Upon your arrival at the Lhasa airport, your tour guide will greet you and escort you to your hotel and help you get checked in. You will have the rest of the day and evening to rest and relax to become acclimatized to the higher altitude of Tibet.

Meals: No meals, advice freely available

Accommodation: Lhasa Economic/Comfortable Standard Hotel (Twin sharing)

After breakfast at the hotel, we will visit the incredible Potala Palace – the highest palace in the world. As we climb to the entrance gate, you will have a spectacular view over all of Lhasa. After exploring the numerous interesting chapels and learning about the traditional culture and history of the palace and the city, we will move on to the spiritually significant Jokhang Temple, one of the most important temples in Tibetan Buddhism. To see the “real” Lhasa, we’ll stroll through Barkhor Street with its thriving local market where you can pick up some local Tibetan, Nepalese and Indian handicrafts and souvenirs.

Meals: Breakfast Provided by the hotel

Accommodation: Lhasa Economic/Comfortable Standard Hotel (Twin sharing)

Today features visits to 2 of the most important monasteries in Tibetan Buddhism – the Drepung and Sera Monasteries. Drepung Monastery is located on the hillside west of Lhasa – at one time the world’s largest monastery with about 10,000 monks living there. A pleasant walk up the hill leads to the solemn ambience inside the monastery’s many halls and chapels.

After Drepung, we will move on to the Sera Monastery. The main highlight of the Sera Monastery is watching the crowd of monks debating inside the shady courtyard behind the main temple. Every day except Sunday, hundreds of red-robed monks assemble in small groups and practice their debating skills – a very impressive sight to behold, as the monks are very animated in their debates about the various attributes of Buddhist scriptures.

Meals: Breakfast Provided by the hotel

Accommodation: Lhasa Economic/Comfortable Standard Hotel (Twin sharing)

In the morning, you will visit Ganden Monastery, and other attractions around. Then start trekking, our first day of trekking begins at the highest point on the Ganden Kora. From here we walk along a saddle trail. After leaving this trail with wondrous views we traverse the west side of the ridge before passing through an ancient Hepu village. Later in the day we pass through Ani Pagong, a narrow bottleneck in the trail and former site of a nunnery. We will end the day with an ascent towards Yama Do, where we will set up camp.

Accommodation:Camping

In the morning we leave the valley floor and make our way through a steep gully rising form the stream bank. Finally, we climb over the Shug La and begin our climb down through treacherous boulder fields. Later, we cross Tsotup Chu, a large stream winding through the valley floor. A comfortable camp will be set up in one of the many herder fields.

Meals: No Meals

Accommodation:Camping

Today we follow the Tsotup Chu down through its tributary and head towards the Chitu La pass. After ascending this rocky pass we will quickly descend down and find a beautiful place to camp in one of the fields surrounding the stream. To find our campsite we will meander through quiet herder camps for nearly an hour. Another beautiful day of our trek is over!

Meals: No Meals

Accommodation:Camping

The trail gets wider and easier as we follow it through scrub forests in the main valley. Beautiful streams and lush forests surround us as we walk. However, the desert is close by. The next few hours are arguably the most beautiful part of our trek. More than 15 types of scrub trees, blooming rhododendrons, and vast meadow will amaze you every step of the way! After passing through this wondrous landscape we will trek pass the Changtang village. Less than an hour away participants can choose to make the one-hour hike to the Yamalung Hermitage. Yamalung is an ancient and holy Buddhist meditation site, but is completely up to you whether you want to go. Later in the day we join the Samye valley along the babbling tributary stream. The night will be spent at another comfortable campsite, not far from Samye.

Meals: No Meals

Accommodation:Camping

The Samye Monastery is the first temple to be built in Tibet and the first complete with the three Buddhist jewels of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. With these unique features, this splendid temple has become an attraction for visitors from near and far. After visiting Samye, we finish the trek and go back to Lhasa. You may take ferry across Yarlungzongpo River to the opposite side of the river to catch the minivan to Lhasa.

Meals: No meals

Accommodation:Lhasa Economic/Comfortable Hotel(Twin Sharing)

Today you will have free time until your tour guide escorts you to the Lhasa train station or airport for your departing train or flight from Lhasa. This will end your tour services in Tibet.

Meals:Breakfast Provided by the Hotel餐