Ancient Kham and the Litang Nomadic Festival

Overview
Highlights
- Litang Nomadic Festival - We'll be welcomed in to the yak-hair tents of the nomads with tea, sweets and yak meat.
- Remote monasteries - See how Tibetan culture is practiced and maintained in the monasteries and villages of the region.
- Sertar Buddhist Institute - Visit the monks and nuns at the world's largest centre of Buddhist learning.
- Chengdu Panda Research Centre - Meet the pandas at Chengdu and see the efforts to bolster the population in the wild.
What's this trip about?
Itinerary
With a history that stretches back nearly 2500 years, Chengdu marks the spot where the southern Silk Road began. The city boasts a rich cultural pedigree that has produced some of China's most famous poets, including the 'Chinese Shakespeare', Du Fu, who lived here i...
This morning we head to the outskirts of the city to meet Chengdu's most famous residents, the giant pandas. The resident pandas are said to be China's spoilt children and they spend their days relaxing in large enclosures while the staff bring them bamboo by the buck...
Set amongst beautiful landscape, the 2300 year old Dujiangyan irrigation project is one of the greatest engineering feats of the Qin Dynasty. Constructed to provide water to the region and control flooding, the system is still in use today. We also visit the nearby ...
We start today with a visit to nearby Songgang where 17th century watch towers once signalled villagers of impending raids. We continue towards Rangtang, a journey of five to six hours through the Dukehe River Valley. There'll be several stops to enjoy the scenery an...
A drive of four to five hours through more impressive scenery will bring us to the Larung Gar Valley and Sertar, the world's largest Buddhist settlement. On the way we pass through the Serqu River Gorge, which will be looking gloroius with the colours of autumn, and ...
After breakfast we start exploring the institute. We'll climb approximately 600 steps to the Mandala Temple for great views of the settlement and surrounding countryside before walking through the community where thousands of students attend teachings by prominent la...
A very short drive this morning will bring us to Dong Ga, a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery on a hillside which houses ancient Buddhist paintings and Tibetan Tangkas - paintings of religious subjects on cotton or silk. The monastery has wonderful views of the vast Jinma g...
Situated in a large valley of grass-covered hills with snow-capped mountains in the distance, the friendly town of Ganzi is rich in Tibetan culture. We walk through the town for around an hour, making our way to Ganzi Monastery which is reached by almost 200 steps. ...
Today's drive to Litang is approximately eight hours, passing through ever more dramatic mountain scenery as we climb to an altitude of just over 4000 metres. We'll make frequent stops to enjoy the views and to visit some of the small monasteries along the route, cho...
At the end of the summer the Tibetan nomads of the Kham region gather on the expansive grasslands near Litang. They set up their elaborately decorated yak-hair tents and spend a few days meeting each other and praying for a good harvest. The lamas of Litang Monaster...
We'll visit the festival again early this morning to see the nomads milking their yaks and spend some more time soaking up the atmosphere before moving on to Litang monastery. The largest and oldest in the region, the monastery dates from 1580 and consists of elabora...
The word Tagong means 'favourite place of one that has achieved enlightenment' in the local language and is famous for its massive grassland areas inhabited by tens of thousands of yaks and their nomadic herders. It will take us around seven hours to get there by roa...
This morning we take a walk on the grasslands to experience the wide, expansive landscape and hopefully to meet some of the nomads that live there with their herds of yaks. After our walk we visit the Tagong Monastery, built during the Qing Dynasty to honour the journ...
Today we return to Chengdu via Ya'an, a drive of around seven hours. Ya'an is famous as a centre of the tea industry and was an important stop on the ancient Tea and Horse Trail, an ancient trading route from China to Tibet. We'll stop here for lunch and visit Ya'an m...
Our trip ends this morning after breakfast.
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The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.
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Explore! Reviews & Ratings
Great to have the opportunity to meet
Great to have the opportunity to meet real nomads in their tents at Litang, lovely people !
Great
Great to have the opportunity to meet real nomads in their tents at Litang, lovely people !
Great to have the opportunity to meet
Great to have the opportunity to meet real nomads in their tents at Litang, lovely people !
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