Itinerary & Daily Schedule

In Tibet, we have more than 470 different speices of birds, 82% of birds are in Everest national park. In Lhasa, there are 130 different species of birds.. There are almost 40 different species that we seen in our daily life such as Ruddy shell duck, Bar headed goose, Crested Grebe, Black nacked crane, Tibetan snowcock, Black kite and Tibetan eared peasant etc.

Day 1

Arrival in Lhasa

You will be met at the Lhasa airport or train station by your Tibetan guide and transferred to the 4 Star Gang-Gyen Hotel located in the Old Town of Lhasa, elevation 3600 meters. You can then explore the nearby Old Town of Lhasa and the markets lining Barkhor Square.

Day 2

Lhasa sightseeing plus visit to Lhasa wetland ( Lhalu wetland ) for bird watching

After breakfast, you will go to watch the bird from the Lhalu wetland and take picture of birds for almost 20-30minuts and drive all the way back to heart of Lhasa to visit Jokhang Temple, the holiest Buddhist temple in all of the Himalaya. Each day, many thousands of Buddhist pilgrims come here to worship. Many have traveled well over a thousand kilometers by foot to see this 1400 year-old temple. After lunch, you will visit the 600 year old huge monastery complex of Sera. While at Sera, you watch the monks engage in entertaining Buddhist philosophical debates. In the evening, you will have free time to wander around the Old Town on your own.

Day 3

Lhasa sightseeings plus visit to Kyichu river for birds watch

Today you will start your day by visiting the birds around Kyichu river and then take time to enjoy with birds by taking photos and exploring them as well. After that we visit the massive 1000 room Potala Palace, the most iconic building in Tibet. You will work your way up the steps of the Potala and then go through the most important rooms in this famous UNESCO site. After lunch, you will explore another one of Tibet’s important monasteries. Ramoche Temple is famous across Tibet for the 8 years old statue of Buddha Shakyamuni and is a great place to observe Local Tibetans. In the late afternoon and evening, you will have free time to explore Lhasa on your own or do some souvenir shopping.

Day 4

Lhasa - Yamdrok Lake - Karo La Glacier - Gyantse - Shigatse

You will depart Lhasa in the early morning and drive through the scenic Yarlung River Valley towards Yamdrok Lake. Yamdrok is one of Tibet’s 4 main holy lakes and is regarded as one of the most beautiful lakes in the Himalaya. From the Kamba La Pass, you get a panoramic view of this spectacular lake with the nearby mountains. Next, you will drive along the lake shore to Nankartse, where you will stop for lunch.

Next, you will begin ascending again to the stunning Karo La Glacier. Here, you can get an up-close view of Mt. Nojin Kangtsang and the glaciers coming off of it. Your next stop is the pleasant town of Gyantse where you will visit the massive Gyantse Kumbum Stupa as well as the Pelkhor Chode Monastery. You will then continue to Shigatse, elevation 3840 meters, and stay at the 4 Star Gesar Hotel.

Total driving distance is 350 kilometers. Total driving time is 7 hours

Day 5

Shigatse - Gyatso La Pass - Everest Base Camp

This day will take you from Shigatse to Tibet’s North Face Everest Base Camp. Along the way, you will be passing through several small Tibetan farming villages that you will be able to photograph. You will cross over the 5248 meter high Gyatso La Pass, which offers a sweeping view of the rolling Himalaya Mountains. You will continue on to the Everest Region crossing over another high pass. This pass, the Geu La, offers a panoramic view of the glacier-covered Himalaya. From here, you can see 5 of the world’s 15 highest peaks, including Everest.

From the Geu La, you will then go to Rongphu, the highest monastery in the world at just under 5000 meters in elevation. The iconic view of Everest from here will be a high point of your journey! You will then continue on to the Tent Hotels, which operate from mid April through mid October. The Tent Hotels are the closest that travelers can stay to Mt. Everest and are located 2 kilometers before base camp. If you are traveling outside of this time frame, you will stay at the Rongphu Monastery Guesthouse. From the Tent Hotels, elevation 5050 meters, you will take a separate bus the remaining 2 kilometers to base camp. If you’d like, you can also hike this last short distance. The driving distance from Shigatse to Everest Base Camp is 350 kilometers with the driving time being 7 hours.

Day 6

Everest - Shigatse

After watching the sunrise on Mt. Everest, you will make the journey back to Shigatse. You will stop again at Rongphu Monastery and at the Geu La passes for some final views of Mt. Everest. In Shigatse, you will stay again at the 4 Star Gesar Hotel.

Driving distance from Everest to Shigatse is 350 kilometers and driving time is 7 hours.

Day 7

Shigatse - Lhasa

After breakfast, you will explore Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, the main attraction in Shigatse. This is the largest monastery in area in central Tibet. You will then follow the beautiful Yarlung River back to Lhasa. You will arrive in Lhasa in the late afternoon with enough time to wander the Old Town one last time and to do any last minute shopping. In Lhasa, you will stay at the 4 Star Gang-Gyen Hotel.

The distance from Shigatse to Lhasa is 270 kilometers and the driving time is 7 hours.

Day 8

Depart Lhasa

In the morning, you will be transferred to the Lhasa airport or train station.

Tour Details

  • All Tibet Travel permits
  • English speaking Tibetan tour guide
  • Pick up and drop off by airport bus
  • All administrative fees
  • All meals and accommodations for your guide
  • All lodging listed in the itinerary.
  • Breakfast each morning
  • Entrance fees for the places listed in the Itinerary
  • One time welcome meal for the group
  • One box of mineral water plus shared Oxygen tank in car.
  • Transportation costs to and from Tibet
  • Chinese visa fees and passport fees
  • Lunch and dinner
  • Personal expenses (laundry, photography fees, souvenirs etc)
  • Tips to the driver and guide
  • Single supplement: 50$