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20 Days Tibet 4WD Adventure Tour
Driving From Chengdu to Lhasa
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This
route to Lhasa is the most
scenic overland route, crossing
several 4,000 m(13,123 ft)
passes, dropping down through
lush green valleys and gushing
gorges, and crossing picturesque
landscapes that Tibetans call
their 'backyard.' We begin
this three-week journey from
Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan,
and continue overland through
Ganzi prefecture into the
Tibetan Autonomous Region.
This journey will take you
to villages and communities
previously closed to most
travelers, both geographically
and culturally. Our Tibetan
guide will tell you about
Buddhism and its many sects,
explain Tibet's history and
teach you some phrases in
Tibetan to help you get to
know the local people. Traveling
by 4 WD vehicles, we have
the freedom to stop and explore
Tibet's sacred mountains and
monasteries, stay with local
Tibetan families and take
day hikes at your leisure
and whim.

Sichuan-Tibet Highway
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| D1 |
Chengdu
Arrive in Chengdu, meet
and greet at the airport,
trnasfer to the hotel(4
star), prepare for the
adventure, welcome dinner
with Sichuan special
Hotpot.
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| D2
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Chengdu/Kangding
We will leave for Kangding
in the morning. Once
outside the Sichuan
basin, we will begin
to climb the mountain
of the Erlang;you may
see Chinese army trucks
trudging along the road
carrying fuel and supplies.
Kangding is a fairly
large city tucked within
a river valley. The
sidewalks of Kangding
are crowded with Hui,
Chinese Muslims, and
Tibetans who have come
down from the highlands
to sell wild mushrooms,
vegetables, yak skins
and various paraphernalia,
stay in the hotel(about
2 star).
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| D3
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Kangding
We will visit the Tibetan
School, one of China's
specialized Tibetan
language institutions,
to learn some useful
Tibetan phrases to give
you a tool for communicating
during your journey.
We will also learn about
the art of Tibetan painting.
At lunch, we will have
the chance to practice
our lessons as we eat
with students. The afternoon
is spent exploring Kangding,
climbing the hill to
a monastery or relaxing
in the hot springs.
We will also learn about
the Kham Aid Foundation
and the many projects
this non-governmental
organization initiates
and supports. Stay in
the same.
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| D4
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Kangding/Rongbatsu
We will leave Kangding
in the morning to head
west, switch backing
up over Gye La pass
(4,290 m/14,075 ft)
and driving along tree-lined
roads through small
towns, each distinct
by their architectural
styles and characters.
We will stop along the
way to photograph wild
animals, herds of yaks,
temples, stupas, people
and anything that grabs
your fancy. Arriving
in Rongbatsu after a
full day's journey,
we will first rest our
weary bones in the hot
springs at the base
of stunning mountains.
The guest house is located
in an authentic Tibetan
home with traditional
design.
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| D5
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Rongbatsu
We left one day free
for you to explore the
area on your own or
with a guide. Hadi Nunnery
is a few hours walk
along the Yalong River
from the guest house,
where you can spend
an afternoon with Buddhist
nuns to learn about
their lives. You could
also meet Gyalten Lobsang
Shampa Rinpoche, a living
Buddha, visit the Dargye
Gonpa, a monastery belonging
to the Gelu sect, or
visit a local school.
Stay in the same.
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| D6
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Rongbatsu/Yihun
Lhatso(Xinlu Hai)
After a session of morning
prayer with the monks,
we will drive west for
three hours through
Manigango to a grassland
region known as Yilhun.
Here is one of the most
beautiful lakes in all
of Tibet, surrounded
by scenic mountains.
We will camp here, you
will have time to walk
along the pilgrim's
trail where you can
see thousands of carved
Mani stones.
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| D7 |
Yihun
Lhatso/ Dege
From the heights of
Tro La Pass (4,916 m/16,129
ft), we will have a
spectacular view of
the Yangtze gorge stretching
into the southwestern
region. The landscape
makes a dramatic ascent
into a blanket of pine
forests as we approach
Dege, the heart of Kham,
a large kingdom which
until recently occupied
the region. There are
plenty of places to
explore in Dege; Dege
Printing House has a
library of more than
270,000 plate blocks
used to print Buddhist
sutras; and across the
street stands the Tongtong
Gyalpo Temple, a charming
old temple which miraculously
escaped the Cultural
Revolution, and therefore
retains many original
murals and objects.
The Tibetan Medicine
Hospital, which is also
a factory, is a storehouse
of herbs, antlers, bats,
snakes and other plants
and animals collected
from the far reaches
of the Tibetan plateau.
Stay in a guesthouse.
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| D8 |
Dege/Pelpung
Ride horse from Dege
to Pelpung (Babang).We
will have breakfast
with a Tibetan family
who will accompany us
with their horses over
to the Palpung Tubten
Chokhorling Monastery,
where we will stay the
night. Palpung ranks
second in the hierarchy
of Karma Kagyu sect
monasteries, and has
Ugyen Rinpoche, an 11-year-old
(in 2000) living Buddha,
in residence. The route
from Derge to the monastery
takes us through endless
fields of maize and
barley growing on a
steep hillside. Once
over Gotse La Pass (4,481
m/14701 ft), the expanse
of land belongs to the
nomads living in yak
hair tents.
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| D9 |
Pelpung/Pewar
Ride horse from Pelpung
to Pewar. Traveling
along the river and
through wheat fields,
we will reach the Temple
of Pewar, which houses
one of the finest sets
of Buddhist murals in
western Sichuan. The
paintings, which are
more than 270 years
old and cover more than
370 square meters(1214
sq ft), miraculously
survived the destruction
inflicted by the Cultural
Revolution. We will
spend a leisurely afternoon
here drinking tea and
eating tsampa with the
rinpoche. With a bit
of luck we may have
the privilege of viewing
the monastery's exclusive
artworks and treasures,
which are locked safely
behind ancient carved
wooden doors. Stay overnight
in the temple.
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| D10
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Pewar/Dege/Jomda
Ride horse back to Dege,
then drive to Jomda.
From Pelyul county,
we will cross the Yangtze
river, which marks the
political border between
Sichuan Province and
Tibet Autonomous Region.
After crossing Nge La
(4,245 m/13927 ft),
we are welcomed by Wara
Gonpa, an important
monastery of the Sakya
school. We will stop
for the night in Jomda,
a moderately large town,
at a finely decorated
wooden cabin, and pay
a visit to a Tibetan
hospital which supplies
herbal medicine throughout
the region.
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| D11
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Jomda
/Changdu
Drive from Jomda to
Chamdo. Reaching the
end of the day would
seem like a mighty feat
as we will be crossing
over no less than four
passes - Khargang La
(4,352 m/14278 ft),
Lashi La (4,450 m/14600
ft), Jape La (4,680
m/15354 ft), and Tama
La (4,511 m/14800 ft),
with clutters of prayer
flags waving in the
wind on the peaks and
friendly nomads waving
at us from the grasslands.
Stay in a hotel in Chamdo(about
3 star).
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| D12
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Changdu
Relax in Chamdo. Straddling
the Mekong river, Chamdo
possesses a rich history
as one of the earliest
centers of the Tibetan
plateau and home to
Kalden Jampaling, the
great monastery founded
between 1436-44 and
developed through the
centuries by successive
incarnations. While
the original monastery
was destroyed in 1912
by the Chinese, it was
rebuilt when the Tibetan
army seized Chamdo in
1917. We will spend
the day stretching our
legs, exploring the
monastery and shopping
in Tromzikhang, an open-air
market where colorfully
dressed Tibetans pawn
their wares and antique
goods. Stay in the 3
star hotel.
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| D13
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Changdu/Bangda
We follow the Mekong
downstream through alpine
forests to Kyitang village,
where the Khampa houses
are sturdily built on
horizontal timbers.
We then turn west to
cross the Lona Pass
(4,511 m/14800 ft) and
follow the Yu-chu river
downstream to Bangda,
a town junction where
Lhasa connects to the
Chamdo-Kunming Highway.The
Yu-chu valley lies north
of the Salween gorges
in the highlands of
Tsawagang, where the
immense geographic spatial
dimensions of the land
dwarf our presence.
Stay in a local guesthouse.
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| D14
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Bangda/Baxu
While distance covered
is less than 100 km
(63 mi) and probably
half that by the way
the crow flies, the
terrain is steep, as
defined by the 180 switchbacks
we will conquer when
we cross Gama La Pass
at an altitude of 4,618
meters. Stay in a local
guesthouse.
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D15
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Baxu/Ranwu/Bomi
On the road to Bomi,
we will stop in Ranwu
to cast our lines in
the pristine waters
of Ngan Tso, a spectacularly
crystal blue lake cupped
by snow peaks. After
our lunch of freshly
caught fish, we will
wander along the Poto-chu
Valley at Tramog (2,743
m/8999 ft), located
deep in the thickly
forested gorge of Parlung
Tsangpo with glacial
waterfalls streaming
from the mountainsides.
We will go down several
hundred meters in altitude
as we reach the lowland
jungle settlement of
Tang-me where the Tsangpo
and Parlung Tsangpo
rivers meet. Stay in
a guesthouse in Bomi.
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| D16 |
Bomi/Nyingchi
Drive
across Serkhyem La Pass
(4,515 m/14813 ft), the
last major pass before
reaching Lhasa, we will
have spectacular views
of Mount Gyala Pelri (7,150
m/23458 ft) and Mount
Namchak Barwa (7,756 m/25446
ft). On the way to Nyingchi,
we pass through Bayi,
originally a military
base, which has now become
the capital of Nyingchi
District. North of Bayi,
Bajie village lies on
the edge of a primary
dense forest with sacred
cypress trees which are
more than two thousand
and five hundred years
old. Around May, we would
be able to see three to
five-meter rhododendrons
in full bloom. Stay in
a 3 star hotel in Bayi.
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| D17 |
Nyingchi/Lhasa(270
kilometres)
We will pass through a
scenic terrain with lush
alpine forests and clear
snow-melted streams. Relax
in Lhasa hotel, the best
hotel in Lhasa. |
| D18 |
Lhasa
Visit Potala Palace, Jokang
Temple , Bakhor Bazaar,
stay in the same. |
| D19 |
Lhasa
Visit Drepung Monastery,
Sera Monastery, and Norbulingka,
stay in the same. |
| D20 |
Lhasa
Free in the morning, transfer
you to the airport for
your flight. |
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Suitable
Time: all year.
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| Price: |
More
than 10 pax: |
USD
3280$/person |
6-9 pax: |
USD
3700$/person |
2-5 pax: |
USD
4980$/person |
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USD
6800$ |
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| Land
Cost includes: |
| 1.Land
transfer service(4WD max.4
guests in a group). |
| 2.3
meals daily(some picnic). |
| 3.Experienced
driver. |
| 4.Scenic
spots admission fee. |
| 5.3-4
star hotel in Big City and the
best hotel or the guest house
or camping in the rest region
(twin share). |
| 6.All
entrance permit to Tibet, tent,
all domestic flights/trains/local
airport taxes as listed in the
itinerary. |
| Land
Cost excludes: |
| 1.Sleeping
bag. |
| 2.Tips
to tour guide and driver. |
| 3.International
flights and related airport
taxes. |
| 4.Supplementary
trips and services not mentioned |
| 5.Personal
expenses. |
| 6.Visa
costs. |
| 7.Single
supplement cost for those who
wants to accommodate on a single
basis. |
| 8.The
extra cost due to the unforeseen
events. |
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