On this trip you will explore the city of Lhasa with its monasteries, temples and the Potala Palace. You will also enjoy a fantastic short trek across meadows, through a narrow gorge, up over high mountain passes with stunning panoramic views, and to a Buddhist pilgrimage site, and finally arriving at the beautiful monastery of Samye.

Highlights of the trek
Scenic flight over Himalaya, sightseeing in Lhasa, Buddhist monasteries, traditional villages, and a six-day trek through spectacular landscapes of dramatic mountain passes, gorges and meadows.

Detailed itinerary

Day 01
Arrive in Kathmandu, where our representatives will escort you to your hotel.

Day 02
Half day sightseeing around UNESCO Bhaktapur / Kathmandu where your guide will escort you on a tour of Buddhist and Hindu temples and shrines reflecting ancient local traditions. There is time to explore the city’s many places of interest on your own or take a rest while trekking permits are finalised. In the evening sample a delicious traditional Nepali dinner. Overnight in Kathmandu.

Day 03
A 90-minute morning flight with stunning views of the Himalaya will bring you to Gonggar Airport, Tibet where you will meet your Tibetan guide and make the drive to Lhasa.

Day 04-06
The three days in Lhasa are important for acclimatisation and also give you a chance to visit the major sights in and around the city: the Potala Palace, traditional seat of the Dalai Lama; the Norbulingka Palace, the Dalai Lama’s traditional summer residence; Jokhang Temple, one of the country’s most sacred temples, with its crowds of circumambulating pilgrims; the country’s largest monastery at Drepung; the fantastic spectacle of monks engaged in traditional debating at Sera Monastery. You will feel as though you slipped back in time as you explore the medieval backstreets of the city on your own.

Day 07
This morning you will drive to Ganden and visit its monastery before meeting the trek team of porters and cooks. The trek begins with an easy day to warm up, walking for about three hours to the village of Hebu.

Day 08
Making an early start, you will begin the climb to the top of the Gorkhala pass. It is a steep, narrow trail but the views are stunning before you make the descent down to the campsite.

Day 09-10
Your next target is the Shug La pass (5250m) on an easier trail than yesterday. You will be able take photos of the prayer flag-adorned cairn and the panorama before you. Descending from the pass you enter the Tso Tuo Valley, initially a narrow gorge but then broadening into a meadow where you may see nomads and grazing yaks as you walk to the camp site a little further down the valley.

Day 11
This morning you continue to follow the valley towards Yemalung Temple, a major Buddhist pilgrimage site, where you will visit the monastery and a meditation cave. The trail then proceeds to your camp site at Ninggone.

Day 12
The final day’s trekking brings you to Tibet’s first formal monastery, founded in 779 AD at Samye, where you will have time to examine the beautiful architecture.

Day 13
Today you will drive to Gonggar Airport to make the return flight across the Himalaya to Kathmandu, where you will be able to relax or wander the bustling streets before your final dinner. .

Day 14 Kathmandu
Rest day, overnight stay at hotel

Day 15 Departure from Kathamndu