8 Days Central Tibet and Lake Namtso Small Group Tour; Lhasa Lake Namtso Tour; Tibet Small Group Tour

Trip Overview

Day by Day Itinerary

Date & Price

Service Guide

MAY 2025

JUNE 2025

Price Inclusions

Price Exclusions

Itinerary Alteration

Cancellation and Refund Policy

Overview
Itinerary
Date & Price
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Knowing the Buddhism, but you may not have an in-depth awareness of Tibetan Buddhism; seeing the starry night, but you probably don’t appreciate the clear Milky Way at the holy Namtso on the world highest Qinghai-Tibet Plateau; viewing the devout pilgrimage, you may not watch the pilgrim prostrating in hill road. In Tibet, the religious power will maximize and surprise you. So, come on, this 8-day central Tibet and Namtso tour will fulfill all your imagination for the heavenly Tibet.

Best Time to Visit

All year round
Physical Demands

Very leisure tour; light physical demand for the high altitude

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Day 1: Arrival in Lhasa

Welcome to Lhasa! The tour guide will meet you at the airport to get to the hotel where you stay. On the way to the hotel, you will be accompanied by the upper stream of the Brahmaputra River and Lhasa River. Certainly, there are also snow-capped mountains, enchanting lakes, and yaks.

Then, when arriving in Lhasa, you should have a rest in your room to acclimatize yourself to this high altitude. If time and energy are full, you can wander to the Potala Square to appreciate the fountain show and the urban nightscape.

Notice:
In order to get acclimatized to the high altitude in Tibet and avoid the altitude sickness, especially the first-visit to Tibet, you should have a good sleep in your hotel. Do not rush to visit attractions inside Lhasa city.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 2: Lhasa Tour - Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Street (B, D)

Jokhang Temple

Barkhor Street

After your delicious breakfast, you will start your Tibetan Buddhist journey today. Certainly, the Potala Palace, reputed as the landmark of Tibet, must be the first site. It is enclosed with the White Palace and the Red Palace ancillary buildings of the Potala Palace which rise from Red Mountain in the center of Lhasa Valley (3700m). The most valuable burial stupas of former Dalai Lamas and meditation Cave of the 33rd great king of Tibet are housed inside.

Having a lunch, you will continue to visit the "spiritual heart of the city" and the most sacred monastery in Tibet - the holy Jokhang Monastery. The monastery is located at Barkhor Square in Lhasa, in general, considered as the most important and sacred monastery by Tibetan. In fact, it is packed with pilgrims from four corners to pray. Therefore, not only will you see the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni at the age of twelve, also the pilgrims making prostrating in front of Jokhang Temple.

After visiting the monastery, you can stroll along the Barkhor Street surrounding the monastery where you can take part in the pilgrimage to do kora, a religious circle around a building or mountains, or wandering to buy some Tibetan handicrafts and so on.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 3: Lhasa Tour - Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery (B)

Drepung Monastery

Sera Monastery

Today, you will go on basking in Tibetan Buddhism. Drepung Monastery, as the beginning site of today’s journey, is one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet. It is founded in 1416 by Jamyang Choge, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples, also the biggest monastery among Tibetan Buddhist buildings. Here, we will offer you an opportunity to visit the biggest monastery kitchen, and enjoy the rock paintings, then, the tour guide will lead you to see Buddhist Sculpture Carving workshop near Drepung Monastery.

In addition, after your meal, continue to visit another Gelug monastery in Tibet - Sera Monastery. As we all know, the highlight of touring Sera Monastery is to watch an excellent Monks Debate lasting from 3 pm to 5 pm. Then, you can explore the Choding Khang which is the hermitage located just behind the Great Assembly Hall (on the hill slope of Sera Utse).

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 4: Lhasa- Shigatse via Gyantse (360km)(B)

Yamdro-tso Lake

Karola Glacier

After your breakfast, we will leave for Shigatse, the second-largest city in Tibet. As long as you pass the Gangbala Pass (5030m), you will view a turquoise lake surrounded by winding mountains, the lake is Yamdrok Lake, and the snow-capped mountain in the distance is Mount Nyenchen Khangsar (7191m), the highest mountain near Lhasa. Here, you can take some pictures with Tibetan Mastiffs at the bank of the lake.

Leaving from Yamdrok Lake, when passing the Manak Dam Lake, you can stop to hang prayer flag at nearby Simila Pass(4330m). Besides, Karola Glacier should not be missed along the road. Continue to drive, we will arrive in Gyantse. Here, many vital cultural and historical sites are worth paying a visit, including Palkhor Monastery, Ancient Gyantse Street, and the magnificent vista of Gyangtse Fortress. After finishing your visit in Gyantse, you will move to Shigatse. If visiting in Summer, you will be offered a chance to view the landscape of Barley Field, and learn the flour Barley flout made with a water mill at a traditional Barley Mill.

Stay overnight in Shigatse

Day 5: Shigatse to Lhasa (280km)(B)

Tashilunpo Monastery

Friendship Highway

Today’s morning, you will visit the historic and culturally essential monastery - Tashi Lhunpo Monastery. The monastery is the traditional seat of successive Panchen Lamas, the second highest ranking Tulku lineage in the Gelug tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. If you get there at a proper time, it may be lucky for you to witness the pilgrims circumambulate the monastery on the Lingkhor outside the walls. Ending your visit here, we will drive back to Lhasa along the Yalong Valley.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 6: Lhasa to Namtso (220km)(B)

Lake Namtso

After the main Tibetan monastery tour, today, we will lead you to enjoy the natural landscape in Tibet - appreciating the sacred Namtso Lake. Before your arrival, appreciating the Nyenchen Tanggula Mountain Range in the distance, Nomads in flourishing grassland, and the view of Sky-Road Railway with snow mountain background is extremely interesting and relaxing.

After passing the famous Lagenla Mountain Pass (5190m), Namtso Lake will come you’re your view. Reputed as the heavenly lake, Namtso is a mountain lake on the border between Damxung County and Baingoin County. As one of three holy lakes in Tibet, Its cave hermitages have for centuries been the destination of Tibetan pilgrims. After nightfall, you can stroll along the lakeside to enjoy the landscape of Tashi Island, and embrace the stunning sunset. If climate permits, lying beside the lake shore to watch the Milky Way is an excellent activity for you.

Stay overnight in the guesthous

Day 7: Namtso to Lhasa (220km)

Yangpachen Hot Spring

The scenery on the way to Lhasa

Getting up early, you will encounter the breathtaking sunrise of Namtso, at this moment, the water and the sky are of rosy hue. Then, we will set out. On the back way to Lhasa, we will pass the Yangpachen Hot Spring, if you feel exhausted, basking in the hot spring is a wonderful option(Optional: 25USD, does not included in package).

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Day 8: Depart from Lhasa (B)

In the morning, after the breakfast, our tour guide will meet you to go to the airport, then, you will leave Lhasa to step on the plane for your flight home.

Calendar List

Tibet Travel Permit and all the other travel documents needed in Tibet;
Group-shared transportation to the destinations and sites listed in the itinerary; ranging from 7 seats Van to 22 seats tourist bus depending on the group size;
Lodging: Comfortable Hotel Accommodations (not include single room supplement. If you are a solo traveler, you need to share one room with another tourist (same sex in most cases); if you prefer to stay in one room by yourself, you will have to pay the single room supplement. And the exact price depends on market fluctuation in high and off season of Tibet tour. For the exact price, please refer to your travel consultant.)
Experienced English-speaking Tibetan local tour guide;
Entrance ticket fees for all the sight spots listed in the itinerary;
Welcome Dinner in local restaurant when group members meet in Lhasa. Meals as specified in the itinerary;
First aid kit;
Service Charge & Government Taxes;
Arrangements include planning, handling, operational and communication charges;
A coverage of 300,000RMB Chartis travel insurance

International and domestic flight/train to Lhasa (Note: we accept the domestic flight/train tickets booking to Lhasa from other cities in advance, check the updated ticket availability and cost with your travel consultant);
Meals that are not specified in the itinerary (Averagely a meal in the 3rdpole region cost 3~15USD per person in Tibet Autonomous Region);
Tips and gratuities for the trip leader and driver;
The expense of a personal nature like alcoholic beverages, laundry, phone call, etc;
Optional activities and excursions not specified in the itinerary;
China Entry visa fees;
Tips to tour guide and driver, you are suggested to tip them 7 USD/day in total;

Once we receive your tour deposit, which is followed by signing the contract, your reservation is secured with legitimacy. Our staff will reserve the accommodation, vehicle, site tickets, meals and more, and pay the deposit for our suppliers. So if you want to alter to another itinerary, you need to cover the deposit we've paid, while no service charge is needed if you make some changes on the itinerary you booked.

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$1049
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6 people have booked this trip.

If you cancel the tour beacuse of your personal issues, you will be liable to pay cancellation charges that are bounded by 3rdpoletour.com cancellation policy as follows:

1.) If you cancel the tour more than 30 days before the trip starts, you will forfeit 10% of the total land cost per person;
2.) If you cancel the tour 15-30 days prior to your trip start date, 20% of your total land tour cost will be forfeited as a cancellation fee.
3.) If you cancel the tour 7-15 days before the trip starts, you will forfeit 30% of land cost.
4.) If you cancel the tour 7 days prior to your tour start date, you will forfeit 50% of land cost.
5.) If you fail to show up or cancel at your scheduled arrival time without prior notice or later than that, you will forfeit 100% of the land cost.

If the tour has to be cancelled because of the natural disaster or the government restrictions that is beyond both parties control, we will charge only USD50 per person, this is just the service fee and larbor fee during the preparation. This is a rare occurrence!

The cancellation fee charged by 3rdpoletour.com will be kept under your name (person who contacted us) for a usable period of 2 years. Within the applicable period you can use it for next time or you can kindly pass your authority to any of your family, friends or colleagues to use by booking a tour with 3rdpoletour.com. A certifying email from you is necessary to pass the cancellation fee to others, but it is only applicable for private group.