Tsang
Commissioned by a local prince in 1427 and sitting beside Palcho Monastery, Gyantse Kumbum is the town’s foremost attraction. This 32m-high chörten, with…
Must-see attractions in Tsang
Tsang
Everest Base Camp (5150m) was first used by the 1924 British Everest expedition. Tourists are no longer allowed to visit the climbing expedition base camp…
Shigatse
One of the few monasteries in Tibet to weather the stormy seas of the Cultural Revolution, Tashilhunpo remains relatively unscathed. It is a pleasure to…
Tsang
The immense, grey, thick-walled southern monastery is one of Tibet’s most impressive constructed sights, and one of the largest monasteries – home to…
Tsang
If you’re travelling down the Friendship Hwy and want to get a taste of what off the beaten track looks like, consider a few hours’ scenic diversion along…
Tsang
Pride of place in Kyirong's central square is this 1000-year-old, four-tiered Nepali-style pagoda temple, allegedly built by Songtsen Gampo. The main…
Tsang
The high red-walled compound in the far north of Gyantse houses Palcho Monastery, founded in 1418. The main assembly hall is of greatest interest, but…
Tsang
The 12th-century Kagyud hermitage of Drakkar, or Chakar, is famous as the site where 11th-century Tibetan yogi and poet Milarepa spent nine years…
Tsang
Dazzling Yamdrok-tso is one of Tibet's four holy lakes (the others are Lhamo La-tso, Nam-tso and Manasarovar) and home to wrathful deities. Its turquoise…
Shigatse
It’s a treat for the traveller when a sight is both a pleasure to explore and of great artistic importance. Such is Shalu Monastery, which dates back to…
Tsang
Near the shores of Yamdrok-tso, about 10km east of Nangartse, Samding Monastery is situated on a 4550m-high ridge that separates two smaller lakes…
Summer Palace of the Panchen Lamas
Shigatse
Though it ranks far below Tashilhunpo, if you have extra time in Shigatse, pay a visit to this walled palace complex at the southwestern end of town. The…
Tsang
If you want to get off the beaten track, make an 8km detour south off the Friendship Hwy from the road between Nangartse and Gyantse, across a huge,…
Tsang
Although religious centres have existed in the region since around the 8th century, Rongphu Monastery (4980m) is now the main Buddhist centre in the…
Tsang
The traditional village of Tsechen is located about 5km northwest of Gyantse en route to Shigatse. The small Sakyapa-school Tsechen Ge Tubden Rabgye Ling…
Tsang
This charming nunnery (ani gompa in Tibetan) hidden behind the hill that runs between Palcho Monastery and the Gyantse Dzong, is home to 44 nuns. It is a…
Tsang
This small but significant monastery and ruined dzong (fort) is just north of Lhatse in the village of Lhatse Chöde. Home to 75 monks, the monastery was…
Tsang
This private folk museum opposite Palha Manor offers an excellent introduction into Tibetan farm life. Alongside mock-ups of a traditional kitchen,…
Tsang
This small Gelugpa institution, built in 1269, clings like a limpet to the side of Shegar Mountain. A mural by the entrance depicts the monastery at the…
Tsang
This tiny place, home to just nine nuns, is built around two ancient meditation caves of Guru Rinpoche, one of which has a stone footprint of the guru…
Tsang
The road from Nangartse to Gyantse crosses the 5020m Karo-la, where a picture-perfect glacier topping out at 7190m spills off side peaks right along the…
Tsang
This mountain pass is one of the highest points on the drive from Lhasa to Gyantse. It climbs from the Yarlung Valley to its 4795m apex, where a parking…
Tsang
It's worth making the short (1.5km) drive southwest of town to this canyon, which you can cross on a vertigo-inducing suspension bridge draped in prayer…
Tsang
The lovely old pillars and carved wooden snow lions and garudas lend this chapel in Dzongkhar's southern old town an ancient feel. Look for the antique…
Tsang
Just visible across the river from the road between Lhasa and Shigatse is the Bönpo Yungdrungling Monastery. The monastery, founded in 1834, was once the…
Shigatse
Just a few kilometres outside of Shigatse, this 12th-century Kadampa monastery is famed for wood-block printing the Nartang canon in the 18th century…
Tsang
On a tse (peak) said to resemble a wild yak, this Yellow Hat monastery was founded in 1442, and later adopted as a branch of Tashilhunpo. In the gönkhang …
Tsang
Little is left of the original monastery complex that once sprawled across the hills north of the Trum-chu. The northern monastery predates the main…
Tsang
This tiny one-room temple near the turn-off to Phuntsoling and Lhatse Chöde Monastery is very special. A larger monastery previously sat on this site, and…
Tsang
About 41km from Gyantse is the county capital of Panam and the 15th-century Changme Monastery. Levelled in the Cultural Revolution, the monastery was…
Tsang
Shegar is dominated by its 'crystal fort' (the word 'Shegar' means 'crystal' in Tibetan), one of Tibet's most fantastical, whose crumbling defensive walls…
Tsang
This hugely atmospheric Red Hat sect temple is located east of Gyantse Dzong. The temple is dedicated to the 8th century Indian master Padmasambhava (aka…
Shigatse
Once the residence of the kings of Tsang and later the governor of Tsang, very little remained of this dzong (fort) after it was destroyed in the popular…
Tsang
Hidden in the fold of a valley north of town, this ruined and little-visited monastery is a 7km drive from Gyantse from a turn-off near the Rabse Nunnery…
Shigatse
Locals make merry at this park on the eastern side of Shigatse. Grab a bottle of Lhasa Beer and join them. There are a couple of dozen tents where people…
Shigatse
This tiny, ancient chapel in Shigatse's Tibetan old town houses a building-sized prayer wheel and is home to two monks.
Tsang
The main reason to make the 20-minute climb to the top of this 14th-century fort is for the fabulous views of Palcho Monastery and Gyantse's whitewashed…
Tsang
This former merchant’s house once belonged to the largest noble family in Tsang (the Palha – one of the five largest in Tibet), but is now a government…
Tsang
This traditional water mill is located halfway between Gyantse and Shigatse. Peek into the back room to see the working water-powered stone mill grinding…
