A Tibetan woman holds her prayer wheel

In this story: ·When to visit ·Visas/Getting there ·Accommodations ·Other tips ·RELATED STORIES, SITES

When to visit:

I went in early October, when the days were sunny, the skies were crystal clear, and a few layers of fleecewear got me through the chillier nights in major towns.

Lhasa has moderate daytime weather year round. But if you go to the Everest region, or other alpine areas, be prepared to layer up and bring your down jacket and sleeping bag.

The months of April through June are also supposed to be good times to go, but my guide told me that he took a group of photographers to Everest for a week in April, and they never saw the peak of Everest because of clouds.

Check weather conditions when you are planning your trip. During the rainy season (July/August), many of the main roads had been washed out by flooding and landslides and had not been fully repaired by the time I went in October.

Visas/Getting there:

Most people enter Tibet through China or Nepal. To enter through mainland China, non-Chinese nationals need a Chinese tourist visa. Currently, only tour groups are officially allowed into Tibet. When I went, a group could comprise two people. Sometimes, a group has to have a minimum of five or six people with confirmation of an organized tour itinerary through a Chinese travel agent.

Some travel agents can arrange for you to enter on a group visa and then split from the group upon arriving in Lhasa. Depending on the political situation, regulations may change, so check with your travel agent on the current entry and visa requirements.

You will also need a special Alien's Travel Permit to travel through most parts of Tibet outside of Lhasa. Get the permit through a travel agency before you enter Tibet. I was able to arrange a Permit through one of many travel agencies in Chengdu, which is the most common Chinese gateway to Tibet.

When applying for your travel permit, be sure that you specify all possible destination towns and routes that you might want to visit outside of Lhasa, because you need authorization to cross into each zone.

Direct flights on China Southwest Airlines from Chengdu to Lhasa are about US$200.

Many people also make travel arrangements and arrange all visas/permits in Kathmandu, Nepal--from where you can fly to Lhasa, or drive across the Southwestern border on the Friendship Highway, although this can be dangerous during rainy season or during heavy snow.

If you have a lot of time, you can also be more adventurous and take a 30- to 50-hour bus ride (depending on mountain pass weather conditions) from Golmud, China.

Accommodations:

Lhasa, and other cities like Zhigatse, Tsetang, and Gyantse, have modern, but bland hotels that range from three-star downward, which cater to package tours. For example, the top-end Lhasa Hotel (formerly the Holiday Inn), provides oxygen bags and has a doctor on call 24 hours a day (very useful during the first few days getting used to the altitude) but doesn't have much character.

There are many reasonably clean and friendly guesthouses in most towns, with common bathroom facilities, which are listed in guidebooks like the Lonely Planet.

At Everest Base Camp, you can rent a very basic dorm-like room at the Dzarongpu (bring your own sleeping bag) or pitch a tent. In smaller towns, you can find very basic, roadside guesthouses, which have outhouses and well-drawn water. In more remote areas, camping may be your only option.

Other tips:

Take it slowly when you arrive, especially if you fly in. It usually takes a few days to acclimatize to the high altitudes. Symptoms of altitude sickness include: nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, headaches, insomnia and shortness of breath. If you plan to do any heavy-duty trekking or mountain biking, take extra precautions and read up on acute mountain sickness.

If you plan to travel overland into more remote areas of the plateau, pick up some instant noodles, biscuits, fruit, a thermos for hot water (which is available in most guesthouses), and other non-perishables from main towns before you go.

You may not be able to stomach the tasty, but not always sanitary, food served at roadside stalls outside of the main areas. Otherwise, there's plenty of basic Chinese and Tibetan food in the major towns.

Most tour packages set four-to-five day itineraries which take you to Lhasa, and maybe a couple of nearby towns. But, with the vast distances between all the spectacular sights and variable road conditions, two weeks is just barely enough to scratch the surface. Trekkers and other adventure travelers will need at least several weeks. "Into Thin Air," by Jon Krakauer, is a good read before you go.

Internet access: In Lhasa, the Barkhor Cafe has a few PCs with Internet access at 7 yuan (US $0.84) for 10 minutes, or 40 yuan ($4.83) per hour.

Resources:

Here are guides I used and would recommend for traveling in Tibet: