Lhasa, China 7 Day Itinerary

Lhasa sits at 3,656 metres above sea level. Before you plan a single activity, that number determines everything: your pace, what you eat the first two days, whether you need medication, and how seriously you take the instruction to rest. Most visitors who have a miserable first week in Tibet ignored the acclimatisation requirement. The city itself, with the Potala Palace rising on its red hill, the Jokhang Temple at the centre of Tibetan Buddhist pilgrimage, and the Barkhor circuit alive with circumambulating pilgrims at all hours, is extraordinary once your body has adjusted.

Permits: What You Must Arrange Before Arriving

No foreign passport holder can visit Tibet independently. The law requires you to travel with a licensed Tibet travel agency that provides a guide, a private vehicle, pre-booked hotels, and arranges the Tibet Travel Permit on your behalf. The permit application takes approximately 20 working days to process; submit copies of your valid passport and Chinese visa to your chosen agency well in advance. Your agency will courier the permit to your address in China, as it cannot be mailed internationally. Without this permit you will be denied boarding for any flight or train to Lhasa. Budget a minimum of USD 100 to 150 per day for agency-arranged tours covering guide, vehicle, and accommodation; prices vary significantly by standard of hotel and group versus private arrangement.

Getting to Lhasa

Gonggar Airport (LXA) is 64 kilometres from central Lhasa. The airport expressway reduces the journey to approximately one hour by taxi or airport shuttle bus. The shuttle costs 30 CNY per person. Taxis are faster and cost roughly 150 to 200 CNY; your guide will typically arrange the pickup as part of the tour package. The Tibet Railway (from Xining or Beijing) is the famous alternative: the Qinghai-Tibet Railway crosses the Tibetan Plateau at altitudes above 5,000 metres and the 48-hour journey from Beijing is an experience in itself, arriving at Lhasa Railway Station on the city’s west side.

Day 1: Arrival and Absolute Rest

Do not visit anything today. This is not a suggestion. Fly into Gonggar, transfer to your hotel, and lie down. Lhasa’s altitude is high enough to cause acute mountain sickness (AMS) in healthy people; symptoms include headache, dizziness, shortness of breath, nausea, and disrupted sleep. Drink water consistently, avoid alcohol for the first 48 hours, and eat light meals. Tibetan butter tea (po cha, made from tea, yak butter, and salt) is the local cure-all and it actually helps with hydration. Your guide can source it from a local eatery near the hotel. Some travellers use Diamox (acetazolamide) as a prophylactic; consult your doctor before the trip. The Shangri-La Lhasa Hotel and St. Regis Lhasa are the most comfortable options for a high-altitude first night; the oxygen-supplemented rooms are worth the extra cost.

Day 2: Barkhor Street and Jokhang Temple (Exterior)

On the second day, cautious exploration is possible. The Barkhor circuit, a pilgrimage kora (circumambulation route) surrounding the Jokhang Temple in the old city centre, is flat and absorbing. Tibetan pilgrims, some of whom have walked hundreds of kilometres, complete the circuit with prayer wheels spinning and beads counting. Join the clockwise flow and walk it twice; the market stalls selling thangka paintings, prayer flags, incense, and turquoise jewellery occupy every gap between the shrine stations. Do not enter the Jokhang Temple itself today; save the interior for Day 3 when you are better acclimatised. Lunch near Barkhor at a small Tibetan restaurant; thenthuk (hand-pulled noodle soup) and momo (steamed dumplings filled with yak meat or vegetables) are filling, easy to digest, and available everywhere in the old quarter. Return to the hotel by early afternoon.

Day 3: Jokhang Temple and Potala Palace Exterior

The Jokhang Temple is the spiritual heart of Tibetan Buddhism, built in the 7th century by King Songtsen Gampo and housing a gold statue of the Jowo Shakyamuni believed to have been blessed by the historical Buddha. Queues form from early morning; arrive before 9am. The roof offers a view of the Potala Palace on the hill to the west, which provides good orientation.

Walk from the Jokhang to the Potala Palace Plaza in the afternoon and photograph the palace from the square; the full climb to the interior requires a separate booking. Entry to the Potala Palace is quota-controlled with daily visitor limits. Your travel agency must book this in advance; tickets cannot be purchased at the gate on the day. The interior tour takes approximately two hours and covers the White Palace and Red Palace, the latter containing the golden chortens (stupas) of several past Dalai Lamas. Photography inside is restricted or prohibited in many rooms. Do not rush the visit; the altitude and the staircase climbs inside the palace are significant.

Day 4: Sera Monastery Afternoon Debate

Sera Monastery, one of the three great Gelug monasteries of Tibet, is 5 kilometres north of central Lhasa and holds monk debates in its courtyard from 3pm to 5pm, Monday through Saturday. The debates are formal academic exercises in Buddhist dialectics, conducted through clapping and pointed gestures, and watching monks challenge each other on points of doctrine is one of the genuinely unusual things you can see in Tibet. Arrive by 2:30pm to get a good viewing position before the session begins. Spend the morning at the Norbulingka Palace, the Dalai Lama’s former summer residence set in expansive gardens; it is quieter than the Jokhang and Potala and the grounds are pleasant for a slow walk at altitude. Admission is low-cost. For dinner, the Snow-Deity Palace Tibetan Style Restaurant near the Potala Plaza is reliable for authentic Tibetan dishes including freshly fried mutton chops and steamed buns.

Day 5: Drepung Monastery and Tibet Museum

Drepung Monastery, 8 kilometres west of Lhasa, was once the largest monastery in the world with a population of around 10,000 monks before the mid-20th century. Today several hundred monks remain in residence. The complex sprawls up a hillside and the walk between courtyards provides gradually rising altitude training without being severe. Allow a full morning.

The Tibet Museum in the afternoon covers Tibetan history, natural history, and traditional arts across well-curated exhibition spaces. It opened a new building in recent years with expanded collections. The historical framing reflects the Chinese government’s perspective on Tibet’s relationship with China, which is worth knowing in advance; the artefacts themselves including ancient tankha paintings, ceremonial objects, and archaeological finds from the plateau are genuinely significant regardless of the interpretive framing.

Day 6: Yamdrok Lake Day Trip

Yamdrok Lake (Yamdroktso), one of the three sacred lakes of Tibet, is 86 kilometres from Lhasa and sits at 4,441 metres. The drive over the Gambala Pass (4,794 metres) offers views of both the lake and the distant Himalaya on a clear day. Your guide and vehicle are essential for this trip; independent transport is not permitted for foreign visitors. The lake’s turquoise colour and the surrounding snowfields are among the most photogenic landscapes in Tibet. Pack a warm layer regardless of the season; temperatures at the pass can drop sharply. This is not a day for altitude headaches; if you are still feeling poorly from the acclimatisation process, postpone this excursion and rest in Lhasa instead. The Karola Glacier is visible en route at approximately 5,010 metres.

Day 7: Final Morning and Departure

Use the morning to revisit any site you did not get enough time at, or to buy souvenirs from the Barkhor stalls. Genuine Tibetan handicrafts include hand-woven woollen products, thangka paintings, silver prayer wheels, and singing bowls. Turquoise jewellery is widely sold; genuine Tibetan turquoise is mined on the plateau and identifiably different from the dyed howlite that passes for it elsewhere. Allow your guide to help you identify reputable vendors. Transfer to Gonggar Airport or Lhasa Railway Station for departure. Note that flights out of Lhasa can be delayed by weather, particularly during the monsoon months of June through August when afternoon cloud cover is common; build buffer time into your onward connections.

Practical Notes

The best season for Lhasa is May, September, and October: warm days, lower precipitation, and good visibility for the Himalaya. April is possible but cold. December to February is cold and some sites reduce their hours. Photography of military installations, checkpoints, or politically sensitive subjects is prohibited. VPN use in Tibet is particularly restricted. Mobile data and international calls work inconsistently; your guide and local SIM are the practical communication tools. Tipping your guide is not mandatory under the agency system but is appreciated; CNY 50 to 100 per day is a reasonable acknowledgement of good service.