Festival Tours of Tibet

Nakchu horse race festival is the grandest festival in northern Tibet. This festival is celebrated in August each year. When the day comes, the people gather in Nakchu dressed their traditional costumes. Tents of every kind are scattered across the grassland like flowers blooming. In this 5 day tour you will see marvelous scenery and take in the festival atmosphere and allow you an unforgettable experience.

Day by Day Itinerary

Day 1
Place & Transport: Arrive in Lhasa, Flight not included
Today's Activities: Airport to Hotel Transfer (Lhasa)

Day 2
Place & Transport: Lhasa
Today's Activities: Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Street
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch at Kechu Hotel

- Potala Palace (1 hour): Former winter home of the Dalai Lama, a vast, awe-inspiring maze of corridors and stairs leading through countless rooms of richly decorated statues, tombs, murals and antiques. You will climb past the White Palace into the Red Palace, where the file of pilgrims offering silk scarves, coins or yak butter to burn in the shrines combine to make this an unforgettable experience. Note: you need to be fit for the long stairways.

- Jokhang Temple (2 hours): Smaller and more manageable than the Potala, this 4-storey, golden-roofed temple is at the heart of a rich and living Tibetan Buddhism. Many locals pray here regularly; the Temple is surrounded by Barkhor Street and thronged with pilgrims and visitors. Yak butter lamps burn in front of rich statuary that includes the Sakyamuni Buddha brought to Tibet by Princess Wen Cheng in the 7th Century.
- Barkhor Street (2 hours): Watch the pilgrims, wearing local dress from many different parts of Tibet, as they circle clockwise around Jokhang Temple with prayer wheels, or prostrate themselves near the front gate. Join the locals and visitors to shop for local goods at the colourful stalls, or relax in a coffee shop or tea house to enjoy the passing parade.

- Kechu Hotel : The Kechu hotel and restaurant has a beautiful garden and provides Tibetan and Nepal food.
Nakchu Horse Race Festival
Nakchu Horse Race Festival

Day 3
Place & Transport: Lhasa to Naqju
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

Detailed Itinerary: Today we will transfered from Lhasa to Nakchu to visit the Nakchu Festival.Chachen horse race festival at Nakchu is a very typical festival in Northern Tibet, about this festival, it could be traced back to the 8 century when Gar Family was in power ruling Tibet on behalf of the Kings of Tibet Tubo dynasty.This festival always happens on August every year. Tibetans is a nationaty on horse back, they treasure horses as their friends and as one of the family member, they never kill horses for meat, because they thought horses are the messengers of the God.Nakchu horse race festival is the grandest festival in northern Tibet. When the day comes, the romands people would gather in Nakchu, grandly dressed. Tents of any kind scatter across the grassland like flowers bloom.In the days, such games as horse racing, yak racing, wrestling, stone lifting, riffle/arrow shooting on horse back, and talk - show, show of the art of horse riding will be held, for romands, it is a good time to chat with each other, change goods and buy necessities. And also it is the good time for young people to know each other and fall in love.

Day 4
Place & Transport: Naqju to Lhasa
Today's Activities: Nakchu Horse Race Festival
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch

- Nakchu Horse Race Festival: This festival always happens on August every year.When the day comes, the romands people would gather in Nakchu, grandly dressed. Tents of any kind scatter across the grassland like flowers bloom.In the days, such games as horse racing, yak racing, wrestling, stone lifting, riffle/arrow shooting on horse back, and talk - show, show of the art of horse riding will be held.
Doing the daily practice
Doing the daily practice

Day 5
Place & Transport: Lhasa
Today's Activities: Norbulingka, Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch at Lhasa Kitchen

- Norbulingka (2.5 hours): Norbulingka means "Jeweled Garden". It was constructed as a summer palace for the Dalai Lama and later served the whole governmental administration.

- Sera Monastery (3 hours): It is known as one of the three greatest monasteries of Tibet. As one of the three main monasteries of Lhasa, it is here that the monks "famous daily debates" take place.

- Drepung Monastery (3.5 hours): Drepung Monastery lies in west of Lhasa under Mt. Gambo Utse, clustered round by the black mountain, its white grand buildings shining under the sunlight. Built in 1416, it is considered as one of the largest monasteries in the six principle monasteries of Gelu Sect in China. Drepung Monastery used to be the living palace of Dalai Lamas before the reconstruction of Potala palace (after the 5th Dalai Lamas was bestowed by Qing emperor Qianlong). The grand Shonton Festival is hold in the early part of August every year. That is the busiest day there with crowds of people. It is an opportunity to enjoy the atmosphere of this festival.

- Lhasa Kitchen: Lhasa Kitchen is near the Jokhang Temple. It is decorated by merging Tibetan style with Indian, Nepalese, Chinese and Italian architecture. It serves a variety of styles of food.

Day 6
Place & Transport: Depart Lhasa, Flight not included
Today's Activities: Hotel to airport Transfer (Lhasa)
Meals: Breakfast

Travel Tips:

• Hotels are generally poor in some regions of Tibet. Staff will probably not speak much English.
• Visitors should respect local customs and traditions.
• The quality of the restaurants will not be as high in some less developed parts of China. lots of people will gathering to have meal in the restaurant in duration, so that will takes sometime for serve the food.

Enjoy your Tibet Festival Tour