10 Days Chongqing Xining Tibet Train Tour

Upon your arrival in the Chongqing airport or railway station, your local tour guide will escort you to your reserved hotel in Chongqing. The rest of the day is at leisure.

Stay overnight in Chongqing

In the morning, we will visit Three Gorge Museum, where tourists can learn the historical facts of Chongqing before Three Gorge Dam is built. You can also enjoy the statues, ceramics, Buddhist art and bronze relics rescued from the rising waters of the dammed Yangtze River. Besides, you can see many historical photographs which give you an interesting insight into the small minorities inhabited in and around Chongqing in the past, etc.

After Lunch, the whole tour group is about to tour one of the must-see attractions in Chongqing, i.e. Ciqi Kou. The ancient town gives you a glimpse of the traditional cobbled streets and the distinct courtyard and lifestyle in hilly Chongqing. Some of the well-preserved shrines and temples are worth a visit. Though being a bit touristy, Ciqi Kou is packed with intriguing souvenir shops and tasty food stalls and home-run hostels. Do walk to the end and enjoy the river bank and ferry boats there.

In the evening, we will stop by Hongya Cave. With gorgeous neon lights sparkling around the Hongya Cave and Qiansimen Jialing River Bridge, you can taste hot pot and local snacks while enjoy the stunning night view of Jialing River Bridge and the commercial boats below, which is why Chongqing is named as “Small Hongkong”. You may also join the crowds to watch the live performance of street artists.

Stay overnight in Chongqing

Today, you will take the flight from Chongqing to Xining, in Qinghai province of China. On arrival in Xining, our guide will transfer you to your reserved hotel. The rest of the day is for you to explore the surroundings or take a rest in the hotel.

Stay overnight in Xining

In the early morning, drive about 2.5 hours from Xining to Qinghai Lake, China's largest inland salt water lake. The ellipse-shaped lake looks like a huge poplar leaf sitting on the alpine prairie. Scenery in Qinghai Lake varies according to seasons. Summer and autumn have the most comfortable weather conditions and the lake's scenery is most beautiful during these seasons. The most charming and attractive place in Qinghai Lake is the Bird Island. It situates on the western shore of the Lake. Cruising for about 30 minutes is a popular way to appreciate the lake. On the way to this charming lake, you can get a view of Riyue Mountain.

In the afternoon, drive back to Xining. Then, transfer to railway station for your overnight train to Lhasa.

Stay overnight in the train

Today, you will enjoy the most beautiful scenery of Qinghai-Tibet Railway, spectacular land of snows, boundless desert, vast grassland, and grand snow-capped mountains, beautiful lakes that will continually appear and strongly attract your heart. You will arrive in Lhasa at about 12:00. Your tour guide will hold a welcome sign with your name on it to greet you at the exit of the train station and escort you from the train station to your reserved hotel in Lhasa. The rest of the day is for you to get acclimatized to the altitude of Lhasa.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

Today's tour will first bring you to the Potala Palace which is the winter palace of the Dalai Lama. It was put to use since the 7th Century by the 33rd great king of Tibet. The most valuable collections of Potala Palace are the gilded burial stupas of former Dalai Lamas and meditation Cave of the 33rd great king of Tibet.

Then after lunch, tourists head to Jokhang Temple which was founded by the 33rd great king of Tibet in the 7th century, in order to promote the Buddhist religion. Inside you can see the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni at the age of twelve, perhaps the only most venerated object in Tibetan Buddhism. Around the temple is Barkhor Street where you can do kora (a religious circle of a building or mountain) with pilgrims and locals, in the meantime you can buy souvenirs.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

In the morning ,you are going to visit Drepung monastery which is one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet, founded in 1416 by Jamyang choge, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples. Ganden palace used to be Dalai lama’s palace in the Drepung before he moved to the Potala Palace.

In the Afternoon, Tourists will visit Sera Monastery which is another one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet, founded in 1419 by Jamchen Chojey, one of the Tsongkhapa’s main disciples. The hot attraction is the Monks debate at around 3 - 5 in the afternoon.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

In the morning you will be driven to the holy Lake Namtso, 250km north of Lhasa. En route you will pass the famous Nyenchen Tanggula Mountains, and you will get to see a lot of open landscape along the way. The foot of the mountains is a good place to see nomadic herdsmen grazing sheep and yaks on the grassy slopes.

Lake Namtso is one of the four Holy Lakes of Tibet, and is known as the “Heavenly Lake”. It is the largest lake in Tibet, and the second largest saltwater lake in China. At an elevation of 4,470 meters, it is the highest lake in the world, and is supplied by the Nyenchen Tanggula Mountains. Surrounded by lush grasslands and the best pasture land in Northern Tibet, the lake is also home to five small, uninhabited islands, and five peninsulas reach out into its turquoise waters.

Stay overnight in Namtso Guest house

In the morning you can take the time to explore the lake-shore more, and you can walk along the shore to Tashi Dor Island to take a look at the famous “meditation caves”, which still host many meditators and yogis from across the Tibetan Plateau.

For lunch, your guide will drive you to Dumxang, and in the afternoon you will have the chance to enjoy the Yangpachen hot spring, which has both indoor and outdoor pools filled with relaxing hot spring water. In the evening you will head back to Lhasa for a good night of rest.

Stay overnight in Lhasa

The guide will transfer you to the airport or train station and help you get on board. The tour ends.