9 Days Chengdu Xining Lhasa Train Tour

Upon arrival at the airport/railway station, you will find your guide/driver holding your name sign at the exit. Then they will transfer you to your hotel in downtown Chengdu. The rest of the day is your free time.

Stay overnight in Chengdu

You will be picked up from your hotel and then set out for Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda, which is a non-profit research and breeding facility for giant pandas as well as other rare animals. Chengdu Panda Base is located in the northern suburbs of Chengdu. It is a national 4A-level scenic spot. The scenic spot is verdant with bamboo and trees, birds, and flowers, as well as integrated natural mountain scenery and beautiful artificial landscape. The highlight of the visit is the Panda Birth Room where the baby pandas can be seen growing up, and the Giant Panda Activity Field where visitors can see the relaxed daily life of pandas of different ages.

After sightseeing here, we're heading for Leshan to visit Leshan Giant Buddha, which is the tallest rock Buddha statue in the world. It was carved out of a cliff by monks in southern Sichuan province during the Tang Dynasty (618–907AD). Visitors also can get to the footsteps of the Giant Buddha or take a cruise to worship the Buddha from the river.

Stay overnight in Chengdu

We will fly to Xining in the early morning. The flight duration is about 1hr 40min.

After our arrival in Xining, we will visit two popular scenic spots in Xining - Qinghai Lake, and Mt. Sun and Moon. As the largest saltwater lake in China, Qinghai Lake is famous for its sapphire-like surface, turquoise-like grassland, and majestic snow-capped mountains. The picturesque views vary from season to season, and the best season to visit Qinghai Lake is from summer to fall. Cruising is the ideal way to enjoy its beauty. Cruising down Qinghai Lake, you can catch a glimpse of the grand Mt. Sun and Moon along the way. After visiting the places, you will stay overnight at the lakeside to enjoy the stunning sunset and sunrise.

Stay overnight at the lakeside

In the morning, you will visit the Kumbum Monastery which is located 25 kilometers away from Xining City. It is one of the major Gelugpa monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism and is also called “Ta’er Monastery”. It is the birthplace of Tsongkhapa- ​the​ ​founder of Tibetan Buddhism. You will find numbers of pilgrims traveling from thousands of miles away for 100,000 prostrating here. From visiting here, you will learn more about Tibetan Buddhism.

In the afternoon, transfer to the railway station and prepare to board a train to Lhasa. On the train, you will enjoy the fabulous scenery along the highest railway in the world - Qinghai Tibet Railway. You will see the gorgeous natural scenery of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau such as nomadic pasture, sapphire lakes, flocks of goats and yaks, snow-capped mountains, etc.

Stay overnight on the train

Our local Tibetan guide will wait for you at Lhasa railway station by holding your name sign. You will be greeted with a warm Tashi Delek (a kind of blessing), and be presented with a white Hada (traditional Tibetan ceremonial by giving you a white scarf). Then transfer to the hotel in Lhasa city. On your first arrival day in Lhasa (3,650m), it's essential to have a good rest to avoid Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS, also known as altitude sickness). Remember to drink lots of water, eat lighter and have high carbohydrate food which will be helpful to you to adapt to the high altitude better.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

In the morning, we will visit Norbulingka, which is a typical Tibetan-style royal garden, the summer resort of the Dalai Lama. There are a lot of towering trees, exotic flowers and plants in the garden, as well as many collections of cultural relics, Buddha statues, pagodas, thangkas, murals, etc. They are all very precious treasures.

In the afternoon, you are heading to Drepung Monastery, which means Monastery of Rice Heap in the Tibetan language. The entire monastery is large in scale and the white buildings cluster and cover the hillsides. Drepung monastery is the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery, also the highest-ranking monastery in the Gelug Sect.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

In the morning, your guide will meet you at the hotel and first take you to visit the famous Potala Palace, the cardinal landmark of Tibet and the masterpiece of Tibetan architecture. It was first built by the 33rd King - Songtsen Gangpo in the 7th century and rebuilt later by the 5th Dalai Lama in the 17th century. Now it's a museum and world heritage site. 

In the afternoon, you will go to visit Jokhang Temple in the center of the Lhasa old town. Jokhang Temple is the most sacred temple in Tibet and it is always bustling with earnest local pilgrims since the early days. After that, you will take a walk around the Barkhor Street - one of the most devotional circuits as well as a crowded central market of Lhasa. Barkhor Street is a very ancient round street surrounding the Jokhang Temple and the locals are always proud of it. As a symbol of Lhasa, it‘s also a must-see place for visitors.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

In today's excursion outside of Lhasa city, we'll take you to Ganden Monastery which is about 50km northeast of Lhasa. Ganden Monastery is the most special one of the top six Gelug monasteries in Tibet, as it's built by the founder of the Gelug sect - Tsongkhapa in 1409. It's quite worth seeing if this is your first time to travel to Tibet.

En route, we will also visit the less-known-by-tourists Drak Yerpa hermitage, which is about 16km northeast of Lhasa. It's an ancient temple that has a history of more than a thousand years. After passing through a rugged path to the temple, you can see the beautiful scenery in the distance. Compared to the Jokhang Temple and Sera Temple, which are full of incense, there are not many tourists. Only devout Tibetans burn mulberry to worship here, and you can feel the tranquility brought by Tibetan Buddhism.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Your tour ends today. Your tour guide and driver will drop you at the Lhasa Gonggar Airport or Lhasa Railway Station for your next destination.