Tibet Tour From United Kingdom

How to Get to Tibet from Great Britain? Multiple ways to travel from London to Tibet.

As mentioned earlier, to get to Tibet, you need to firstly fly from London to Nepal or to three major Chinese gateway cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou and later take flight or Tibet train or even enjoy the road trip to reach Lhasa.

London to Kathmandu Flight: (Duration: up to 11 to 19h, with a stopover in DEL, IST)
London to Beijing Flight: (Duration: around 10h20m, non-stop)
London to Shanghai Flight: (Duration: around 11h25m, non-stop)
London to Guangzhou Flight: (Duration: around 11h30m, non-stop)
London to HK ( Duration: 11h50m non-stop; up to 15h15m with 1 stop in IST, SOV, HEL)

From Kathmandu to Tibet

The proximity of Nepal to Tibet makes it the popular entry country to Tibet. After your arrival in Kathmandu, you need to set aside three days to get your Group Tourist Visa. Our staff in Kathmandu will help you get it. Do remember to prepare your Tibet permit far ahead. Then you can choose to take flight or enjoy the epic overland trip from Kathmandu to Lhasa.

By Kathmandu to Lhasa flight

There are 2 direct flights between Lhasa and Kathmandu, run by Sichuan Airline and Air China separately, while the Sichuan Airline departs every other day. The flight takes around 1h30min. Do remember to choose the left window seat on the plane, you can enjoy the stunning bird’s eye view of Mt. Everest when the plane flies over the majestic Himalayas. To board the place, you need Group Tourist Visa. And after your arrival in Lhasa Gonggar airport, our Tibetan guide will be expecting you with white Hada and Tibet Travel Permit.

By the Epic Overland Tour from Kathmandu to Lhasa

Compared with flight, enjoying the epic overland tour from Kathmandu to Lhasa is much preferred by many tourists. Our staff will transfer you to Gyirong Port, current Sino-Nepal border, and after you go through the customs (your Group Tourist Visa and Tibet Permit will be checked.), our Tibetan guide will be greeting you on Tibet’s side. Due to the drastic altitude ascent, you will stay in Gyirong county for acclimation and gradually move eastward to visit Tingri, EBC, and Shigatse and finally arrive in Lhasa. The classic travel route abounds with jaw-dropped Himalayan peaks, magnificent Buddhist monasteries and holy alpine lakes and unlimited chances to meet local Tibetans and explore their exotic culture and custom.

From Major Chinese Cities to Tibet

From Beijing to Tibet

By flight
There are ten direct flights a day Between Beijing and Lhasa, operated by Tibet Airlines, Air China, Shandong Airlines and Shenzhen Airlines. Some flights have a stopover in Chengdu or Xi'an. And it takes about 4 hours and 30 minutes from Beijing to Lhasa (from Lhasa to Beijing). The full price for one way is about 406USD.

By train
Launched as early as in July, 2006, Beijing-Lhasa train (Z21) has served as one of the three initial railway routes of Qinghai-Tibet Railway. Beijing-Lhasa train stretches as far as 3757km and crosses over 8 provinces and it takes around 40 hours and 53mins from Beijing to Lhasa and its return train is Z22(Lhasa-Beijing).

From Shanghai to Tibet

By flight
Currently, there are three direct flights which go via Chengdu or Xi'an between Lhasa and Shanghai, operated by China Eastern Airline, Tibet Airline and Air China. It takes about 7 hours for the flight in which about 1 hour is for a stopover.

By train
Z164 (return Z166), as one of the early three railway links with Tibet, connects Shanghai with Lhasa. The railway line covers 8 provinces from east to west China and has 4373 km in total. It normally takes about 47.34 hours to reach Lhasa from Shanghai. As the train travels amid mountainous range, conductors of each compartment of the train will use Chinese, Tibetan Language and English to introduce renowned scenic spots along the railway line as well as Tibetan customs and making of Tibetan dishes, etc.

From Guangzhou to Tibet

By flight
Currently, there are three direct flights between Lhasa and Guangzhou via Chongqing, operated by Xiamen Air, Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines. It takes about 6 hours for these direct flights and about 1 hour for a stopover.

By train
Guangzhou to Lhasa(Z264) train departs every other day at noon from Guangzhou Train Station, and arrives at Lhasa Railway Station in the late afternoon on the third day after over 53 hours covering a distance of 4980 kilometers. It’s the longest train journey across Tibet. If you are a railfan, it’s highly recommended. Yet, the long journey might be too hard for kids and the elderly.

Travel tips: For Tibet train journey, overall three types of tickets are available: soft sleeper, hard sleeper and hard seat. Soft sleeper promises the best comfort and privacy with many useful facilities. It’s also the most expensive one. Whereas, the hard seat is not hard literally. The cabin can accommodate 6 travelers and cost-effective for budget travelers. Hard seat offers a basic seat, not recommended for a long train journey.

From HK to Tibet

The distance from Hong Kong to Lhasa is around 2,423km. There is no direct train or flight to Lhasa from Hong Kong, so for the tourists traveling from Hong Kong to Tibet, they need to transfer in Chengdu, Guangzhou, or Xining of mainland China. You may follow the 4 travel routes:

a. HK---flight---Chengdu---flight---Xining---train(24h)---Lhasa
b. HK---flight---Chengdu---train(44h)---Lhasa
c. HK---flight---Chengdu---flight---Lhasa
(The entire fly itself only takes around 5:30h and after your arrival in Lhasa, do take a good rest in a hotel to get acclimatized to Tibetan plateau.)
d. HK--- Kowloon-Guangzhou Train (2h)---Guangzhou---train(52:41h)---Lhasa

As you can see, there are a variety of options. What is best for you all depends on the amount of time you have to travel, what methods of transportation are the most comfortable for you and your travel pals—i.e. if you’re with elderly folk or young children—what your budget is, and, of course, what you want to see/do while on your trip?