Tibet

Budget travel to Tibet

Travelers may spend one month wandering in Tibet. In these days, how to arrange this trip in an economical way? Here are some tips divided by transportation and accommodation.

Transportation
There are several routes to arrive Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

Air
Departuring from Britain, you can fly to Beijing or Chengdu. Both cities offer direct flights and trains to Lhasa.

Here are some travel agents providing cheap tickets.


Flights tickets to Beijing/ Chengdu during Easter
TEL WEBSITE MIN. PRICE (EX. TAX)
Beijing Chengdu
Radar Travel 0161 920 9689 http://www.radartravel.co.uk/ticket.htm GBP 225 GBP
235
OMEGA 0870 027 8668 http://www.omegatravel.ltd.uk/ GBP 230 GBP
337.9
Ours Travel 0207 388 8955 http://www.ourstravel.com/index2e.htm GBP 220 GBP
230

Also, here is a useful search engine helping travelers to compare tickets price offered by various airlines.

Booking Buddy:
http://www.bookingbuddy.com/

Tips:
Normally, during the off-season, return tickets between London and Beijing cost from GBP 209 included taxes.

Train

Whether arriving Beijing or Chengdu, you can take a train to Lhasa. It is a cheap way but takes about two hours.

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway to Lhasa runs from Beijing, Lanzou, Chengdu and Chongqing.











The Qinghai-Tibet Railway Timetable
Timetable Total lengths Hard seat Hard sleeper Soft sleeper
Beijing to Lhasa Beijing 21:30 to Lhasa 20:58 (the third day)/ Lhasa 8:00 to Beijing 8:00 (the third day) 4064 KM 389
yuan 813
yuan 1262
yuan
Chengdu to Lhasa Chengdu 18:18 to Lhasa 18:28 (the third day)/ Lhasa 9:05 to Chengdu 9:05 (the third day) 3360 KM 331
yuan 712
yuan 1104
yuan


Tips:

• You may go to Beijing West Station to queue for a ticket. Most of travel agency will not do that for you, because the tickets are very limited while demands are huge.
• Tickets are only to be sold to individuals with ID and foreigners need to present Tibet Travel Permit.
• Everybody can buy only up to 3 tickets, and you could queue hours there and be told no seat left for that day.
• Train tickets won't be sold more than 10 days in advance either;
• Try to go after mid-October when it is not that busy.


Otherwise, you can also take a plane to Lhasa. It costs 2040 yuan from Beijing and 1500 yuan from Chengdu.

Tips:
Taking planes to Lhasa is not recommended. Because the latitude changes from flying, you may suffer serious altitude illness.

Car rental

In Tibet, it is a common way to travel by car. All car hire includes vehicle and driver. Foreigners are not permitted to drive in Lhasa.

You can see price on message boards provided by four hotels above, or go to local travel agents. Normally, they may offer 20 percent discount.


Accommodation
There are four reputable hotels in Lhasa, also good options for budget travelers.

TEL Double room Mixed, shared room Standard room Facilities
Banakshol Hotel 0891-6323829 60 25 120-160 per room Free laundry, Restaurant, 24 Hours hot water provided
Kirey Hotel 0891-6323462 150 25 per person/3-7 people per room Off-season 120/ Peak-season 135 Free laundry
Television
Yak Hotel 0891-6323496 90 20 per person/6 people per room 260-380 Internet access
Restaurant
Bar
Laundry service
Snowland Hotel 0891-6323687 60 15 per person/4-6 people per room 250 Television
Restaurant
• Price is in RMB


Tips:
The peak season in Lhasa is between June and late September.