9 Days Classic Trip to EBC with Namtso Lake

Upon your arrival at the Lhasa airport, your tour guide will greet you and escort you to your hotel and help you get checked in. You will have the rest of the day and evening to rest and relax to become acclimatized to the higher altitude of Tibet.

After breakfast at the hotel, we will visit the incredible Potala Palace – the highest palace in the world. As we climb to the entrance gate, you will have a spectacular view over all of Lhasa. After exploring the numerous interesting chapels and learning about the traditional culture and history of the palace and the city, we will move on to the spiritually significant Jokhang Temple, one of the most important temples in Tibetan Buddhism. To see the “real” Lhasa, we’ll stroll through Barkhor Street with its thriving local market where you can pick up some local Tibetan, Nepalese and Indian handicrafts and souvenirs.

This day will give you the opportunity to fully immerse yourself in Tibetan culture as you will be involved in the hands-on process of Tibetan cooking and the creation of traditional Tibetan handicrafts; then witness a truly Tibetan tradition with the debating monks at one of Tibetan Buddhhim's holiest monasteries - the Sera Monastery. After breakfast, in the ethereal morning rays of light of a Lhasa morning, we will learn how to make traditional Tibetan cuisine in a typical Tibetan setting. Dishes will include Kasei (fried dough foods), Tsampa (roasted barley) with butter and cheese, Tibetan butter tea, Xiabujin (raw beef paste), and other tasty Tibetan treats. After learning the essence of Tibetan cooking, we will move on to Xueduibai Traditional Handicraft Art Center by bus. This treasure house of Tibetan culture will teach you all about various Tibetan costumes as you learn how to make Tibetan incense, the methods behind Tibetan calligraphy, how to create thangka (Tibetan Buddhist painting), and the secrets of block printing.

Having mastered the art of Tibetan cuisine and Tibetan handicrafts, we will move on to visit the holy Sera Monastery, which is held in the courtyard almost every day between 3 and 5:30 p.m. Please note that in case of some special monastery activities such as the Dharma Meeting or the reception of VIPs, the monk debates may be canceled that day. 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.

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. You will want to have your camera at the ready for the turquoise waters of Yamdrok Lake, which is one of the three holy lakes of Tibet, and the beautiful Mt. Nyenchen Khangsar glacier as seen from the Karola Pass. Later on we’ll be able to visit the Karola Glacier before continuing along the southern Friendship Highway to Gyantse, where you will be able to see the famous Gyantse Kumbum, one of the most stunning architectural wonders in Tibet. Late in the afternoon we will continue on to Shigatse where we will spend the night.

After breakfast we’ll set out towards the peak of the world – Mount Everest. Departing from Shigatse and traveling via Lhatse and Tingri, 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.

Enjoy a breathtaking sunrise at the Everest Base Camp before we journey back through the spectacular scenery to spend the night again in Shigatse.

Enjoy a breathtaking sunrise at the Everest Base Camp before we journey back through the spectacular scenery to spend the night again in Shigatse.

We will leave your hotel early in the morning and it takes about 4 hours to get to Lake Namtso. Along the way there are some places to stop for taking pictures. When we get to the Lake, it is around lunch time and we can enjoy the view to the Lake. about 2 hours leisure time beside the lake, we will drive back to Lhasa around 8 pm. To experience the natural views of Tibet is a dream of many tourists. Today is a great day for witnessing Tibet’s natural beauty. Mountains, grasslands, and the holy Namtso are on order for today. Namtso, one of the famous Tibet tourists’ attractions, is one of the 3 holy lakes in Tibet, playing an important role among Tibetans.

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.