23 days Kailash Saga Dawa Tibetan Festival tour 2012

Day 1

Place & Transport: Chengdu to Lhasa, Flight No. TBA
Today's Activities: Airport to Hotel Transfer
Meals: /
Detailed Itinerary: In the morning transfer to airport, fly to Lhasa. Upon arrival at the Gongga airport, take another 1.5-hour-drive to the city proper (3650 m). On the way you will enjoy the spectacular scenery, and the typical Tibetan villages.

Day 2

Place & Transport: Lhasa
Today's Activities: Potala Palace, Barkhor street
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: The first day of sightseeing starts from Lhasa's cardinal landmark- Potala Palace, a structure of massive portions. Its towering image already appearing on various occasions, but your first sight of the Potala will still be an awe-inspiring moment. It takes at least a good 2-hour to visit those rooms, halls and chapels
In the afternoon, we will drop a visit of the Jokhang Temple, the spiritual center of Tibet. Everyday, pilgrims from every corner of Tibet trek a long distance to the temple. The temple is the product of Han, Tibetan and Nepalese architectural techniques. Then we will visit Barkhor, the oldest street in a very traditional city in Tibet

Day 3

Place & Transport: Lhasa
Today's Activities: Jokhang Temple, Sera Monastey
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: About 8km west of central Lhasa is the Drepung, once world's largest monastery with about 10,000 monks. This day's sightseeing begins with these white monastic buildings piled up on the hillside. Walking up to the hill is a pleasant thing, an easy break from the solemn ambience inside the halls and chapels. At the plat roof of hillside, you can have very good views of the whole Lhasa city and the distant mountains.
Drepung is one of Lhasa's two great Gelugpa monasteries, the other is Sera. Around 5km north of central Lhasa, Sera may not be as grandiose as Drepung, but is more serene surrounded by many small temples. The 'Buddhism Scriptures Debating' in Sera is very famous.

Day 4

Place & Transport: Lhasa/Gyantse
Today's Activities: YamzhogYumco Lake, Palkhor Temple
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Today you will drive about 300KM to Gyangtse. Take a look at YamzhogYumco Lake on the way and overlook Kalais Kora Glacier. Yamdrok Lake is a coiling, many-armed body of water shaped like a scorpion. It doubles back on itself on the western side, effectively creating a large island within its reaches. For Tibetans, it is one of the four holy lakes of Tibet. And the home of wrathful deities. The lake lies several hundred metres below the road, and in clear weather is a fabulous shade of deep turquoise. Far in the distance is the huge massif of Mt. Nojin Kangtsang (7191m)
In the afternoon, you will arrive in Gyangtse and go for the tour of Palkhor Temple, built in the 15th century, is situated in the west of Gyantse Town with mountains enclosing form three sides of the east, west and north. Its uniqueness is that its three sects of Buddism-Sakya, Ningma and Gelup stayed harmoniously under one roof.

Day 5

Place & Transport: Gyantse/Shigatse
Today's Activities: Tashilumpo Monastery
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Drive about 90KM to Shigatse which is the second largest city in Tibet. It's also the home town of Banchen Lama. In the afternoon, you will drop a visit of Tashilumpo monastery. Tashilumpo, sprawls on the slops of Mt. Niser, southwest of Shigatse. It covers an area of about 300,000 square meters. There are many valuable and rare historical articles in the monastery.

Day 6-9

Place & Transport: Shigatse/Zhongba
Today's Activities: Tsangpo
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Drive west across the Tibetan plateau to Saga and Zhongba. Cross the Tsangpo and drive over the Mayum La.

Day 10-11

Place & Transport: Saga/Darchen
Today's Activities: Mt. Kailash, Lake Manasarovar
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Follow the road west across grasslands and passes culminating in the first spectacular view of Kailash & Manasarovar.

Day 12

Place & Transport: Saga Dawa(This date is the main Sagadawa Festival day)
Today's Activities: Saga Dawa Festival
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: The Saga Dawa Festival celebrates the day Lord Buddha Sakyamuni was born, achieved enlightenment and passed away. For over a thousand years pilgrims flock to Mt Kailash to replace the Tarboche flagpole, a huge pole that stands on the Kailash kora, south of the mountain. The whole ceremony is led by a Lama from the nearby monastery and Tibetans and buddhists gather here that day to attach their prayer flags they brought from home, to pray, and to help erect the flagpole.

Day 13

Place & Transport: Darchen to Diraphuk Gompa
Today's Activities: Kailash Kora / Parikrama
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: The Kora / Parikrama begins as we walk the 8kms to Tarboche and then we trek up to Diraphuk Gompa. Packed lunch will be served on the way. We walk up the Lha Chu Valley through beautiful green meadows and streams with Mt Kailash towering above us. We follow the river which enters a narrow canyon with high, steep cliffs and spectacular waterfalls. Continuing up the valley, the north face of Kailash comes into view before we reach the 13th century monastery at Diraphuk. Overnight at our own camp or a lodge.

Day 14

Place & Transport: Diraphuk to ZutulPuk Gompa (4790m)
Today's Activities: Kailash Kora / Parikrama
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: We now leave the Lha Chu Valley and enter the Drolma Chu Valley, heading up towards a high pass, the Drolma La (5630m). It's a tough climb to the summit which is festooned with prayer flags but from there it is all downhill or flat to Zutulpuk, with views of one of the highest lakes in the world, Thukpe Dzingbu Lake, known as the Lake of Compassion. As well as the monastery at Zutulpuk, there are several meditation caves and another cave containing an image of Milarepa. Overnight at our own camp or a lodge.

Day 15

Place & Transport: Zutul-Puk to Darchen (4560m)
Today's Activities: Kailash Kora / Parikrama
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: On the final day of the kora / Parikrama we cross several streams, and follow an impressive gorge. Along the way we are once again treated to magnificent views of Kailash. We then enter the Bharka plain and it's about an hour's walk through this desert landscape to Darchen. Our vehicles await us, and take us back to Lake Manasarovar. Overnight camp near Seralung Gon.

Day 16

Place & Transport: Manasarovar to Prayang
Today's Activities: Mayun-la
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Today is a long drive, about 300km, back to Praryang. We re-cross the Mayun-la and several rivers. Overnight at our own camp or a lodge.

Day 17

Place & Transport: Paryang to Saga (4600m)
Today's Activities: Zhongba
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: We continue driving today along a 255km stretch of road to Saga, passing through the small town of Zhongba en route. Overnight at our own camp or a lodge.

Day 18-19

Place & Transport: Saga to Lao Tingri
Today's Activities: Mt. Xixiapangma
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Retrace the route as far as Saga before turning south. Cross the grasslands, skirt the shores of beautiful Paiku Tso Lake and the towering mass of Xixiapangma (8012m) to the small town of Lao Tingri.

Day 20

Place & Transport: Everest Base Camp
Today's Activities: Everest Base Camp
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: The view of Mt.Everest from the world's highest monastery is incredible and from Everest Base Camp at 5200m, even more stunning.

Day 21

Place & Transport: Nyalam
Today's Activities: Nyalam
Meals: B,L,D
Detailed Itinerary: Get a bird's eye view of the Himalayas. Cross one of the most spectacular mountain passes, topped with prayer flags and wind-driven prayer wheels. You will truly feel like you are on top of the world.

Day 22

Place & Transport: Nyalam to Kathmandu
Today's Activities: Zhangmu
Meals: B,L
Detailed Itinerary: From Nyalam, we head back to the border town of Zhangmu. From Zhangmu, it's a short drive to the Friendship Bridge which spans the Bhote Kosi River and marks the Tibet / Nepal border. We say goodbye to our Tibetan guide and driver and walk to Nepalese Immigration Control in Kodari where we will be met by our Nepalese staff. After completing the re-entry formalities we continue the drive to Kathmandu which, depending on road and weather conditions, should take about 5 hours. Overnight at your hotel.

Day 23

Place & Transport: Depart Kathmandu
Today's Activities: Transfer to the airport
Meals: B
Detailed Itinerary: Transfer to International Airport for the flight to next destination.