Tibet Travel FAQs

To the Tibetan people and to foreigners familiar with Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism, Tibet encompasses the entire Tibetan Plateau to which the Tibetan people are native. This includes all counties of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), 95% of the land area of Qinghai province, southwest Gansu, northern Sichuan, western Sichuan and far northwest Yunnan.
Traditionally Tibet was divided into cultural regions like Ü, Tsang, Kham, Amdo, Ngari, Kongpo and Gyarong. Although they share a common religious heritage, these regions boast their own unique culture and sometimes even languages. Check out our Tibet tours to learn more about the different areas. Tibet travel faqs or Tibet frequently asked questions and answers are useful for your trip. Check our office on a Map.

Tibet welcomes you! But, a journalist or a diplomat can not get permit under Tibet travel restrictions by Foreign Affairs Office in Lhasa. You can not get Tibet entry permit in the meantime. Some Tibetan areas aren’t opened to tourists and why is travel to Tibet restricted for sensitivity.
Tibet is not open for tourists as China is Zero-COVID policy starting from middle of the year. Instantly, contact a Tibet travel agency to know all about Tibet travel faqs before you travel to Tibet.

Overall, it is quite safe, but be aware of dogs. Read our article on Women’s Health and Safety While Travelling in Tibet.

Yes, there is a major difference in these two terms. The term “Tibet” refers to the entire Tibetan Plateau. The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) refers to only 50% of the land mass of the Tibetan Plateau. Parts of Tibet are spread across 5 provinces and regions of southwestern China. Don’t let the lines of a Chinese map confuse you. Tibet is a much, much larger area than just the TAR. Roughly 60% of the Tibetan people live outside of the TAR in other regions of Tibet. The terms “Tibet” and “Tibet Autonomous Region” mean two very different things. Tibet travel covid only allowed few expats occasionally in this year.

Tibet travel faqs – Tibet Autonomous Region require foreign travelers to be part of an organized tour with a licensed Tibet travel agency. You must have a Tibet travel permit, a tour guide, and a private vehicle with a driver. You do not need a private vehicle if you are just staying in Lhasa. The Tibetan prefectures found in Qinghai, northern Sichuan, western Sichuan, southwest Gansu and northwest Yunnan are (usually) open and do not require Tibet permits or a tour guide.

How can foreigners go to the TAR without an organized tour and tour guide?
You can’t. Unless you are a student at the Tibet University or have a working Tibet permit and resident visa for the TAR, you cannot go to the TAR without being on an organized tour. There are NO exceptions! Foreign travelers MUST be part of an organized tour that includes Tibet travel permit, a tour guide and a private vehicle with a driver.

No, once you separate the facts from the fiction regarding travel to the TAR, arranging travel is actually very easy. The Tibet travel agency that you choose actually does almost all of the work arranging your tour in Tibet. All you do is decide the route you want to take and exchange some emails with the travel agency you use. Read our article why travel to Tibet is so expensive to prepare from your side.

Yes, absolutely. Before the events of March 2008, foreigners did not need a tour guide if they were in Lhasa or traveled along the route connecting Lhasa to Mt. Everest Base Camp and the Nepal border. Since March 2008, major changes have happened regarding travel regulations for foreigners in the TAR. Now, everyone MUST have a tour guide each day, even when in Lhasa.

Your guide does have to be with you each day while you are in the TAR, but the guide does not necessarily have to be with you all day long. In Lhasa, some of the more famous temples and monasteries will require your guide to be with you in order to enter. However, much of the city you can explore on your own without your guide. I usually tell people to have their guide meet them sometime after breakfast (between 9:30 and 10am).
Have your guide take you to a couple of main attractions in Lhasa and then around lunch time, or slightly after, tell your guide you are going to take a short rest at your hotel. Tell your guide that if you need anything that you will call him/her. This way you can explore the city on your own without your guide. Sometimes, when there is a serious threat of instability in Lhasa, the government will require the guide to be with you at all times, but this is not common. If you need more Tibet travel Faqs just let us know.

Absolutely! Having a travellers insurance policy that protects you against cancelled tours. Cancelled/delayed flights, and any unplanned medical emergency is highly recommended. At times the TAR may be closed. If you have to cancel your Tibet tour because of a closure. A reputable travel agency will refund you most of the tour cost, but it is still good to have a policy as well. Finally, hospitals in Tibet are generally well below Western standards. Having a medical policy that would transport you to a high quality hospital in Hong Kong, Singapore or Thailand is worth considering.

In years past, the most common vehicle used in the TAR was the Toyota Land Cruiser. However, it is using mini-van, Suv according. Most of the roads in the Yarlung Valley as well as the Friendship Highway are now entirely paved. Even the road to Mt. Kailash tour is now paved over 98% of the way. Now, more and more travel agencies use fuel-efficient vans and smaller 4-Wheel Drive vehicles.

No, your Tibet permit is only valid for the duration of your tour. You have to leave end of the trip. Normally, the travel agency that you use will either book your flight/train ticket departing Lhasa or will ask for you to show your outgoing ticket. If you decide to lie and stay in the TAR after your tour is over. You could cause the travel agency you used to get in huge trouble. They could even lose their business license forcing everyone out of work.

Yes, it is possible to cycle in the TAR, however you still have travel permits, a tour guide, and a “support vehicle” that will follow you along your route. There are no exceptions to this rule. The guide will ride with the driver in the vehicle. The vehicle will normally stay a few kilometers in front of you as you cycle along your route. Since foreigners must have a guide and support vehicle, cycling in the TAR is quite expensive. More and more people are choosing to cycle in the open Tibetan areas of Kham and Amdo (the route from Kangding to Shangri La is becoming quite popular) in order to avoid having to pay the high costs of cycling in the TAR.

The rainy season in Tibet begins in mid to late June and lasts until early to mid-September. The rainy season is not nearly as wet as that of south and southeast Asia, but it does rain and it can be rather cloudy. If you are coming to Tibet to get good views of the Himalayas or other big peaks. We recommend waiting until after the rainy season. You can trek during this time, but be sure to bring clothes suitable for wet weather.

Before March 2008, you could often times get a visa extension in Lhasa, but since then it is extremely rare. The Tibet Tourism Bureau will usually not grant travel permits to people whose visas will expire during their Tibet tour. Do not count on being able to get a visa extension in Lhasa or anywhere else in the TAR.

Yes, you can get up to a 30 day visa extension in Kangding (Dartsendo), Yushu (Jyekundo), Shangri La (Gyelthang), Ma’erkang (Barkham), Xining, Golmud, Songpan and Hezuo (Tsoe). You can sometimes get a visa extension in Dawu (Machen) in Golog prefecture as well.

Usually you cannot get Tibet travel permit for the TAR. Contact us for specific reasons that you can get the permit out of This Tibet travel faqs information.

Yes, you can. But you will have to have a letter from your inviting company. That states your full name, nationality, passport number and position at the company. The letter should be written in Chinese on official letterhead and needs to be dated and stamped with your company’s official seal. This letter then needs to be scanned and emailed to the travel agency you are using and they will turn it in to the Tibet Tourism Bureau.

We do not recommend listing Tibet on your visa application. There is a good chance that your Chinese visa application will be denied if you do so. Rather, we recommend just listing a couple of major cities that you will visit on the way, such as Beijing or Chengdu. Once your Chinese visa is issued, you are free to travel to places not listed on your visa application, including Tibet. If you travel to Tibet from Nepal, you can get Tibet group visa with our professionals. We would much appreciate to involve in forum to discuss and share your recent Tibet experience.

No, the Chinese government does not provide an official website with travel information on the TAR or other regions of the Tibetan Plateau. Getting accurate, up-to-date travel information on Tibet can be difficult. If you have more questions about Tibet travel faqs, you can contact us.

yes. We also have travel faqs on kingdom of Bhutan. You can also check our article on traveling in Nepal guide. Check Bhutan Snowman Trek and Tibet Historical Trip if you are interested.