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There is hardly a world traveler who has not dreamed of experiencing Tibet – a barren mystical highland inhabited by hardy people While visiting Tibet can be challenging, its stark beauty — not to mention the altitude — never lets you forget you have traveled to a very different place. In Tibet, our adventure begins in the historical Yarlung Tsangpo Valley. We’ll spend one full day exploring the Samye Monastery — also known as the cradle of the Tibetan civilization —and its surrounds. We’ll continue to the once forbidden city of Lhasa, once the seat of the Dalai Lama. We’ll explore this fabled city and its unique sites and its surrounds for a few days while our bodies acclimatize to the high altitude of the Tibetan Plateau. From Lhasa we’ll travel overland by four-wheel drive Toyota Landcruiser, accompanied by our Tibetan guide who will help us understand modern Tibet through the prism of its complex past. We will visit Gyantse, a quaint Tibetan town. Here we’ll explore the Kumbum stupa – the largest stupa in the world. Next, we continue to Shigatse, home to Tashilhunpo, the largest functioning monastery in Tibet and the seat of the Karmapa Lamas.
Highlights
| Day | Description | Overnight | Altitude |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrival in Kathmandu or Beijing | Kathmandu/Beijing | 1,340m/4,300ft |
| Day 2 and 3 | Exploring Kathmandu/Beijing | Kathmandu/Beijing | 1,340m/4,300ft |
| Day 4 | Fly to Lhasa | Lhasa | 3,656m/11,975ft |
| Day 5 | Explore Lhasa | Lhasa | 3,656m/11,975ft |
| Day 6 | Explore Lhasa | Lhasa | 3,656m/11,975ft |
| Day 7 | Drive to Gyantse | Gyantse | 4,025m/13,210ft |
| Day 8 | Explore Gyantse | Gyantse | 4,025m/13,210ft |
| Day 9 | Drive to Shigatse | Shigatse | 3,845m/12,615ft |
| Day 10 | Drive back to Lhasa | Lhasa | 3,845m/12,615ft |
| Day 11 | Fly to Kathmandu | Kathmandu | 1,340m/4,300ft |
| Day 12 | Final departure |
You could start this trip either in Kathmandu or Beijing. Our representative will meet you on arrival and transfer you to your hotel. (No meals)
Two days of sightseeing in Kathmandu/Beijing. Sites to visit in Kathmandu include Bodhnath, Pashupatinath, Swayambhunath and the three palaces in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan. If visiting via Beijing visit the Great wall, the Forbidden city and the Temple of Heaven.
Overnight Hotel. (3 star)
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch
Fly to Lhasa. If flying from Nepal, you would fly over the Himalayas just right of Mt. Everest and is about 1 hour 25 minutes. Arriving in Lhasa, settle into your hotel near Barkhor square. It’s best to relax and avoid exerting yourself to avoid the negative effects of altitude sickness. You may go for a relaxed stroll around the square.
Overnight Kyichu. (3 star)
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch
Visit Potala Palace, the official residence of the Dalai Lama until he fled to India after the Chinese invasion. The palace has over a 1,000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and 200,000 statues. Continue to Sera Monastery, one of the three major Gelukpa temples along with Drepung monastery. A highlight is watching the monks practicing their debating skills in the monastery courtyard. Overnight Hotel. (Breakfast)
Drive a few hours outside of Lhasa to Ganden Monastery and Drak Yerpa. Ganden Monastery is a large monastery complex that once housed over 3,500 monks. The Drak Yerpa monastery is located on the side of a hill at over 14,000 ft. Packed lunch with be served. (Breakfast and Lunch)
Distance: 260 kms/162 miles
Drive southwest towards. First, you cross the 4700 m/15,000 ft. Kamba La Pass arriving at Yamdrok Tsho at and elevation of 4447 m/14,500 ft. Then arrive at Karo La Pass at around 5000 m/16,400 ft.
From the Karo La Pass, descend to Gyantse. (Breakfast and Lunch)
In Gyantse, a hilltop military fort called the Gyantse Dzong dominates the skyline. It is one of the best preserved “dzong” (fortress) in Tibet. Below this fort is the tall Gyantse Kumbum Stupa. This stupa, the largest in Tibet, neighbors the Pelkor Monastery and was built in 1427. (Breakfast and Lunch)
The short drive from Gyantse to Shigatse takes around 2 hours and passes through fertile plains where wheat and barley are grown. Shigatse is the second largest city in Tibet and is the former capital of the traditional Tibetan region of Tsang. Shigatse is a modern city with a population of over 100,000.
The main attraction in Shigatse is the Tashilhunpo Monastery. Tashilhunpo is one of the 6 main monasteries of the Yellow Hat Sect of Tibetan Buddhism and was founded in 1447. Before the Cultural Revolution there were more than 4000 monks in residence here. Now there are around 700. Tashilhunpo Monastery is the home monastery of the line of Panchen Lamas, the most influential line of lama’s in Tibet after the Dalai Lama. There is an easy 1.6 kilometer/1 mile pilgrimage circuit lined with prayer wheels that goes around the outside of the monastery that is well worth hiking. (Breakfast and lunch)
Drive around 5 hours back to Lhasa. (Breakfast and Lunch)
Return flight to Kathmandu. Free day in Kathmandu with a final farewell dinner. (Breakfast and Dinner)
Final departure transfer to the airport. (Breakfast)
Per person price (valid until December 31, 2020)
5 or more persons: US$1,900 per person
Single supplement: US$300
Extra: Kathmandu to Lhasa to Kathmandu airfare
Contact us for prices for smaller group size
All airport transfers, Sightseeing in Kathmandu/Beijing as indicated in the itinerary and entrance fees to monuments, 3 star hotel accommodations, Meals as indicated in the itinerary and Tibet Travel permit.
Your international airfare, Nepal Visa, Meals not indicated in the itinerary, Tips and gratuities, Personal equipment (a suggested list will be mailed to you), Travel insurance (Required), Other expenses of a personal nature
YES, it is possible to customize this trip to include more days in Tibet. Please contact us for more information.
Activity: Trekking
Destination: Tsum Valley
Country: Nepal
The Tsum Valley trek goes to the Tsum valley that lies in the North-East end of Gorkha district. The valley borders Tibet and is surrounded by the Ganesh Himal range. Peaks here include Sringi Himal, Himalchuli and other unnamed peaks – many over 7,000m. The Tsumbas, the inhabitants of this region, are of Tibetan origin. And Buddhism is evident in the numerous mani walls, chortens, monasteries and Kanis (Buddhist gates). The Tsum valley is one of eight Beyuls in the Himalayas.
The Tsum Valley trek starts at Macchi Khola and follows the popular Manaslu Circuit trail until a short distance past Philim. Then head North-East to enter the Tsum Valley. Continue to Mu Gompa, the most important monastery in the region. Return is via an alternative route to the Ganesh Himal Base Camp. Rejoin the Manaslu Circuit trail again near Phillim and return to Soti Khola. A private vehicle will bring you back to Kathmandu. Also, if you wish to do a longer trek, consider adding the Manaslu Circuit Trek to the Tsum Valley Trek.
“Being only two people in the group was a massive advantage we had — it was easier to get helicopters with a smaller group, easier to change where we’d stay on a given day, easier to ask to push further when we felt good, etc. In fact, because of this flexibility, we beat many big groups to EBC, who took many hours longer than us because they had to wait for stragglers, and they ended up missing the views because the clouds had already come in. Basically this helped us get in/out of Lukla more easily, move faster, and adapt the schedule to the changing weather.”
Luke L., Chicago IL, USA
The Tsum Valley trek is a hybrid trek where we use both lodges and tents. So it is both a CAMPING trek and a Lodge Trek. This means you will sleep in and eat at local lodges. The quality of the lodges on this trek are quite basic but improving every year. Meals are also quite varied with many options including rice with veggies, noodles, local breads etc. Read our article about food options on lodge treks.
But for the Ganesh Himal Base Camp portion (for 2-3 days), you will sleep in tents and eat basic meals prepared by our kitchen crew. We use Mountain Hardwear (Trango) and North Face (VE 25) 4-season tents which are quite spacious and very effective against the elements. We will also provide sleeping pads. Meals prepared by our trek staff will include locally available vegetables, dal-bhat, noodles, local breads etc.
Like most treks in Nepal, the best seasons for trekking to Tsum Valley are Spring (March-May) and Autumn (October-November). Additionally, it is also possible to do this trek in the Winter months of December, January and February. While it will obviously be very cold (upto -20 C/, -4 F), it will be less crowded and there aren’t as many trekkers in the area.
The Tsum Valley trek is rated “STRENUOUS”. It is rated 4 on a rating scale from 1 (easy) to 5 (challenging). Regardless, it is important to prepare for any trek in Nepal. Read our advice on training for treks.
