Travel Permit and Military Permit

For Tibet tours, foreign travelers must have not only a standard Chinese visa but also a special travel permit which must be issued in either Lhasa,Chengdu, Kunming, Beijing, Xi’an or Xining. That means that a standard Chinese visa is not sufficient for Tibet tour, and individual travel for foreigners is not permitted within Tibet, in some special places, travelers must even have military permit also. Chinese visa are generally obtained from most Chinese embassies and consulates.

To obtain such permits, it is necessary to make your travel arrangements through a bona fide agency, providing details of full name, sex, nationality, date of birth, occupation, and passport number. Please note that it’s also impossible to obtain flights to Tibet without the Travel permit.

The permits themselves specify every destination and town that you wish to visit and can not be changed once you have arrived in Tibet, therefore be certain to detail all possible destinations in your request as well as the route you wish to follow.

Highlights in Lhasa area

Potala Palace was originally constructed in 637 by Songtsen Gampo, the first king of the united Tibet, and later expanded and served as the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas as well as the religious-political nexus of traditional Tibet. Potala consists of the White and Red palaces with more than 1000 rooms. The white places was for secular use. It contained living quarters, offices, the seminary and the printing house. The red Palace's function was religious. It contained gold stupas, which were the tombs of eight Dalai Lamas, the monks' assembly hall, numerous chapels and shrines, and libraries for Buddhist Scriptures.

Johkang Temple

It is the most revered religious structure in Tibet. Although little remains of its 7th century origins and most of the sculptures that adorn its interior postdate the Cultural Revolution, the Jokhang bustling with worshippers and redolent with mystery, is an unrivalled Tibetan experience. Princess Wencheng is said to have chosen the site of the Jokhang, and just to be difficult she chose Lake Wothang. Over the centuries, the Jokhang has undergone many renovations, but the basic layout is ancient and differs from many other Tibetan religious structures-one crucial difference is the east-west orientation of the building, said to face towards Nepal to honour Queen Bhrikuti.

Sera Monastery

The monastery, around 5 km north of central Lhasa, was along with Drepung one of Lhasa's two great Gelugpa monasteries. Its once huge monastic population of about 5000 monks has now been reduced to several hundred, and building repairs are still continuing. The monastery is worth a visit, particularly from around 3.30 pm onwards when debating is usually held in the monastery's debating courtyard.

Drepung Monastery

About 8 km to the west of central Lhasa, Drepung was once the world's largest monastery, with a population of around 10,000 monks. The word Drepung literally translates as "rice heap", a reference to the huge numbers of white monastic buildings that once piled up on the hillside. The monastery was founded in 1416 by a charismatic monk and disciple of Tsongkhapa called Jamyang Choje. He was able to raise funds for the project quickly and within a year of completion the monastery already hosted a population of 2000 monks. By the time of the 5th Dalai Lama in the early 17th century, the number of resident monks was somewhere between 7000 and 10,000. Today there are around 600 monks in residentce.

Barkhor Area

Barkhor, Lhasa's pilgrimage circuit, a quadrangle of streets that old buildings adjoining it. It is an area unrivalled in Tibet for its fascinating combination of deep religiosity and push-and-shove market economics. This is both the spiritual heart of the holy city and the main commercial district.

Norbulingka

The Summer Palace of the Dalai Lamas. The gardens arepoorly tended and the palaces themselves are something of an anticlimax, especially as most rooms are currently closed to the public. This place is well worth a visit and the park is a great place to be at festival times and public holidays. During the 7th lunar month of every year the Norbulingka is crowded with picnickers for the Shotun festival.Traditional Tibetan opera performances are also held at this time.

Gandan Monastery

Situated 45 kilometers east of Lhasa, the monastery of Gandan was founded in 1409 by Tsongkhapa on the Gokpori ridge of Mount Wangkur, overlooking the south bank of the river and the Phenyul valley beyond. Gandan was the first and foremost Gelukpa monastery, constructed by Tsongkhapa himself >>>> Back