Expedition to Tibet’s Far West

Fly into Xining | Meet & greet your Xining WildChina guide & private chauffeur | Head to your hotel to rest at your leisure | Visit the Xining Muslim quarter | Transfer to your overnight train to Lhasa

Overnight Train (B, L, D)

All day on the train | Arrival in Lhasa | Meet & greet your Tibetan WildChina guide & private chauffeur | Transfer to hotel to relax and freshen up

Tibetan-style Hotel (B, L, D)

Visit Lhasa's Potala Palace | Join locals in prayer at the Jokhang Temple | Make your way along Barkhor Street pilgramage route

Tibetan-style Hotel (B, L, D)

Make your way past imposing granite outcrops to Pabongka Monastery | Hike downhill to Chupsang Nunnery | Walk the outer kora around the Sera monastery | Picnic lunch | Witness monks debate age-old scripts in monastery courtyard

Tibetan-style Hotel (B, L, D)

Drive to Tsurphu (120km) | Visit the Nenang monastery | Make your way to and explore the Tsurphu monastery | Return to Lhasa

Tibetan-style Hotel (B, L, D)

Drive to Gyantse (270km) | Pass through mountain passes as high as 5,000m in the Nyochen Kansang Mountains | Visit the Palchoe monastery and the famous Kumbum Stupa | Walk the the pilgrimage route in Gyantse (3,950m)

Local Guesthouse (B, L, D)

Morning prayers at the monastery | Drive to Shigatse (90km), built around the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery | Walk the pilgrimage route around and visit the local markets

Local Guesthouse (B, L, D)

Drive to Sangsang at an elevation of 4,250m (322km) | En route, visit the Sakya Monastery, the chief seat of Sakya Tibetan Buddhism Lineage

Camp (B, L, D)

Follow the road towards Kailash (325km) in breathtaking landscapes | Camp near Dargyeling at an elevation of 4,700m

Camp (B, L, D)

Make your way to Kailash (318km) and cross the highest pass of Mayumla (5,240m) | Witness an uninterrupted view of the Himalayan border stretching between India, Tibet, and Nepal | Pitch your tent at Lake Mansarovar (4,560m) | Rest below the Sacred Peak of Kailash

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive to Tirthapuri (120km) | En route, visit the Guru Gyam monastery, a Bon monastery in the Kailash area | Explore the ancient Kingdom of Shangshung at Kyunglung | Arrive at Tirthapuri (4,430m) | Bathe and relax in the natural hot springs

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive across the Jiangla Pass (one of the highest of the journey at 5,100m) to the Guge Kingdom (210km) | Rest at Tholing (3,650m)

Local Guesthouse (B, L, D)

Discover the citadel of Guge and explore the incredible Buddhist art remainders at Tsaparang | Visit the monastery of Tholing, the most significant monastery in far west Tibet

Local Guesthouse (B, L, D)

Drive to the secret valley of Dungkar Piyang (80km) and its monasteries with gorgeous Buddhist paintings | Rest at your campsite in Dungkar Piyang Valley

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive back to Manasarovar Lake (250km) and set up camp close to the Chiu monastery (4,560m) | Visit the Chiu monastery | Enjoy the hot springs

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive to Tarpoche (50km), the starting point of the Mt Kailash kora and the holy place of the Saga Dawa festival | Add a prayer flag to the giant flagpole for a close view of Mt Kailash | Return to camp grounds | Rest or explore around the lake in the afternoon

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive back to Saga (462km) through the Changtang plateau past nomad camps and herds of gazelles or kyang (wild donkeys) | Set up camp at Saga (4,600m)

Camp (B, L, D)

Drive back to Shigatse (430km) | After passing several mountain passes and plateaus, enjoy landscapes of Tibetan villages and farmlands

Local hotel (B, L, D)

Take the highway to Tsedang, the birthplace of Tibetan civilization, along the Bharmaputra River (340km) | Visit the Mindroling monastery | Visit Yumbu Lhakang, the first castle of Tibet, and Tradduk Temple, the first temple of Tibet

Local Hotel (B, L, D)

Drive to Samye monastery along the Bharmaputra River (50km) | Visit the first Tibetan Buddhist monastery built in the 11th century | Enjoy the special Samye Dhode festival amidst the devout pilgrims

Local Hotel (B, L, D)

Your WildChina guide & private chauffeur will see you off to the Lhasa Gongkar Airport for your flight home | Journey ends