10 Days Train Tour from Beijing to Lhasa

First up on your schedule in Beijing is a morning visit to one of the most beautiful sections of the Great Wall of China – the Badaling Great Wall. You will have the opportunity to hike along the wall for about 2 to 3 hours. After lunch, we will visit the Ming Tombs, including the inside of the Changling tomb. The Ming Tombs are the final resting place for 13 of the emperors of China’s Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644).

Today you will see the historic Tian’anmen Square – the largest public square in the world, and the Forbidden City – the magnificent imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties for almost 500 years. After exploring the ancient home of Chinese emperors, we will move on to the Temple of Heaven where those emperors prayed for peace and good harvests. After lunch we will drive to the Summer Palace, which was originally a royal garden and a summer retreat for the emperors of the Qing Dynasty to escape from the summer heat. In the evening we will take you to the Beijing railway station for your 2-day train trip to Lhasa. (Train Z21 20:10-13:27+2 days)

Enjoy the scenery en route

We will pick you up from the Lhasa train station after your arrival and transfer you to your hotel. You will have time to relax with a free afternoon and evening to become acclimatized to the high altitude.

After breakfast at the hotel, we will visit the incredible Potala Palace – the highest palace in the world. As we climb to the entrance gate, you will have a spectacular view over all of Lhasa. After exploring the numerous interesting chapels and learning about the traditional culture and history of the palace and the city, we will move on to the spiritually significant Jokhang Temple, one of the most important temples in Tibetan Buddhism. To see the “real” Lhasa, we’ll stroll through Barkhor Street with its thriving local market where you can pick up some local Tibetan, Nepalese and Indian handicrafts and souvenirs.

This morning we’ll take a drive up to the Kampala Pass (elevation 4797 meters) where you’ll have a glimpse of Yamdrok Lake down below as well as spectacular views of the holy Mount Nyenchen Khangsar in the distance. You will want to have your camera at the ready for the turquoise waters of Yamdrok Lake, which is one of the three holy lakes of Tibet, and the beautiful Mt. Nyenchen Khangsar glacier as seen from the Karol la Pass. Later on we’ll be able to visit the Karola Glacier before continuing along the southern Friendship Highway to Gyantse, where you will be able to see the famous Gyantse Kumbum, one of the most stunning architectural wonders in Tibet. Late in the afternoon we will continue on to Shigatse where we will spend the night.

After breakfast we’ll set out towards the peak of the world – Mount Everest. Departing from Shigatse and traveling via Lhatse and Tingri, you will see some of the most beautiful and unique scenery in the world – incredibly blue skies, floating high clouds, endless grasslands and the highest mountain peaks in the world. We’ll also stop by the Rongbuk Monastery – the world’s highest altitude monastery before spending the night at the Everest Base Camp.
Travel Tip:
Due to the high altitude, it is possible that you may have some symptoms of altitude sickness. We recommend that you stay well hydrated, relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery to minimize your symptoms.

Enjoy a breathtaking sunrise at the Everest Base Camp before we journey back through the spectacular scenery to spend the night again in Shigatse.

We’ll get an early start this morning to visit one of the most important monasteries in Tibetan Buddhism, the Tashilunpo Monastery. Here you can see the well-preserved statue of Jampa (future Buddha), the largest such statue in the world. This monastery is also the seat of Tibet’s second highest incarnation, the Panchen Lama. After our visit to Tashilunpo, we will make the scenic drive back to Lhasa to spend the night.

We will pick you up from your hotel by private vehicle for the 90-minute drive to the Lhasa airport for your departing flight.