April 26th / Day 1: Arrive in Lhasa (3658 m)
Arrive in Lhasa. Transfer to your hotel and get settled.
April 27th / Day 2: Lhasa
Visit Drepung, one of the three most famous monasteries in Lhasa. Drepung is located just outside Lhasa on Gambo Utse Mountain. Once home to as many as 10,000 monks, the enormous monastic complex is the site of many prayer halls, dormitories, and temples. Just below the monastery is the Nechung temple, the former home of the state oracle. Afterwards, visit Sera monastery, where you can watch monks debate in the courtyard. If you enjoy hiking, walk the hour-long circumambulation path around the monastery complex.
April 28th / Day 3: Lhasa
In the morning, visit the Potala Palace, the greatest monumental structure in all of Tibet. Also visit the Jokhang Temple, which is located in Barkhor Square in Lhasa. The Barkhor is a famous shopping street filled with goods and souvenirs from Tibet, Nepal, and India. Pilgrims from all over Tibet visit the Barkhor to pray in front of the Jokhang. Afterwards, visit Ramoche, a small monastery located in the city center.
April 29th / Day 4: Lhasa – Yamdrok Lake (4442 m) – Samding Monastery – Gyantse (3900 m)
Beginning your adventure in the Himalayas, drive to Gyantse. Along the way cross over the Kamba la (4794m) and the Karo la passes (5010m), which boast spectacular views. After Kamba la, arrive at Yamdrok Lake, a holy turquoise-colored lake with stunning scenery. Afterwards, continue to Samding monastery (13th century). This monastery is also home to a female incarnate lama – Dorje Phagmo. In the afternoon drive to Gyantse.
April 30th / Day 5: Gyantse – Shalu monastery – Shigatse (3836 m)
In the morning, visit Kumbum stupa in Gyantse and Pelkor Chode monastery followed by a two-hour drive to Shigatse. On the way visit Shalu monastery, which for centuries was renowned as a center of monastic scholarly learning. Shalu was also famous for its mural paintings which were considered to be the most ancient and beautiful in Tibet. In Shigatse see the giant Buddha in the famous Tashilunpo monastery – the residence of Panchen lama lineage.
May 1st / Day 6: Shigatse – Sakya Monastery – Rongbuk Monastery – Everest North Face (5200 m)
In the morning we will drive to Sakya Monastery. Sakya tradition is one of the four main Tibetan Buddhist Schools in Tibet. It was from here that the whole of Tibet was governed during the period of the Sakyapa hegemony (1268 -1365). Then we will move to Mt. Everest. Along the way, we will drive through Tso-La pass (4500m) and Gyatso-La pass (5252m) where you will have a great view of Mt. Everest and other mountains of the Himalayan mountain range. After passing through scenic valleys and driving over rocky mountains, we will reach Rongbuk (Rongphu) Monastery, where we will have a fabulous view of Mt. Everest. Rongbuk monastery is the highest monastery in the World. It is worth to do a small kora (circumambulation) around the monastery, making amazing photos of Mt. Everest. Spend the night near Rongbuk monastery.
May 2nd / Day 7: Rongbuk – Old Tingri – View of Mt. Shishangpangma – Peikutso Lake – Saga (4640 m)
Catch a sunrise view of Mount Everest, and continue driving along the world’s highest mountains. After reaching the main road, drive up to high mountain passes with a great view of the Himalayas. The world’s one of the highest mountain – Mt. Shishangpangma can be seen in distance on your left side. Then continue to drive towards north to Peikutso Lake, an Alpine Lake. Afterwards, you are continuously driving through the countryside, where you can see small lakes and nomads camping with their yaks and sheep. In the late afternoon, cross over the Bramha Putra River on the way to typical Chinese and Tibetan town. Spend the night in Saga.
May 3rd / Day 8: Saga – Paryang (4700 m) – lake Manasarovar (4558 m)
Drive through a wide valley along a scenic river and look out on the grazing lands of yaks and sheep. Towards the south, you can see sand dunes, rocky mountains, and snow-capped peaks. Depending on the season, nomads and other mobile shopkeepers will be attired in beautiful traditional costume. Join them for a cup of hot tea in their home. Continue drive west. In the late afternoon, you will catch your first sight of Holy Mt. Kailash and Lake Manasarovar. Overnight in guesthouse on Manasarovar lake.
May 4th / Day 9: Lake Manasarovar – Tirthapuri – Garuda Valley (if weather allows) – Tsaparang
In the morning look around at lake Manasarovar – one of the highest freshwater lakes in the world. This turquoise-colored lake is full of fish and swans. Holy Mt. Kailash, Mt. Gurula-Mandala, and Lake Rashekshi surround Manasarovar. The region is considered rich in gold and other minerals, hot springs and hundreds of wild living creatures. Then visit Rakshas Tal lake and Chiu Monastery, a small monastery located upper on a hillside. You can dip into a hot spring there. Then drive to Tirthapuri, where sacred hot springs and a geyser emerge above the embankment of the Sutlej River, is one of the traditional pilgrimage sites visited after Mount Kailash. Then drive 7km towards west to Gurugyam Monastery which is a Bon Monastery founded in 1936 by Khyungtrul Yungdrung Gyeltsen Pelzangpo below the Yungdrung Rinchen Barwa meditation cave. Afterwards, drive to Tsaparang which was once the capital city of Guge Kingdom. Stay in Tsaparang.
May 5th / Day 10: Tsaparang – Guge Kingdom – Tholing Monastery
In the morning we visit the summer palace of Guge Kings in Tsaparang as well as ancient Tantric murals and cave paintings which draw great interested to the people who are interested in ancient Tibetan arts. The ruins of this lost kingdom still are seen along the ridges of cliff mountains in this region. Afterwards, drive 25km to explore the ruins of the ancient Guge Kingdom dated back to the 10th century. There are four main temples in the lower reaches of the city, where you can see wall paintings and statues display. Some of them are of the earliest examples of Tantric Buddhist art. Above these temples, you can find the citadel of the kings. Then we will drive to Toling Monastery which consists of two main temples and several other ruins of ancient stupas. Tholing Monastery which is built by Great Tibetan translator Rinchen Zangpo at the beginning of the 10th century. These Buddhist temples became the religious center of the Guge Kingdom. Once you are there, do not miss a small back door which will lead you to the riverside where you can see ancient Toling Monastery and stupa of Padmasambhava. Stay in guesthouse in Tholing.
May 6th / Day 11: Tholing – Dunkar and Piyang caves – Darchen (4575 m)
Today we will drive about 60km from Zanda (Tholing) to Dungkar, located north from Toling at the small village of Dungkar and about 3 km away from Dungkar to Piyang. Dungkar and Piyang are famous for the wall painting and meditation caves, records show there were more than 4,000 caves in the valley that was once inhabited. Nowadays, there are about 2000 caves remained at the Dungkar and Piyang. Actually seldom of tourist knows about this remote place, so if you are fans of an ancient relic, you may find Dungkar and Piyang are nice places to explore. After that, we will back to Darchen and prepare for Kailash kora. Overnight in the guesthouse.
May 7th / Day 12: 1st Day of the Mount Kailash trek, trekking distance 19km and 6 -7 hours / FULL MOON DAY!
Walk along beautiful rocky cliffs, take deep breaths of fresh air. From time to time, the face of Mt. Kailash will appear. The trail passes the stone piled pass with colorful prayer flags, famous Tarpoche Flagpole, sky burial site and then enters Lha Chu valley. at the gate of this rocky canyon, a small monastery called Chugu Monastery with meditation cave of Tibetan Great Yogi Milarepa is on the left side of this canyon across the river. If you are a good trekker and interested in meditation, you can follow the small trail leading to this monastery at the left side of the river while others may continually go on the main trail. Pay a visit to this monastery takes an extra one hour. Afterwards, you can join the main trail cross the bridge below the monastery. Both sides of this canyon are high steep rocky mountains which are representing Bodhisattvas. For example, the three high rocky mountains at the left before reach Dirapuk Monastery represent “Rigsum Gonpo” in Tibetan or Three Bodhisattvas (Manjushri, Avalokiteshvara, and Vajrapani). After half hour of walking, you will reach sacred Dira Puk monastery which is located at an elevation of 5,000 meters by mid-afternoon. Here you can see the North face of the Mt. Kailash. This sight is also considered as a birthplace of Shiva – one of the primary forms of God in Hinduism. Spend the night in the monastery guest house.
May 8th / Day 13: 2nd day of the Mount Kailash Trek – Dolma la pass (5650 m) – Zuthal Puk (4815m), Trekking distance 12km and 7 hours
This place is the closest place to view Mt. Kailash in entire kora. It’s right behind the guesthouses, so enjoy this last time close-up view of this holy mountain, then we start the day. Hike across a valley up to the Dolma-La Pass. The trail is much more dramatic today as you are ascending from 5050m to 5650m above sea level. Though these numbers are not big difference but given the altitude in this area, it is the most difficult part of the trek. When you reach the top, make an offering, take a break (or meditate), and leave behind all your problems and worries. Let the prayer flags at the mountain pass bring positive energy to you and your families. Afterwards, begin descending. A mirror-like turquoise lake will appear in front of you in the middle of black rocky mountains, which said to be water offering for the holy mountain. By the late afternoon arrive at Zuthal Puk, the cave of miracles where Milarepa once stayed.
May 9th / Day 14: 3rd day of the Mt. Kailash kora and drive to Saga
After finishing your circuit of Mt. Kailash, a car will pick you up and take you to the Lake Manasarovar – one of the highest freshwater lakes in the world. This turquoise-colored lake is full of fish and swans. Holy Mt. Kailash, Mt. Gurula-Mandala, and Lake Rashekshi surround Manasarovar. The region is considered rich in gold and other minerals, hot springs and hundreds of wild living creatures. Then visit Rakshas Tal lake and Chiu Monastery, a small monastery located upper on a hillside. You can dip into a hot spring there.
May 10th / Day 15: Saga – Kyirong (Nepal border), 2800m
Continually drive in the Himalayas. If weather permits you will have a great view of Mt. Shishapangma and other snow peaks. After ascending up to Gongtang La pass which is the last highest point of this trip with an elevation of 5300m / 17400ft, the zig zag road will lead us down to the valley. The attitude is getting lower dramatically as you descend to the valley, and the geography changes from desert-like grassland into greenish forest. You start to feel the gentle air which with full of oxygen. Right before reaching Kyirong town, we will stop at a waterfall which falls from atop of rocky mountain. The water said to be blessed by Guru Rinpoche. If time allows, we will visit Guru Rinpoche’s caves and Milarepa’s monastery. Once you get to newly built border town of Kyirong, you can fully rest in a restaurant, or wonder around the town. There is a Nepali style temple called Pakba Monastery which hosts about 30 nuns. Overnight in a guesthouse in Kyirong.
May 11th / Day 16: Kyirong – Rasuwa Gadi (Cross border) / or back to Shigatse
Drive 23km towards the border between China and Nepal. The customs opens at 10 am and closes by 17:30 pm. It may take around 1-2 hours to cross the border and go through customs formalities. After crossing the bridge, you need to go through Nepali customs. Finally, you will get to Nepal border town of Rasuwa Gadhi. Our Tibetan guide will help you to go through border formalities on Chinese side of the border. On the way to Kathmandu, you will see Langtang National Park, snow peaks, farm terrains and Rasuwa ethnic group of Nepal. You will arrive at Kathmandu in the evening. It takes about 8-9 hours to reach Kathmandu. Note: there are unpaved parts of the road.
Those who return back to Lhasa, continue to drive to Shigatse via Old Tingri. This is another long driving journey. Due to the traffic speed limit, your vehicle will stop several minutes from time to time, so you will have a chance to stretch your legs or walk around. Along the way, you will again see Peikutso lake and some of the World’s highest mountains including Mt. Shishapangma, Mt. Cho Oyu, etc. Arrive in Shigatse in the evening.
May 12th / Day 17: Shigatse – Yungdrunling monastery – Lhasa
Today, we continue to drive on the friendship highway. After 80km we will make a detour to visit Yundrunling Monastery, this monastery is the biggest Bonpo monastery in Tibet and it was once the second most influential monastery in Tibet. This is the only monastery you need to walk counter clock-wise on this trip. The main Chapels are Assembly Hall, Protector Hall. Note, female travelers are not allowed to go inside the Protector Hall. Finally, we will make our way back to Lhasa.
May 13th / Day 18: Depart Lhasa
Say goodbye to Tibet!
Itineraries are subject to change without prior notice.
