Lhasa Travel Forum

Dear VTrs

i'm planning to visit Tibet, especially Lhasa this summer. i just wonder which month would be best to visit Tibet? How much the plane ticket costs from Huh Hot, Inner Mongolia to Lhasa, approximately? How many days would be enough to explore Lhasa, especially Buddhist Monasteries?

Thanks in advance

Personally believe late May or September would be better. More visitors travel to Tibet during the summer but it rains a lot and results in worse road condition.

There is no flight from Inner Mongolia, you have to fly to Beijing first. The full fare for HH-Beijing-Lhasa is about RMB3000 but you may get discount on both flights.

How many days in Lhasa all depends on the visitor's own interests, or hobbies. But at least you may spend more than 3-4 days in the city since usually you have to prevent the mountain sickness. Most of visitors will travel to other areas of Tibet, then 1 week is never enough.

For flight info, check http://english.ctrip.com/, or www.elong.net/

I was in Lhasa early June 2006 and the weather was beautiful. It was not that crowded but this was before they had the train running. It may be more crowded at this time now.

You do need to pay attention to altitude problems. We spent something like 2 weeks driving across high altitude areas of Sichuan and Tibet before arriving in Lhasa. So Lhasa's 3600 meters altitude did not bother us. Flying in is a different story.

We only spent 4 or 5 days in the Lhasa area. We were able to see the major sits of the city during that time. I would liked to have spent more time.

Domestic flights in China are often discounted the closer you book to departure. You can go to elong.com and change the dates to see what I mean. I have flight booking web sites and additional info as travel tips on my VT china page.

To be honest, there is no direct flight from Huh Hot to Lhasa, you could fly to Lhasa from Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu which is better for you to choose.

If you want to experience the Buddhist monasteries in Lhasa, I think one week is enough.

I think the best months should be April, May, June and November. These months are usually okay for travelling to most regions in Tibet, including Nyingtse, Namtso, Tibetan-Nepali Highway, Everest Base Camp and Mt Kailash. They are less busy than other time of the year, you'll have no problem finding accomodations while it is still easy to find partners to share a land cruiser. Prices are usually cheaper during these months. Note that the May's Labour Day Golden Week holiday of China is going to be cancelled in 2008, so May isn't supposed to be a busy month.

In Lhasa, it'll be getting colder after mid-November, the temperature is around 10 degrees C in daytime and -3 degrees C in night.

December to March are too cold to travel outside Lhasa, Mt Kailash is almost inaccessible, Sichuan-Tibet/ Yunnan-Tibet Highways can be dangerous. During this low season, you'll find much less tourists and travellers and it can be quite difficult to share a jeep with the others.

The seasonal effect is so obvious in Tibet, while a room may cost Y250 for one day in July, the same room will be Y800 (with private shower room and toilet) for the whole month during winter! So if you are into Tibetan culture and want to avoid the touristy seasons and stay in Lhasa for a longer time, winter is a better option.