Australian Traveler's Tibet-Everest-Vacation Review 2014

Travelers' Name: Bee & Say Khor, (see handwriten Tibet Everest Base Camp Landscape tour 2014 review)

Tour code: 20140718-P2

Nationality:Australia

Tibet Travel Period: July18-25, 2014

Group code: TCTS 20140721-P2--Private tour reconfirmation-service voucher

July14-18 in Chengdu by yourself, and Tibet travel permits will be arranged to your hotel on time

July18 Day1 leave your hotel in Chengdu by taxi easily for Chengdu airport Terminal 2 around 6:40 am, and arrive there around 7:30am, get the boarding pass with our Tibet entry permits and passports, fly from Chengdu to Lhasa by China Eastern Airline MU5473, 9:55am-11:55am, Arrival in Lhasa (3680m) airport, we will come to airport to pick you up and transfer to Lhasa. it takes about 1 hour to drive the 65 km highway between Lhasa and airport, rest at hotel. 4 star hotel Snow Heaven Hotel or similar one if late booking 

July19 Day2 Lhasa highlight sightseeing tour: Barkhor Street, Johkang Temple, Potala Palace, 4 star hotel Snow Heaven Hotel or similar one if late booking.

Attractions info: The Barkhor street market provides tourist a pivotal insight in multiple aspects of Tibetan culture by the vast assortments of authentic Tibetan products easily available to purchase at the visitors discretion. The Barkhor market is constantly alive and thriving with activity as the countless vendors and shops present a utopia of local Tibetan arts, crafts and cultural specialties. 

The Jokhang temple was first constructed by King Songtsän Gampo (see also internet variant Songsten Gampo) probably in 642. It was originally called the Rasa Tulnang Tsuklakang or The House of Mysteries, The Magical Emanation at Rasa [the early name for Lhasa]. Both Bhrituti and Wencheng, the Nepalese and Chinese wives of Songsten Gampo are said to have brought important Buddhist statues and images to Tibet as part of their dowries, and they were housed here. 

Potala Palace, one of Tibet’s top must see cultural sites, has been capturing travelers’ imaginations as it takes them on an adventure through Tibetan history. With its highest point at about 300 meters (around 1000 feet) above the valley floor its gargantuan size often surprises travelers: this building houses over 1,000 rooms, 10,000 shrines, and around 200,000 statues. 

July20 Day3 Lhasa-Tsubushi Village (about 50km)-Tibetan family visit-trekking about 4 hours and back, drive back to Lhasa in the late evening around 8 pm, , 4 star hotel Snow Heaven Hotel or similar one if late booking  

July21 Day4 Lhasa sightseeing Norbulinka Palace, Tibet Museum, Sera Monastery, 4 star hotel Snow Heaven Hotel or similar one if late booking 

July22 Day5 Lhasa-Yamdrok-Karola Glacier-Gyangtse-Shigatse (3900m), 350km, approx. 7hrs o/n in Tashi Choeta Hotel or Shigatse hotel (two hotels are the top standard one in Shigatse city)

Yamdrok Lake, also called Yamdrok Yumtso, is a lake with two long arms of water, making it look like a scorpion from the sky. This shape means you can never see its shape from around it. From Gyantse, you can see one arm, and follow it until it disappears around a bend in the shore which makes it difficult to estimate the size of the lake.

July23 Day6 Shigatse-Tashilhunpo, Sakya Monastery-Gyatso La Pass (4500m)-Shegar-Old Tingri, see Everest from a far, Chamdo Hotspring, o/n in local budget hotel 

July24 Day7 Old Tingri-Rongphu Monastery (60 km, in about 1 and half hours)-trek 4 km to campsite, enjoy the sunrise of Everest, have some hours leisure time at Everest base camp, and then trek back to campsite, o/n in local tent, enjoy the sunset view of Everest at night 

July25 Day8 Drive back to Old Tingri-Nyalam-Taratso Lake-Zhangmu (it is about 180 km landscape), around 3:30 pm, check out of Tibet and to be transferred to KTM by our Nepali driver and jeep, your Tibet tour ends with our agency.

From: Khor, Bee [mailto:Bee.Khor(at)bisindustries.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 4:57 PM
To: 'Tony at Tibet Ctrip Travel Service'
Subject: Tibet CTrip Review - Bee & Say Khor

Hi Tony, 

We’re back in Sydney for a week now and I have finally found some time to write a review on our recent trip. I’ve attached our review and also a photo taken at Snow Heaven Hotel. 

There are a couple of additional suggestions for improvement that we’d like to mention.

1. Trekking – we were looking forward to the Tibetan family visit-trekking Tsubushi Village, but that was changed to trek around Sera Monastery after being suggested that there’s not much to see on the Tsubushi village trekking even though it is optionally the trekking starting point for trekkers from Ganden to Samye monastery. Unfortunately, Sera Monastery trekking path was closed on that day and so we didn’t do much trekking. Instead we visited a Nunnery near Sera Monastery. That was still ok, but it would have been better if the alternate itinerary was planned better.
2. Itinerary – in most of our travel experience, the itinerary is usually planned for a full day (8-9 hours). On most days in Lhasa, we start around 10.30-11am and finished around 4pm. We managed to cover most of the itinerary planned, but it wouldn’t be rushed if we had more time. However I know the Tibetan life pace maybe not be that fast as in other countries.
3. Tibet-Nepal border – communications to the guide handing us over to the Nepali agent could be improved. Pa-Sang was quite stressed when she doesn’t have the details of who she’s supposed to hand us over to. As for us, we felt insecure when we found out that we haven’t been handed over to your actual Nepal agent (instead another person with our names on paper claiming to be our Nepal agent). Luckily, all went fine as finally we know it is quite normal for border pick up situation from Nepal.
4. Nepal agent’s jeep – the jeep’s tyres went loose after travelling 10 kms on a bumpy road along Araniko Highway. We were lucky that the driver stopped to check what was rattling. Had those tyres gave way, we would have been down the cliffs.  This is our feedback to your Nepal agent. 

Overall, we found that you’ve managed our trip well and to your best ability.

It has been great we managed to meet and we’d like to thank you for your effort in ensuring we have a great and safe trip.

We have enjoyed our trip and have certainly brought back our travel memories that will last a lifetime! 

Thanks,

Bee & Say 

Tony's note: Dear Bee, Thank you for your review and we will keep trying our best to upgrade our service in every detailed section in the future and as you know, we support Tibet year by year with our hard work in tourism and it will be surelly a better land here.

Best regards,

Tony