8 Days Lhasa Everest Namtso Group Tour

Distance: 70 km (about 1 hr) from Gonggar Airport; 20 km (about 20 min) from Lhasa Railway Station | Meals: Self-arranged | Hotel: Hotel in Lhasa (3,650m)

Tashi Delek! Your CHIBET Travel guide and driver will meet you at Lhasa Gonggar Airport or Lhasa Railway Station and transfer you to the hotel.

If you arrive by air, the drive into Lhasa follows the Yarlung Tsangpo River Valley and gives you an easy first look at the high plateau. After check-in, the rest of the day is free, with no sightseeing planned.

Use the afternoon and evening to rest and settle into the altitude before the city tour begins tomorrow.

Overnight in Lhasa.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Complimentary airport pick-up is available from 08:00 to 22:00, while train station pick-up operates 24 hours. Keep the first day easy and avoid strenuous activity while you adjust to the altitude.

Distance: Approx. 10 km local driving | Meals: Breakfast, Local Sweet Tea, Tibetan Welcome Dinner | Hotel: Hotel in Lhasa (3,650m)

Spend today in the historic heart of Lhasa, with the city’s best-known landmarks mixed with a few more everyday local experiences.

Start at Yaowang Mountain Viewpoint for the classic front view of the Potala Palace, then continue inside. The route passes through the White Palace and Red Palace, where your guide explains the rooms, chapels, murals and memorial stupas without turning the visit into a history lesson.

Later, visit Jokhang Temple, where pilgrims come to pray throughout the day. Step outside onto Barkhor Street and follow part of the traditional clockwise kora through the old quarter.

Around the old streets, stop at a local teahouse for Tibetan sweet tea and dried yak cheese. A traditional Tibetan dress photoshoot is also arranged, with robes, styling and photography around the whitewashed lanes.

In the evening, meet the rest of the group for a Tibetan welcome dinner before the overland journey begins tomorrow.

Overnight in Lhasa.

CHIBET Travel Notice: Potala Palace uses fixed entry time slots and daily visitor limits, so your guide may adjust the sightseeing order around the confirmed ticket time. Photography is restricted inside some areas of the palace and Jokhang Temple.

Distance: 360 km (about 8 hrs driving) | Meals: Breakfast | Hotel: Hotel in Shigatse (3,840m)

Leave Lhasa this morning and begin the overland journey west toward Shigatse. It is a full day on the road, but the lake, glacier and changing plateau scenery break up the drive well.

The first major stop is Gampala Pass, where Yamdrok Lake suddenly opens below the road. From the high viewpoint, the water curves between dry mountain ridges, with Mount Nojin Kangsang rising in the distance.

After the viewpoint, drive down toward the lakeshore for a closer look before continuing west. The road then reaches Karola Glacier, where the ice descends unusually close to the highway and can be seen without a long hike.

Later, pass through Gyantse for an exterior view of Gyantse Dzong, then follow the Nyang Chu Valley to Shigatse. Arrive in the evening and check in for the night.

Overnight in Shigatse.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Gampala Pass and Karola Glacier can be much colder and windier than Lhasa, even on a clear day. Keep a warm, windproof layer in your daypack.

Distance: 340 km (about 8 hrs driving) | Meals: Breakfast, Tibetan Yak Hotpot | Hotel: EBC Tent Guesthouse (5,200m) or Hotel in Dingri (4,300m)

Today the road leaves Shigatse and heads southwest into the Himalayas. The towns become smaller, the plateau opens up and the mountains ahead gradually take over the view.

Cross Gyatso La Pass at 5,280 meters. On a clear day, Mount Everest may appear in the distance for the first time, still small on the horizon above the prayer-flag-lined ridges.

The wider Himalayan panorama comes later at Gawula Pass. When the weather is clear, Makalu, Lhotse, Everest, Cho Oyu and Shishapangma line the horizon. From here, the road drops through the famous 108 Switchbacks, with Everest growing larger as you get closer.

Reach Everest Base Camp in the late afternoon. Walk or take the eco-bus to the main viewing area and spend some time facing the north side of the mountain. If the weather cooperates, there may be sunset views before the evening turns cold.

Dinner tonight is a warm Tibetan yak hotpot, a welcome meal after the long drive into the Everest region.

Accommodation Options:

EBC Tent Guesthouse: the upgraded tent accommodation offers cleaner, more comfortable sleeping areas and improved shared toilet facilities. It is still simple high-altitude accommodation, but the location keeps you close to Everest for the evening and a possible sunrise.

Dingri Vienna International Hotel: a warmer private room with heating and a private bathroom at a lower altitude. Guests staying here return to town in the evening and do not come back to EBC for sunrise.

Rongbuk Monastery Hotel Upgrade: a basic private room near EBC, available with a supplement and subject to seasonal availability.

Overnight at EBC Tent Camp or in Dingri.

CHIBET Travel Notice: Everest views, sunset and stars depend on the weather. Nights around EBC are very cold, so bring your warmest layers. Guests staying in Dingri do not return to EBC for sunrise.

Distance: 340 km (about 8 hrs driving) | Meals: Breakfast | Hotel: Hotel in Shigatse (3,840m)

For guests staying near EBC, the morning begins early with another chance to see Mount Everest. When the sky is clear, the first light reaches the upper snow slopes before the valley below. The view is beautiful when it happens, but cloud can hide the mountain completely.

After breakfast, leave the Everest area and retrace the Himalayan road toward Shigatse. The route passes back through the high valleys and Gawula Pass, but the mountains often look different in the morning light and from the opposite direction.

Guests staying at the Vienna International Hotel in Dingri join the return journey but do not go back to EBC for sunrise. Arrive in Shigatse later in the day and settle in for the night.

Overnight in Shigatse.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Everest sunrise is weather-dependent. If cloud covers the mountain, the group continues with the planned return journey to Shigatse.

Distance: 280 km (about 5 hrs driving) | Meals: Breakfast | Hotel: Hotel in Lhasa (3,650m)

Before leaving Shigatse, spend the morning at Tashilhunpo Monastery, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lamas and still an active religious center today.

Walk through its courtyards and prayer halls, where monks and pilgrims move between the old buildings. Inside the Maitreya Buddha Hall, see the large gilded image of the Future Buddha before continuing through the monastery complex.

After the visit, take the more direct northern route back to Lhasa along the Yarlung Tsangpo River. The afternoon has an easier rhythm after the long Everest road days.

Arrive in Lhasa by late afternoon and rest at the hotel.

Overnight in Lhasa.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Photography inside some of Tashilhunpo Monastery’s main halls may require permission or an extra fee. Ask your guide before taking indoor photos.

Distance: 500 km round trip (about 10 hrs driving) | Meals: Breakfast | Hotel: Hotel in Lhasa (3,650m)

Another early start today, this time heading north from Lhasa. The farther you travel, the more open the landscape becomes as the settled river valleys give way to the broad northern plateau.

Cross the Changtang Grasslands, where yak herds and black nomad tents are often scattered across the plains. Along the way, stop for views of the Nyainqentanglha Mountains before the road climbs toward Nagenla Pass.

From the pass, Namtso Lake appears below as a huge stretch of blue water. Continue down to Tashi Dor Peninsula and spend some time walking near the lakeshore, with the snow mountains stretching across the far side.

Return to Lhasa in the evening for your final night. This is the longest driving day of the trip, but the open northern landscape feels very different from the Everest route.

Winter / Bad Weather Alternative: If heavy snow or icy conditions close Nagenla Pass, the group stays in Lhasa for a cultural day instead. Visit Zaki Temple in the morning, followed by a Tibetan incense workshop in the afternoon.

Overnight in Lhasa.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Namtso is much higher and usually colder than Lhasa. Bring an extra warm layer and take things slowly around the lake. Road access depends on local weather and safety conditions.

Distance: 70 km (about 1 hr) to Gonggar Airport; 20 km (about 30 min) to Lhasa Railway Station | Meals: Breakfast | Hotel: /

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel and some free time before departure. At the scheduled time, your CHIBET Travel guide and driver will transfer you to Lhasa Gonggar Airport or Lhasa Railway Station for your onward journey.

Your 8-day Tibet group tour ends here.

CHIBET Travel Advice: Complimentary airport drop-off is available from 08:30 to 22:30, while train station drop-off operates 24 hours. Please confirm your flight or train details with your guide on Day 7.