Singapore Expats

Anyone interested in travelling to Tibet in early August? We are working professionals and looking for a couple of travel partners to form a small group, so that we can arrang our own itinerary at the lowest cost. Please PM me for details.

etsuyue - we've been (we went with Intrepid). Happy to share some suggestions with you if you need any. Cheers, Mr. P

hi etsuyue,

i'm keen to explore tibet, have you got specific dates in mind?
can you share more details on itinerary, group size or mix?

am new here, so cant pm you...

avid (female) traveller

Hi,

I'm also new here (and can't pm as well) I've actually planned a trip to tibet in oct (they say the weather is clearer n better for viewing mt everest at this time), if 2 ppl the tour package will cost about 2.6-2.7k, if 4 ppl it'll cost about 1.8-1.9k.

I've also customised the tour itinerary, although i'm still adjusting it so there may be some changes..duration will be 10days, excl 4 overnights on train from guangzhou-lhasa-guangzhou it'll be 14 days...(price incl of budget return airfare from sg-guangzhou)..

etsuyue & avid traveller can you please email me for further details & discussion?
soundless.i @gmail.com thanks!

- single (female) traveller who's looking for travel partner/s

(PS: please contact me @gmail.com or leave your contact email as I'm still restricted from replying to PMs )

I read from somewhere that there will be flights going to tibet from beijing, so maybe you can check it out.

I suspect the train journey is of some hardship, just a wild guess. Personally i have taken a scenic train trip along the norwegian fjord coastline, and trying to find some ground for comparison.

Resource Consumer wrote:I suspect the train journey is of some hardship, just a wild guess.

Not really.

http://www.seat61.com/China.htm#Lhasa%20&%20Tibet

The scenery when in Tibet is stunning, assuming you like that kind of scenery! The train isn't hard, in fact it's probably one of the better trains in China from our experience. Aside from our personal moral issues with the train and its construction, it's probably fairly easy.

Please note that you will be very breathless when you first arrive in Lhasa - do allow for a good few days to acclimatise.

sierra2469alpha wrote:Please note that you will be very breathless when you first arrive in Lhasa - do allow for a good few days to acclimatise.

sierra2469alpha

Thanks for the advice. We will take flight to Lhasa to save time. Hopefully we will feel well enough to travel around...

Etsuyue - in a way, if you have no moral aversion to the train, that *may* help you aclimatise a little easier. We flew from Chengdu to Lhasa, and those first three to four days were quite a struggle for all our team.

From your and my previous correspondence, make sure your visas and travel documentation for Tibet is all in order, and be aware that China has and does close access to the TAR on occasion, so make sure you have backout plans. Please also be aware that corruption by the Chinese authorities is, in *my* opinion, quite rife - be prepared for baskesh, unfortunately.

@soundless - it really is pot-luck with Everest and weather - we had three days at the northern basecamp, in September, and were blessed with relatively clear days, however it changes so rapidly. For that all important photo, though, be prepared for very early mornings or late afternoon "shiver" sessions!!

HTH, Mr. P

All the best for the tibet trip.

Do take special care on the acclimatisation part, 4000m altitude is not to be trifled with for us normal earth-beings.

And do share with us your experiences then.

yep true about Everest lol guess i'll be taking my chances

actually i've found another female traveller, we're just short of 1 or 2 more (females preferred) for a better price. >_< planning a trip's tough..

and 3 days train journey may be changed to just 1 day from Xining- Lhasa (this covers the more scenic part already) and frankly the idea of spending 3 days in a train cabin..i dunno if i can tolerate that although i think it should help with acclimatising.

if we have more time (and money) i would like to see east tibet too, it's a scenic route as well - Nyingchi, Basumtso lake, Ranwu lake..oh hell it's pretty scenic all the way to Sichuan/Yunnan. (it seems like for now Yading and Daocheng is still closed to foreigners though).

another interesting route is overland from Chengdu - Jiuzhaigou - Huanglong - Xiahe, Flower lake (Huahu marsh), Langmusi to Xining (maybe even see Qinghai lake? but it's not a bird viewing season in oct..) from Xining we can take a 1 day train journey into Lhasa. but overland anywhere is pretty expensive (with the added cost of an empty car driving there to pick us up). eh another thing is, this route is also supposed to be closed..so not every tour agency's gonna agree to take this route.

(PS: i'm still not allowed to reply to PMs, to contact me please do so at soundless.i @gmail.com thanks.)

soundless wrote:and 3 days train journey may be changed to just 1 day from Xining- Lhasa (this covers the more scenic part already) and frankly the idea of spending 3 days in a train cabin..i dunno if i can tolerate that although i think it should help with acclimatising.

(PS: i'm still not allowed to reply to PMs, to contact me please do so at soundless.i @gmail.com thanks.)

Taking train from Xining is a good idea. I was also exploring it when i was planning the trip. However, there is NO online booking system. Instead, you have to be in Xining to buy the tickets from the train station. I don't want to take the risk of getting there but no more ticket (remember it's peak season). You may also engage a local agent to get train tickets but maybe you have to join their tour (I didn't check it out though).

Also, try to avoide 1-8 Oct as it's the public holidays in China.

Yep you need to be part of a tour when you're in tibet, they'll help you get the necessary permits as travel permits are not issued to individuals, but through a travel agency where the tour guide holds it (as you aren't allowed to travel off on your own so apparently you can't hold the permit yourself either).

You can just choose to join a private tour, or customise your own itinerary, most people I know travel to Tibet this way. I'll be getting my travel agency to get the train tickets for me as well. If you book a tour from a local/Tibetan tour agency, they may not be able to book train tibets from anywhere further than Xining, but if your travel agency is based in China you can get train tickets departing from Chengdu, Beijing etc.. (I've checked this out already). Different agencies have different prices for the same ticket as there's some service charge they levy..it varies from agency to agency so you need to check this out properly too.

Hello all,

I'm female and would love to travel to Tibet. However August is out of the question for me but October is a possibility - can't tell for now unfortunately..

If you still need someone by the time you book, I should be able to tell you by then at the latest.

Please therefore keep me in the loop?

Cheers

Hi katiepup,

what's your budget? And how long are you able to be on vacation for? Think we can still fit 1 more to make it 4 people. I have gathered about 2 other ladies so it's kinda all female group now

Tentatively we'll be going 2nd week of Oct. You can pm me your email contact or contact me by email (soundless.i at gmail.com) for itinerary details, we'll probably be booking by mid Aug so we hope to confirm before that