This tour is basically for the ones who love to take a tour of spiritual places. Covering the most ancient as well as those listed under UNESCO World Heritage sites.
This itinerary of 8 Days Tibet Tour From Lhasa presents to Tibet in an altogether different way to explores not only the culture of Tibet but also takes you to the World’s highest natural lake and wildlife.
Lahasa - Gandan - Drigung – Reting - Namtso – Lhasa
On the first day of your arrival at the Lhasa airport/railway station. We will take you to the hotel for a light snacks/supper and stay. We shall welcome you in traditional Tibetan way by presenting Khata (ceremonial scarf symoblizing purity and compassion representing Tibetan and Mangolian culture) to you.
It is also an acknowledgement of Tashi Delek or Good Luck. A warm cup of tea /coffee shall be served as welcome drink to refresh you. Sipping this drink enjoy the natural beauty of Tibet from your room only. Dinner shall be in the pre – booked hotel only.
First day of your tour; soon after breakfast we shall take you to see the Potala Palace (filled with myriad wall paintings, Buddha frescos, Thangkas, combination of Mandela and so on!) – the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
After seeing the Palace, we shall move on to visit Jokhang Temple (2nd most important monastery after Potala Palace in Lhasa).
Thereafter lunch, we shall see Barkhor Street - The local shopping street of Lhasa is the busiest one too!
Enjoy shopping here for local stuff like artifacts, antiques, prayer wheels, tapestries, local dress, silver ornaments and Thangka. There are two divisions of this market – East and West.
Shopping can be mostly be done in the Eastern section; the other part is good for a walk around! Dinner and night stay shall be at the hotel in Lhasa only.
Next day soon after breakfast, we will go to see Drepung Monastery by road. Earlier it used to serve as a government centre in Tibet; till the time Dalai Lama changed his residence to Potala Palace (More than just the official residence of Dalai Lama; it is the carvings, murals, paintings, prayer wheels and the calm atmosphere of this place which calls people every year!). Today, it’s the biggest Buddhist College in Tibet.
After lunch at one of the good hotels in the city; we will move on to see Sera Monastry (As Buddhist Monks don’t interact much, it will be your guide who will take you around). It is one of the famous Buddhist Universities which is known for Scripture debate which take place here.
In the evening, we will drive back to our hotel for dinner and night stay.
Two other monasteries which are of religious importance are Gandan and Drigung Monastry. Both of these Monasteries come under the Buddhist footprint icons. Founded in the year 1409 by Tsongkapa, Gandan happens to be the 1st and foremost monastery. It is somewhat on the outskirts of the city and has less number of monks.
Drigung Monastry is a well – known monastery in Lhasa Perfecture, where sky burials are performed (bodies are put out in the open for natural decomposition or for pre-datory birds to eat them (This ritual is carried out till today and no outside visitors are allowed to see the sacred place).
Night stay and dinner is scheduled in a guest house near the Drigung hotspring.
Next morning, soon after breakfast we will drive to Reting. Situated in sprawling juniper clad hill; it is historically important monasteries.
Reting was destroyed by Red Guards during civil revolution and is today a calm and peaceful place to visit. What is interesting here is the silence which speaks in this Monastry – unlike others.
So, make sure that you sit here for sometime and try to indulge in the serene calmness which surrounds this monastery! Definitely you will take back the purity with you! Set amidst natural woods, its places calmness in ones heart and mind.
Night stay and dinner will be here only.
Soon after finishing breakfast at the guest house in Reting, we will move forward to Namtso Lake. Also known as “Heavenly lake” it’s the most beautiful lake in entire Tibet.
Some also regard it as Sky Lake as the deep blue colour of lake matches exactly with the sky colour. It is also the highest altitude lake in the world. It is surrounded by Nyenqing Tangula Mountains with its peak over 7000 meters!
One can see nomadic families, yaks and sheeps too! After seeing the sun – setting in we shall see ourselves in the hotel near Namtso Lake for dinner and night stay.
Next morning after seeing the sunrise here and having breakfast, we will return to Lhasa. On reaching Lhasa, we will take you around for a natural beauty tour.
Here you can enjoy the scenic beauty of the snow – capped peaks, flocks of yaks, sheep and landscapes of grasslands. En – route we will see Yampecheng Hot Spring – which has got natural medicinal properties.
Taking a bath in this Hot Spring is permitted; so if you are interested you can enjoy the natural shower! In the evening, take a walk in the local market of Lhasa and enjoy the local life here.
See the way people dress or wear those nosepins and earrings or simply the way daily life of people of this land runs! Dinner and night stay at the hotel in Lhasa.
Next morning we shall see you off to your homes by helping you board your flight/train. All those who are catching the afternoon flight/train can see around the local market and do some shopping.
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