5 Days Lhasa Small Group Tour with Three Major Monasteries

This 5-day Lhasa tour covers the historical sites like The Potala palace, Jokhang Temple and Barkhor street and all the three biggest monasteries in Tibet, Drepung monastery, Sera monastery and Ganden Monastery. Ganden Monastery is the main seat of Geluk order, situated at an elevation of 3800m above sea level. It is very interesting to trek Lingkor (circle) and you can see the Great Tsongkapa’s meditation cave and the beautiful view of Lhasa valley.

Highlights

  • Visit the Three Great Monasteries (the Ganden Monastery, the Sera Monastery and the Drepung Monastery) in one go.
  • Enjoy the gorgeous view of the valley while doing the kora around Ganden Monastery.
  • Go down into the bowels of the Potala, the impressive but spiritless citadel of the Dalai Lamas.
  • Join the shuffling, murmuring pilgrims around the shrines of the Jokhang, the spiritual heart of Tibet.
  • Follow monks, mendicants and fellow pilgrims around the Barkhor, Lhasa’s fascinating medieval pilgrim circuit.

Brief Itinerary

  • Day 1 Lhasa Arrival
  • Day 2 Lhasa
  • Day 3 Lhasa
  • Day 4 Lhasa 
  • Day 5 Lhasa Departure

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 Lhasa Arrival

Sightseeing and Activities:Lhasa Arrival
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:none

Yarlung Tsangpo River in Lhoka

When you arrive in Lhasa either by train or flight, your guide will greet you and take you to your hotel. Tourists may view the Yarlung Tsangpo River/ Bhamaputra river (the Longest and largest river in Tibet) and Lhasa river on their way to Lhasa.

After arriving in Lhasa, you can take a rest and get acclimatized to high altitude. If you feel like to go out, then you can go to the Potala Square, where you will enjoy the fountain with different colors and get amazing photos of the Potala and around.

Insider Tips:
For the new-comers of Tibet,  to get acclimatized to the high altitude in Tibet. Having a good sleep in your hotel is a good option.  Don not rush to visit attractions inside Lhasa city.

Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 2 Lhasa

Sightseeing and Activities:Potala Palace, Johkang Temple, and Barkhor Street
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:breakfast

Today’s tour will first bring you to the Potala Palace which is the winter palace of the Dalai lama. It was put to use since the 7th Century by the 33rd great king of Tibet. The most valuable collections of Potala Palace are the gilded burial stupas of former Dalai Lamas and meditation Cave of the 33rd great king of Tibet.

Then after lunch, tourists head to Jokhang Temple which was founded by the 33rd great king of Tibet in the 7th century. Inside you can see the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni at the age of twelve. Outside, you can see pilgrims making prostrating in front of Jokhang Temple. Around the temple is Barkhor Street, where you can do kora (a religious circle of a building or mountain) with pilgrims and locals, and explore the old market.

Besides, We can taste Tibetan tea with locals in tea house; The welcome dinner will also be arranged accordingly;

Optional:


With time permitting, you may go with tour guide to visit Tibetan handicraft art or Tibetan Traditional Medicine center. You can upgrade your service to enjoy Tibetan Culture Show in the evening (fr. 60USD)

Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 3 Lhasa

Sightseeing and Activities: Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:breakfast

In the morning ,you are going to visit Drepung Monastery which is one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet, founded in 1416 by Jamyang choge, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples. You can visit biggest monastery kitchen inside the monastery and enjoy Buddhist Sculpture Carving workshop near Drepung. 

In the Afternoon, Tourists will visit Sera Monastery which is another one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet. The hot attraction is the Monks debate at around 3 – 5 in the afternoon. In addition, you can tour  the Tibetan religious scripture printing house; inside the monastery, you can see three sand Mandalas and colorful Rock Painting of Buddha.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 4 Lhasa

Sightseeing and Activities:Ganden Monastery, Kyichu River, tomb of Tsongkhapa, Tibetan famer’s village
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:breakfast

Today we will drive to the Ganden Monasteryabout 60 kilometers east of Lhasa and is one of the “Great Three” Gelugpa monasteries of Tibet, founded by the Great Tsongkhapa in 1409. On the way you can enjoy the beautiful view of Kyichu River and as we drive up to Ganden along winding mountain road,  tourists can see the far view of Splendid monastery complex on the top of the mountain. 

 Later we will visit chapels of Genden monastery and the tomb of Tsongkhapa, the founder of Gelupa sect. After touring Ganden Monastery, we will head to visit Tibetan famer’s village nearby.  

Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 5 Lhasa Departure

Sightseeing and Activities:Depart from Lhasa
Accommodation:none
Meals:breakfast

The guide will transfer you to the airport or train station and help you on board.

Recommended Hotels

City 5 Star 4 Star 3 Star

Quotations

Group size(person) 5 Star ($) 4 Star ($) 3 Star ($)

Service Included:

  • Tibet travel permit and all other necessary permits to Tibet;
  • All entrance ticket fees for all tourist sites listed in the itinerary;
  • Meals as specified in the itinerary;
  • Local tour Transfers, 5-29 seats comfortable Tourist Vehicle according to Group Size.;
  • Knowledgeable English-speaking Tibetan local tour guide shared in your group;
  • Comfortable Hotel Accommodations;
  • Service Charge & Government Taxes;
  • The above tour price does not include single room supplement. If you are a solo traveler, you need to share one room with another tourist (same sex in most cases); if you prefer to stay in one room by yourself, you will have to pay the single room supplement. And the exact price depends on market fluctuation in high and off season of Tibet tour. For the exact price, please refer to your travel consultant.
  • Arrangements include planning, handling, operational and communication charges.
  • Welcome Dinner in local restaurant when group members meet in Lhasa
  • Free Airport shuttle transfer between Lhasa Gongar airport and Hotel on designated time.
  • Group tours only include a welcome dinner after your arrival in Tibet.
  • Tibet Handy Map
  • Drinking water Provided during the trip
  • One shared big Oxygen tank in the car;
  • Tourist accident/casualty insurance;

Service Excluded:

  • International flight to and out of China;
  • Domestic flight/train to and out of Lhasa. (We can provide you the domestic flight/train ticket booking service at the BEST discount price, please contact us our travel experts for the details.)
  • Lunches and dinners are not included, please pay on site by yourself.; usually it costs about USD3-15 per person for one meal in TAR (Tibet Autonomous Region).
  • Tips to tour guide and driver, you are suggested to tip them 7 USD/day in total.;
  • Personal expenses, like laundry, phone call, snacks, soft drinks (please do the best to avoid the alcoholic beverages during your Tibet trip), optional tour activities, etc.

Travel Tips:

Useful Trip Notes

1. What Are the Features of Our Group Tours
Our Group Tours are budget tour packages with great service which have covered the most popular destinations in Tibet with reasonable trip lengths. Joining in our group tours, you will choose your travel dates from our fixed departures and travel in a small group with maximum members of 12 people.

2. Tibet Permits

There are several permits required to visit Tibet. Tibet Entry Permit, issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau, is the most important one which has to be obtained before your trip because you must have it to take your flight/train to Tibet. To get the permit, you have to book a Tibet tour with us, and send us your passport and Chinese visa about 20 days in advance, and then let us apply for the permit (all Tibet permits can only be applied by travel agency). If you travel to other prefectures like Shigatse, Nyingchi, Shannan, etc, you also have to obtain an Alien Travel Permit. If you travel to Mount Everest, you have to obtain a Border Permit. (Tibet Discovery, with office in Lhasa, has always kept up with the latest news on Tibet Permits. Traveling with us, all your permits are guaranteed as long as you are qualified to the requirements.)

3. Available Months to Visit Tibet

Generally speaking, you can travel to Lhasa all year around. But months from April to October are more recommended. If you want to extend your trip to other regions, such as Shigatse, Mount Everest, Namtso, Ngari, etc, you are suggested to visit during April to October. Other months are usually very cold, and possible have heavy snow, especially in regions like Mount Everest, Mount Kailash, Namtso Lake, etc.

4. High Altitude Sickness

The average altitude of Tibet is about 4000 meters above the sea level (Lhasa: 3700m; EBC: 5200m; Namtso: 4718m). You may suffer a bit from High Altitude Sickness in the beginning days of your Tibet trip if you haven’t had rich high plateau travel experience. But don’t worry too much, the high altitude can be acclimatized usually in 2~3 days. Our suggestion is to take a physical examination and get suggestions from your doctor, and also bring some medicines to prevent from High Altitude Sickness before your trip. While in Tibet, you should keep warm all the time, avoid strenuous activities, drink more water and eat more vegetables and carbohydrates. You’d better not take showers during the first two days after your arrival at Tibet. If you don’t feel well, get help from your tour guide or go to the hospital without any delay.

5. How to Go to Tibet

Basically you have two options – flight and train. Currently, you can take a flight to Lhasa from Beijing(4.5hrs), Xian(3.7hrs), Chengdu(2.5hrs), Chongqing(3hrs), Kuming(3hrs), etc. Among all these cities, Chengdu and Xian have more frequent flights to Lhasa. You can also fly to Lhasa from Kathmandu(1.5hrs) .Xian(32hrs), Chengdu(43hrs), Shanghai(47hrs), Chongqing(42hrs), Lanzhou(25hrs), Xining(22hrs), Guangzhou(54hrs).

6. Packing and Wearing Ideas

Firstly you can’t forget your passport and Chinese Visa. A large backpack and a smaller one are recommended (the smaller one can be used for daily activities). Also bring the necessary medicine you need. Other stuffs like sunglasses, snow glasses, hats, lip balm, sun block are recommended.

As for wearing, you are suggested to dress in layers (both thin and thick jackets). Down jacket is necessary in Spring and Autumn. A pair of durable and comfortable shoes is necessary.