11 Days Nyingchi to Xining by Train Small Group Tour
Fixed dates, guaranteed to run
The group meets in Lhasa — on this tour, in Nyingchi on the date you choose below and travels with one Tibetan guide and one vehicle, never more than 8 people. Holding a seat is free; you pay the US$100 permit fee only when you confirm, 30 days before departure. The same tour also runs as a private trip on your own dates.
Hold a seat — no deposit →2027 departure dates
Each date is Day 1, the day the group meets. Fly in from Chengdu that day, or board the train in Xining the day before. Click a date to hold a seat on it.
Overview
The whole Tibetan plateau by train, in daylight. The tour starts low in the forests of Nyingchi and rides the new railway through the gorges to Lhasa; takes the train to Shigatse; goes to Everest Base Camp (or, for those who prefer, to Gyantse and Yamdrok Lake); and then rides the Qinghai–Tibet railway out, split in two at Golmud so that both the Tibet half and the Qinghai half pass by day.
Your guide rides every train with you, books every ticket, and keeps you seats in the dining car when the lunch hours fall at Tso Na Lake and the dinner hours at the Tanggula Pass. The tour ends in Xining, from where fast trains and flights go everywhere in China.
Tour highlights
- ✓Lhasa to Golmud and Golmud to Xining, both halves of the plateau by daylight: Tso Na Lake, the Tanggula Pass (5,072 m), Qinghai Lake
- ✓The Lhasa–Nyingchi railway through the gorges, and the train to Shigatse
- ✓Everest Base Camp — or Gyantse and Yamdrok Lake — from Shigatse
- ✓Three quiet days in Nyingchi: Basumtso, the Sejila Pass and Lulang
- ✓Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Tibet Museum, Norbulingka and the Sera debate
- ✓Every train ticket inside the tour included, guide on board throughout
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1Fly into Nyingchi — a quiet first day at 2,949 m
Fly into Nyingchi Mainling Airport from Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi'an or another city. Your guide meets you with a white khata scarf and drives you to the hotel in Bayi. The rest of the day is free: walk a little, drink water, sleep early. Cloud sometimes delays flights here, so nothing is planned for the first day. Nyingchi hotel.
Meals: none
Day 2Basumtso — the green lake of eastern Tibet
About two hours east to Basumtso (3,464 m), a long green lake ringed by forest and snow peaks. Walk across to Tsodzong, the small island with its old monastery, and along the shore; the lake is lower than Lhasa and the walking is easy. Back to Bayi in the afternoon. Nyingchi hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 3Sejila Pass · Lulang · Lamaling Monastery — late-afternoon train to Lhasa
Up to the Sejila Pass (4,728 m), with Namcha Barwa (7,782 m) in view on a clear day — the highest point of the first three days, and only a short stop. On to Lulang, a forest valley of wooden farmhouses, and Lamaling Monastery (foreign visitors are registered in advance; we do it). In the late afternoon the train from Nyingchi to Lhasa, about five hours on the new railway, arriving in the evening. Lhasa hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 4Lhasa — Potala Palace · Jokhang Temple · Barkhor Street
The Potala Palace on a timed ticket, then the Jokhang Temple and the Barkhor pilgrim circuit around it with the pilgrims. Lhasa hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 5Lhasa — Tibet Museum · Norbulingka · Sera Monastery debate
The Tibet Museum in the morning and, directly across the road, the Norbulingka, the summer palace and garden of the Dalai Lamas. After lunch, the monks' debate at Sera Monastery, loud, lively and full of hand claps. Lhasa hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 6Train to Shigatse — a free afternoon
The morning train to Shigatse, about two hours. After check-in the afternoon is yours: walk the streets with your guide and notice how the clothes, the houses and the spoken Tibetan differ from Nyingchi and Lhasa. Shigatse hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 7Tashilhunpo Monastery — then on to Everest, or Gyantse
The morning at Tashilhunpo Monastery, founded in 1447 by the first Dalai Lama and the seat of the Panchen Lamas since, with the 26-metre gilded statue of the future Buddha, the tombs of past Panchen Lamas and the courtyards where the monks live and study. After lunch the group travels in two cars. The Everest car drives west through Lhatse and Tingri to Everest Base Camp (5,200 m) and sleeps at Rongbuk. The Gyantse car drives about two hours east to Gyantse for the Palkhor Monastery and the Kumbum stupa, and sleeps in Gyantse. You choose when you book.
Meals: breakfast
Day 8Everest sunrise — or Yamdrok Lake and back to Lhasa
Everest car: sunrise on the north face, then the long drive back east through Shigatse to Gyantse, about 12 hours on the road, arriving in the evening. Gyantse car: Gyantse Dzong, the old fortress, then over the Karola Glacier and along Yamdrok Lake back to Lhasa.
Meals: breakfast
Day 9Gyantse and Yamdrok Lake — or a free day in Lhasa
Everest car: the Palkhor Monastery and Kumbum stupa in the morning, then the Karola Glacier and Yamdrok Lake to Lhasa. Gyantse car: a free day in Lhasa for the markets, a last turn around the Barkhor or a rest. In the evening the whole group is together again in Lhasa. Lhasa hotel.
Meals: breakfast
Day 10Lhasa to Golmud by train — the Tibet half of the plateau in daylight
The morning train to Golmud (09:50, arriving 23:53 in the current timetable; we check the times when we book). The whole Tibet half of the line passes by day: the Nagqu grassland, Tso Na Lake right beside the track, the nomad country around Amdo, the Tanggula Pass (5,072 m, the highest point of the railway) and the Tuotuo River, a source of the Yangtze. Your guide keeps you seats in the dining car for lunch at Nagqu and Tso Na and dinner at Tanggula.
For the daytime part you hold seat tickets; after the Tuotuo River you move to sleeper berths on the same train for the last hours to Golmud, every part on a proper ticket, all booked by us. Night in Golmud (2,780 m).
Meals: breakfast
Day 11Golmud to Xining — the Qinghai half; the tour ends in Xining
The 07:20 morning train to Xining, arriving early afternoon: the desert edge at Delingha, the high grassland and the north shore of Qinghai Lake. Your guide rides with you and says goodbye in Xining, where the tour ends; fast trains and flights go on from there. Coming down to Golmud and Xining many people feel sleepy for a day or two; it is only the body getting used to more oxygen.
Meals: breakfast
What's included
✓ Tibet Travel Permit and all other permits for the route
✓ English-speaking Tibetan guide
✓ Tourist vehicle with driver for the whole tour
✓ 10 nights: Nyingchi 2, Lhasa 4, Shigatse 1, Rongbuk or Gyantse 1, Gyantse or Lhasa 1, Golmud 1, twin share, with breakfast
✓ Entrance fees for every sight in the itinerary
✓ Lhasa airport or railway station pick-up and see-off
✓ Oxygen in the vehicle and an oxygen canister per person; travel accident insurance
✓ Pick-up at Nyingchi Airport
✓ All train tickets inside the tour: Nyingchi–Lhasa, Lhasa–Shigatse, Lhasa–Golmud (seat by day, sleeper for the evening part) and Golmud–Xining
✓ Guide from Nyingchi all the way to Xining
✗ Flights or trains to and from Lhasa
✗ Flight to Nyingchi and travel onward from Xining
✗ Lunches and dinners, including meals in the dining car
✗ Single room supplement (free for 5 rooms or 10+ travellers)
✗ Tips for the guide and driver
✗ Personal expenses and anything not listed
Questions travellers ask
How long is the train from Lhasa to Xining?
About 20–22 hours on one through train, so one half of the plateau always passes at night. On this tour it is split in two: Lhasa to Golmud by day, a night in Golmud, then Golmud to Xining by day, so both halves are seen in daylight. Qinghai Lake passes on the second morning.
How do the two cars work on Day 7?
After Tashilhunpo, those who want Everest go in one car to base camp and the others go in a second car to Gyantse and Yamdrok Lake. On the evening of Day 9 everyone is together again in Lhasa. The price is the same either way; you choose when you book.
Why start in Nyingchi?
Nyingchi is about 700 m lower than Lhasa, warmer and much less dry, with forest over half the land. Three quiet days there are a much easier start than flying straight into Lhasa at 3,650 m.
Is it allowed to change from a seat to a sleeper on the same train?
Yes. We buy a seat ticket for the daytime part and a sleeper ticket for the evening part of the same train, so you change places on board without changing trains.
Which permits does this tour need?
The Tibet Travel Permit (the original is carried on the plane and the trains), the Alien's Travel Permit for Basumtso, Shigatse and Everest, and the Border Defence Permit for Everest Base Camp. We arrange all of them; send your passport and China visa copies at least 20 days before the tour.
How many people are in the group, and who are they?
Between 3 and 8 travellers, usually from several countries, with one Tibetan guide and driver for the whole tour. The same dates and prices are offered on our sister site tibettravel.com, run by the same office in Lhasa, so guests from both sites travel together in one group.
Do I pay a deposit to hold a seat?
No. Holding a seat is free. To confirm it, you pay the US$100 permit fee at least 30 days before departure, which starts your Tibet Travel Permit; the permit is included in the price. The rest is paid later, as explained on our how-to-book page.