9 Days Tibet Hiking Tour from Tsurphu Monastery to Yanpachen Valley

Tour Overview

This 9 days Tibet Hiking Tour from Tsurphu Monastery to Yanpachen Valley will first take you to visit the city hifglights of Lhasa, experience the unique Tibetan Buddhism culture...

Code of Tour: YCT0000003465

Length of Travel: 9 Day

Destinations of Tour: Lhasa - Tsurphu Monastery - 4 Days' Trekking - Yangpachen - Lhasa

Departure City: Lhasa

Price of Tour: Request

Type of Tour:

Features of Tour: Hiking Culture Minority Landscape

More Map & Picture

This 9 days Tibet Hiking Tour from Tsurphu Monastery to Yanpachen Valley will first take you to visit the city hifglights of Lhasa, experience the unique Tibetan Buddhism culture in the famous monasteries and palaces such as Potala palace and Jokhang temple. Then, start your trekking from Tsurphu Monastery and crosses several high valleys before coming into the broad and windswept Yanpachen Valley, ends at Yanpanche Monastery. It combines alpine tundra, monasteries, hot springs, a lots nomads, and remote nunnery. This trek perfectly balances cultural and wilderness activities, available from mid-April to mid-October.

Brief Itinerary

• Day 1: Lhasa Arrival
• Day 2: Lhasa
• Day 3: Lhasa
• Day 4: Lhasa-Tsurphu Monastery
• Day 5: Tsurphu Monastery-Leten
• Day 6: Leten-Bartso
• Day 7: Bartso-Dorje Ling Nunnery
• Day 8: Dorje Ling Nunnery-Yangpachen-Lhasa
• Day 9: Lhasa Departure

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 Arrival-Lhasa(3650m)

Sightseeing and Activities:Arrival-Lhasa(3650m)
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:None

Transfer to Lhasa downtown after arriving in the Lhasa Gongar airport or the Lhasa train station. Have a rest in Lhasa to acclimatize the high altitude. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 2 Lhasa

Sightseeing and Activities:Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Street
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Today’s tour will first bring you to the Potala Palace, the winter palace of the Dalai Lama. It has been used since the 7th Century by the 33rd great king of Tibet. The most valuable collection is the gilded burial stupas of past Dalai Lamas and meditation Cave of the 33rd great king of Tibet.

After you take lunch and then head to Jokhang Temple which was founded by the 33rd great king of Tibet in the 7th century, in order to promote the Buddhist religion. Inside you can see the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni at the age of twelve, perhaps the single most venerated object in Tibet Buddhism. Around the temple Barkhor Street where you can do kora (circling the Barkhor street) with pilgrims and locals and buy the souvenirs. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 3 Lhasa

Sightseeing and Activities:Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

In the morning, you are going to visit Drepung Monastery which was one of the “three greet” Gelug monasteries of Tibet and was founded in 1416 by Jamyang choge, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples. Ganden palace is used as Dalai lama’s palace in the Drepung before moving to the Potala palace.

Afternoon, Sera Monastery—It was one of the “three great” Gelug monasteries of Tibet and was founded in 1419 by Jamchen Chojey, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples. The Most attraction is the Monks debate at around 3 – 5 in the afternoon. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 4 Lhasa/Tsurphu Monastery[4500m](79km,2-3hrs drive)

Sightseeing and Activities:Lhasa/Tsurphu Monastery[4500m](79km,2-3hrs drive)
Accommodation:Camping
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

It takes several hours to drive to Tsurphu Monastery from Lhasa, The altitude will be up to 4300m and it takes half a day to acclimatize for the following trekking. Tourists will visit Tsurphu Monastery after lunch. Camping tonight.

Day 5 Tsurphu Monastery/Leten(trekking 4-5 hours, 11km)

Sightseeing and Activities:Tsurphu Monastery/Leten(trekking 4-5 hours, 11km)
Accommodation:Camping
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

The first day trekking takes 4-5 hours, 11km, by walking along a green valley crisscrossed with mountain streams. Tourists may also stand on the lookout for various species of mountain goats disguised in gray rocks. Several small nomadic communities camp here for the summer herding months, you will walk on a high plateau with a scattering of rock-enclosed huts, and look for a flat area for camping. From day one, the scenery becomes breathtaking, while the landscapes feature typical Tibetan beauty. Camping tonight.

Day 6 Leten/Bartso(trekking 5-6 hours, 15km)

Sightseeing and Activities:Leten/Bartso(trekking 5-6 hours, 15km)
Accommodation:Camping
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Today, you will walk along a long big valley, up to the highest spot Lasar La(5300m). Have your first small pass, the Damchen-la(5200m), bear to the left at the cairns at the crest, and descend into a magical valley,meandering streams and expansive, powder-blue sky. Three hours later, you will cross the Lasar La(5300m) and descend into the Yangpachen Valley, with its wide open plateaus, and then head towards Bartso. Camp near Bartso, a drokpa (nomad) village of five or six houses, surrounded by the juniper used for incense all over the Tibetan world. Camping around Bartso.

Day 7  Bartso/Dorje Ling Nunnery(Trekking 4 hours, 15km)

Sightseeing and Activities:Bartso/Dorje Ling Nunnery(Trekking 4 hours, 15km)
Accommodation:Camping
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Leaving the village of Bartso behind, head towards a wide trail leading across the valley and over another ridge, from where you will be rewarded with views of Nyenchen Tanghlha (7111 m), the holiest mountain in central Tibet. Then you merge at Tajung village, and then climb gently up rolling hills where young nomadic boys and girls on the plateaus as they watch their yaks and sheep graze. The vistas are, again, just amazing! Mid-day, you should reach the small Djore Ling Ani Gompa (nunnery), near which you will set up camp. It’s possible that these nuns, some of the friendliest in Tibet, will drag you into the Nunnery’s tea-house and pass around a heaping plate of yak meat (use the bowie knife provided to hack a piece off) before getting into the requisite photo session. Camp near Nunnery.

Day 8 Dorje Ling Nunnery/Yangpachen Monastery/Lhasa, trekking 4 hours,14km

Sightseeing and Activities:Dorje Ling Nunnery/Yangpachen Monastery/Lhasa, trekking 4 hours,14km
Accommodation:Lhasa
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Today diver will meet you at Droje Ling, you can choose to walk for three or four hours, following the ox-bow Nyango Chu River snaking its way through the grassy valley, and head for Yangpachen Nunnery. This old Kagyupa sect monastery, overlooks part of the Trans-Himalaya range. Have a hot springs at Yangbachen(optional), then drive back to Lhasa. Stay overnight in Lhasa.

Day 9 Lhasa airport dropping off

Sightseeing and Activities:Lhasa airport dropping off
Accommodation:None
Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Lhasa airport/Train station dropping off, end the service. On the other hand, if you prefer to stay longer in Tibet, you can extend your trip to other parts of China like Gyantse,Shigatse, Everest Base Camp,etc. – if you need, please ask us.

Recommended Hotels

Service Included:

• Tibet travel permit and all other necessary permits to Tibet;
• All entrance ticket fees for all tourist sites listed in the itinerary;
• Personal knowledgeable English-speaking Tibetan local tour guide;
• Personal comfortable, clean and safe vehicle with reliable Tibetan local driver; vehicle ranging from 4WD land cruiser to minibus depending on your group size;
• All lodging listed in the itinerary; it’s your decision about the accommodation class: luxury 5-star international hotel, comfortable 4-star hotel, economic 3-star hotel or budget hostel, guesthouse or tent. Please tell us your accommodation preference when submitting the enquiry; we will arrange the best-value hotels for you.
• Domestic flight/train tickets listed in the itinerary;
• All meals listed in the above itinerary;
• Tourist accident/casualty insurance;
• First aid kit;

Service Excluded:

• International flight to and out of China;
• Chinese visa (Note: we could help you with the Chinese visa application, like providing the invitation letter, presenting the hotel or domestic flight reservation copies, etc that you may need. )
• Domestic flight/train not listed in the itinerary. (We can provide you the domestic flight/train ticket booking service at the BEST discount price; please contact us our travel experts for the details.)
• Meals not specified in the itinerary; usually it costs about USD3-15 per person for one meal in TAR (Tibet Autonomous Region).
• Tips and gratitude to tour guide and driver;
• Personal expenses, like laundry, phone call, snacks, soft drinks (please do the best to avoid the alcoholic beverages during your Tibet trip), optional tour activities, etc.

Travel Tips:

1. Tibet Permits

There are several permits required to visit Tibet. Tibet Entry Permit, issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau, is the most important one which has to be obtained before your trip because you must have it to take your flight/train to Tibet. To get the permit, you have to book a Tibet tour with us, and send us your passport and Chinese visa about 20 days in advance, and then let us apply for the permit (all Tibet permits can only be applied by travel agency). If you travel to other prefectures like Shigatse, Nyingchi, Shannan, etc, you also have to obtain an Alien Travel Permit. If you travel to Mount Everest, you have to obtain a Border Permit. (Tibet Discovery, with office in Lhasa, has always kept up with the latest news on Tibet Permits. Traveling with us, all your permits are guaranteed as long as you are qualified to the requirements.)

2. Available Months to Visit Tibet

Generally speaking, May to early October is the best time to for a Mount Kailash trip. July and August are the peak season and rainy season. It may be too cold to travel in Kailash area from November to March. There is usually heavy snow. The conditions in Namtso Lake and Mount Everest area are quite similar with Kailash. While other places like Lhasa, Gyantse and Shigatse are suitable for travel all year around.

3. High Altitude Sickness

The average altitude of Tibet is about 4000 meters above the sea level (Lhasa: 3700m; EBC: 5200m; Namtso: 4718m). You may suffer a bit from High Altitude Sickness in the beginning days of your Tibet trip if you haven’t had rich high plateau travel experience. But don’t worry too much, the high altitude can be acclimatized usually in 2~3 days. Our suggestion is to take a physical examination and get suggestions from your doctor, and also bring some medicines to prevent from High Altitude Sickness before your trip. While in Tibet, you should keep warm all the time, avoid strenuous activities, drink more water and eat more vegetables and carbohydrates. You’d better not take showers during the first two days after your arrival at Tibet. If you don’t feel well, get help from your tour guide or go to the hospital without any delay.

4. How to Go to Tibet

Basically you have two options – flight and train. Currently, you can take a flight to Lhasa from Beijing(4.5hrs), Xian(3.7hrs), Chengdu(2.5hrs), Chongqing(3hrs), Kuming(3hrs), etc. Among all these cities, Chengdu and Xian have more frequent flights to Lhasa. Kathmandu also has several flights to Lhasa each week.

If you a train travel, you can take a train to from Beijing(40.5hrs), Xian(32hrs), Chengdu(43hrs), Shanghai(47hrs), Chongqing(42hrs), Lanzhou(25hrs), Xining(22hrs), Guangzhou(54hrs).

5. Packing and Wearing Ideas

Firstly you can’t forget your passport and Chinese Visa. A large backpack and a smaller one are recommended (the smaller one can be used for daily activities). Also bring the necessary medicine you need. Other stuffs like sunglasses, snow glasses, hats, lip balm, sun block are recommended. As for wearing, you are suggested to dress in layers (both thin and thick jackets). Down jacket is necessary in Spring and Autumn. A pair of durable and comfortable shoes is necessary.