 4900m.
      • Overnight in Rongphu Monastery Guest House

      Sunday 17th July – Shigatse

      Morning

      • Before we head out back to Shigatse we’ll explore the highest temple in the world
      • On our way back we’ll stop for lunch and anywhere we see fit for a perfect photo opportunity of Mt Everest in the foreground and to stretch our legs

      Afternoon

      • Arrive into Shigatse in the afternoon to catch our breathe and to explore more of Shigatse
      • Dinner and evening nightlife in Shigatse
      • Overnight in Sakya Hotel

      Monday 18th July – Lhasa

      Morning

      • Begin the morning by exploring the largest monastery in western Tibet, the Tashilunpo Monastery. It is an extremely important site for Tibetan Buddhism as the temple is the seat of the Panchen Lama where previous Panchen Lama’s are also entombed.

      Afternoon

      • Lunch on the way
      • Arrival in Lhasa – here we’ll use this time to catch up on anything last minute that needs seeing or buying in the city
      • Farewell dinner and drinks
      • Overnight back in our friendly Tashikatge Hotel

      Tuesday 19th July

      • Group B members depart Lhasa by boarding the train on the highest railway line in the world to Xi’an, Xining, Lanzhou or a two-night journey to Beijing. Lay back and enjoy incredible vistas and lots of cabin fun!

      Wednesday 20th July

      • Afternoon arrival into Xining, Lanzhou or Xi’an.

      Thursday 21st July

      • Arrive into Beijing at 8:30am

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