Kathmandu to Lhasa Map: Overland and Flight Routes

Kathmandu and Lhasa are linked in two main ways. The overland route enters Tibet at Gyirong, climbs onto the plateau and continues through Tingri and Shigatse to Lhasa; the direct flight crosses the Himalayas in about an hour and twenty minutes. The maps on this page show both routes, where they separate, and what the ground journey looks like. It sits inside our wider Tibet map hub, which links every map page on the site.

Kathmandu to Lhasa Map: Quick Facts

Sources: Border status follows the National Immigration Administration announcement No. 5 of 2026, issued 27 August 2026, which suspended issuance of electronic border administration area permits for Shigatse from 00:00 on 28 August 2026 following the 26 August 2026 debris flow at Gyirong Port. The notice states that the resumption date will be announced separately. Border access changes at short notice after weather and landslip events, so treat the position on this page as a checkpoint and reconfirm it with your operator or official channels before committing to any non-refundable arrangement. Checked October 2026.

The two routes differ sharply in both geography and travel time. One turns the journey itself into a multi-day trip across the border and the Tibetan Plateau; the other crosses the Himalayas by air.

Where Kathmandu and Lhasa Are on the Map

Kathmandu sits at about 1,400 m in the Kathmandu Valley, on the southern side of the Himalayas. Lhasa sits at about 3,650 m on the Tibetan Plateau, north of the main Himalayan range. Between the two cities lie the Himalayan crest and the Nepal–Tibet border.

The map shows the two routes side by side. The road runs north from Kathmandu to Rasuwagadhi, crosses into Tibet at Gyirong and runs on across the plateau toward Tingri, Shigatse and Lhasa, while the flight crosses the Himalayas directly. Put the two lines together and the difference is immediate: one has to work around the terrain, the other simply goes over the top.

On the land route the sequence is fixed. The border has two names here: Rasuwagadhi on the Nepalese side, Gyirong Port on the Tibetan side. From Gyirong the road gains height out of the Himalayan valley onto the plateau and reaches Tingri, where the road to the Everest region branches south. From Tingri the main route runs east to Shigatse and then on to Lhasa. For the wider picture of this border and its other crossings, see our Tibet Nepal map.

Kathmandu to Lhasa Overland via Gyirong

Read this section as a route brief, not as a bookable itinerary. The corridor described here is the standard shape of the overland journey, but the crossing is closed at the moment. The rest of the page explains how the road works so you can judge whether to wait for a reopening or take the flight instead.

The overland corridor from Kathmandu to Lhasa is roughly 1,300 km, normally spread over four to five driving days when the border is open. It runs north from Kathmandu to the Nepal–Tibet border, enters Tibet through Gyirong, and then continues across the plateau by way of Tingri and Shigatse. Foreign travelers cannot cross this border independently by public transport: the Tibet Travel Permit and any applicable border-entry documents are arranged before travel, and the itinerary is normally organized through a licensed Tibet travel operator.

Current update: Gyirong overland access is closed. On 26 August 2026 a major debris flow, triggered by a glacier collapse on the Nepalese side, struck the Gyirong Port area and caused heavy casualties. The National Immigration Administration then suspended the issuance of electronic border administration area permits for Shigatse from 00:00 on 28 August 2026, while rescue and disaster-relief operations continued, and stated that the resumption date would be announced separately. No reopening has been announced since. Check the current border status before making any non-refundable overland arrangements — our Gyirong Port update records the last official position.

Kathmandu to Gyirong: Crossing the Nepal–Tibet Border

On the Nepal side the road runs from Kathmandu toward Rasuwagadhi, about 150 km and most of a day on mountain roads. The two sides of the crossing have different names and different immigration procedures. Rasuwagadhi is the Nepal-side border area; Gyirong Port is on the Tibet side, at the Resuo Bridge crossing, about 1,800 m. Travelers who treat the two names as one place get confused by their own itineraries, and often by conflicting information online.

Past the bridge the road turns north and up: about 24 km up-valley to Gyirong Town at 2,800 m. The town sits inside the Gyirong gorge, a valley some 94 km long that falls nearly 2,400 m from its rim to the border bridge — a scale that belongs to the gorge as a whole, not to any single day’s drive. Sleeping at 2,800 m on the first night is the point of this stop: it is the last low night before the plateau.

Gyirong to Tingri: From the Himalayan Valley to the Tibetan Plateau

The second morning is the one that changes the landscape. The road climbs out of the gorge and onto the plateau, gaining about 1,500 m to Tingri at roughly 4,300 m — the biggest single elevation jump on the overland route. The terrain changes with it, from steep valley slopes and greener vegetation to broad, open high ground.

Tingri is also the junction for the Everest region. The road to Everest Base Camp branches south from this area, while the main Kathmandu–Lhasa corridor continues toward Shigatse. If Everest is not on your itinerary, this is a pass-through stop; if it is, this is where the route turns.

Tingri to Shigatse to Lhasa: Across the Tibetan Plateau

From Tingri the main road runs east across the plateau to Shigatse, about 3,840 m, which takes the better part of a driving day. Shigatse is the largest city on the standard route between Gyirong and Lhasa and the junction where the road in from western Tibet meets the road to the capital.

Shigatse to Lhasa can be done two ways. The direct road is around 270 km; the southern sightseeing road by way of Gyantse and Yamdrok Lake is around 360 km and takes a full day, with the lake, the Karola Glacier and a string of monasteries along the way. Which one you get depends on the itinerary rather than on preference alone.

Actual driving times vary with road conditions, checkpoints, weather and the itinerary itself. The distances above are road lengths, which is what makes them the more stable figures on a page like this one. For those figures across the whole plateau, see our Tibet distance map.

Kathmandu to Lhasa via Everest: An Optional Overland Extension

Everest is not on the direct line between Kathmandu and Lhasa. It joins the trip when the itinerary branches south from the Tingri area toward the Everest Base Camp region, around 5,200 m, with Rongbuk Monastery at about 4,980 m below the north face, and then returns to the main road for Shigatse and Lhasa. That detour changes both the route and the number of travel days, usually adding about two of them. Our Lhasa to Everest Base Camp map shows the Everest side of the trip in detail.

This is also why two Kathmandu to Lhasa route maps found online often do not match. One shows the direct Gyirong–Tingri–Shigatse corridor; the other is drawn for an Everest-inclusive itinerary, with the southern branch added before it rejoins the main line. The two maps on this page draw exactly that difference. The 8-day Kathmandu to Lhasa overland tour is built on the second shape. If Everest is the reason for the trip, plan the longer version and let the altitude set the pace.

Kathmandu to Lhasa by Air

The direct flight is the simplest connection between the two cities on a map. It crosses the Himalayas without passing through Gyirong, Tingri or Shigatse.

Kathmandu to Lhasa: The Direct Flight Route

Direct services leave Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu and land at Lhasa Gonggar Airport. As of October 2026, Himalaya Airlines operates the direct KTM–LXA service (H9774), with a scheduled flight time of about 1 hour 20 minutes. Current schedules show departures around 08:30 Kathmandu time and arrival around 12:05 Lhasa time, on several days a week rather than daily. Flight days change with the season, so confirm the current schedule before booking.

A short flight time does not put the two cities at similar elevations. Kathmandu is about 1,400 m, Gonggar Airport is around 3,570 m and Lhasa about 3,650 m. After landing, the transfer from Gonggar Airport into central Lhasa usually takes about an hour, depending on traffic and road conditions.

Views from the aircraft can include high Himalayan peaks, but the exact route and visibility vary with weather and the day’s flight track. Everest may be visible on some flights; it is not a guaranteed in-flight view.

What the Flight Route Looks Like on the Map

The flight map shows Kathmandu south of the Himalayan crest and Lhasa Gonggar on the plateau to the north. Seen together with the overland maps, the difference is clear: the road has to follow valleys, passes and existing mountain roads, while the flight simply goes over the top, which is why the flight line is straight and the road line is not.

Kathmandu to Lhasa: Overland or by Air?

The two routes connect the same two destinations but create very different journeys.

Neither route is simply a shorter version of the other. The overland route enters Tibet through Gyirong and makes the landscape between Nepal and Lhasa part of the journey; the flight crosses the range directly.

What to Know Before Traveling from Kathmandu to Lhasa

Tibet Travel Permit

Every foreign passport holder needs a Tibet Travel Permit, arranged by a licensed operator before entering Tibet; it is not issued at the border or on arrival at Lhasa Gonggar Airport. Since the June 2025 adjustment, the Gyirong corridor and the standard Everest road no longer require a separate Aliens’ Travel Permit; Namtso and Ngari, including Mount Kailash, still do. Requirements have changed more than once in recent years, so confirm the documents for your exact itinerary — our Tibet Travel Permit guide covers the current process.

Nepal Visa and Border Requirements

Nepal and Tibet run separate immigration systems. Eligible travelers can obtain a Nepal tourist visa on arrival at designated entry points, subject to Nepal’s current rules; a few nationalities must apply in advance. Check the procedure and eligibility for your own passport before setting out.

On the Tibet side, the entry document depends on your nationality and the current rules for arriving from Nepal. For most visitors it is a Chinese Tourist Visa (L visa) obtained in advance; the China Group Visa process in Kathmandu is generally no longer required. Public accounts of these arrangements do not always agree, so have your operator confirm the combination for your passport. Our Tibet travel guide for foreigners sets out the document stack.

Gyirong Border Access

Gyirong Port is the crossing this route depends on, and its status should never be assumed: landslides, debris flows, road damage and administrative restrictions can interrupt it at short notice, and a road reopened for rescue traffic is not the same thing as a crossing reopened for tourists. The August 2026 event showed both halves of that pattern — the corridor had been operating normally through the first half of 2026, including the busy spring and early-summer season, before the crossing was shut again in a single morning. It is closed at the moment; have your operator confirm the position before committing.

Altitude Changes on the Route

The altitude profile defines the overland journey, and the stops run Kathmandu → Rasuwagadhi → Gyirong → Tingri → Shigatse → Lhasa.

Kathmandu is about 1,400 m, Gyirong Town 2,800 m, Tingri about 4,300 m, Shigatse 3,840 m and Lhasa 3,650 m. The gain is spread across several days rather than made in one morning, though the Gyirong–Tingri section alone climbs about 1,500 m in a single drive.

By air it is different again: you land at about 3,570 m and spend the first night at roughly 3,650 m, with no stops in between. Our Tibet altitude map sets the plateau stops side by side.

Weather and Road Conditions

Nepal’s monsoon runs roughly June to September, the likeliest window for heavy rain, landslides and road disruption on the Nepali side; the August 2026 Gyirong debris flow fell inside it. On the plateau, winter snow can affect the high roads and passes, and summer rain can delay mountain roads and border formalities. The overland route is the more exposed of the two, so keep a spare day rather than building every driving day around a fixed arrival. Our Tibet road map shows which stretches carry the most traffic and the fewest alternatives.

Kathmandu to Lhasa Map FAQ