Unveiling Tibet’s Mystique: A 15-Day Journey Beyond Imagination (Tour Code: XZ15-04)

Upon your arrival at Lhasa airport, your MFA guide will escort you to your hotel and help you check in (Accommodation: Lhasa Shangri-La Hotel or similar)

You will have the rest of the day to relax to become acclimatized to the higher altitude of Tibet.

Altitude：3650m Distance：100km, about 1.5 hours’ drive

【Jokhang Temple】(about 1 hour)
Altitude：3650m

The Jokhang Temple is the final destination for pilgrims.
A statue of the 12-year-old Sakyamuni, who lived in India in the fifth century BC, and who was the creator of Buddhism, is collected in the monastery.
This is the reason why Buddhists consider Lhasa a Sacred Land.

【Barkhor Street】

Located near the Jokhang Monastery, the Barkhor Street was only a place for Buddhists to do a religious circumambulation in ancient times.

【Sera Monastery】is held in the courtyard almost every day between 3:00pm and 5:30pm.
After our visit to the monastery, feel free to stroll around the streets of Lhasa as you absorb the atmosphere and spirit of the devoted Tibetan people, or you may return to your hotel to rest and relax from this wonderful Tibetan cultural experience.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Lhasa Shangri-La Hotel or similar

【Potala Palace】(about 1 hour tour)
Altitude：3650m

Initially built in 641 AD and listed as a world heritage site in 1994, the Potala Palace is the most popular tourist attraction in Tibet.

【Traditional Handicraft Art center】

This day will take you to fully immerse yourself in experiencing the traditional Tibetan handcraft art center, including making Tibetan incense, Tibetan calligraphy, the methods behind Tibetan calligraphy and the secrets of block printing.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Lhasa Shangri-La Hotel or similar

Altitude：3850m Distance：380km，about 7 hours’ drive

This morning we’ll take a drive up to the Kampala Pass (elevation 4797 meters) where you’ll have a glimpse of  Yamdrok Lake down below as well as spectacular views of the holy Mount Nyenchen Khangsar in the distance.
Later on we’ll be able to visit the Karola Glacier and Kumbum Monastery

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Schery Hotel or similar

Altitude：5100m Distance：340km，about 7 hours’ drive

After breakfast we’ll set out towards the peak of the world – Mount Everest.
Departing from Shigatse you will see some of the most beautiful and unique scenery in the world – incredibly blue skies, floating high clouds, endless grasslands and the highest mountain peaks in the world.

We’ll also stop by the Rongbuk Monastery – the world’s highest altitude monastery before spending the night at the Everest Base Camp

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Tibetan Tent or Guesthouse (multi-beds room)

Altitude：4600m Distance：320km，about 7 hours’ drive

Today we will drive the old Tingri Road to Saga County, with views of Mount Everest and Mount Shishapangma (elevation 8012 meters), which was the last of the world’s 8000-meter peaks to be climbed.

The road conditions get rougher from the old Tingri Road as it runs parallel to the to the Himalayan mountain ranges and the Nepalese sides known as the Anapurna Ranges.

The main road passes through the desolate plains of Digur Tang, with its enormous sand dunes contrasting with the neighboring snow peaks of Shishapangma and Langtang to the south.
As we leave the Bum-chu basin, we will descend into the relatively lower elevations of the Pelkhu-tso (elevation 4600 meters), a cobalt blue lake.

After checking out the lake, we’ll drive the additional 69 kilometers to Saga County and spend the night in the small town of Saga.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Yizhan Manor, Ouguan Boutique Hotel or similar

Altitude：4600m Distance：500km，about 8 hours’ drive

On this 7th day we will drive to Drongpa County, which was founded around the bountiful resources of the Brahmaputra River.

We will make a stop in a small village along the main road that consists of only a few basic guesthouses, restaurants and a small monastery known as “Old Drongpa”.

Scattered around the monastery you will be able to observe a pile of yak heads that are carved with “sutras” and “mantras”.

New Drongpa is another small town with a few shops, hotels and restaurants located about 25 kilometers from Old Drongpa monastery.

We will continue on to the Baryang Township (elevation 4750 meters) and drive around Lake Manasarovar before reaching our final destination for the day, Darchen, where we will spend the night.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Kailash Himalaya Hotel or similar

Day 8 
Altitude：4600m Trekking Distance：22km
Buddhist pilgrims traditionally begin the 52-kilometer religious trek around【Mt. Kailash】at Darchen (elevation 4574 meters), which is also the finishing point for the circumnavigation of the sacred mountain.
After hiking for a few hours out of Darchen, we will reach a valley known by the locals as “Sarshung” where we will meet an eager group of porters who will be happy to help us carry our gear on yaks and horses along the rest of the trek.
After another couple of hours of trekking, we will find a grassy plain populated by nomads, who will be happy to offer up their tents as a place to relax with some soft drinks for a while.
From here, we will travel on for another approximately two hours to a place known as Drirapuk (elevation 4920 meters) where we will spend the night in a monastery’s guesthouse that offers the best accommodations in this area (although it is still very rustic.)
Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Tibetan Tent or Guesthouse(multi-beds sharing)

Altitude：4600m Trekking Distance：20km
This second day of our circuit of Mt. Kailash will be the toughest as we ascend 762 meters up to the Dolma-la Pass.
The peak of this pass lies about 5630 meters above sea level, so we’ll get an early start as the sun begins its rise over the mountain ridges above us.
Once we have reached the peak of the Dolma-la Pass, we’ll stop for a rest and the opportunity to admire all of the fantastic scenery around us.
Then we will begin our descent to the Lhachu Valley, which will take us about one hour.
After another short rest, we’ll trek on for another four hours to our final destination for the day.
We will walk along the right side of the river to finally reach Dzultripuk, whose name means “miracle cave of Milarepa” in the local language.
We will be glad that we got an early start to reach Dzultripuk so that we will get there before the other groups – there are a limited number of rooms available here.
We will have time this evening for some rest and relaxation in the guesthouse as we prepare for the final strech of our trek tomorrow.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Tibetan Tent or Guesthouse(multi-beds sharing)

Altitude：4600m Trekking Distance：20km

Today we will complete our trek around Mt. Kailash, beginning by visiting the many caves, temples and shrines that have been built upon around Milarepa’s cave.
It is an easy walk back towards Darchen, taking only about 3 hours of trekking to reach the end of the valley where our driver will meet us to take us back up to Darchen and then the driver will take us to Zanda where we will spend the night.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Tulin Castle Hotel or similar

Altitude：4600m Distance：340km，about 5 hours’ drive
We will visit the ruins of the ancient Guge Kingdom and the Torling Monastery.
Located in the Ngar Region of Tibet, the ruins of the Guge Kingdom were once an imperial estate that fell into disrepair after the civil war revolt and the invasion of the 8 Allied Forces of foreign countries that destroyed the once prosperous state.
Luckily the legendary kingdom has not been totally lost as much can still be learned from what remains of it.
And after that,you will see the magnificent Zanda Earth Forest.
Entering into Zanda county, the earth forest standing on both sides of Elephant Spring River winds over more than five kilometers.
The earth is like warriors defending the mountaintop, some like thousands of horses galloping, and some like devout followers of a religion nurturing themselves, standing there quietly.
From different angles, you can see wonderful scenery.
The earth forest in geology is known as “the Level Terrane Physiognomy,” formed by erosion, where the sediment of lakes and rivers, mainly composed by sandstone and earth, have formed into various shapes.
The Level Terrane has developed upright qualities, and the valley is deep.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Kailash Himalaya Hotel or similar

Altitude：4600m Distance：500km，about 8 hours’ drive

Today we will drive through the windswept territory of rural Tibet, passing through numerous small villages as well as camps of yak and sheepherders on our way back to Saga.
With all of the beautiful scenery surrounding us, we will have plenty of opportunities to stop and take photos if you like.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Yizhan Manor、Ouguan Boutique Hotel or similar

Altitude：4000m Distance：500km，about 8 hours’ drive

More spectacular scenery awaits us as we continue on our leisurely drive back to Shigatse where we will spend the night.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Schery Hotel or similar

Altitude：3650m Distance：340km，about 7 hours’ drive

【Tashilumpo Monastery】
Tashilumpo Monastery, the seat of Tibet’s second highest incarnation-the Panchen Lama.
The immense complex is a rambling warren of chapels, shrines, and halls linked by mysterious alleyways and steep staircases.

We’ll visit this dark and evocative chamber and its many side altars, as well as a distinctive red building called the Jamkhang Chenmo, which houses a massive yet lyrical 90-foot tall statue of Maitreya, the Future Buddha, built in 1914 by the Ninth Panchen Lama while Europe was madly at war.
Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Lhasa Shangri-La Hotel or similar

Altitude：3650m Distance：100km，about 1.5 hours’ drive

Today you will have free time until your tour guide escorts you to the Lhasa train station or airport for your departing train or flight from Lhasa.

This will end your tour services in Tibet.

Meals: Breakfast