15-Day Mount Kailash Kora & Everest Base Camp Tour

Day 1

Welcome to Lhasa

Welcome to Tibet! Upon arrival, your local Tibetan guide and driver will meet you at the airport or railway station and take you to your hotel in central Lhasa.

The drive from the airport takes approximately one hour, following the Yarlung Tsangpo and Lhasa rivers into the city. Once you have checked in, take the rest of the day slowly and allow your body to adjust to the altitude.

If you feel comfortable, enjoy a gentle walk around the hotel or visit Potala Square for your first view of the Potala Palace. Avoid strenuous activity and remember to drink plenty of water.

🏔️ Altitude: 3,650 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 70 km / 1 hour
🍽️ Meals: None
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Xinding Hotel Lhasa (拉萨新鼎大酒店) or similar
Comfort: Thangka Hotel, Deluxe Room (拉萨唐卡酒店豪华房) or similar

*Free airport pickup is available at 10:00, 13:30, 16:00 and 18:30. A private pickup can be arranged for approximately RMB 400 if you prefer not to wait or arrive after the last shuttle. Train-station pickup is also included.

Day 2

Drepung and Sera Monasteries

Begin your discovery of Tibetan Buddhism at Drepung Monastery, once home to more than 10,000 monks. Explore its assembly halls, monastic colleges and peaceful courtyards while your guide introduces you to Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and daily monastic life.

In the afternoon, continue to Sera Monastery to watch the famous monks’ debate. Through emphatic claps, gestures and rapid questions, the monks test one another’s understanding of Buddhist teachings in one of Lhasa’s most fascinating traditions.

This evening, meet your fellow travellers over a welcome dinner at a local restaurant.

🍽️ Meals: Breakfast and welcome dinner
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Xinding Hotel Lhasa (拉萨新鼎大酒店) or similar
Comfort: Thangka Hotel, Deluxe Room (拉萨唐卡酒店豪华房) or similar

Day 3

Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Street

Visit the Potala Palace, Tibet’s most recognisable landmark and the former winter residence of successive Dalai Lamas. Climb the steps to its Red and White Palaces, where chapels, murals, statues and ceremonial halls reveal centuries of Tibetan history.

Continue to the Jokhang Temple, the spiritual heart of Lhasa. Around the temple, pilgrims walk clockwise along the Barkhor kora, spinning prayer wheels and prostrating as they complete their sacred circuit.

Follow the pilgrims through Barkhor Street before joining local residents for sweet tea in a traditional Tibetan teahouse—a simple and authentic glimpse into everyday life in Lhasa.

🏔️ Altitude: 3,650 m
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast and tea at a Tibetan teahouse
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Xinding Hotel Lhasa (拉萨新鼎大酒店) or similar
Comfort: Thangka Hotel, Deluxe Room (拉萨唐卡酒店豪华房) or similar

Day 4

Lhasa – Yamdrok Lake – Karola Glacier – Shigatse

Leave Lhasa and cross the mountains towards Yamdrok Lake. From the Gangbala viewpoint, look down over the lake’s vivid turquoise waters, winding between mountains beneath the distant snow-covered peak of Nyenchen Khangsar.

Follow the lakeshore to a rural village, where you will visit a local family and share a farmhouse lunch. This is a lovely opportunity to experience life beyond Tibet’s main towns.

Continue to Karola Glacier, where a great wall of ice descends from the slopes of Nyenchen Khangsar. The journey then passes Manla Reservoir and the historic town of Gyantse before reaching Shigatse, Tibet’s second-largest city.

🏔️ Altitude: 3,600–5,030 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 360 km / 8 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast and farmhouse lunch
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Shiga-Yangcha Hotel (喜嘎央恰酒店) or similar
Comfort: Qo Mo Lang Zong Hotel (乔穆朗宗酒店) or similar

Day 5

Shigatse – Tashilhunpo Monastery – Everest Base Camp

Begin with a visit to Tashilhunpo Monastery, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama and one of Tibet’s most important monastic institutions. Its chapels include an immense gilded statue of Jampa, the Future Buddha.

The road then leads towards the Himalayas. At the Dingri viewpoint, weather permitting, you will catch your first distant view of Mount Everest. After entering the Everest nature reserve, continue to Gawula Pass for an extraordinary panorama across several of the world’s highest mountains.

Follow the mountain road to Everest Base Camp, where Everest’s immense north face rises above the surrounding landscape. If the weather is clear, watch the evening light turn the mountain golden before spending the night beneath the Himalayan sky.

🏔️ Altitude: Shigatse 3,600 m; Gawula Pass approximately 5,198 m; Everest Base Camp approximately 5,200 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 340 km / 8 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
EBC Tent Guesthouse (珠峰大本营帐篷招待所)

*Accommodation at Everest Base Camp is in a simple shared tent guesthouse without private bathrooms. The Eco and Comfort distinction does not apply but you can chose to upgrade to EBC hotel. 

Day 6

Everest Base Camp – Pelku Tso – Saga

If you stayed near Everest Base Camp and the weather is clear, wake early for another chance to see Mount Everest in the morning light. Visit Rongbuk Monastery before beginning the journey west.

If you stayed in Basong Village or another winter alternative, you will depart directly without returning to Everest Base Camp.

Travel towards Saga through a remote Himalayan landscape of high-altitude grasslands, open valleys and snow-covered peaks. Along the way, admire Shishapangma, the only mountain above 8,000 metres located entirely within Tibet, and the blue waters of Pelku Tso at its base.

Arrive in Saga, the gateway to western Tibet and the Mount Kailash region.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 4,510–5,200 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 380 km / 7 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Schery Hotel (舍里酒店) or similar
Comfort: Schery Hotel (舍里酒店) or similar

Day 7

Saga – Lake Manasarovar – Darchen

Today’s journey crosses the immense landscapes of the Ngari Plateau. Travel between the Himalayan and Gangdise mountain ranges, passing grasslands, wetlands and the green waters of Gongzhu Tso.

After crossing Mayum La Pass at approximately 5,211 metres, enter the Mount Kailash region. The first views of Lake Manasarovar and Mount Kailash rising beyond the plateau are among the most memorable moments of the journey.

Continue along the lake towards Darchen, the small settlement at the foot of Mount Kailash. Check in, rest and make your final preparations for the three-day kora.

🏔️ Altitude: Darchen approximately 4,600 m; Mayum La Pass approximately 5,211 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 490 km / 8 hours
🍽️ Meals: None
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Letu Hotel (乐途酒店) or similar
Comfort: Letu Hotel (乐途酒店) or similar

*If you would like to hire a porter or yak for the kora, speak to your guide today. These services cost extra and remain subject to local availability.

Day 8

Mount Kailash Kora Day 1: Darchen – Sarshung – Dirapuk

Take the scenic-area bus from Darchen to Sarshung, where the walking section of your Mount Kailash kora begins.

Follow the river valley beneath the mountain, with changing views of Mount Kailash’s southern and western faces accompanying you along the trail. The first day is the gentlest section of the kora, although the high altitude still requires a steady pace.

Arrive at Dirapuk Monastery, situated beneath Mount Kailash’s dramatic western face. If the weather is clear, the late-afternoon light over the mountain is unforgettable.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 4,675–5,210 m
🥾 Walking: approximately 13 km / 5 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
Basic shared guesthouse near Dirapuk Monastery

*Rooms are shared and facilities are extremely simple, with no private bathrooms. The Eco and Comfort distinction does not apply during the kora.

Day 9

Mount Kailash Kora Day 2: Dirapuk – Drolma La Pass – Zutulpuk

Today is the most demanding and rewarding stage of the kora. Set out early and climb gradually towards Drolma La Pass, the highest point of the pilgrimage at approximately 5,630 metres.

Prayer flags cover the pass, where pilgrims pause before beginning the steep and often rocky descent. Below the pass lies the sacred Lake of Compassion, surrounded by a stark high-altitude landscape.

Continue down into the valley and follow the trail towards Zutulpuk Monastery. This is a long day, so walk slowly, listen to your guide and conserve your energy.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 4,810–5,630 m
🥾 Walking: approximately 24 km / 10 hours
🍽️ Meals: None
🛏️ Accommodation:
Basic shared guesthouse near Zutulpuk Monastery

*Rooms are shared and facilities are extremely simple, with no private bathrooms. The Eco and Comfort distinction does not apply during the kora.

Day 10

Mount Kailash Kora Day 3: Zutulpuk – Darchen – Lake Manasarovar

Complete the final section of the Mount Kailash kora, following the valley back towards Darchen. From higher points along the trail, you may see the blue waters of Lake Manasarovar and the snow-covered peaks of the Himalayas across the plateau.

A scenic-area vehicle may be available for the final section of the route if required.

After returning to Darchen and taking some time to rest, drive to Lake Manasarovar. Walk beside the sacred lake, enjoy its peaceful atmosphere and admire the distant silhouette of Mount Kailash and the surrounding mountains.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 4,600–4,810 m
🥾 Walking: approximately 12 km / 4 hours
🚗 Driving: approximately 30 km
🍽️ Meals: None
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Letu Hotel (乐途酒店) or similar
Comfort: Letu Hotel (乐途酒店) or similar

*Hot-spring bathing near Lake Manasarovar may be available locally for an additional fee.

Day 11

Darchen – Saga

Leave Darchen and begin the return journey across western Tibet. The long drive offers another opportunity to appreciate the immense landscapes of the Ngari Plateau, with its grasslands, lakes, wildlife and distant Himalayan peaks.

Pass Gongzhu Tso once again and stop for photographs or a short walk when road and weather conditions allow. Arrive in Saga in the evening and rest after the day’s journey.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 4,510–4,600 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 490 km / 8 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Schery Hotel (舍里酒店) or similar
Comfort: Schery Hotel (舍里酒店) or similar

Day 12

Saga – Gyirong Valley

Descend from the high, dry plateau into Gyirong Valley, one of the greenest and lowest-altitude areas of western Tibet. Forests, deep valleys, traditional villages and snow-covered mountains create a striking contrast with the landscapes of Mount Kailash.

After arriving in Gyirong, enjoy a gentle walk through the valley and visit the meditation cave associated with Padmasambhava, who is believed to have practised here during his journey through the Himalayas.

The lower altitude and oxygen-rich air make Gyirong a welcome place to rest after the Mount Kailash kora.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 2,800–4,510 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 200 km / 3 hours
🍽️ Meals: None
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Phuntso Kangsang Hotel (彭措康桑酒店) or similar
Comfort: Qo Mo Lang Zong Hotel (乔穆朗宗酒店) or similar

Day 13

Gyirong Valley – Tingri

Enjoy a slower morning in Gyirong before leaving the forested valley and climbing back onto the Tibetan Plateau.

Travellers continuing independently to Nepal will be assisted towards the Gyirong border. The rest of the group will travel to Tingri, passing once again through the Himalayan landscape.

Near Old Tingri, weather permitting, look out for distant views of Mount Everest and Cho Oyu before arriving at your hotel.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 2,800–4,300 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 260 km / 5 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Shegar Qomolangma Hotel (定日珠峰宾馆) or similar
Comfort: Shegar Qomolangma Hotel (定日珠峰宾馆) or similar

Day 14

Tingri – Shigatse – Lhasa

Begin the long return journey to Lhasa, with a final opportunity to admire the Himalayan landscape and say goodbye to Mount Everest when visibility allows.

Continue through Shigatse and follow the Yarlung Tsangpo River east towards Lhasa. The changing scenery—from open plateau to cultivated river valley—makes this final overland journey a beautiful conclusion to the expedition.

Arrive in Lhasa and enjoy a comfortable final night in the city.

🏔️ Altitude: approximately 3,650–4,300 m
🚗 Driving: approximately 500 km / 6 hours
🍽️ Meals: Breakfast
🛏️ Accommodation:
Eco: Xinding Hotel Lhasa (拉萨新鼎大酒店) or similar
Comfort: Thangka Hotel, Deluxe Room (拉萨唐卡酒店豪华房) or similar

Day 15

Departure from Lhasa

After breakfast, it is time to say goodbye to Tibet. Depending on your departure schedule, transfer to Lhasa Airport or the railway station for your onward journey.

We hope the sacred landscapes, shared moments and experience of completing the Mount Kailash kora remain with you long after you leave Tibet.

🍽️ Meals: Breakfast

*Free airport drop-off shuttles leave the hotel at 06:30, 08:00 and 12:00. If these times do not suit your departure, a private transfer can be arranged for approximately RMB 400.