3 Weeks in Tibet with SnowLion Tours
We were a group of 13 people and what amazed me that Wangden and his team took care of individual needs for everyone.
They always walked the extra miles to ensure our expectations were exceeded.
This wasn’t a fancy vacation and involved lots of time on the road by rail, bus, hike and horse-ride.
Mostly we stayed with best available options and the visits to Xining, Lhasa, Gyantse, Shigatse, Shegar, Everest Base Camp, Darchen, Mansarovar and Mt. Kailash were experience of a lifetime.
We interacted with many other tour-groups and SnowLion deserves the 7 star from our group.
Biman from United States
Visited on May 2019
Highlights of the trip included:
1. Learning about Buddhism, Tibetan history, and Tibetan culture (note: the primary source of this information were our fantastic Snow Lion guides (Wangden, in Xining; and Pendon, for the rest)
2. Seeing some of the most beautiful scenery in the world, including Mt. Everest and the 3-day hike around Mt. Kailas
3. Meeting Tibetan the people and being welcomed by their warmth and kindness
We simply could not have done this trip without Snow Lion. They organized everything, literally everything: from visas/travel permits, all the way to helping our group order at restaurants (when there was no English menu). Whenever we had any new/changed needs during the trip, we communicated them with our guides and they were able to accommodate quickly and fairly. Transportation, admission tickets, and lodging accommodations – we relied successfully on Snow Lion for everything. This trip would not have been feasible, or not remotely as fun, if it were not for Snow Lion Tours.
On a less logistical note, our guides and drivers associated with Snow Lion were some of the loveliest people I have ever met. I am so very happy to say that I now have friends in Tibet. I wish to visit the country again just to share another cup of Butter Tea with them!
Tenzin (he also was my guide) made a huge surprise for me one day with “Kim’s Tibet Adventure” written on the rear window of the car. Then, himself with his patience, knowledge, thoughfulness and the tiredless driver (who I wanted to call as uncle Wangchen) really made my trip became an adventure with full of emotion and cultivation about Tibet nature, culture as well Buddism. They did their best to help me to arrange everything so I could enjoy my trip in the memorable way. They really cared about my feeling and my expectation. More than a guide and a driver, they were my friends, they didnt just show me, they shared every moments on the way with me. I felt like I had to say goodbye to my friends. Then I went home and now keep thinking about how wonderful the trip I got in Tibet with them. Thank so much, Tenzin and uncle Wangchen for everything you had done for me.
Thank you so much, SnowLion team, for all your efforts to made my tour became more than expected. But I still didnt get enough of amazing Tibet, so I will come back and definitely come to SnowLion again.
Thank you,
Kim
Visit June 2019
My partner and I had an exceptional trip from Kashgar in Western China to Lhasa in Tibet. Once into Tibet, this one-off tour zigg-zagged across the less travelled Western highlights (e.g. Mt Kalash; the Guge Kingdom; Lake Manasarovar) before touching down on the more visited destinations closer to Lhasa (Everest base camp; the Ganden monastery).
We like to get off the beaten track, and have never done a ‘package’ like this, so we were not a little anxious about signing up to do a 15 day tour. There was nothing to worry about, as our guide was astonishing. Socially nibble, knowledgeable, and passionate about his culture, he did all things super well. Our driver was also fine company – both were amiable, good humoured and thoroughly competent in their roles.
The trip was organized with Wangden at Snowlion. This involved customizing an itinerary, a process that required him to be both responsive and imaginative. Across this stage, and over the whole on-the-road section, Wangden’s service was exemplary. Everything was done as well as it could have been, mindful the nature of the trip involved some roughing it and patience dealing with the demands of the local authorities.
We could not commend Snowlion / Wangden more highly
Mark Furlong
it’s been now almost a month since our Tibet trip and we don’t want to miss the chance to thank you and your team, especially also Pempa our guide, for the outstanding organization of our Tibet trip. Thank you!It was definitely an amazing and unique trip for us – seeing Tibetan culture and landscape, tasting Tibetan food and simply experiencing the great hospitality of the people. That was more than fascinating. Surely, we learned a lot about Tibetan monastery and religion and can almost call ourselves now Buddhism experts 😉 Also the hiking trip from Ganden to Samye was an memorable experience. You always say people make your travels count and this is obviously true. Having our cook, the horseman and Pempa as hiking companions was simply more fun (and of course safer too ;)) than if we had hiked alone. Also big thanks to them!
Keep on going the way you do things at SnowLion Tours and again, many, many thanks. It was a pleasure! And of course we will recommend you as a tour operator for Tibet trips.
Take good care and all the best,
Fraenze and Katharina
It is hard to believe that less than a week ago we were doing a “kora” around the Jokhang in Lhasa… If you are researching this topic then you probably already feel the lure but also know the challenges of travelling to Tibet and the importance of placing your precious trip into the hands of a reliable tour operator.From the moment we’ve written our first message to the SnowLion Tours staff until the the sad minute when we had to say good bye to our tour guide at the end of the trip, we have been truly impressed by the efficiency, friendless and knowledge of the SnowLion Tours staff. All our emails were answered promptly before the trip even began with a helpful advice on things to take, places to visit, etc. The train tickets, permits and hotels were booked and secured for us as promised and we knew at that point that we will be going on an amazing trip of a lifetime! Thank you Anna, Margarita and Tenzing for the excellent help with our planning.
Our special thanks go to Tsering Gyalpo, our tour guide during the entire trip from Lhasa to the Everest basecamp at Rongbuk and back. Tsering tirelessly shared his profound knowledge of Tibetan culture, history and religion and we felt very safe and happy in his care. It’s just so happened that one of us had a birthday while on the trip and Tsering’s attention to our passports’ details did not fail to notice this. Somehow he managed to organize a great birthday cake, candles and a yummy Tibetan meal in a cosy restaurant in Lhasa for our group of seven which provided memories that all of us will cherish forever!
Thanks, SnowLion Tours for this gift of a trip of a lifetime. May all your roads be smooth and may you bring a joy of traveling in the Land of Snows to many more!
Dear Wangden,
it’s been now almost a month since our Tibet trip and we don’t want to miss the chance to thank you and your team, especially also Pempa our guide, for the outstanding organization of our Tibet trip. Thank you!
It was definitely an amazing and unique trip for us – seeing Tibetan culture and landscape, tasting Tibetan food and simply experiencing the great hospitality of the people. That was more than fascinating. Surely, we learned a lot about Tibetan monastery and religion and can almost call ourselves now Buddhism experts 😉 Also the hiking trip from Ganden to Samye was an memorable experience. You always say people make your travels count and this is obviously true. Having our cook, the horseman and Pempa as hiking companions was simply more fun (and of course safer too ;)) than if we had hiked alone. Also big thanks to them!
Keep on going the way you do things at SnowLion Tours and again, many, many thanks. It was a pleasure! And of course we will recommend you as a tour operator for Tibet trips.
Take good care and all the best,
Fraenze and Katharina
Tibet Tour in September 2015
Tashi Delek Tenzin,
First off all i want to thank you all for a wonderful and amazing Tibet tour. It has been a very pleasant journey true the Himalayas plateau of Tibet.
I think we had the best guide we could have imagined and with the best driver we had a smooth and funny tour!
Phen pa was a good guide that explained us a lot in the monasteries about Buddhism and highlighted the most interesting points during our journey. I felt he was very knowledge and he was always willing to answer our question till we where satisfied, feeling we learned something.
Mr Karma, as i refer to the Driver was a pleasant, funny and helpful driver for this tour. I never felt unsafe with him in the chaos of Tibetan traffic! Next to a safe driver he was very funny and that set an good traveling atmosphere. Also the car was very fine for the ride.
The accommodations where of very good class. Higher than I expected as a backpacker. I could do with less but it was definitly comfortable to adjust to the altitude.
I found the service of Snowlion very good. Keeping in mind the governmental troubles during our travel, I think the changes in travel program where handled and communicated well except of the extra night in Shigatse. But having said this it was a satisfying solution of our “days problem”.
Overall I can say it was one of my most remarkable experiences in my travel life. And for this I would like to Thank you all again. Totashi!
I hope I helped you with this feedback and i wish you all the best in the future, I will definitly recommend you to my fellow travelers.
As soon as i transfered some pictures I will sent you a few group pictures we made.
Rogier Koops, Incredible Everest Tour, November, 2013
Dear SnowLion Tours Team,
Thank you for your help with the certification. The Tibet trip we had, though terminated prematurely, was one of the best we had. Your guide, Dolkar, was very efficient throughout the tour and very helpful with the emergency details that had to be taken cared of. I’ll be sure to leave a very positive review on tripadvisor.com, not to mention we have given your agency’s contact details to fellow travelers we met in Nepal as well as friends in the Philippines.
Regards,
Wendy Ting, Lhasa to Nepal border visa Mt.Everest Base Camp Tour, Oct 2013
Our time in Tibet was a real highlight and we thank you for making the arrangements as easy as possible. The trip went very smoothly and we were particularly impressed with our helpful guide Palzom, and the skillful driver Tsering. They’re both very friendly and knowledgeable. We had no problems with the vehicle, accommodation, service, etc. Tibet is an amazing place and we will certainly recommend SnowLion to anybody we know intending to visit.
Simon K., Himalayan Journey, July 2013
Dear SnowLion Tours:
Thanks for your email and there is no need to apologise?We have had the time of our lives in Tibet, the beauty of Tibet left us completely stunned and amazed! Panba and our driver (also Tenzin) were wonderful at their jobs; they have certainly become our friends.
Panba is especially great in noting our needs and answering our various requests. She is very caring and has both knowledge and passion for the job. For example, when we told her after the night at Mt. Everest that it was too cold, she immediately suggested we change the original itinerary and stay at Shigatse instead of Sakya in order to have heating for the night. Arrangements were then quickly made such that we had a good night’s rest. She also helped us took beautiful photos! These little things count!
Also must thank YOU again for helping us plan the trip and settle everything before our arrival! You guys together make SnowLion Tours professional and reliable; will definitely recommend your company to my friends and family!
Best regards
Hoy Man Helen Chang, May 11th 2013
Hi Wangden,
Apologies for the very delayed email but we just wanted to say thanks for organising our trip to Tibet last may.
We were impressed you managed to get us there, when many travellers could not get permits, and found it an amazing and eye-opening place. We enjoyed our stay at your friends hotel and wanted to say how pleased we were with the guide Sonam – he was friendly, informative and very patient in trying to explain buddism to a us (clueless westerners)!
Thanks and I hope you and snowlions have a good year,
Rob Milner and Sohying Fung, March 7th 2013
Hello SLT,
The trip has been very nice. Our guide, Penpa, has been just fantastic. He is extremely gentle and well-prepared and we have been very happy with his service. Everything has gone well. Just want you to see the video of our trip to Tibet: Postcard from Tibet, 2010. Thanks!
Emanuele Colombo, Custom Incredible Everest, August 2010
Thanks to SnowLion Tours and guide Woeser for a fantastic holiday with my son. We were able to see all that we wanted to and more in Lhasa and Woeser was very careful to ensure that we were doing/seeing what we wanted to at all times. He was excellent at looking after our health with many good suggestions and although we saw everything, we never felt rushed. I would be happy to recommend SnowLion tours to anybody wanting to see and understand the ‘real’ Tibet. Woeser was able to give an in-depth explanation of each site which greatly increased our appreciation of our visit. My 20 year old son was ‘turned on’ to visiting historical buildings in a way which I hadn’t seen before, and this increased his pleasure (and mine). Our hotel was great, excellent location and the restaurants recommended by Woeser served delicious food at very reasonable cost. Thank you all for a great trip.
Suzanne R., Custom Lhasa Tour, October 2010
Tenzing, our guide, was just wonderful. He let us walk from time to time while he and the driver were waiting, he took us to some nomads right after we asked for maybe visiting them, he explained a lot and took good care of us and was very reliable. He was lively, sometimes singing in the car and always in a good mood. Thank you for sending us this guide! The driver, Norbu, was also excellent. Always on time, always carefully driving, we felt safe every second! It was a wonderful trip and I would love to come back one day.
Sylvia M., Mt. Kailash Tour, September 2010
We had a very good experience with Snow Lion Tours. The custom itinerary for our family had a slower pace than the standard tour and included all the things we wanted to see and none of the things we didn’t. Our guide, Tsewang Lhamo, was great and since our tour included a private guide and driver we were able to change it as we went along. We are posting pictures on our website, www.touringtykes.com.
Amy S., Custom Lhasa Tour, June 2010
We wanted to say a big thank to SnowLion Tours for our wonderful holiday. We had a really great time and we were very satisfied with our guide Tashi. He is very well informed about culture and history and was very helpful to find good accommodation and did everything to make our stay perfect. Thank you so much for this wonderful trip. We wish you the best for your company and will recommend you and your team to everyone.
Margit L., Custom Himalayan Journey, August 2010
I am writing to let you know what a wonderful trip William and I had to Tibet in September. We enjoyed meeting you in Xining. We remember with great pleasure the wonderful trip we had to Tibet. It was special for us to visit the holy places in Lhasa – Jokhang Temple, Potala Palace, Norbulingka and Sera monastries. Our guide, Tenzin was able to share his knowledge of Tibetan Buddhism in a way that we could understand more as a teaching than as a series of facts. Tenzin was very considerate of our needs at all times.
The trip into the country was so beautiful – We enjoyed visiting Drigung Thel monastry set on the side of the mountain and later the Drigung Terdrom Nunnery. Arriving at the nunnery we found it was full due to the bathing festival. Will and I both entered the hot springs and felt very blessed to be there on such an auspicious occasion. It was also amazing for us to stay at Reting monastry – such a beautiful and peaceful place. And we also enjoyed the trip into Lake Namtso – William and I watched the beautiful sunset and next morning woke to a clear sky and views of the mountains – Nyungchen thangla and Thola. Tseno was a very good driver – we felt safe with him at the wheel.
We found that all of the arrangements for our trip by your company worked very well.
Julie D., Lhasa Custom Tour, September 2010
Thank you for helping us with organising our holiday in Tibet. We have seen so many wonderful places and met so many lovely people – we have loved spending time with the Tibetan people that we have met because of their humour, friendliness and interest in us. We both have enjoyed learning about your country and culture and feel that though we have spent nearly 1 month here, we have so much more that we would like to see and experience. Thank you!
Ryan M., Uncharted Territory (Mt. Kailash/ Guge Kingdom), October 2010
We returned back home and we are very happy with the trip. Many thanks to Snow Lion for the organization, our guide and your attentive service was really good.
Dmitry M., Incredible Everest, July 2010
We’re in Tokyo now and absolutely LOVED our guide Tashi and our driver Puba. They were wonderful and you must be proud to have them as colleagues. We enjoyed our trip immensely and credit Tashi and Puba for much of it. We hope to return to Tibet soon! Thank you so very much!!!
Kimiko L., Classic Amdo, July 2010
Just to let you know I had a great time in Tibet. Our guide Gelek Tenzin was one of the nicest people I have ever met and really made our trip very special.
Tracey E., Himalayan Journey, July 2010
I want to thank Snow Lion Tours for a wonderful time in Tibet. Our guide, Tashi, was knowledgeable and conscientious, and made everything go smoothly for us. It was a week that I’ll never forget.
Roger J., Himalayan Journey, July 2010
Just to let you guys know, our trip went really well and we were absolutely satisfied with the service, guide and the driver as well. The staff at the office in Lhasa was also great, caring and always helpful.
Judit & Richard, Custom EBC tour, July 2010
I just wanted to email you and let you know what a wonderful time we are having and how much we LOVE Wangdug!!! He is such a wonderful guide and human being.
Dana S., Custom Tour of Lhasa, August 2010
I would like to thank you for the organization of the tour. Our guide, Norbu, has been very helpful and professional throughout all our stay as well as during the outside trips to Lhasa. We really enjoyed our stay in Tibet and I will recommend SnowLion to others. I take the opportunity to thank you again for your assistance over the last month.
Cinzia S., Custom Tour of Lhasa, Gyantse, and Shigatse, August 2010
I took a tour with SnowLion about two weeks ago and I just wanted to write and say how much I enjoyed it! Tibet is such a beautiful country and I am so pleased I took the time to visit. Woeser, our guide, was fantastic! His English was outstanding and his knowledge about everything just blew my mind! I wasn’t expecting such great service and so much help from my guide and I will definitely be recommending him and SnowLion to anyone I know traveling to Tibet. Thank you so much for everything, and I hope to come to Tibet again someday.
Samantha B., Custom Tibet Tour, August 2010
Our trip throughout Tibet along the Friendship Highway was wonderful. Vikas was an exceptional guide (very knowledgeable with a great command of the English language), and accommodation throughout was perfect. Thank you so much for planning such an enjoyable experience.
Zach S., Himalayan Journey, April 2010
First, we just wanted to say that we had a wonderful time because of our guide Gelek. The trip was exceptionally successful due to Gelek’s knowledge of the places we were going from the Tibetan history and culture to the religious beliefs surrounding all the monasteries and to the Tibetan people. We didn’t really believe our guide when he said he was from EBC but when he took us to his family’s guesthouse at base camp we were honored to be invited into such a loving family.
Additionally, I would like to point out how continually amazed I was at Gelek’s kindness towards his people. He greeted everybody with such warm smiles and everybody we met returned the favor to us. We really felt welcomed in Tibet. We always felt like he had our best interest in mind and for that we will always be grateful to his kindness.
As for the driver, we felt he was very knowledgeable about the road and was an experienced driver that we could trust. We had a positively enjoyable time have been telling our friends and family to take the trek to Tibet and have suggested SnowLion to arrange their trip.
Thao D., Himalayan Journey, July 2010
Tashi Delek! I recently went on the Himalayan Journey from Lhasa to the Nepal border from Sept. 7-16 and had a MAGNIFICENT time! Our guide Woeser was so knowledgeable, so informed, funny, and made sure we got to do and see what we wanted to, he was awesome. Thank you SnowLion for an amazing trip!!
Megan S., Himalayan Journey, September 2012
Dear Wangden,
We appreciate everything you and your team has done for us. First of all we had a long mail conversation with you, and you always responded thoroughly and quickly. Then the travel permits to enter Tibet. Thank you, so much! This was our big opportunity to visit Tibet, and thanks to you and your team we made it. During the trip you and your staff have been as nice, helpful and well organized as possible. And it was not smooth and easy for you. One person turned ill and needed hospital care, and two persons left for Shanghai. Then two more turned ill and left the day after. Simultaneously the four remaining people wanted to go to Namtso Lake so badly that they did not want to stop for blizzards and icy, steep roads on high altitude. You all handed the situation very well.
Camilla, Fredrik, Hampus and Felix, Sacred Cities and Heavenly Lakes, April 2012
Dear Wangden,
Many thanks for your message and my apologies for the late reply.
We came back in Europe late yesterday 🙁
I would like to thank you very much indeed for everything. We had an amazing time in Tibet, were delighted to discover the Potala Palace, Johkhang Temple and the Ganden Monatery. we also enjoyed very much the Tibetan (momos in particular) and Nepalese food. We only wish we could have stayed longer.
Could you also thank our guide, Pempa, who was really friendly and helpful.
Thank you again so much,
Kind regards,
Geoffrey
Geoffrey, April 1st 2012
Dear Wangden,
I am Lukas, one of “Julian’s group”, that travelled through Tibet with your agency in the first days of September.
Maybe you remember Julian and me coming to your office when we had the visa-extension-problems only days before planned departure from Xining and the sudden relief …
Anyway, I just wanted to give you some feedback since we are back home in Germany for over a month now and I am just flickering through the photos, picking the best and “reliving” the situations again.
On behalf of the whole group I wanted to thank you for the wonderful and flawless organisation and the very warm welcome at your office in Xining – I also remember how comfortable it was for Julian and me to be able to talk about our Visa problems and being able to actually mention our Trip to T.A.R., compared to the PSB …
The trip itself was excellently organised and had a very good and balanced schedule as well. Our guide (dondhub) was professional and friendly and very knowledgeable as well – perfect.
After we had left Lhasa for Chengdu, we continued our journey towards the south, passing Kunming and Guilin and relaxing some days in the stunning scenery of Guangxi before leaving for Europe from Hong Kong.
So again, thank you very much for letting us experience your wonderful country and making it the most special part of our China-trip.
All the best,
Lukas
Lukas, September 1st 2012
