Highlights
• Discover Kathmandu, Nepal
• Explore the Jokhang Temple, Drepung Monastery and Potala Palace in Lhasa
• View Mount Everest
• Meet Tibetan pilgrims and monks
• Traverse the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas
• Visit Everest Base Camp
Fact File
• 17 land days • Maximum 16 travelers • Start and finish in Kathmandu, Nepal • All meals included • Includes 1 internal flight • Activity Level: 2
Prayer flags flutter on wind-swept passes, snow-capped Himalayan peaks touch cobalt skies, plains of green barley and yellow canola shoulder treeless brown slopes and mountain monasteries echo the chants of monks. The sights and sounds of Tibet are fantastic and, for many, magnetic.
Kathmandu is our rendezvous point, where we spend a day touring before taking a spectacular Himalayan flight to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. To help us acclimatize, we leisurely explore Tsedang and the burial site of the ancient kings.
On our way to Lhasa, we visit Tibet's first monastery, Samye, on the shore of the braided channels of the Yarlung Tsampo, the world's highest river. In Lhasa, we see the towering 1,000-room Potala, the former winter palace of the Dalai Lama. We visit the religious sanctuaries of Sera, Drepung and the Jokhang, Tibet's most religious structure. In the streets of Lhasa, we can walk with Tibetan pilgrims around one of the holiest paths in Tibet, the Barkhor.
The journey continues to Gyantse and Shigatse, via the 14,600-foot Karo La Pass, overlooking Yamdrok Lake far below. In Gyantse, the Khumbum Stupa is open for the curious who want to view its 1,000 Buddhas.
In Shigatse, we wander through the buildings of Tashilhunpo Monastery and observe the beautiful paintings and funerary pagodas of former Panchen Lamas. We continue our overland journey to Rongbuk Monastery, the highest in the world. This is our starting point for our hike to Everest Base Camp. From here, Mount Everest, or as the Tibetans call it, Chomolongma "Mother of the Earth" is a formidable and magnificent sight. At 29,035 ft (8, 850 m) Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
Leaving the plateau, we descend through the Himalayas. The land becomes greener as we head into the Kathmandu Valley, concluding one of the world's great overland journeys.
FROM: $5595
 has guaranteed departures
Accommodations
Comfortable hotels with private bathrooms. A few nights of basic accommodation. Comfort notes
9 days over 9,000 feet. Some rough/dusty roads and long drives. Temperatures can be cold at night at high altitude.
Day 1: Arrive in Kathmandu, Nepal Day 2: Kathmandu - Old City Day 3: Fly to Lhasa, Drive to Tsedang Day 4: Tsedang - Yambu Lakang Fort, Samye Monastery Day 5: To Lhasa, Norbulinka Day 6: Lhasa - Potala, Dragon Pool, Chagpori Hill Day 7: Lhasa - Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Bazaar, Drepung and Sera monasteries Day 8: To Gyantse via Kamba La and Karo La Pass Day 9: Palcho Monastery, Khumbum Stupa, Tashilhunpo Monastery, to Shigatse Day 10: Shigatse to Lhatse Day 11: Rongbuk Monastery - in the Shadow of Mt. Everest Day 12: Excursion to Everest Base Camp Day 13: Rongbuk to Tingri Day 15: To Dulikhel through the Himalayas Day 16: Bhaktapur, to Kathmandu Popular Combinations- Bhutan- Yunnan- China
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