Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive Lhasa (3650m/12,000ft)
You will be met at Gonggar Airport by your Tibetan guide with a "khata"
(a traditional ceremonial white scarf for good luck) and a warm greeting
- Tashi Delek.
A 1.5-hour drive along the beautiful Lhasa River leads you to Lhasa, lying at an altitude of 3650 meters
(12,000ft). It’s advisable to rest and take it easy for the remainder of the day due to Lhasa’s altitude.
Day 2: Sightseeing in Lhasa
After breakfast, You will be guided to tour the famous Potala
Palace dominating Lhasa's skyline. You will immerse yourself in an
array of intricate Tibetan murals, temples, sculptures and tombs of
eight past Dalai Lamas. Potala Palace was first built in the 6th century and rebuilt in the 13th century.
After lunch, you will visit the most sacred shrine in Tibet - Jokhang Temple.
Surrounding the Jokhang is the Barkhor Street - a maze of narrow cobbled streets with stalls of Tibetan merchandise
and souvenirs. Enjoy a Tibetan dinner and a traditional Tibetan dance show
(optional).
Day 3: Sightseeing in Lhasa
On this day you will get more acquainted with the mystiques of Lhasa.
After breakfast, you will visit Drepung Monastery where you can observe nuns and monks
chanting and performing religious discourses. In the afternoon, you will visit
Sera Monastery. You can do the Sera Kora walk for 1 hour and catch
the famous debate session of the monks before returning to Lhasa.
Day 4: Lhasa to Gyantse
via Yamdrok (3950m/12,960ft)
In the morning, you will depart Lhasa to Gyantse.
En route, we will pass the spectacular Khamba La pass (4,794m/15,728ft) from which we’ll get stunning views
of the snowy summit of Nazin Kang Sa (7,252m/23,792ft) looking across the waters of the Yamdrok-tso
Lake. We then continue westwards over another high pass,
the Karo La Pass (5,045m/16,551ft), from which you can see a huge spectacular glacier tumbling down to within a few hundred
meters off the road. With the massive global retreat of glaciers, it is
most amazing to see a giant glacier so up close. After passing through beautiful
valleys and colorful Tibetan villages we arrive in the town of Gyantse.
Day 5:
Gyantse Sightseeing and drive to Shigatse (3900m/12,795ft)
You will visit Gyantse Dzong and Kumbum Stupa in the moring. Gyantse Dzong is a historical fort built in the 14th
century that overlooks the town of Gyantse. Visit Pelkhor Tsode Temple which is famous for its arrays of buddhas,
hence the nickname "10 thousand Buddha Temple". After exploring Gyantse, we will then drive 90km to Shigatse,
the second largest city in Tibet.
Day 6:
Shigatse to Tingri (4390m/14,420ft)
In the morning we will visit Tashilunpo monastery, the seat of Panchen
Lama. Then we will transverse along the Friendship Highway amidst picturesque landscape driving past small town of Lhatse and Gyamtso La pass at 5220m (17,126ft). As the route opens into plains, many monasteries and camps of nomadic herders become visible en route to Tingri
where you will meet your trekking crew.
Day 7:
Free day at Tingri for acclimatization (4390m/14,420ft)
A free day at Tingri for acclimatization before you head off into rough Tibetan highlands.
Your camping crew will set up a camp little off the friendship highway.
You are welcome to do some mild mini-hikes around the campsite.
Day 8:
Trek to Lung Thang (4510m/14,797ft)
Today our trekking officially starts. We will trek along Ra Chhu stream to beyond Chholung
and reach Lung Thang to set up our camp. Amazingly, the seemingly barren
plains nourishes generations of Tibetans with barley and herds of yaks. Camp at Lung Thang.
Day 9: Trek to Lamna La (5075m/16,650ft)
Contiune to trek to Drokpa and camp at Lamna La.
Day 10: Trek to
Draka Chu (4730m/15,518ft)
Cross over Lamna La (5075 m) to Draka Chu River (4730 m/15,518ft).
Camp at Draka Chu.
Day 11: Trek to Rongbuk (5000m/16,404ft)
Trek up Draka Chhu River to Rongbuk Monastery (5000 m/16,404ft). It is the highest temple in the world.
Rongbuk Monastery lies 15 kilometers below Everest Base Camp at an elevation of 5000 meters,
at the foot of the Rongbuk Glacier, or at least used to be
(Rongbuk Glacier has retracted an average of 18 meters per year for the
last 30 years).
It is said that Rongbuk Monastery has the best view of the north face of Mount Everest,
which stands 8848 meters (29,021ft) above sea level. Rongbuk Monastery is regarded as a gateway to Mount Everest.
Every year, Everest Expedition teams come here to pray before setting off for their expedition. Tonight we will
stay at Rongbuk Monastery guesthouse, with Mount Everest as the backdrop.
Day 12: Trek to Everest base camp (5200m/17,000ft)
It is a 8km (5-mile) walk along dirt road to Mt. Everest Base Camp, the
furthest point you can access without a
mountaineering permit. Today, we don't have a lot of distance to cover. Take your time to savor the stunning
view of Mount Everest. We will stay at tent motels set up at the foot of Mount Everest just 5 km away, midway between Rongbuk
monastery and Mt. Everest Base Camp.
Day 13: Trek back to Rongbuk and drive to Zhangmu (260 km)
After viewing Mount Everest bathing in golden sunshine at its east face, we will set off on an easy trek back to Rongbuk
monastery to wrap up our 6 incredible days of trekking. From there we will drive to Zhangmu, the bordering city
between Tibet and Nepal.
Day 14: Zhangmu to Kathmandu
Drive to Kathmandu where you will catch your flight home.
Note: You may choose to add a day or two into
the itinerary to better acclimatize. We can also do add on Nepal tour as
an extension to your trip.
For further enquiry please feel free to mail us at: enquiry@AccessTibet.com |
