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losal@tibetuniversaltravel.com
With this Tibet Travel Guide, Plan a Hassle-free Tour to Tibet.
Tibet is now more accessible to travellers than ever before. But unlike other countries around the world, travel to Tibet cannot be done as an individual tourist.
Tibet travel permit and Chinese Visa is imperative for every international traveller visiting Tibet. All tourists to the Tibet Autonomous Region must make their tour bookings through a recognised local Tibet tour operator.
The Tibet Universal Travel and Tours is an officially licensed and best-reviewed tour operator in Lhasa. Our agency is owned and run entirely by local Tibetans.
We possess over two decades of experience in helping tourists and travellers explore this unique destination’s rugged, picturesque, pure natural beauty of Tibet.
You will not regret your decision to entrust your Tibet tour plan to us. Here you will Tibet travel tips from our years of experience as a Travel agency in Tibet.
A passport is essential, be sure that your passport has more than six months of validity remaining. Otherwise, the Chinese Embassy will not issue a visa.
To avoid unnecessary extra works, make sure that your passport has at least a few blank pages for visas and entry and exit stamps.
Visa is the most important thing to remember on this Tibet travel guide.
So far, Mainland China or Nepal has been the only main gateway for the port of Tibet entry for all tourists.
The following information provides you with a clear picture of processing the visa either coming to Tibet from Mainland China or Nepal. As the visa application procedures vary.
It is easier to get a Chinese Visa for those coming to Tibet from Mainland China. You can apply it from the Chinese embassy in your city.
They will usually issue a standard 30 days, single entry visa in three to five working days.
Suppose you are a citizen of a country benefitting from a visa exemption. You can directly send us a scanned copy of your passport.
We will take start to make your Tibet travel permits in Lhasa.
Currently, China does not issue an arrival visa. Therefore, you will need to submit your visa application a few weeks before your trip departure dates for China.
The consulate or embassy in your country may ask you to submit several trip-proof documents, including copies of round-trip flight tickets, hotel reservations, and tour information. Hence, it is better to make the records available in hand.
Your consulate or embassy may also ask you to provide the Tibet Tourism Bureau’s invitation letter supporting a Chinese visa. This won’t be a big deal, because we can obtain such a letter and send it to you.
Please bring this part of the Tibet travel guide for those coming to Tibet from Nepal.
Nepal is only the exclusive country where you can obtain a visa for Tibet travel.
Note that is mandatory to get a Chinese Visa from Kathmandu. Chinese Visa that you have before you reach Nepal is not good enough to let you cross Tibet from Nepal.
You should note that the Chinese embassy in Kathmandu does not provide individual Chinese visas to travellers headed to Tibet. Therefore, you need to apply for the China Group Visa or China travel visa to facilitate your Tibet proposed trip.
You can arrive in Nepal without a Chinese visa because when you apply for the China group visa, the embassy will cancel your existing Chinese visa.
To facilitate your China group visa, we need to send an official visa invitation letter to the Chinese embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal. Bear in mind that you cannot get the Tibet group visa on your own.
This visa must apply through a Nepal travel agency. Therefore, we will copy the visa invitation letter both to you and our Nepal travel partner.
By doing so, and you can apply for the China group visa through our recommended travel partner for a fee. You should allow a minimum of three working days for the group visa.
On arrival by overland or by flight, our local Tibetan tour guide will be at the border or airport to receive you with all the necessary travel documents. Our guide will handle clearing all the formalities.
This is another important part of this Tibet travel guide.
All international guests or visitors who wish to visit the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) for tourism or business purpose need what is called Tibet Travel Permit and a valid China visa.
This is an essential permit – in the format of an A4 size one-page document, your ‘ticket’ or ‘passport’ facilitates the visitors to enter Tibet, and Tibet Tourism Bureau issues it.
Tours and Travels operators in TAR are authorised to apply for the permit only for International Tourists.
The arrangements to host guests or visitors such as officials, journalists, diplomats of foreign countries are TAR Foreign Affairs Bureau’s domain. Thus, they are beyond the remit of the Tours and Travels operators.
Concurrently, two additional permits will be necessary, namely, the Alien Travel Permit and the Military Permit.
The Alien Travel Permit is required for most tours and travels outside Lhasa, especially if the tour itineraries involve visiting sites in some restricted regions.
The Military Permit facilitates visits to sensitive border areas, such as tours to and around Mt Kailash, the road to Kashgar and the Nyingtri region of eastern Tibet, and overland tours to Lhasa from Sichuan or Kunming.
Residents of Special Administrative Regions of China, namely Hong Kong and Macau, do not require a permit to visit Tibet; your HK/Macau SAR Passport and Home Return Permit, are adequate.
All travellers of other nationalities need the permit to board a flight or train to Tibet or cross overland into TAR. You will be asked to present the permit, either the original hard copy or a photocopy of it, during check-ins at the crucial port of entry: airports, train stations, check-points.
Arranging the Tibet Travel Permit – the first of the three permits – takes typically three to five working days.
However, it could take up to two weeks (or more) if a tour involves visiting sensitive and restricted areas, such as Mt Kailash and the Nyingtri region of TAR in the east.
The main reasons are that we will need to arrange other more time-consuming permits such as the Alien Permit and the Military Permit.
Please allow at least 20 working days before your intended Tibet tour for us to arrange the permit.
If you plan to take a flight to Lhasa from another city in China. You need the permit’s original hard copy in hand while boarding a flight. We will post to a safe address provide by you.
However, if you arrive in Lhasa by train, all required is a scanned copy of the permit. We will email a copy to you.
Suppose, you are not planning to stop over in mainland China. In that case, we can arrange airport delivery of the Tibet travel permit.
We will send one of our representatives to the airport to meet you and hand over the original travel documents to you while waiting for your connecting flight to Tibet.
Once you are happy with the Quotation and Proposed Tour Itinerary. You can sign our Tours and Travel Agreement.
A conditionally refundable deposit of 30% is required upfront to hold a place on tour at the booking time.
The balance must be paid in full within the first two days of the tour’s commencement while you are in Lhasa. We accept Cash, Bank transfer and Credit Cards.
Once you have confirmed your tour plans with us. We take the responsibility to process the permit via the Tibet Tourism Authority. To this end, we will need you to assist us in arranging the permit, particularly regarding the details mentioned below.
Please send us a Letter of Introduction from your school identifying that you are their bonafide student, together with apparent (preferably scanned) copies of your passport and the visa page on your passport. The reference letter must include your passport number, nationality, and your full name.
Please send us a Letter of Introduction from your host organisation in TAR stating your full name, passport number, nationality and relationship with the host organisation, in addition to clear (preferably scanned) copies of your passport and the visa page on your passport.
Please send us a Letter of Introduction from your employer stating that you are their bonafide employee, together with clear (preferably scanned) copies of your passport and the visa page on your passport.
please send us clear (preferably scanned) copies of your passport and visa page on your passport – no other additional documents are required. Please note that a visa copy is not necessary if you are arriving in Tibet from Nepal.
There are three main ways for visitors to get to Lhasa: flight, train and overland.
Taking a flight is the most straightforward way of getting to Lhasa. Visitors who choose this option will land at the Lhasa Gonggar Airport, which is 79 kilometres (60 miles) away from Lhasa and takes just under an hour.
The train journey from Golmud to Lhasa offers the most breath-taking scenery on the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau.
Overland travel to Lhasa can be a great experience.
You may wish to consider the following cities as your entry port to Lhasa.
You can embark on the train from the following cities that have daily service to Lhasa.
You can reach Lhasa overland through the following routes.
While the increasing number of tourists are flocking to Tibet, the quantity and quality of accommodation in Tibet also grows.
During your Tibet tour, you would never need to worry about where to stay. There are great varieties of accommodation available in Tibet from 5 stars to a basic hostel.
While trekking in remote areas, camping in tents will be the only option.
In major cities like Lhasa, Shigatse, or Tsetang, there is a wide range of hotels from five-star hotels to three-star hotels.
You can also choose to stay at a boutique hotel: the House of Shambhala or Shambhala Palace in Lhasa Sakya Palace Hotel in Shigatse; etc. Most boutique hotels are furnished with authentic Tibetan furniture and housed in old Tibetan buildings.
While travelling in remote areas, we will have to stay in the best available local guesthouses. Thus the facilities would be fundamental.
At Mount Everest base camp, you will have an optional choice to stay either at the Rongbuk monastery guesthouse or in tented hostels made of Yak wool.
Each tented hostels accommodate five to six guests in bunk beds, and they are equipped with a Tibetan style stove burning yak dung to keep the room warm and pleasant.
According to the Tibet Tourism Bureau’s laws and regulations, foreign travellers cannot travel independently in Tibet.
One shall undergo an organised tailor-made private tour or join a group tour, and you have to be accompanied by a tour guide during your visit to Tibet, including transportation with Driver.
Nevertheless, when you are in Lhasa, the guide does not have to be with you at all times. You can wander around the city on your own with the use of public transportation.
In other towns, you can walk around on your own after finishing the day planned tour agendas.
From May to October is the best and also the busiest time to travel in Tibet.
July and August is the rainy season in Tibet, though there is still not much rain apart from in the southeast.
The best months for camping are May and September.
If you plan to travel to Mt. Everest, then travel in April, May, September, or October, when you are more likely to see the peak.
Travellers who are interested in Tibetan festivals are recommended to visit Tibet in August.
Several local festivals are more concentrated during the period: Shoton Festival, Nagqu Horse Racing Festival, and Ganden Thangka Festival. But, expect to see huge crowds during the festivals.
Many people think the weather in Tibet in the winter will be unbearable. But honestly speaking, it is not so. Winter Trip to Tibet is always different.
You will experience the New Year festival of Tibet in winter. You will come across more local pilgrims in winter (who involve themselves in farming during summer!).
Thus, you will know the hard-core culture of Tibet – how the place is!!
Tibetan dishes tend to be simpler and less varied. The three primary and staple foods of Tibet are butter tea, barley and yak meat. Barley, being the most important crop in Tibet, is used extensively in the form of flour.
In general, Tibet cousins are heavily influenced by neighbours such as Sichuan province China, Nepal and India.
One of the most famous dishes that originated out of Tibet is Momo (Dumplings and usually contains steamed vegetables or meat) and Thukpa (Hot noodle soup, including meat and vegetables).
You will see that the Chinese restaurant is scattered everywhere in Tibet despite small or large towns.
In the significant cities such as Lhasa, Shigatse and Tsedang, restaurants are serving Nepal/Indian, Continental and Italian food etc.
You can easily find fast food like burgers and pizzas in Tibet. Bakeries and Café are scattered almost in all tourists’ spot areas.
Restaurants we handpicked for you are evaluated thoroughly and trustworthy in all aspects.
In terms of vegetarian and vegans, you will have selective choices in large towns. Still, when getting down to the remote areas, selection will be minimal.
We recommend you buy stock up from supermarkets and malls in Lhasa and other big cities, where you can find imported goods.
Tap water in Tibet is untreated, so it is not safe to drink. Natural pathogens are not found in almost all of the standing and running water in Tibet. It is safe to drink once it is boil.
Nevertheless, all our hosted tours are making available with bottled water.
Deciding what to pack is not always easy, but remember the simple principle:
Pack the Minimum and Travel Light.
One medium-large backpack or rolling duffel and a day pack should be enough for a two to three week trip to Tibet.
Please refer to more information for equipment and packing to……….
High Altitude Sickness, also medically referred to as Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS). It is a possible uncomfortable pathological reaction in high altitude regions where the air pressure is low, and oxygen is thin.
The possible reactions of altitude sickness differ by physical conditions. Usually, the symptoms of AMS are moderate.
On all our tours, you will spend the first three days in Lhasa. Lhasa is an ideal place for acclimatisation for high altitude sickness. This helps all our visitors to acclimatise to the altitude before the next legs of the trip.
Please refer here for further advice and tips on avoiding high altitude sickness…….
The currency we use in Tibet is Chinese RMB or Chinese Yuan. Chinese Yuan is also known as Ren Minibi (RMB).
You can only exchange foreign currencies through banks, ATMs, hotels or us. Our rate is normally the best one.
Cash can be withdrawn from ATMs, widely available in big cities but less common in smaller towns and villages.
You can use online payments such as WeChat Pay or Alipay everywhere in Tibet.
It’s recommended to keep ample small-denomination notes which will be very handy for small purchases. The amount depends on your spending rhythm. By large or small, on average, USD 10 – 15 per day should be sufficient.
While tipping for local Tibetan tour guides and drivers is not mandatory in Tibet. Nevertheless, tipping is expected—if the service merits it—and it’s an excellent way to show your appreciation.
There’s no fixed tipping rate, and it depends on the length of your tour and the service quality you received during the tour.
Free WiFi connections are available in hotels, restaurants and coffee shops. Even in Tibet’s remote regions, you can get a free WiFi connection, but you’re more likely to experience outages and slow internet speeds.
Here, Sites like Google, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and other social network sites are not accessible. However, you can buy some software to make those available to you while in China.
All legal travel agencies are required to buy business liability insurance each year. Yet this doesn’t offer many benefits. Hence, it is highly recommended to buy travel insurance with emergency medical treatment, Evacuation and property loss or damages.
So far, we see the world nomad as the most reliable provider we can recommend.
Tibet is probably among the safer parts of the world as far as personal security is concerned, including female travellers.
While travelling with Tibet Universal Tours and Travel, your safety and security is our prime concern, and it’s our responsibility too. So, regarding the safety concern, Tibet Tourism Bureau does update us every day on road safety.
Sometimes we might divert any part of the itinerary to keep you and your family as per the directive of the Bureau.
We try our very best effort in the perfect completion of your trip, but who knows what nature does? Thus, please keep your plan flexible.
Please refer to here for more detailed information for Security Briefing for Travelers to have a safe and pleasant travel……
As we have mentioned earlier that all Tibet tours will be organised tour. By saying so, your tour will be arranged with a local Tibetan English speaking tour guide, in which case, you won’t face such a communication problem. However, when you roam around the city on your own, you can use relevant translation apps in Mandarin because most Tibetans speak Mandarin.
You can fly a drone in Tibet, but You must register all drones or Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) with a maximum take-off weight of 250 grams. However, certain restricted areas do not allow to fly a drone, such as over large crowds, Lhasa city or around military installations. You can ask our guide about where it is permitted and where it is banned.
It is legal for you to take your drone on aeroplanes, trains and buses in China. The only restriction is that you are not allowed to put the batteries in your check-in bag. If you check your drone, you must make sure that you put all your batteries in your carry-on bag.
Tibet is a culturally rich region, with the majority of the population being Buddhism.
Tibetan culture is one of the most hospitable cultures in the world. They treat their guests with the utmost respect. The clothing, lifestyle, and norms are often guided by their belief and are not something that anyone must go against.
Therefore, please do your best when travelling around to follow cultural norms.
Please refer here for some of the stuff you have to take care of while travelling to Tibet……
Due to its unique culture, Tibet is an excellent place for shopping tours to bring some souvenirs to relatives, friends, and family members. Shopping tours in Tibet offer to buy handicrafts, jewellery, local Tibetan crafts, antiques, carpets, pottery, and more.
Barkhor Street is a sacred ritual walk path for pilgrims and a bustling place different from the rest of the city. Its numerous accommodation options, cool cafes, and art attract travellers very quickly. It is the place to shop until you drop in Lhasa, Tibet. Most of the stuff in the souvenir shops has no fixed pricing. Therefore, bargaining and bartering are pretty common in Tibet before deciding on the price.
Tibet is one of the first choices of leisure travel destinations in the world. Here we present the Tibet Travel Guide comprising essential travel information right from the basics to the most unprecedented and practical guidelines that will ease a few of your perplexities and make your trip to Tibet exciting and memorable.
Note: Please do not hesitate to contact us to arrange a free consultation on travel to Tibet for more detail about Tibet travel information.
You can reach us at losal@tibetuniversaltravel.com.