Once arrived in Gonggar  Airport the guide will wait for you after immigration. The guide will greet you in a traditional way offering you Khada. From the airport you will go directly to your hotel in Lhasa. The drive from the airport to Lhasa takes approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes. The guide will help you with the hotel check in. For the remaining part of the day we advise you to take a rest in order to acclimatize to the altitude at 3600 meter above sea level. 

Today we have a busy day ahead. After our breakfast we start with a visit to the Potala Palace. This is the  winter home of the Dalai Lamas and a famous landmark in the world. Potala Palace is build on the mountain Marpori (the red mountain). You have probably seen the Potala Palace on photos, but today you will experience that the palace is in real life even more impressive. We start our visit with a walk up the stairs and through the gardens. Once we enter the palace we will find our way through the labyrinth of small corridors and tiny staircases.  Not all parts of the Potala Palace are open for tourists, but you will get the opportunity to visit some if its chapels including the audience hall and the golden burial Chorten (Tomb) of Past Dalai Lamas. You will see a  tremendous number of murals, painted scrolls, sculptures, carpets, canopies, porcelain and more on your way through the palace. We will use the whole morning to visit the palace. 

 
After lunch it is time to visit the Jokhang Temple. This temple is an important sacred site and is seen as the spiritual heart of Tibetan Buddhism.  King Songtsen Gampo built this temple in 652 for his two brides; Princess Wencheng of the Chinese Tang Dynasty and Princes Bhrikuti of Nepal. Based on stories we believe that both brought important Buddhist images and statues from their home countries as part of their dowries. The rest of the afternoon you will have time to explore the surroundings of Barkhor. Bhakor is a busy market area, but also the area where pilgrims walk the clockwise circuit around the temple. Explore Lhasa a bit more by walking around the narrow alleys. 

Today we drive to the Drepung Monastery 8 km northwest of Lhasa. The Drepung Monastery is one of the “great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet. This monastery was  founded by Jamyang Choje in 1416. The Drepung Monastery was the winter palace for hundreds of monks from all Gelug monasteries in Tibet. There is enough place for as many as 10.000 monks. Nowadays only a couple of hundred monks live in this monastery. 

In the afternoon we drive to the Sera Monastery. This is also one of the “ great three” Gelug monasteries of Tibet and was founded three years later than the Drepung Monastery. The monastery is well known for the debates that take place each afternoon in the garden of the monastery. Observe the way the monks clap their hands during the debate. Can you guess what the claps mean?

We leave Lhasa today. Our final destination today will be Shigatse, but we will visit several places before we reach there in the late afternoon or early evening. Our first destination is Yamdrok Lake. On our way we will go over the Khambala pass at 4790 meters. Yamdrok Lake is a sacred lake and is one of the three biggest holy lakes in Tibet. The views are stunning. The turquoise lake is 72 km long and surrounded by snow-capped mountains. In the distance, you can see the holy Mount Nyenchen Khangsar (7191m).
From the lake, we will continue our journey to Gyantse, the third largest city in Tibet, driving over the Karola Pass at 5050 meters and Simila Pass at 5000 meters. Once we arrive at Gyantse, we can enjoy the far view of Gyantse Fortress. 

Here we will visit Khumbum Stupa and Pelkhor Chorten. Khumbum Stupa is the only Nepalese-style Stupa built in Tibet. The name means ‘hundred thousand images of Buddha, and that name reflects the decorations of the Stupa. The giant octagonal Stupa is one of the outstanding architectural achievements built and decorated by a Gyantse Prince. Rising 35 meters high, the Stupa is said to have 108 Cells in the 9 levels/floor surmounted by a golden dome and contains 77 chapels that line its walls.

Pelkhor Chorten is located next to the Stupa and was built in 1418. The monastery is a mix of Han, Tibetan, and Nepalese architecture. This monastery consists of 15 different chapels and halls and houses three different orders of Tibetan Buddhism. The main temple of the monastery is the Tsulaklakang. This temple has three floors, and you will find murals and images from the 15th century.

The last leg of today’s trip is a drive to Shigatse. This journey will take you about two hours further drive from Gyantse.

After breakfast, we will start with a visit to Tashilimphu Monastery. This monastery was built in 1447 at the time of the 1st Dalia Lama Gendun Drupa, a disciple of Tsongkapa. Hence the monastery is also one of the biggest functioning monasteries of Gelugpa. 
The name of the monastery means ‘heap of glory’. The monastery was attacked by Nepalese Gurkha in 1791, but they were driven out again by the Chinese. The monastery has white walls and golden roofs. You will find the biggest statue of sitting Maitreya Buddha in one of the chapels of this monastery. 

After visiting the monastery, we will see the local markets for shopping and local sightseeing. You will have time to experience daily Tibetan life in the local market. Smell the different fragrances and observe the colors of the local products. Mingle with locals and get a feel of Tibetan life.

It is time to head back to Lhasa. This time we will take the northern route. This is the shortest road between Lhasa and Shigatse. The road offers a spectacular view of the Tibetan Plateau and drives along the famous river called “Yarlung Tsangpo”.

Today is already the last day of your trip. We will drive to Gonggar Airport where you can catch your flight back to Kathmandu or to onward destination.