Arrival dates in Kathmandu ( 2004)

24th Jun (Thu)*Jul 22 (Thu)**, 22nd Aug (Sun), 21st Sep (Tue) and 21st Oct (Thu).

Passengers arriving Kathmandu on 24th Jun and 22nd Jul will have 1 and 2 extra nights in Kathmandu respectively than the regular itinerary given below and are subject to extra charge. The dates are set on the basis that we can have your original passport to make your Chinese/Tibet visa ( Working days Mon, Wed and Fri from 0930 am to 1130 am) and such that you will be in Holy Manasarovara on Full Moon Day.

Day 01:- Arrival in Kathmandu. (D)

Meet our representative at the airport and transfer to hotel. Free day.
Hotel Hyatt Regency or Yak n Yeti

Day 02:- Kathmandu (B)

Today, you will explore the ancient and medieval arts and architecture of Kathmandu. You will visit Pashupatinath-the holiest of the Hindu temples, Bodhanath-the biggest of the Buddhist stupas and Bhaktapur-the city of devotees. Free afternoon for you to prepare for the trip. Overnight hotel.
Hotel Hyatt Regency or Yak n Yeti

Day 03:- Drive to Nyalam (3760m, 122km, 6-7 hrs) (B/L/D)

Leave Kathmandu early morning. Breakfast stop in Dhulikhel, a 45 minutes drive. In total, Kathmandu-Tibet border is 113km through the villages, roadside bazaars and terraced hills and takes 4 hours to complete on normal condition. On an inclement weather day, you may come across the landslides, which can make you walk across and change to a locally available vehicle. After clearing immigration formalities in both the Nepal and China side, we will continue to Nyalam. Meals and accommodation in guesthouse.

Day 04:- Rest in Nyalam (B/L/D)

Its important to halt today in Nyalam for proper acclimatization. You can visit the temple-Nyalam Pelgye Ling associated with Milareppa. The temple lies in a short way out of the town. Overnight guesthouse.

Day 05:- Nyalam-Pelku-Tso -Saga (4280m, 250km, 8 hrs) (B/L/D)

Today's drive involves crossing of two high passes and passes by a lake called Pelkutso where you will be served packed lunch. Lablung La ( 5030m) offers spectacular views of Mt. Sishapangma (8021m), Gaurishanker and many other peaks, all of which are dwarfed by the Tibetan plateau. You will cross the Bramhaputra River just before Saga. Overnight camp in Saga.

Day 06:- Saga-Zhongba-Paryang (4540m, 255km, 8 hrs) (B/L/D)

It is at Saga where you will connect the main road from Lhasa. We continue on across the vast dry plains to the small Tibetan town-Zhongba and from here further to Paryang for overnight stay. Overnight camp in Paryang.

Day 07:- Paryang-Lake Manasarovara (4560m, 250km, 8 hrs) (B/L/D)

Today's drive involves crossing of several rivers but has some of the most panoramic scenery. Today, crews will set your camp by the sacred Manasarovar Lake-which according to Hindu mythology was formed in the mind of Brahma-the creator of the world. Today, you will have the first Darshan of holy Mt. Kailash from Horqu. Overnight camp.

Day 08:- Halt at Lake Manasarovara
( Full moon days: Jul 02, Jul 31, Aug 30, Sep 28, Oct 28) (B/L/D)

Today, we will halt in Manasarovara Lake for holy dip, puja and other ritual performance. You can take leisurely walk or excursion along the lakeside. Overnight camp.

Day 09:- Lake Manasarovara-Darchen (4660m, 30km, 2 hrs). (B/L/D)

It's a short drive, about 2 hours to Darchen. After lunch, you would like to prepare yourself for the three days trekking. Crews will be busy in arranging yaks and the gears. Overnight guesthouse.
Day 10:- Darchen-Dira Phuk Gompa (4909m, 6 hrs trekking) (B/L/D)

Tarboche, marked by Tibetan flags is the starting point for kora and is the site for Tibet's most important annual Saga Dawa festival. Walk up the Lha Chu Valley through beautiful green meadows and streams with Mt Kailash towering above us. We follow the river, which enters a narrow canyon with high, steep cliffs and spectacular waterfalls. Continuing up the valley, the north face of Kailash comes into view before we reach the 13th century monastery at Dira-phuk. Overnight camp.
Day 11:- Drira Phuk Monastery-Zuthul-Phuk (4790m, 7 hrs trekking) (B/L/D)

Bid farewell to Lha Chu Valley and prepare to fight the toughest part of the kora. You will enter the Drolma Chu Valley, heading up towards a high pass, the Drolma La [5630m] that is marked Tibetan prayer flags. The rest of the day's walk is mostly downhill and flat land. On descent, you will pass by one of the highest lakes in the world, Thukpe Dzingbu Lake, known as the Lake of Compassion. Zuthulphuk monastery is built at the site of a famous cave, which is believed to have been created as a result of contest between Milareppa (Buddhist Teacher) and Naro Bonchung (Bon Saint). Overnight camp.

Day 12:- Trek to Darchen (4560m, 3 hrs trekking) (B/L/D)

The final day of the kora is rather shorter and easier. It takes merely 2 ½ to 3 hours that involves crossing of several streams and also follows an impressive gorge from where you would like to look back for fabulous views. Overnight guesthouse.

Day 13:- Darchen to Paryang (B/L/D)

It's a long drive approx 300km to Paryang past Mayun La and involves crossing of several rivers. Overnight Camp

Day 14:- Paryang to Saga (B/L/D)

Its another long day drive, 255 km to Saga passing through the small, dusty town of Zhongba en route. Overnight camp.

Day 15:- Saga to Nyalam (B/L/D)

We will leave Saga and cross the Yarlung Tsangpo [Brahmaputra River] by ferry. Keep on going for 110km across the massive open plains. You will be again greeted by the breathtaking views of Himalayas. Continue on via Pelkutso to Nyalam or if time permits if you further drive another one and half hour to Zhangmu. Overnight at guesthouse.

Day 16:- Exit to Nepal border and drive to

Kathmandu.[2300m] (B)
One and half hour's drive brings you to Zhangmu where you will have to go through immigration and custom formalities and drive further 20 minutes downhill to the friendship bridge. In another four-hour's drive, you will reach Kathmandu. Overnight hotel.
Hotel Hyatt Regency or Yak n Yeti

Day 17:- Kathmandu (B)

Today, you will have free day for shopping or optional trips in Kathmandu Valley.
Hotel Hyatt Regency or Yak n Yeti

Day 18:- Departure (B)

Transfer to airport for your flight back home.
Price ( Nepal +Tibet)

Group Size.
Our Target group size is 16 persons on scheduled trips but we can operate the trip for as minimum as 2 participants on private basis with some extra supplement on the given price. We do not cancel the trip even in the case of failure of meeting the targeted group size if the participants agree to pay the supplement.

Land Transportation
We use 4WD land cruisers for surface transportation in Tibet, as the road is quite rough. Our supplier maintains good conditioned jeeps each of 4-5-pax carrying capacity. Truks are used for the transportation of gears, supplies and crews. Our drivers are very careful in maintaining the conditions of their vehicles but at times, mechanical problems can come up because of poor road conditions. So, we would like to request you to be patient and co-operate them, while they are fixing the vehicles. At times, because of landslides or other climatic factors, if the vehicle needs to run extra miles than in the normal route, the guide will collect a nominal amount of money from each participant to compensate the consumption of the fuel.

Nearly the half portion of road between Kathmandu to Tibet border also lies in the landslide zone and the road can be temporarily blocked time to time during the rainy months. Service of porters may be needed to take your luggage and gears across and a substitute vehicle may have to be arranged on the spot for further transportation. Our local management tries their best to absorb the cost but if it goes beyond their budget, they may request you to contribute a nominal amount.

Guide and Crews
The Guide and drivers will be local Tibetans or Chinese. The Guide speaks enough English and communication will not be a problem. He will be dealing with the beaurocracies, local check posts and also will provide you a valuable insight into the Tibetan way of life. Besides, there will be Nepalese Tour Leader, Sherpas, cook and kitchen-helpers. Nepalese Tour Leader will be responsible for maintaining the quality of service and mediating for co-ordination between the Nepalese and Tibetan crews.
Under the leadership of the Nepalese Tour Leader, the crews will try their best to make the trip as smooth as possible. At the end of the trip, you may want to make them happy by tipping them as your appreciation for their service. They will be happy to receive any amount but approximately USD 2-3 per person is a good tip.
During the trekking portion, we will be using Yaks for transportation of your luggage and supplies.

Food
Our trips include breakfast while in hotel portion and 3 meals a day while in camping. Hotels in Lhasa, Gyantse, Xigatse and Zhangmu can cater continental and Chinese dishes. While in camping portion of the trip, our kitchen crews prepare tasty, plentiful and nutritious meals daily with a variety of local and Western dishes. The day starts with breakfast consisting porridge, muesli and cereal followed by choice of egg items and traditional bread.Lunch is generally a selection of salad, cooked vegetable dishes, pasta and traditional breads. After a long day on the trail, dinner is a hearty 3-course meal - soup, followed by a variety of vegetable, meat, rice and pasta dishes and completed with a simple dessert.Tea, coffee and hot chocolate are also provided at all meals. We use as much fresh produce as possible and our cooks and kitchen crew maintain exceptional standards of cleanliness and food preparation hygiene. Special dietary requirements can always be catered for.

Money
The Chinese currency is known as Renminbi [RMB] that means "People's Money". The exchange rate for RMB is approximately 8 RMB to 1 US$. You can change money at the hotels in Lhasa and in the Bank of China in Lhasa, Gyantse, Shigatse and Zhangmu. American Express and VISA cards are also accepted in those places but in even a RMB 100 or RMB 50 bill can be difficult for getting changes in rural areas. As you will be needing money for drinks and souvenirs only, you may expect to spend about USD 100 to spend in a week or so.

Time
Tibet uses standard Beijing time, which is 8 hours ahead of GMT and 2 hours 15 minutes of Nepal. So when you cross the border to or from Nepal the time change is considerable. In the evening at the border towns, while people in Nepal side are still busy in activities, you can see Tibetans already shut the door.

Your Day on The Road.
After breakfast, we set out on our day's drive at about 9am. We'll drive for several hours, stopping along the way for photographs or places of special interest, before stopping for lunch at around midday. The kitchen crew serves packed-lunch. After lunch, we continue our journey, generally arriving at our destination by 3 or 4pm.
We recommend your personal stuffs to be carried with you in the jeep. Dry foods like chocolates or energy bars are good if the trucks with crew and lunch do not show up in time. Yeah, its possible, some time because of road condition or mechanical problems, the trucks may not catch up with the jeeps and you may have to wait hours!

Your Day In The Mountain
You will be greeted early morning in the tent by your crew with a hot cup of tea, followed by a bowl of hot water for washing. After packing our bags and having a good breakfast, we set off on the morning's walk. All you need to carry is a small day pack containing water bottle, camera, sunscreen lotion, hat, raincoat and a warm jumper will be useful if the weather suddenly worsens. Rest of your stuff, gears and supplies will be carried by yaks. After a 3-4 hours walk, we stop for lunch at around midday. The walk after lunch is rather shorter and you may arrive in the campsite around 4 pm. You can best use the remainder of the day by exploring the nearby villages, doing a bit of washing or simply relaxing with a good book.
Dinner is usually served between 6 and 7pm and after dinner, the evening will often be spent playing cards or Chess and talking with the crew, or perhaps even joining in some singing and dancing, before heading off to the tent for a well-earned sleep.

Climate
Because of the high altitude of Tibetan plateau, the climate is rather harsh.But the daytime temperatures are actually quite mild. Between April and November the average temperature ranges from 15 - 25 degrees Celsius and you will be amazed to see the clear blue sky. From July to August, though, a brief shower can be expected during the day. The nights, however, can become very cold with temperatures dropping below 0 degrees Celsius.

Visa and Permits
If you enter and exit Tibet via Nepal, of course you will require multiple entry facility for Nepla. You can obtain Nepalese visa from your nearest Nepalese Embassies or consulates or upon arrival in Nepal. The airlines crew will provide you visa application form with which you will have to attach two passport size photographs.

For, Tibet, we will arrange a group visa (If you are entering Tibet from Nepal) for which we will need a copy of your passport along with your profession and address details at the time of booking of the trip. Please note that, your passport validity should be no less than 6 months from the date of the trip and that there are enough blank pages for entry and departure stamps. Your original passport has to be available in Kathmandu at least a week ago from the trip date for regular processing. For emergency processing, there will be some extra charges on visa fee.

If you want to enter Tibet from China or other countries, you can get visa individually from your nearest Chinese embassies abroad. Besides, a separate Tibet travel permit is required which will be faxed to you before you enter Tibet.

Kailash and other local permits are arranged by our Tibetan counterpart locally.

Entry Points
Basically our trips originate and end in Kathmandu. However, you can also fly from Beijing, Chengdu and Xian into Lhasa and join the group there.

Health
The main health concern in Tibet is altitude illness or Acute Mountain Sickness [AMS]. You may experience some mild symptoms initially, such as headache, lethargy, nausea and difficulty sleeping, but these should disappear in a few days. Hotels in Lhasa are equipped with oxygen and doctors will also be available on call.A supply of bottled oxygen and a portable pressure chamber [PAC/gamow bag] are carried in the vehicle at all times should they be required.
People with cardiac and pulmonary complaints are required to consult with their doctors before they decide to participate on Kailash trips.

Insurance
You will be traveling in Tibet at your own risk. Tibet, being a land of geographical difficulties, limited facilities, harsh weather, unfavorable conditions, etc , you will have to realize that problem can come up concerning your health, safety and comfort that can result into cancellation of your trip. So, you are recommended to have a valid insurance policy to cover all such losses due to above-mentioned reasons.