The Zhangmu hotel is without warm water and heat, take a sleeping bag! Have fun. Hotel facilities are simple as a bed-and-breakfast type motel in 1970’s. If you want to take bus to cross the border, there is a bus service from Lasha to Kathmandu so either you have to take ticket of that bus or you’ve to come near boarder with tibiten cars and after that you’ll get bus service from Tatopani near border.
We were in Tibet in Dec 2008. We regsited our tour in Chengdu. Their sales office is located in Chengdu but the tour company is actually operated by native Tibetans. They provided us with a competitive pricing.
More informations of Zhangmu hotel…
We booked Tang Ka Hotel 2 days before we arrived from Xian. We had been staying at a hostel and wanted something a bit nicer for a few days. We booked a Tibetan style room for 298yuan (much less than their rack rate).
Fantastic location (less than 100 meters from Barkhor Square and Jokhang Temple). Best Chinese hotel I’ve stayed in. Although it is right next to the Jokhang Temple Square it is off an alley so very quiet at night. We arrived at night and it was quite dark in the alley. The location is excellent and easy to pop into when you need the conveniences.
The hotel is fairly new having been built in mid 2007. It is a four star rated hotel. The room was spacious and beautifully decorated. Bathroom was modern and clean with lots of toiletries included.
Staff speak very little English and the breakfast is very ordinary but included. Staff are friendly but you don’t get the atmosphere or tour help you would in a hostel. We found the pillows uncomfortable as they were much higher than we were used to.
We had free Internet in our room once we had asked for and promptly received a cable. There is also an Internet Lounge for a cost. As we are here in winter it was great to have an efficient air conditioning.
More informations of Tang Ka Hotel Lhasa…
Now you can get K917 train ticket Lanzhou/Lhasa 10 days in advance! More seats available on Lhasa Express. From 10 September, if you take K917, you will have to get off the train with all your luggages, pass the security again at Gulmud, change to another train to Lhasa….The authority said: Due to the safety reason everyone knows…
Tibetan New Year, called Losar, falls on February 25 this year. While officially fifteen days long, celebrations center on the first three days of the holiday where monasteries prepare special ceremonies and lay-people make traditional foods and drinks.
Start our day at the Jokhang Temple, Tibet’s holiest temple which contains a jeweled image of the Buddha. After, experience the Barkhor, an old market square where you’ll see wily Chinese and ancient Tibetans bargaining for goods.
The center of the old Lhasa, Barkhor is a circular street, which is the oldest street in Lhasa and remains very traditional. It is a place where Tibetan culture, economy, religion and arts assemble and a place to which a visit must be paid. It was said that in the seventh century when Songtsen Gampo, the first Tibetan King (617 or ?-650) who unified Tibet, married Chinese Princess Wencheng and Nepal princess Tritsun. Later Princess Tritsun built Jokhang Temple to accommodate the Jowo Sakyamuni aged 12 brought to Tibet by Princess Wencheng.
Barkhor is the road which pilgrims tramped out around Jokhang Temple through centuries. Buddhist pilgrims walk or progress by body-lengths along the street clockwise every day into deep night. They comprise most of Lhasa’s floating population. Careful visitors may find there are 4 columns, on which colorful scripture streamers are hung flying over the street.
All pilgrims walk outside of them to show respect. The custom started in Tubo period (633-877). To the west of the north street of Barkhor, there is a juniper hearth, in front of which ceremony will be held annually to hail Maitreya (Buddha of the Future). Tibetans also pray before the hearth to expect fortune in the next year. A yamun, which used to be the office of Lhasa magistrate, squats nearby. A small lane northward nearby leads to a market, which has longest history in Lhasa. There is a three-story temple, which was set up in the Tubo period, and its pantheon still remains Tubo style after many renovations.
It was said that Tibetan characters were invented in the temple. Barkhor, the sacred pilgrim path, is also a market place where shaggy nomads, traders, robed monks and chanting pilgrims join together. Shops and stalls, clustering, sell printed scriptures, cloth prayer flags and other religious vessels, jewelry, Tibetan knives, ancient coins and etc.
Touring around Lhasa in 1 to 7 days…
This is the most amazing place I have ever been. Flying into Lhasa, over the mountains, was breathtaking. As soon as the seatbelt light went off everyone clammored over to take pictures, it was quite a spectacle. There were snow capped mountains as far as the eye could see.
We have spent the last few days wandering around the older part of Lhasa, enjoying the beautiful scenery and wonderfully friendly people. There is a monestary at the center of old Lhasa and our hotel borders the edge of it. We have a great view from the roof of the local people who walk around and around the monestary praying.
There are eight of us travelling together and while Grandma and Arjun were doing business, us girls were off playing. We toured a monestary one day and the winter palace the next. Both were absolutely beautiful.
Today we went out to the childrens home. It was about 20km on the highway and another 20km on a very bumpy dirt road. The scenery on the way was gorgeous. There were not very many children at the home today because most of the go away to school for 2 weeks at a time. They served us the most fantastic meal - all freshly picked vegetables cooked to perfection. We got a little tour of the village and the barley flour mill which is run by the stream. The children here are so adorable. They all have rosey cheeks form the cold.
This is just a wonderful place - I have had a great week. I know I said I would get some pictures up but I am finding it difficult. I know I can upload some at the Bangladesh home in another week. Tomorrow we leave for Kathmandu for a few days and then on the Dhaka.
we took a shorter trip train T24/T21 from Lhasa to lanzhou. 28 hours on the train, no shower in 28 hours, that was too much for me… Lanzhou is quite near to Xiahe, where you might see the famous Labrang Monastery.
Train schedule Lhasa/Lanzhou
| Code |
From |
Depart |
To |
Arrive |
Duration |
| K918 |
Lhasa |
11h20 |
Lanzhou |
14h54 |
27h34 |
| N918 |
Lhasa |
11h20 |
Xining |
11h54 |
24h34 |
| T166/T163 |
Lhasa |
10h00 |
Xian |
20h50 |
34h50 |
| T224/T221 |
Lhasa |
10h45 |
Xian |
22h12 |
35h27 |
| T24/T21 |
Lhasa |
10h45 |
Lanzhou |
14h31 |
27h46 |
| T266/T263 |
Lhasa |
10h00 |
Xian |
20h50 |
34h50 |
| T28 |
Lhasa |
08h30 |
Xian |
20h12 |
35h42 |
More tours to Lanzhou and Labrang Monastery…
From what I read in some Chinese travel postings, the travel agency will not sell you the train tickets unless you join their tour group. And you can not buy this ticket on line either.
If you want to buy the tickets yourself, you will need to go to Beijing Railway Station (window 27 & 28) or Beijing West Railway station. They sell a small number of train tickets 10 days prior to departure.
Ticket sales start 6am every day.
If you want to buy hard sleeper, you may need to get there the night before and line up all night. Apparantely there are only 10 hard sleeper tickets for sale every day at each train station and each person can buy maximum 3 tickets. To be safe, you will need to be the first 3 people in the line. If you do not mind the hard seats, then probably go there 5am on the day would be enough, I am not sure.
You can call 95105105 (the railway station’s inquiry line) for more details if you speak Chinese. If not, can always get someone who speaks Chinese help you.
Good luck
March 31. 
March 31. 
October 31. 
