Devout Buddhist Appreciation

Upon your arrival, your local guide will expect you outside the Arrival Hall of the airport and transfer you to the downtown hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to adapt yourself to the high altitude of 3,650 meters (11,975 ft.). With a glorious history of over 1,300 years, Lhasa, meaning “holy land” or “the sacred place of Buddhism”, has long been the political, cultural, economic and religious center of Tibet.

Friendly Tips:
Although Tibet is in the far west of China, visitors can easily travel from Hong Kong to Lhasa via Guangzhou, which offers excellent transport links. You can take a bullet train with a duration of about 1 hour from Hong Kong West Kowloon Railway Station to Guangzhou. About 40 pairs of trains are available every day. If you have never been to Guangzhou, you can also take the morning train so as to have some time to explore the city a bit, and then take a flight for 6 hours to Lhasa the next morning (including a one-hour stopover in Chongqing).

Your one-week Tibet tour starts from the Drepung Monastery, the largest Buddhist monastery in Tibet, covering an area of about 200,000 square meters (49 acres). It used to be the residence of the second to fifth Dalai Lamas, with great significance in Tibetan Buddhism. The white buildings of Drepung Monastery scatter on the slope of the mountain, which looks like a huge pile of rice at a distance, hence the name 'Drepung', meaning a pile of rice in the local language.

Continue the private trip to the Norbulingka Park, a large and beautiful artificial garden which used to be the summer palace of successive Dalai Lamas.

The next stop is the Sera Monastery, one of the most renowned Tibetan Buddhist temples of the Gelug Sect (Yellow Hat). Apart from appreciating the fabulous Tibetan architecture and exquisite Thangkas, you can witness interesting Buddhism Scriptures Debating here. The debating is a good way of learning the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism, through which lamas clarify their minds and test their understanding of religious philosophy. Debates are often held in the shade of trees, where you can see a large number of lamas having a drastic debate in pairs or in groups. Sometimes they will also show their opinions and emotions with aggressive body gestures. After experiencing the heated debating atmosphere, your guide will transfer you to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast; Lunch

Today's visit starts from the well-known Potala Palace. Built in the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 AD), it witnessed the great changes and development of Tibet during the past 1,300 years. The magnificent palace is composed of two parts, the Red Palace as the center and the White Palace as the wings. The White Palace is the sitting room of the Dalai Lamas, which houses a variety of halls and corridors, delicate Buddhist paintings and decorations. The Red Palace is the holy place to worship the Buddha. This Lhasa's cardinal landmark attracts thousands of visitors and pilgrims every day.

After lunch, we will visit the Jokhang Temple, another sacred site for Buddhists, which was built in the Tang Dynasty and restored and reconstructed many times in the following 1,300 years. Now it has become a huge complex with the architectural styles of the Tang Dynasty, India and Nepal. Besides the spectacular monastery, here you can also see the most revered Buddha statue in the whole Tibet, the statue of twelve-year-old Shakyamuni brought by Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty. Then walk along the thriving bazaar of Barkhor Street to experience the local vibe, where you could find ancient buildings and temples, local snacks, famous restaurants and various handicrafts.

You will then pay a visit to a Nunnery, a very special and spiritual place for women Buddhists. It is not easy to pass the nunnery’s examination, which requires one to recite about 500-page scriptures. However, once admitted by the nunnery, these women Buddhists will also get a salary of CNY 400 to 500 a month. The nunnery also operates an outpatient clinic, a teahouse, and a restaurant, but they are semi-public and the charges are very low.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast; Lunch

We will drive you to Gyangtse today. En route, we will pay a visit to a local family, and you can have a deep understanding of the life of local Tibetan people by talking with them. After the family visit, we will continue the trip to the Yamdrok Yumtso Lake, the largest inland lake at the north foot of the Himalayas. Known as “Swan Lake” in the local language, it boasts charming landscapes of crystal water, green meadows and snow-clad mountains. Then we will drop by the Karola Glacier, only about 300 meters from the highway, where you can enjoy the stunning snow-capped peak views at a pretty close distance.

Afterwards, we will arrive at Gyangtse. Then take a leisurely stroll along the peaceful Gyangtse Old Street, where you can see the old-style houses built with cow dung. After that, you will be accompanied to visit the Palcho Monastery, which is famous for being the Tibetan Buddhism center where the three sects - the Gelug Sect, the Sakya Sect and the Bkav-gdam Sect coexist. Another highlight is Kumbum Stupa, also named the 'Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda'. This could be considered the Museum of Buddha Statues, which collects numerous delicate Buddha murals and various clay, copper and gold statues. You can even climb up inside the stupa to appreciate the impressive artistry.

Drive to Shigatse. Drop by the Pala Manor, the main estate of the Pala family, one of the three well-preserved great manors of Tibetan aristocrats. Here offers an insight into the past luxury life of Tibetan old nobilities. Now it preserves 57 rooms with exquisite murals and some of the furniture also remains. In the bedroom, you can see dazzling gold, silver and jade ware. And the luxury food, tableware, imported wine, imported white vinegar, and precious fur clothing left over all showcase their extraordinary luxury life. Arrive at Shigatse and check in at the local hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast; Lunch

After breakfast, we will visit the largest temple in Shigatse area, the Tashilhunpo Monastery, also one of the four grand temples of the Gelug Sect because successive Banchen Lamas practice here. The monastery earns its reputation for the splendid Tibetan Buddhist buildings with brilliant murals and delicate Buddhist statues. Among them, one of the most stunning Buddha statues is the world’s largest gilded statue, the 26.2-meter-high (86 ft.) ‘Future Buddha’ made in 1914, and it is said to be made of 297 kg of gold and thousands of pearls, amber, coral and diamonds.

Drive you back to Lhasa and transfer you to the hotel there.

Tibet is a vast land permeated with mystery and national characteristics. It takes a long time to transfer from one place to another, so you will spend a lot of time on the vehicle if you explore further. But enjoying the fascinating natural scenery along the way should make for a pleasant journey.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

Today we will transfer you to the airport for your flight home and conclude the one week private Tibet tour. Have a nice trip!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast