Itinerary

Day 1

Fly from London Heathrow to Beijing via Doha with Qatar Airways flight.

Day 2

Beijing

Arrive Beijing and transfer to the Grand Mercure Hotel for an overnight stay and welcome dinner. 

Day 3

Roof of the World train

Tour the Lama Temple where the Emperors' eunuchs used to live, and the neighbouring Confucius Temple, admire panoramic views from Jingshan Park, and explore the quaint hutong district of Shichahai. Later this evening transfer to the railway station for the 48-hour train journey across the Roof of the World to Lhasa. Accommodation is sharing ‘soft sleeper’ four-berth compartments, with twin and sole occupancy cabins on request and at extra cost. The trains  have an oxygen supply to every seat, there is a restaurant car (no meals are included on the train) and toilets and washbasins are at each end of the carriages.  BLD

Day 4

Roof of the World train

This is one of the world's greatest rail journeys, an overland expedition across the vast and remote wilderness known as 'the roof of the world' to the furthest outpost of China, and a massive feat of engineering – it is the world's highest railway and its highest point is at Tanggula Pass, 16,640ft above sea level, it incorporates 675 bridges, and 340 miles of the track are laid on permafrost.

Day 5

Lhasa         

After traversing the vast frozen expanse of the Tibetan plateau, a high-altitude desert, passing glaciers, lakes and rivers, and cutting through the immense mountain ranges that have isolated the country from the outside world until now, arrive in Lhasa this evening and transfer to the 5*Brahmaputra Hotel, a modern and very comfortable hotel with many cultural artefacts on display throughout its public areas.   D

Day 6

Lhasa

The name Lhasa means 'place of the gods' and it remains a vivid and still-thriving enclave of devout Buddhism despite the increasing modernisation even of this remote corner of China. Visit the 15^th century Sera Monastery and its Great Assembly Hall, dormitories and colleges where 10,000 monks used to live. Later, follow the throngs of pilgrims as they make the clockwise circuit along Barkhor Street that encircles the golden-roofed Jokhang Temple, home to the most sacred Buddha statue for Tibetans. BLD

Day 7

Lhasa

425ft above the city on Red Mountain stands the fortress-like Potala Palace,13 storeys high and with 1,000 rooms filled with statues, chapels, manuscripts and murals. Potala was  the winter palace of the Dalai Lamas and Tibet's political and spiritual headquarters for centuries, and later visit the summer palace, Norbulingka, a complex of delightful pavilions and gardens outside the city. BLD

Day 8

Lhasa

One of the three great monasteries of Tibet, Drepung Monastery is a religious university where around 600 monks live – in its heyday before the Potola Palace was built there were over 10,000 and it was the largest in the world.  Afternoon free, you may like to browse the stalls of Barkhor Street for yak-wool clothes, hand-woven carpets or thangkas, religious pictures, usually of Buddha. BLD

Day 9

Gyantse

 Leave Lhasa and drive along the Southern Friendship Highway over the Kampa La mountain pass to Yamdrok Lake, the sacred 'holy sapphire' and female guardian of Buddhism in Tibet. Continue past the Karo La Glacier to the small town of Gyantze and stay overnight at the 3*Gyantze Hotel. BLD

Day 10

Shigatse      

This morning visit Palkhor Chode Monastery and its nine-storey pyramid-like structure known as a kumbum with 76 chapels lined with lavish murals. Continue to Shigatze to stay at the Shandong Mansion Hotel for two nights.   BLD

Day 11

Shigatse

 Visit the red and gold Tashilungpo Monastery, founded by the first Dalai Lama in the 15th century and traditional seat of his second-in-command, the Panchen Lama, ever since. See the jewel-encrusted tomb of the tragic 10th Panchen Lama, the 86ft-high Maitreya Buddha statue, murals and the immense Thangka Wall.  BLD

Day 12

New Tinggri   

Drive through stark landscapes and over mountain passes with only occasional prayer flags providing spots of colour, then as we head towards New Tinggri the road descends into the plains where yaks and sheep graze and nomadic herdsmen live in yak-hair tents beneath the panorama of the Himalayas, a sea of snow-capped peaks. This will be the first glimpse of Mount Everest. Stay at the modest Zhufeng Hotel for two nights, a convenient base for the drive to Mount Everest tomorrow. BLD

Day 13

Mount Everest  

An unforgettable excursion to Mount Everest, known in Tibet as ‘the mother goddess of the universe’. Officially the height of the world's highest mountain is 29,017ft although satellite technology says it to be 29,035ft and increasing in height by up to four inches every year as the tectonic plate under India continues to move north into China. Visit the Base Camp at 17,000ft to see the spectacular north face of Mount Everest, then return to New Tinggri. BLD

Day 14

Zhangmu

Rejoin the Friendship Highway and drive down to the border of Tibet and Nepal at Zhangmu, descending nearly 10,000ft along winding roads. The landscapes change dramatically, with stunning waterfalls tumbling down deep valleys, thick, lush forests and a much warmer temperature. Stay the night at the modest Caiyuan Hotel. BLD

Day 15

Kathmandu   

Cross the Friendship Bridge into Nepal, and drive through the rich valleys to Kathmandu to stay at the 5 -star Radisson  Hotel. Extra nights here can be arranged if you would like to extend your holiday in Nepal.

Day 16

London 

Fly from Kathmandu to London via Doha with Qatar Airways arriving at Heathrow early on Day 17.  B