12 Days Timeless Tibet & China Tour Package

Duration: 12 Days / 11 Nights
Priced From: $5325 pp Dbl. Occ.
Dates: Jan - Dec


 

Once a destination considered “the furthest goal of travel,” Tibet lies on a vast plateau on the Roof of the World. Towering monasteries, ringing bells, burning juniper, chanting monks, brightly colored prayer flags and spinning prayer wheels flood the senses as this foreign land and its ancient culture envelopes you. Chengdu has been the capital of China’s most populous province since the founding of the Shu Province during the Qin Dynasty, and the region is home to a Giant Buddhsa (stone) and Giant Pandas (living).

Tour Itinerary

Day 1
Beijing
Arrive Beijing, and transfer to your hotel. The Peninsula Beijing

Days 2-4
Lhasa, Spiritual Center
One of the highest and most remote cities in the world, Lhasa remained isolated for centuries. Explore the streets of this fabled city, threaded with the remains of Tibetan traditional culture. On top of holy Red Mountain, the most sacred Potala Palace towers over the valley. Jokhang is the spiritual center of Tibet, and the great Gelukpa monastery of Drepung was once the largest monastery in the world. Lhasa Hotel

Days 5-6
The Tibetan Plateau—Gyantse to Shigatse
Traverse the high plains of the Tibetan plateau, dotted with ancient villages, lakes and glaciers. Tashilhunpo Monastery and Shalu Monastery date back to the 11th century. Shalu is noted for its 14th century murals that fuse Chinese, Mongol and Nepali styles. Gyantse Hotel and Shigatse Hotel

Days 7-8
Shigatse to Tse Tang
Travel to Tse Tang, and tour Tibet’s first monastery, Samye, which marked the establishment of the victory of Tibetan Buddhism over Bon beliefs and was designed to represent the Buddhist belief in the shape of the universe, a circle fringed by a circular wall dotted with 1,008 chortens. Tse Tang Hotel

Day 9
Chengdu’s Crossroads
The city of Leshan was a major crossroads and trading centre in southern Sichuan. Silk and textile from Chengdu and the rich agricultural produce of the Chuanxi Plains were transported down the Min River to Leshan where the river meets the Qingyi Jiang and Dadu Rivers. A Tang Dynasty Buddhist monk built a Giant Buddha statue to protect passing travelers and boats. Carved into a cliff overlooking the confluence of the rivers, it is the largest carved Buddha in the world. San Wan Hotel.

Day 10
Dazu
The agricultural area of Dazu is known for its magnificent stone carvings of both religious and non-religious themes. The first carvings were by a local warlord during the last years of the Tang Dynasty, subsequent sculptures were commissioned by others, either to show off their wealth, or as tributes to their faith—Taoist, Confucianist or Buddhist. Dazu Hotel

Day 11
The Giant Pandas of Chengdu
Visit the Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center, designed to imitate the pandas’ natural habitat to ensure the best possible environment for breeding and rearing. Giant and lesser pandas, black-necked cranes, white storks as well as over 20 species of rare animals are fed and bred here throughout the year. In the afternoons, the pandas frolic in the courtyard. Sheraton Hotel

Day 12
Farewell to China.

12/08