8-Day Lhasa Gyantse Shigatse & Namtso Group Tour

Day 1: Arrive in Lhasa

Our local guide will wait you at Lhasa Airport/Railway at designated times to transfer you to hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to spend on your own. Rest to acclimatize the high altitude here in Lhasa is suggested.

Day 2: Lhasa (B+D)

Attractions: Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Streets

Today is the most classic day tour of Lhasa city. We may not see these sites by the exactly same order below because at summer times Potala Palace has designated visiting hours.

Potala Palace sits on the 130m-high Marpo Ri (Red Hill) in the centre of Lhasa city. The fortress like Potala Palace is a structure of massive proportions -- 400 meters east-west and 350 meters north-south, with 13 stories containing over 1,000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and about 200,000 statues.

Jokhang Temple is widely considered the most sacred and important temple in Tibet, situated in Barkhor Square of Lhasa Old Town, spreading over an area of 25,000 square meters with its shining golden roof.

Outside of Jokhang Temple, the surrounding area called Barkhor, including narrow streets and a public square. Barkhor is both the spiritual heart of the holy city and the main commercial district for Tibetans – a fascinating combination!

Day 3: Lhasa (B)

Attractions: Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery and watch monk debating

We will visit Drepung Monastery in the morning, which is located at the foot of Mount Gephel, 5km from the western suburb of Lhasa. Drepung Monastery is known as the most important monastery of Gelugpa in Tibetan Buddhism.

In the afternoon we will visit Sera Monastery, situated at the foot of Tatipu Hill, in the north of Lhasa City. One of the highlight of visiting Sera Monastery is watching the monks debating in a courtyard here (available between 15:00-17:00 from Mon-Sat). As part of their study, the monks hold debates to improve their understanding of Buddhism. It’s a sight of fascination even though you don’t understand a word of what are they debating about.

Day 4: Lhasa > Gyantse > Shigatse (370km, B)

Attractions: Drive along Yarlung Tsangpo River, Kamba-la Pass (4700m), Mt Nojim Kantsang (afar), Yamdrotso Lake (4441m), Karola Glacier, Pelkor Chode Monastery with Gyantse Kumbum

Driving along the Yarlung Tsangpo River to today’s start attraction, Yamdrotso Lake (4441m), which is one of the three holy lakes of Tibet (other two are Namtso and Manasarovar), and lies to the south of Yarlong Tsangpo River in the Shannan Region. Yamdrotso Lake is 130km long and 70km wide, shaped like a coiling scorpion. Its average depth is about 20-40 meters, and 60 meters at the deepest. From Lhasa, you will first see Yamdrotso Lake at the summit of Kamba-la (4700m), in a fabulous shade of deep turquoise with the huge massif of Mt Nojin Kangtsang (7191m) in the distance. Yamdrotso Lake lies several hundred meters below the road. Yamdrotso Lake is said to be the female Guardian of Buddhism and home to wrathful deities. Devout Tibetan pilgrims circumambulate Yamdrotso Lake in around seven days.

Karola Glacier is about 300 meters from the main road with easy access, located at the boundary of Nangartse County and Gyantse County, about 30km from Yamdrotso Lake. With an altitude of 5400m, Karola Glacier sits back against the northern slope of Mt. Naiqin Kangsang (7191m). Karola Glacier is made up of a large ice cap and two hanging glacier tongues. Colourful prayer flags flutter in the foreground, while towering mountains surrounds Karola Glacier to form a memorable vista. Karola Glacier is magnificent but due to global warming, it has been melting and getting smaller every year.

Pelkor Chode Monastery is located in in Nyangchu River Valley in Gyantse. The earliest history of Penchor Chode Monastery is traced to the ninth century. Architecturally, Pelkhor Monastery is a fusion of Han, Tibetan and Nepali architecture. The most striking architecture in the complex, a symbol of Gyantse, is its Gyantse Kumbum. This 35m-high chorten, with its white layers trimmed with decorative stripes and its crown-like golden dome, is considered as the most important of its kind in Tibet. Gyantse Kumbum has nine-tier with 108 gates and 76 chapels and shrines. It has enshrined about ten thousand figures of Buddha images and murals. That’s why it’s also referred as ‘the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagodas’

Day 5: Shigatse > Lhasa (270km, B)

Attractions: Tashilhunpo Monastery

Explore Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse before return to Lhasa. Tashilhunpo Monastery, covering 70,000 sq meters, is the seat of Pachen Lamas. Tashilhunpo Monastery houses the biggest gilded statue of Maitreya (Buddha of the future) in the world and tombs of Panchen Lamas. In the afternoon, you will drive back to Lhasa, which will take around 6 hours.

NOTE: Shigatse to Lhasa’s transfer perhaps by train

Day 6: Lhasa > Namtso Lake (240km, B)

Attractions: Holy Namtso Lake, Nyenchen Tanglha Rang (afar)

Drive from Lhasa to holy Namtso Lake, which is about 240km northwest of Lhasa. Enroute pass by endless grasslands with yaks and sheep, Damxung county, and Kyang-la Pass (5240m). Holy Namtso Lake is the 2nd largest saltwater lake in China and one of the most beautiful natural site in Tibet, with a miraculous shade of turquoise and the magnificent Nyenchen Tanglha Range (7000m and above) to the south. Trek around the nearby Tashi Do Island at the shore of Namtso Lake, and watch the beautiful stars here at night.

Day 7: Namtso Lake > Lhasa (240km)

Attractions: Sunrise at Namtso Lake, light trekking at Tashi Do Island, Yangpachen Hot Springs (optional)

Get up earlier to watch sunrise at Namtso Lake, and take a light trekking at Tashi Do Island to explore its meditation caves. Afterwards, head back to Lhasa. En route, stop by at Dumxung for lunch. In the afternoon, we may stop by at Yangpachen Hot Springs (optional). There are outdoor & indoor swimming pools filled with hot springs.

Day 8: Depart from Lhasa (B)

Your Tibet tour ends today. We will pick you up to transfer to Lhasa Airport/Railway at designated times.