This is still very much in the "gee, what do you think?" stage of discussion, but I might be headed to Tibet after Thanksgiving with a friend...
I'd like to get a feel for what is in store, in terms of ballpark figures for flights, if we do decide to go to Tibet. But that involves figuring out *where* to enter Tibet - through Nepal or through China.
Which is cheaper to fly into from California - Nepal or China? Easier? (Hopefully both, at the same time!)
I'd like to get a feel for what is in store, in terms of ballpark figures for flights, if we do decide to go to Tibet. But that involves figuring out *where* to enter Tibet - through Nepal or through China.
Which is cheaper to fly into from California - Nepal or China? Easier? (Hopefully both, at the same time!)
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SF Bay Area
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Mon, October 1, 2007 - 6:50 AMI went overland from Kathmandu. Not sure what the current situation is for entering, check the Lonely Planet Throntree.. might have most recent info. If you do go overland, be careful of altitude sickness. I was ok b/c I had just spent two weeks at altitude near Everest base camp. There were others on the trip who got sick. You at least want to adjust to Kathmandu first. We went as high as 5,200+ meters crossing those mountains. The elevation is no joke. There is so little atmosphere that the sky is dark blue even in the middle of the day. It's really amazing -- probably the most remote place I've ever been in my life.
The overland trips from Nepal take 5 days to get to Lhasa. They stop along the way in various towns, and include a tour guide. You get to see a few famous temples and a lot of beautiful scenery.
Let me know if you want to see pictures.
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Mon, October 1, 2007 - 1:30 PMHey there, So I flew to tibet from kathmandu last November, As costs are concerned flying to China then taking the train to Lhasa from beijing would be well easier and cheaper for you, Also you won't have to be in a *tour* if you enter from China.. It took me a month to happily see the sights they rush you through in 5 days, plus extras.... give yourself time to wander if you have it,
But DO, DO, DO go! Tibet is rapidly changing.. they (china) are looking to increase tourism by 700% by next year for the olympic games..
Tibet was such an amazing experience, go now if you have the chance. -
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Mon, October 1, 2007 - 8:57 PMThey let you just go in now not on a tour? Wow, things are changing. When I was there they were building the railroad, but it wasn't open yet. The only option was to take the tour. Was it hard getting your own transport around from place to place?
Did you have to get a Chinese visa? My Tibet permit (piece of faxed paper folded in quarters and stapled to my passport, which was then taken away from me when I left -- no stamp) was 20 days, 5 days tour to Lhasa then 15 days to do what I wished. They said in Kathmandu I could travel to the rest of China on that, so I went on to Beijing and Shanghai. You should have seen me trying to fly back to Thailand from Shanghai without a Chinese visa in my passport. They almost didn't let me leave. They had never seen the Tibet papers before. So I've been to China without a Chinese visa. So disorganized! -
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Mon, October 1, 2007 - 9:17 PMThe people I met who came out from china proper didn't need to be in a tour and got a Three months visa (instead of my paultry three weeks.. coming from Nepal) Coming from Nepal, you have to be in a tour. The *tour* I bought consisted of a flight to Lhasa and ride to the city (they are kinda far away) then we were set free. The only way to go overland from Nepal is to be in the 5 day trip, which is mad because of the elevation changes among other things...
I too only got a piece of paper which they took when I came back into Nepal :( transportation was a bitch. regular buses dont run, if they do at all... and when there were buses sometimes they wouldn''t take us, or try to charge us 5 times the amount... It made for an interesting journey though, riding in the back of tractors with sheep, stowed away in mini-vans.. Hiring a driver is a possibility though, but my friend and I are cheap and like the hassle somewhat so we just did it the hard way... all this is supposedly changing though as tourism increases... I think the chinese have a bit more of "cleaning" up to do before they open it wide. -
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Wed, May 14, 2008 - 12:56 PMWhat about airfare and can i touchdown Lhasa directly? -
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Re: traveling to Tibet?
Thu, May 15, 2008 - 9:24 AMIt can be done, yes--flights from Beijing to Lhasa are available, although from what I understand the Lhasa airport is periodically closed to civilian planes. Check the Thorn Tree forums (thorntree.lonelyplanet.com) for more up-to-date info on that.
Flights are very expensive, though, as well as likely bureaucratic--I just got quotes from Air China for 11/27-12/10 that range between $800 and more than $900.
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