How to prepare for your tour to Tibet

Passport issued by your country the basic and primary travel document for visiting Tibet. Please make sure you have enough valid date to get the visa and visit Tibet. Usually it is advice to have at least six month of validity on your passport. 

Please be extremely careful of not loosing your passport during your vocation in Tibet. beside Nepalese Embassy, Tibet doesn’t have any embassy. Hence if you loose your passport, you will have to report to police immediately and you will be taken out of Tibet to cities with your country’s embassy to get a new copy of passport.  Hence your trip to tibet will be canceled.

Chinese visa is second most important document you will need to travel to Tibet. Situation over with Chinese Visa is different if you are entering Tibet from Nepal as compare with entering from other cities in China.

If you are entering in Tibet from Nepal, You will have to apply for Chinese group Visa from Nepal. It usually take three business days to apply for that Visa. This Visa has to applied only via visa agent in Kathmandu.

For those who are entering Tibet from other cities in China. You can apply for Chinese Visa at the Chinese Embassy of your country or resident country. You can apply directly without mentioning anything about your Tibet travel plan. Otherwise the embassy will require you to get the visa invitation from Tibet Tourism Bureau, Which creates its own complications. Hence it is always better not to mentions your travel plan.

Sometimes, embassy may required you to summit your flight ticket, tour and hotel booking details. We can help you send all these required documents. Read Tibet Nepal Border Update 2024

Tibet Travel Permit is one additional document you will need to travel to Tibet. This permit is issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau in Lhasa. It is the sole authority issuing this document. Hence We are ( your local travel agency in Tibet) are the only people who can apply it on your behalf.

To make your permit. You will need to book the tour with us and send us following documents with tour deposit.

1. Copies of passports 
2. Copies of Chinese Visas

Rest document such as your tour itinerary, your guide and drivers details, bank invoice of your tour deposit will be prepared by us. 

Addition to Tibet travel permit, there are few other permits like aliens permit, border permit and etc. We will make all these together. If you are not booking tour with us, please make sure to ask your travel agency to make all the required permit. Contact us with your tour itinerary and we will send you the list of require permits.

Please be careful, many new tour operator will forget or will not know about these permits. and it will affect your trip in Tibet. 

Lastly please book your tibet tour at least a month prior to your arrival in Tibet and send us the documents at least three months before your tour date. 

The Tibet private tour is considered an organized guide tour with you friends or family. There will be not stranger traveling with you. It can be a solo tour, couple tour, or with a group of your own family and friends. 

The Tibet private tours can be of different experiences and activities, like hiking, trekking or regular tour. This is very flexible and changes to the itinerary can be make until you are in Lhasa. 

Tibet group tour as name suggest. Its budget or economical version of tour in Tibet. Here you will share the cost of Vehicle and Tours guide with your fellow travelers. All the travelers are gathered from booking on our website. There will be maximum 12 people in the group tour. We have made at the group small in order to provide the better service and have a memorable journey in Tibet.

Here are some of the best group tours in Tibet. Our group tours are most economical in market.

Nepal is the only international destination with direct access with Tibet. From here you can either travel overland or take flight to Lhasa. 

If you are planning to enter into Tibet from Nepal. There is a different permit and Visa situation as compare to those entering from other cities in China. 

Here, we will have to make your permit without Chinese Visa. It is mandatory to apply for Chinese Group Visa from the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu. Visa Invitation from Tibet tourism is require and we will send it to you in Nepal. 

Chinese group Visa is printed on a A4 size paper. You will receive two copies of it. One is for the entrance at the international border and another is for departure at the international border. You have to hand both copies to a Chinese Custom officers. Do not leave it in Nepal. Other wise you will be deported back to Nepal immediately.

When you will meet your tour guide either are land border in Kyirong or Lhasa Airport, He will have the Tibet travel permit in his hand and will help your check out from border immigration. 

Travel Overland from Nepal to Tibet is a very good travel route. Here you will gradually ascend up to Himalayas and cross it in Kyirong county. Right now Kyirong and Burang Land Border are only land border open for international travelers. Burang is usually use by Indians pilgrims from Kailash Yatra. and crossing Kyirong border is better and more convenient to travel to. 

Your tour guide and driver will meet you at the border and help you will checkin at China immigration. She will have your Tibet travel permit in her hand. 

There is a daily flight from Kathmandu to Lhasa. It is important to bring both copies of Chinese Group Visa at the Lhasa Airport. You will have to give one at the immigration at Lhasa Airport. Please don’t give it to any one in Kathamandu airport. 

After checking in at the immigration, You will meet your tour guide at the airport and he will have your Tibet Travel permit.

The flight continues to Chengdu after landing at Lhasa Airport. Most time the flight will go to Chengdu when there is a turbulent in Lhasa. In this case you will be flying to Lhasa next day. So it is highly recommend to keep you visit to Potala Palace on third day of the tour. Otherwise you will miss your opportunity to visit Potala Palace.

It is more convenient to visit Tibet from other cities in China. There are more means of transportations to Lhasa from other cities in Tibet. Getting Chinese Visa and Tibet Travel Permit for those coming to Tibet from cities in China is easier, unlike travel from Nepal.

Here is the permit situation is different for coming with train or flight. If you are coming to Lhasa via flight, you will need the original Tibet Travel Permit in hand. If you are coming to Lhasa in train from cities in China, you will only need a printed copy of your Tibet Travel permit.

There are lots trains from other cities in China to Tibet. All the trains to Lhasa get funneled in Xining to Qinghai-Tibet Railway. So Xinning has most number of trains to Lhasa each day, making it a top transit point to Lhasa via train.

If you are coming to Lhasa on train, you will need a copy of your permit printed on A4. It is advisable to print one in color. If you are take train to Lhasa from Chongqing, you will need an original Tibet travel permit in hand when boarding the train to Lhasa. We can send you the permit at any given address or hotel.  

The train ticket is only available a month prior to your journey. You can contact us to book your train ticket in advance. Please note at it is harder to get the train ticket during the high season in summer days.

There are daily flights from Other cities to Lhasa. Yet there are the most flight to Lhasa from Chengdu city as compare to other cities in China.

You will need to original Tibet travel permit in hand while boarding flight to Lhasa. So we have to send your original permit to your hotel or any given address. Please make sure you have access to the address. It is best to have permit send to a hotel. 

If you are not looking to book a hotel for a night, it is highly recommend to transit your flight at Chengdu. We can send some one to the Chengdu airport to deliver the permit. 

Traveling overland from other region to Lhasa is a very good tour itinerary. The most famous route to visit tibet overland to Tibet is from Sichuan and Yunnan. traveling from Kashi to Lhasa is also a very good and beautiful journey. 

Here we will have to send a driver and the tours to your departing city. They will have permit and other document with them. 

Kathamandu is the only gateway cities to Tibet. from here you have only two option to reach Lhasa, Either by flight or traveling overland. There is a  different permit and visa situation. which you will find in above subheadings. 

Beside kathmandu, Chengdu is the second popular and most chosen gateway cities to Lhasa. Traveling to Lhasa from Chengdu is most conveinent for those coming on flights to Lhasa. Beside there are daily train to Lhasa from the city.  Route 318 National highway is highly recommend for traveling overland to Lhasa. 

Xining is a hub for all the trains to Tibet. This city is mostly choose by traveller looking for economical way to travel to Tibet. From here is most number of trains to Lhasa. 

Please read about gateway cities to Tibet from here

Weather in Tibet is different as compare to other region due its unique geographical location. Winter in Tibet is not that cold as many have in mind and yet in summer most traveller don’t pack enough for higher places like Everest and kailash. So it is very important to know about weather in Tibet. find more about Weather in Tibet here.

Tibet is known as the roof of the world for its Altitude from Sea level. On average it is about 4500 meters, Yet most cities and towns in Tibet are located below this average. 

Lhasa city is local at 3600 meter. It is important to stay in Lhasa for more than three days for proper acclimatization to Tibet. If you are not acclimatize properly this would severely hamper quality of tour and some time might lead to immediately evacuate from Tibet. 

Read more about acclimatization of Tibet

Tibetan Culture is predominately a buddhist culture with little twist from local Bon religion, like prayer flags and burning incenses. It is good to know a bit about the culture so that you will be more accepting to the way people do thing in tibet. 

We have huge collection information on Tibetan Culture here for you to read.

Tibet is one of the region in China. It is important to know the distance between the different destination in Tibet before planning you visit. Additional to acclimatization to high altitude of Tibet with distances determine to the during you will need to spend for your Tibet tour. 

It is also important to know spiritual and historical importance of places of visit in Tibet. Your Tibet tour guide is a house of wisdom about every aspect of Tibet. Yet it is recommend to read more tibet before arrive in Tibet.

Beside, above mention must to bring thing, do not forget to bring layer cloth to Tibet. Wearing cloth in multiple layer help you to get to use to different changes in temperature in Tibet. Please remember, in Tibet during summer it is extremely hot in sun yet it’s freezing cold in shade. You don’t want to catch cold in Tibet for high elevation. 

If your journey includes visit to Everest basecamp or mount Kailash, you will have to pack a winter cloth like coat and woolen inner wears. 

If you are coming to Tibet in winter. You can bring cloths as you would wear in your country. We will provide a small blanket to wear on you lap in car or a Tibetan Winter Chupa, which is cozy warm.

Depending on the time and month of your trekking in Tibet you will have to make you packing. but following are few packing list we will highly recommend

I) Good Trekking Shoe 

That’s the number one thing you will have to pack. We will highly recommend Decathlon product for trekking in Tibet. There are very economical and high durable. 

II) Walking stick 

Thought we can provide you with a proper walking stick, but it is highly recommend to bring one which is suitable  for your body.

III) Windproof pant and coat

From time to time it will get very windy during your trekking in Tibet. It is highly recommend to bring a windproof and waterproof pant and coat. it is a huge protection for you against wilderness. 

IV) Water Filtration

Though river steam along the trekking route will look clear yet you will find lots of dust particle in water. It is wise to bring a small filtration for your drinking water.