Ganden Monastery was founded in 1409 by Tsongkhapa himself on Wangbur Mountain at 4,300 m, 40 km east of Lhasa. It is the mother seat (gdan sa) of the Gelug school — the monastery from which Drepung and Sera descend — and offers the widest valley panorama of any Lhasa day trip..
Drepung Monastery, founded in 1416 by Jamyang Choje Tashi Palden, was once the largest monastery in the world with up to 10,000 monks. It sits at 3,800 m on Gambo Utse mountain 5 km west of central Lhasa and remains the principal Gelug seat alongside Sera and Ganden..
Sera Monastery, founded in 1419 by Jamchen Choje Shakya Yeshi, is one of Lhasa’s three great Gelug monasteries and is best known for its afternoon debating sessions in the courtyard. It sits at 3,700 m on the northern slope of Lhasa valley, 5 km from the Potala..
Norbulingka (“Jewel Park”) is the Dalai Lamas’ summer palace in western Lhasa, covering 360,000 m² of gardens, lakes and assembly halls. Built from 1755 under the Seventh Dalai Lama, it joined the UNESCO World Heritage listing (site 707) in 2001 and hosts the Shoton Festival yogurt banquet each Augu
The Jokhang Temple on Barkhor Square in Lhasa was founded in 652 CE by King Songtsen Gampo and holds the Jowo Shakyamuni — a gilt statue regarded as Tibet’s most sacred image. The temple anchors the Barkhor pilgrimage circuit and forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage ensemble (site 707) with the P
The Potala Palace is a 13-storey palace-fortress rising 117 m above Marpo Ri (Red Mountain) in Lhasa at 3,700 m, rebuilt from 1645 by the Fifth Dalai Lama and inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. It served as the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas until 1959 and now holds chapels, tom