10 Days Easy Acclimatizing Tibet Everest base Camp Tour

Attractions: Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, and the bustling Barkhor Street.

As this is your first day at this altitude, you may feel some discomfort due to altitude sickness, such as headaches, dizziness, and nausea. This normally passes after a day or so, and you will be ready to explore the plateau. In the morning, you will tour around Lhasa, visiting the Potala Palace, the former center of Tibetan religious governance, the sacred Jokhang Temple, the home of the Jowo Rinpoche and one of the oldest buildings in Lhasa, and the famed Barkhor Street. The street is actually five streets that make up the Kora route around the Jokhang Temple, as well as the best and largest market in the capital. Here you can join pilgrims as they perform their ritual kora walk around the temple and find some amazing souvenirs to take home for the family. In the afternoon, we will take a trip to the stunning red and white Potala Palace, sitting high up on the Red Hill above the city, Built in the 217^th century on the site of an ancient 7th-century fortress, the palace was the center of government in Tibet at the time of the 5^th Dalai Lama and is still the winter palace. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Attractions: Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery.

Today we will visit Drepung Monastery in the morning, once the world’s largest monastery, housing over 10,000 monks at its height. The residence of the Dalai Lama before the move to the Potala Palace, there are lots of things to see as you stroll through the narrow and twisted lanes of the monastic apartments. The afternoon includes a visit to the Sera Monastery, built in the fifteenth century by a disciple of Tsongkhapa, There are several different monastic colleges in Sera and it is home to several hundred monks from all across Tibet. The monastery is also famed for its Buddhist philosophical debates, which take place every day in the afternoon except Sunday. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Attractions: Yamdrok Lake, Mt. Nyenchen Kangsar Glacier, Gyantse Kumbum Stupa, and Pelkor Chode monastery.

We start the day driving toward the southwest, through the zigzag road that climbs up to the Gampala Pass (4,794m). From there you will be astounded by the awesome view out over holy Yamdrok Lake, with the snow-capped Mt. Nyenchen Khangsar in the distance behind. The route continues along the lakeshore once you descend from the pass, and takes you around the lake to Nagartse, for a tasty local lunch In Gyantse, our visit to the Pelkor Chode Monastery, an ancient monastery of the Gelug School, will include a tour and exploration of the largest and most unique stupa in Tibet, Standing 32 meters high and containing 108 chapels, the Gyantse Kumbum is the only stupa of its kind on the plateau and is well known for its architecture and old sculptures, with thousands of paintings all around its inner walls, You can explore around the town for rest of the day. Stay overnight in Shigatse.

Attractions: Tashilhunpo Monastery.

Today is an easy and short drive to Shigatse which is only 90km. After eating lunch, we will visit the Tashilhunpo monastery, built by the 1st Dalai Lama, Gedun Drup, in 1447. The monastery later became the seat of the Panchen Lama lineages, and you will see the tombs of 7 former Panchen Lamas. It is a real pleasure to stroll along the busy cobbled lanes, twisting around the aged buildings that are still used as monks’ apartments. You can also join with locals and take the long walk around the monastery, spinning the prayer wheels around the monastery walls, and enjoying the whole view of the city from the hill. Stay overnight in Shigatse.

Attractions: Sakya monastery, Shegar Dzong.

Today we will drive toward Everest, and en route visit the Sakya monastery. The monastery is located right in the center of the village, with its special gray-colored walls. Meaning “Grey Soil”, the monastery has two main buildings, though the section of the monastery on the northern banks of the river now lies in ruins. After the visit, we will continue the journey to Shegar, also known as New Tingri. If time allows, we will visit the Shegar fort ruins located up on a hillside overlooking the town. Overnight Shegar (Note: Before you depart from Shigatse, your guide will take some time to obtain the Alien’s Travel Permit (ATP), which is needed to continue on to Mount Everest.)

Attractions: Rongbuk Monastery and Mt. Everest Base Camp.

In the morning, we will take a straight drive to the famous Everest Base Camp (EBC), crossing the high passes of the Himalayas along the way. The first outstanding view of the highest mountains of the Himalayas comes at the crest of the Gyatso La Pass, at 5,400 meters, where you can see the summit of Everest in the distance. After passing through the checkpoint, we will turn off the Friendship Highway to turn south along the winding Zhufeng Road to EBC. On the route, we pass over the Gawu La Pass, at 5,250 meters, from where you can see some of the world’s highest mountains, including Mt. Everest (8,848m), Mt. Cho Oyu (8,201m), Mt. Shishapangma (8,020m), Mt. Makalu (8,463m), and Mt. Lhotse (8,516m). From this amazing panoramic view, we will then drop down from the pass and continue through the dry and arid Tashi Zom Valley to the Rongbuk Monastery. The “official” highest Buddhist monastery in the world, Rongbuk lies close to the base camp and is renowned for housing both monks and nuns in the same monastery. We will normally stay in the tent guesthouses at the base camp itself, but from November to March, these are closed, so the accommodation is restricted to the Rongbuk guesthouse only. (Note: The original base camp for tourists at EBC was recently moved back from the climbers’ base camp closer to Rongbuk. Since the move, the furthest tourists can get is the Dza Rongbuk caves, a short trek past the monastery.) Stay overnight at EBC.

Attractions: Rongbuk Monastery, Himalayan ranges.

After a good night’s sleep, we will wake early to capture the amazing sight of the sun rising on the eastern slopes of Mount Everest, which is best captured from the hill behind the monastery. Then we bid farewell to the massive peak and head back to Shigatse, where we can relax in the hotel and take a relaxing and much-needed shower or bath. Stay overnight in Shigatse.

Attractions: Nyimo home-made incense factory, Brahmaputra River.

Our last day out on the vast Tibetan plateau is spent driving back to the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, with a nice stop along the way. Passing through a number of small local villages along the route, we will stop at a small village known as Nyima, which is famous in Tibet for making the delightful Tibetan incense, which is normally scented with juniper. The makers use the same ancient design of water-powered tools to make the incense as their ancestors did, and each stick of incense is handmade. After arriving in Lhasa, you will have the rest of the day to yourself, to rest or wander around the streets as you wish. This is an ideal time to get those last-minute gifts for friends and family back home in Barkhor Street. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

After a last breakfast on the plateau, your guide and driver will collect you to transfer you to the airport or train station for your trip on to your next destination. We appreciate your cooperation to fill out our survey to evaluate our service, which can be done on the feedback form or by sending us an email.