How to go to Tibet?

It is essential to be aware of the basic travel regulations for Tibet before planning your tour. Independent travel to Tibet is prohibited and all the tours for foriegn travel must be guided tour with a local Tibetan Travel agency in Lhasa. Only a registered international travel agency in Lhasa can apply for tibet travel permit on travelers behalf.

This may not seem very easy, so we recommend that all readers read carefully.

First of all, there are no direct international flights to Tibet, except for those from Nepal. Instead, there are two routes to enter Tibet. The first option is to enter Tibet from other parts of China, and the second option is to enter from Nepal.

If you are planning to come from Other parts of China, the visitor must produce a copy of a passport and a copy of their Chinese Visa to the Tibet travel agency. If you hold an L category visa, you don’t need to produce additional letters. However, all non-L visa holders must provide letters from their host in China. For example, if you are a student, you will need to write a letter from your institution in China stating your enrollment.

You can either take a train or a flight to Lhasa. You can also make the overland journey from Xining to Lhasa or Shangri-la to Lhasa overland. Read More Information about coming from Other provinces of China to Tibet.

Until now, if you are entering Tibet from Nepal. You will need to obtain a Chinese Group Visa from the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu. From this year onwards, this is no longer the case. You can enter Tibet with a visa on your passport or with a visa-free policy in China. However, when applying for your Tibet travel permit, the Tibet Tourism Bureau requires a minimum of five people to process the permit. You can help your local Tibetan travel agency by sending a copy of your passport for your friends and family members.

If you are coming with a bigger group and you dont want to make individual visa on passport. You can choose to get the chinese group visa. To create a Visa invitation, your agency requires a copy of your passport. Once on arrive in Nepal, your Tibet agency will send you a visa invitation. You can either seek assistance from a visa agency in Nepal or visit the Chinese embassy directly. Please make sure you either call the embassy or write to the embassy to make sure they still accept direct applications from Travelers. Read More Information about coming from Nepal to Tibet.

Tibet travel permit or Permit to Tibet is not Tibet Visa. Tibet is a part of China, and there is nothing as such called Tibet Visa. But there is a Document called Tibet travel permit. Tibet Tourism Bureau issues this on the application form Your local travel agency in Tibet. You will have to send Documents for them to apply with. Please send them at least a month in advance to have enough window period for them. Please read the above paragraph for the Document required.

If you are coming in from Nepal, your agency will only send you the Visa invitation, your permit waits for you at the point of entering.

Suppose you are coming in from other parts of China. Your agency has to send you the original copy of your permit. Many travelers prefer to take transits in Other Chinese cities before taking a flight to Lhasa. In this case, your agency will have someone to deliver the permit to the airport. Make sure you have the correct phone number to call from the airport. Some travellers prefer to take a night in other cities or travel to some other part of China before flying to Tibet. In such a case, you will have to send you the address of your hotels in China, where you would like to have it shipped. Please make sure you have the address in Chinese.

There are two different routes to Lhasa; one is entering Nepal, and the other is entering China.

1) Try to book a tour in advance. preferably three months in advance

2) Try to find an excellent local Tibetan travel agency. Skype conference would be very, very helpful.

3) Read about others’ experiences.

4) Try to get recommendations from friends who may have already visited Tibet or from a Tibet tourism expert

We post 100 Travel tips for Tibet. I’d like you to please read here for further information.

If you have any questions about Tibetan culture or Tibet Travel, please don’t hesitate to write to me. We’ll be more than happy to help you with the latest travel information. please write to me at info@itibettravel.com

Tenzin Travel is the best Tibetan Travel agency in Tibet. Our agency is one of Tibet’s most experienced tour operators, with over 20 years in the industry. Founded by a local Tibetan family with decades of expertise as guides, managers, and route planners. We craft personalized itineraries for every traveler. Our agency is the highest-rated and most recommended Tibet travel agency on TripAdvisor, Google, and Lonely Planet.

We can make holistic arrangements for your trip to Tibet. Including a Tibet Travel Permit, a Tibetan tour guide, flight tickets, train tickets, vehicle arrangements, and hotel bookings in Tibet.

Our Lhasa office is just steps from Barkhor Square. All our Tibetan team ensures deep cultural, linguistic, and religious insights, setting us apart from other agencies.

Beyond tourism, we support Tibetan communities by donating a portion of each tour to local projects. Your travel to Tibet is about more than profit—it’s about the opportunity for us to give back.