Central Tibet Tour with Everest

Upon arrival at the Gonggar Airport, you will be transferred to the hotel as booked.

Lhasa, which means ‘the land of the gods’ is the heart and soul of Tibet. It is a city of wonders, the capital of the Tibet autonomous region of China. The city contains many culturally significant Tibetan Buddhist religious sites and lies in a valley next to the Lhasa River. For centuries this holy city has attracted travelers from all over the world, drawn by beautiful scenery, cultural heritage and its mysticism leaves the travelers captivated.

Rest of the day is free to relax and acclimatize. 
You can stroll around the Barkhor market in the late afternoon

Visit Potala Palace and Jokhang Temple

Potala Palace: Potala Palace has been the focus of the travelers for centuries. It is the cardinal landmark and a structure of massive proportion. This symbol of Tibet, an architectural Gem built in the colossal monastic style of Central Tibet by Gyelwa Ngapa the fifth Dalai Lama, in the 17th century, stands 300m above the valley atop the hill called Marpo Ri. These thousand rooms in Potala dates from 1645 when the fifth Dalai Lama began erecting a palace that would serve as a sacred and administrative center. It served many succeeding Dalai Lamas and as one of Tibet’s most impressive and enduring monuments, the Chinese Army of Red Guards protected it during the Cultural Revolution. As a result many of its chapels and treasures are intact, virtually unchanged since the 17th century.

Jokhang Temple: The oldest and the most revered religious structure in Tibet, it dates back to 639 to 647, construction initiated by king Songtsen Gampo to house a Buddha image Akshobhya brought to Tibet by his Nepalese wife. But now, the main statue in this temple is of the Sakyamuni, which was a gift from his Chinese wife Won Cheng in 641 A.D to King Songtsen Gampo. The statue of Akshobhya being switched to Romoche. Pilgrims from all over Tibet come to worship here and prostrate themselves in full length in front of the main doors of' the temple. It is truly a moving and unrivalled experience to witness such a sight and more so to actually join them in their pilgrimage around the temple.

Visit Drepung monastery and Sera Monastery

Drepung Monastery: About 8km to the west of central Lhasa, Drepung, one of the world’s largest monastery was built in 1416 by Jamyang Choje a pupil of Tshong Khapa, the founder of the Gelugpa Sect. Drepung literally means “heaps of rice” and the fertility of its fields supported a monastic community that before 1959, ranked as Tibet’s largest monastery with 7,770 monks. For over 500 years Drepung served as the major pillar of the theocratic state, serving as the main political headquarters for the Gelugpa sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It also served as the residence of the Dalai Lamas until the Potala Palace was constructed in 1645.Suffering only minor damage during the Cultural Revolution Drepung has plenty of historical relics, Buddhist scriptures and arts.

Sera Monastery: 5km North of Lhasa, its setting is one of the prettiest in Lhasa, hugging the ridge that forms the Northern wall of the Kyi Chu Valley. Founded in 1419 by Sakya Yeshe, a disciple of Tsongkhapa, belonging to the Gelugpa sect and is one of the three great monasteries of Tibet, the other two being Drepung & Ganden. In its heyday, Sera hosted a huge monastic population and five colleges. Like Drepung, the colleges in Sera specialized in: Sera Me in fundamental precepts of Buddhism,Sera Je in instruction of itinerant monks and Sera Ngagpa in Tantric studies.

Day hike to Pha Bong Kha or visit Norbulingka Palace.

Pha Bong Kha Hike: Pha Bong Kha is about 15 mins drive away from Lhasa and offers wonderful view of the Lhasa city. Songsten Gampo meditated here for three years and later Padmasambhava, Atisha and Je Tsongkhapa have all meditated here in this cave. The monastery is build on top of a rock that houses the cave. Left of Pha Bong Kha is a sky burial site that people from Lhasa use. Our trek today is basically a pilgrim’s trail and an equally enjoyable with the views of the Lhasa city constantly seen. From Pha Bong Kha we go up up the mountain and to Tashi Choling temple, Taktsang Simbu Nunnery & cave, Sera Utse Monastery.  Kaa Tsang Shar-nub monatery is below the trail and our pilgrim walk ends in Phurbu  Cho hermitage and from here it’s a 20 mins drive to Lhasa.  Total hiking time is about 5 hours and most of the hiking is at an altitude of 3900m (12,800 ft).

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Norbulingka: Norbulingka is the summer palace of His Holiness Dalai Lama. The 8th Dalai Lama designated it as a summer retreat but the majority of the buildings were not erected until the reigns of 13th and 14th Dalai Lamas. Every year as the chill air warmed, the Dalai Lama would leave Potala in a grand procession for six months residence in the Norbulingkha. It is worth a visit and the park is a great place to be at festival times and public Holidays. During the seventh Lunar month of every year the Norbulingkha is crowded with picnickers for the Shotun festival.

Today we will drive to Gyantse via the Turquoise Lake. Drive through the Kamba La pass with a good view of the lake.

Gyantse: The third most important city Gyantse is one of the least Chinese influenced towns in Tibet and is worth a visit for this reason alone.

Kumbum Stupa: It is one of the most revered and unusual architectural masterpieces. It was built in 1440 and is in the shape of a 108-sided mandala. Kumbum means 10,000 images. The Stupa raises over four symmetrical floors and is surmounted by a gold dome. The dome rises like a crown over four sets of eyes that gazes serenely out in the cardinal directions of the compass.

Phalkor Monastery: It was founded in 1418.It was designed by Newari architects from Nepal. The former has a special influence over Buddhism owing to its unity of Gelugpa, Sakyapa & Bhuton sect. 

Shigatse: It is the second largest city in Tibet and the capital of the traditional Tibetan province of Tsang.

Tashilunpo Monastery: It was founded in 1447 by the first Dalai Lama. This monastery is one of the few monasteries in Tibet that weathered the stormy seas of the Cultural Revolution. This monastery houses the Maitreya Buddha statue weighing 275 Kg made of gold and 26 meters in height.

Shegar [New Tingri]: It’s a good place to spend the night before heading off to Everest Base Camp(whose access road is only 12km further on).Shegar is also a possible last stop before the Nepal border, though most travelers spend the night at Tingri, which provides views of Everest.

Rongbuk to Everest Base Camp: It is just over a two hr (8km) each way walk from Rongphuk Monastery to the Base Camp. Vehicles do the trip in around 10 to 15 minutes. Above Rongphuu the valley expands into a large glacial out-wash plain. There is a short cut from behind the big Chorten at the Monastery which cuts through a meadow and then past a superbly photogenic complex of ruins called Rong Chung. Until the Communist takeover this was a thriving meditation retreat. The road climbs up through a jumble of glacial debris favouring the left side of the valley.Passing the recently rebuilt Sherab Choling Hermitage (signposted as the Guru Rinpoche Monastery) the road runs into the terminal moraine of the Rongphu Glacier, mounds of stone  and silt barricading the valley.You may see herds of deer and yak on the hillsides. It is still 30 Min from here to Base Camp. The road snakes through the moraine to reach a sandy plain.

You will be following the same route back to Shigatse. 

Today you will have a final drive back to Lhasa where you will spend your last day remembering your wonderful trip of Tibet

Today you will be transferred to Lhasa Airport for your final departure.