Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, is not only the holy center for Tibetan people, but also an attractive tourist destination for travelers from all over the world. From the majestic Potala Palace and ancient monasteries to downtown temples and nearby holy lakes, Lhasa offers a wealth of exploration opportunities.

How many days are enough for Lhasa? How to arrange your days in Lhasa? Take a second for the recommended Lhasa day tour options below and choose the one suiting you best. Or you can also contact us to tailor-make your own day tour in Lhasa.

How many days in Lhasa? 4 to 6 Days

Generally, a Lhasa tour takes at least 4 days and 6 days are quite enough to explore the best of downtown Lhasa and its surroundings. As the major attractions in Lhasa city are not far away from each other, you can visit at least two of them within a day.

A classic 4-day Lhasa city tour could bring you to explore the Potala Palace, the Jokhang Temple, and Drepung Monastery, and witness the monks debate in Sera Monastery in one go. The side trip around Lhasa downtown, like a visit to Yamdrok Lake or a leisure hike around Ganden Monastery, always takes one day, while the journey to the famous Namtso Lake takes 2 days with a night stay in Damxung. You can freely combine and arrange your itinerary according to your own interests.

Enjoy a Lhasa City tour with Tibet Vista.

Even if you’ve been to Lhasa before, it’s still essential to spend at least 2 to 3 days there to get used to the high altitude. Whether you arrive in Lhasa from a Chinese mainland city or Kathmandu, Nepal, you’ll be at 3,650 meters above sea level. This makes it important to stay a few days in Lhasa to avoid altitude sickness.

That’s also the reason why the first day of all Lhasa tours is typically reserved for rest rather than sightseeing. Upon arrival in Lhasa, it's best to head straight to your hotel to recover from your flight/train journey to Tibet and allow your body to adjust to the high altitude. The days you spend in Lhasa are crucial not just for sightseeing but also for acclimating to Tibet's altitude.

Option 1: A Must Day Trip to Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, and Barkhor Street

The Potala Palace is the iconic landscape of Lhasa, and even of Tibet. No Tibet tour could be complete without a visit to the Potala Palace.

Located on the Red Hill in downtown Lhasa, the Potala Palace consists of the White Palace and the Red Palace with more than 1,000 rooms. The White Palace was for secular use and contained living quarters, offices, the seminary, and the printing house. The Red Palace's function was religious. It contained gold stupas, which were the tombs of eight Dalai Lamas, the monks' assembly hall, numerous chapels and shrines, and libraries for Buddhist Scriptures.

Visiting the Potala Palace is a must on any tour of Lhasa.

About 1.5 kilometers east of the Potala Palace is the Jokhang Temple, the spiritual center of Tibet. The outer courtyard and porch of the temple are usually filled with pilgrims making full-length prostrations towards the holy sanctum. Its innermost shrine contains the oldest, most precious object in Tibet - the original gold statue of Sakyamuni - the historical Buddha, which Princess Wen Cheng brought from Chang'an 1,300 years ago. 

The Barkhor Street around the Jokhang Temple is not only a market selling all kinds of Tibetan products, but also a popular pilgrimage circuit in Lhasa. On this street, you will encounter monks, nomads, bent old women, and men all making the pilgrimage around this ancient square. The Barkhor shows a colorful and vibrant picture of Tibetan life.

4 Days Lhasa Impression Small Group Tour

Tour Route: Lhasa

Price from USD509 p.p

Essential Travel Tips for Planning This Day Tour

You need to reserve admission the Potala Palace ticket in advance because there is a limit on the number of tourists allowed each day. Your visit time - whether in the morning or afternoon - will depend on your ticket reservation.

Since the exact visit time can be uncertain, especially in peak season, it’s important to prepare for a flexible schedule on this day.

Option 2: A Popular Day Trip to Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery

Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery are both important monasteries for the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Approximately 12.5 kilometers apart, it is often convenient to visit Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery on the same day.

Drepung Monastery lies 8 kilometers northwest of Lhasa on a main road, then 3km north on a steep, unpaved road. It used to be the world's largest monastery with more than 10,000 monks, and now is still Tibet's largest monastery. You can visit the biggest monastery kitchen inside the monastery and enjoy the Buddhist Sculpture Carving workshop near Drepung. Every year, a Giant Buddha Thangka is displayed in this monastery during the Shoton Festival.

Sera Monastery is 12.5 kilometers east of Drepung Monastery and 6 kilometers north of downtown Lhasa. It is famous for the traditional Tibetan Monks debating (Buddhism Scripture Debating) held at its courtyard in the afternoon (15:00 to 17:00, from Monday to Saturday). Debating is an effective way to help monks learn the scripture, just like an exam. Monks can be seen preparing for monastic exams by ritually staging mock debates.

Take a day trip to Sera Monastery and watch the traditional Tibetan monks debating.

Option 3: A Meditation Day Trip to Drak Yerpa Monastery and Ganden Monastery

If you are looking for a meditation experience in Lhasa, Tibet, it is worth taking a day trip to Drak Yerpa, which is 26 kilometers northeast of Lhasa City.

Tracing back to ancient history, Drak Yerpa Monastery, constructed by Tubo King Songzan Gambo for his wife Nepali Princess Bhrikuti in the 7th century, already has a history of 1,500 years. After several rounds of expansion, Drak Yerpa has become one of the Four Great Hermitages in Tibet with sparkling features of chapels into caves. You can meditate in one of the ancient meditation caves.

5 Days Lhasa to Drak Yerpa Meditation Small Group Tour

Tour Route: Lhasa - Drak Yerpa - Ganden - Lhasa

Price from USD599 p.p

In the afternoon, you can take another 50-kilometer drive from Drak Yerpa Monastery to Ganden Monastery, another principal monastery of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Ganden Monastery is the first and primary monastery of the Gelug sect in Tibet. Ganden Monastery is situated on Wangpori Mountain with an elevation of 3,800 meters above sea level. It is very interesting to go for a leisure hike around Ganden Monastery with devout pilgrims from all the corners of Tibet and see the crack of rock which was magically done by Great Tsongkapa.

It could be a pleasant hike around Ganden Monastery.

Option 4: One-day Side Trip to Yamdrok Lake

A day tour from Lhasa to Yamdrok Lake is popular among tourists who are interested in natural scenic tours with a short day in Lhasa.

The turquoise Yamdrok Lake is one of the Great Three Holiest Lakes in Tibet. As the largest inland lake in the northern foothills of the Himalayas, Yamdrok Lake covers an area of 675 square kilometers at an altitude of 4,441 meters above sea level. You will get a stunning view of Yamdrok Lake stretching for tens of kilometers from Gampala Pass at 4,900 meters above sea level.

Though Yamdrok Lake is always a scenic spot on the way to Shigatse or Everest Base Camp, it is worth spending a day to fully explore the holy lake. During the day tour to Yamdrok Lake, you can also visit the Rutog Monastery, and meet the local monk residents in the small monastery on the island of Yamdrok Lake. Moreover, you can visit a local family at the lakeside, have lunch with a local family, and experience the farm work with the locals.

5 Days Lhasa and Yamdrok Lake Small Group Tour

Tour Route: Lhasa - Yamdrok Lake - Lhasa

Price from USD689 p.p

Option 5: Two-day Side Trip to Namtso Lake

Namtso Lake is one of the Three Greatest Holy Lakes of Tibet. Sitting at an altitude of 4,718 meters above sea level, it spans 70 kilometers from west to east and 30 kilometers from north to south, covering a total area of 1,920 square kilometers. It is the second-largest lake in Tibet as well as the third-largest saltwater lake in China.

Lake Namtso is about 215 kilometers from Lhasa, and the drive usually takes 3 to 3.5 hours. Because the altitude increases by over 1,000 meters, it’s best not to rush the trip. For a comfortable visit and proper acclimatization, plan to spend 2 days at Namtso Lake.

On the first day, you can spend enough time at the lakeside, appreciate the breathtaking views of Namtso Lake, trek Tshi Byland Kora, or walk Namtso Lake Kora with local pilgrims. As it is not possible to stay overnight at the lakeside, after the first day’s visit, you need to get to Damxung for the stay.

On the second day, you will take a journey back to downtown Lhasa. En route, you can also visit Chimelong Nunnery, the largest nunnery near Lhasa, and Tsurphu Monastery, the oldest monastery in Tibet.

6 Days Lhasa to Lake Namtso Small Group Tour

Tour Route: Lhasa - Namtso Lake - Damxung - Lhasa

Price from USD779 p.p

How to Make the Most of Your Days in Lhasa: Don’t Miss Out on the Nightlife!

The sightseeing tours always end before sunset. To make the most of your time in Lhasa, you can also arrange some activities to experience the nightlife of Lhasa.

The first recommendation is the extravagant real-scene Princess Wencheng Musical Show. Under the starry sky of the plateau sanctuary, the love story of Tubo King Sontzen Gampo and Tang Princess Wencheng has been restored in front of your eyes. With natural mountains and rivers of Lhasa in the background, Prince Wencheng trudged an arduous journey and underwent twists and turns, finally getting married to Sontzen Gampo. The real-scene show is a classic masterpiece of Tibetan culture, representing a moving epic of Han and Tibetan. (Show Time: 21:00 pm from Monday to Sunday; Ticket Price: 380 to 1280CNY Per Person).

If you're just looking for something interesting around downtown, you can go to a local bar or Langma Hall, a traditional Tibetan-style bar, to experience the local nightlife and relax with a drink with friends. Roaming around Barkhor Street, you can find various kinds of bars scattered in the alleys, like Low House Music Bar, Mayke Ame, Ganglamedo Cafe and Bar, Dunya Restaurant Bar, etc.

If the music pubs are not your thing, you can also stroll around Lhasa night markets, where you can taste exotic barbecues and mouthwatering snacks, and get some lovely Tibetan souvenirs at a very reasonable price.

The live-action opera 'Princess Wencheng' is a great choice for your evening in Lhasa.

Is it possible to explore Lhasa during the day without a tour guide?

No, it is not possible to visit Lhasa individually. You must be part of an organized tour to visit Lhasa and other areas of Tibet, and you need to visit attraction sites with your tour guide. If you prefer more freedom and are comfortable exploring the city on your own, you can customize a private tour in Lhasa with a 1-on-1 personal tour guide, who provides undivided attention and immediate responses to your questions and needs.

5 Days Lhasa Small Group Tour with Three Major Monasteries

Tour Route: Lhasa - Drak Yerpa - Ganden - Lhasa

Price from USD599 p.p

Conclusion

With an area of 29,274 square kilometers, there are lots of interesting things to do in Lhasa. Not only rich in cultural and historical sites, but also natural attractions, Lhasa is undoubtedly a wonderful place to stay for a couple of days.

You can join a hassle-free small group tour in Lhasa with a pre-arranged itinerary or customize your Lhasa tour based on our recommended options. If you need any further assistance in planning your trip to Lhasa, feel free to contact us, and we will help create the best tour tailored to your needs.