11 Days Tibet Mt. Everest Base Camp Tour plus Nyingchi

Day 1: Arrival upon Nyingchi

Highlights: Arrival & Pick-up & Acclimatization

Schedule today: Arrival in Nyingchi at airport, our guide and driver will pick you up and transfer you to hotel in Bayi Town of Nyingchi for acclimatization; you can have a good rest to get used to the altitude, or enjoy your free time hanging out around to get the first impression of Tibet 

Airport in Nyingchi	Bayi Town of Nyingchi

Day 2: Nyingchi Tour

Highlights: Cypress Forest and Mt. Namjia Bawa

Schedule today: In the morning we will head 15 kilometers southeast of the Bayi Town to visit the Great Cypress Nature Reserve area. The king cypress in the reserve is around 2,500 years old 50 meters tall. Then we will have a view of the great Mt. Namjia Bawa (7,700m) in the distance while we drive to Sekyim la Pass (4720m). Then, pay a visit to the bushy Lunang Forest which is a typical highland meadow strip.

Old Giant Cypress Tree	Mt. Namjia Bawa

Day 3: Nyingchi -Lhasa

Highlights: Basum lake

Schedule today: In the morning, we will drive to Lhasa along the National Highway No. 318.We will visit Basomtso lake which is 360km east of Lhasa. Basom tso Lake, situated at 3,500 meters above sea level, originates from Nyching Tangha Mountain and is 12 kilometers long. Snow-covered mountains, glaciers and trees are reflected upon the lake’s rippled surface.

Basumtso lake	Basumtso lake

Day 4: Lhasa city tour

Highlights: Potala Palace, Johkang Temple，Barkhor Street

Schedule today: In the morning, visit the symbol or landmark of Lhasa -  Potala Palace  ( video ), the successive Dalai Lama’s winter residence since the 7th Century by the 33rd great king of Tibet. In the afternoon, visit the center of Tibetan Buddhism -  Johkang Temple  ( video ), where you will come across lots of devoted pilgrimages coming from every corner of Tibet. Both sites are under the list of the world cultural heritages by the UNESCO. Afterwards, free time for you to wander through the Barkhor Street, the busiest street in old Lhasa quarter.

Potala Palace	Johkang Temple

Day5: Lhasa city tour

Highlights: Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery

Schedule today: In the morning, we will visit Drepung Monastery which is the biggest Tibetan Buddhism College with the biggest number of monks in Tibet. The monastery used to be the winter residence of the Dalai Lama before the 5th Dalai Lama moved his residency to the Potala Palace. And in the afternoon, we will visit another influential Gelugpa Monastery -  Sera Monastery  ( video ), where you can see the largest scale of sutra debating ( video ) among monks is famous all across Tibet.

Drepung Monastery	Sera Monastery

                                                                   

Day 6: Lhasa - Gyantse

Highlights: Yamdrok Lake,   Pelchor Monastery, Karo Glacier, Gyantse Pelkor

Schedule today: In the morning, drive to the historic town of Gyantse via  Yamdrok Lake  ( video ), according to local mythology, Yamdrok Lake is the transformation of a goddess, on the Gangbala Pass, you will have a clear picture of this Tibetan holy lake in turquoise, in distance you can also see the snowcapped Summit of Ninjingkangsang. In  Gyantse  ( video ) , you will find the largest stupa in Tibet - Kumpa Stupa (Ten-thousand stupa), just next to the Stupa is the  Pelchor Monastery  ( video ). Another important site in Gyantse is Dzong Castle which once was a battle field where Tibetan fought against British invasion.

Yamdrok Lake	Pelchor Monastery

Day 7: Gyantse -Shigatse –Sakya 

Highlights: Tashi Lhunpo Monastery,Sakya Monastery

Schedule today: In the morning after breakfast,we will drive to Shigatse,our guide will go to tourism bureau in Shigatse to apply for PSB permit for Mt. Everest, which will take about 1.5 hour. In Shigatse we can visit  Tashilumpo Monastery  ( video ) which is the seat of Panchen Lama, the equally important religious figure in Tibet as Dalai Lama. The monastery was built by the first Dalai Lama in 1447, and inside the Monastery placed the highest statue of Buddha in Tibet which is 26.8 meters high. After obtaining the permit, we will drive to Sakya County and pay a visit to the famous Sakya monastery which was founded in 1073 and it was the principal monastery of the Sakya sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Tashi Lhunpo Monastery	Sakya Monastery

Day 8: Sakya-Lhatse-Shegar- EBC

Highlights: New Everest Base Camp, Everest Base Camp

Schedule today: in the morning we will head to Everest Base camp. If the weather is good, on the top of the Gyalpo-la pass you can see 4 of the highest mountains over 8000 meters (Mt. Everest; Mt. Makalu; Mt. Lotse; Mt. Cho Oyu) in the world at the same time, what a great picture.

Mt. Everest Sunrise	Mt. Everest Base Camp

Day 9: Everest Base Camp - Shigatse

Highlights: Rongbuk Monastery

Schedule today: In the morning, you can view the very fantastic sunrise over the peak of Mt. Everest. After breakfast you will visit the highest monastery in the world - Rongbuk Monastery , which is also a good position to watch the Everest, the sunrise view ( video ) is fantastic when weather is good. And then we will drive back to Shigatse .

Rongbuk  Monastery	Mt. Everest Sunset

Day 10: Shigatse-Lhasa

Highlights: the Bhamaputra River

Schedule today: In the morning, we will head to Lhasa through the friendship Highway. It is about 280km and it takes 6 hours along the Yarlung Tsangpo River / Bhamaputra River (the Longest and largest river in Tibet).Enjoy the view on the road.

Tashilumpo Monastery	Brahmaputra River

Day 11: Depart from Lhasa

Schedule today: Tour ends, our guide and driver will drop you off at airport in Lhasa. Welcome to Tibet next time.