2012 TIBET PERMIT SITUATION UPDATE

florien - its called "Guanxi". Some agencies have it - some don't. Some agencies are happy to use it for big groups only......so most small groups aren't getting permits. Its also quite likely that these groups were booked significantly in advance - so your local agent in Lhasa (Nimbus must be using someone based in Lhasa for their actual permit processing with TTB) has a good case with TTB. TTB will favour large single nationality groups right now as they are the most "low risk" groups of undertaking anything politically compromising to the TTB and/or the agency.

There is one other possibility - it is possible with very rare excellent connections in Beijing to get permits through another govt. dept. that is not the TTB. This is unlikely - but possible.

@travelbugni
Even though the site states 1st of July, the person from Shoestring I spoke with, said they already arrived in Tibet.
I still have confidence we can get into Tibet, since they assured me there would be no problems regarding their tours.

@mrcjonesy
That could indeed be the case. We booked this tour way in advance and the group size is considerable (14 people, all same nationality).
I've checked out the website of our Chinese agent (Nimbus) and they state the fact that they have a network set up of numerous reliable local agents spread throughout the country.
They also say they have good connections with tour operators from all over the world (that must be including Shoestring), mainly in Europe, Israel and India. Could be that they have some good connections.

Of course, we could be denied access nonetheless, because the situation can change in a split second. Who is to say what will happen next?

I still remain positive though about visiting Tibet. Have built up some good karma through the years ;) JK, I just have faith in our tour company.

I'm not sure that actually just booking a tour well in advance would carry much weight seeing as permits are only issued shortly before any tour begins.

Would like to know what my options are based on the current station.

I am a British Citizen hoping to travel to Tibet and China In July - August. My interests are trekking around Mount Kailas and going to Everest base camp from the Tibetan side and to include a stay at the Rongbuk monastery.

What is the best way to get the permits and visas without offending the authorities and still get to see China and Tibet?

I have travelled in Nepal before so I prefer to see things from China and Tibet but do not mind entering through Nepal if that is the best way.
Recent experiences are appreciated. Also, I am on my own. I believe I need a group of five of the same nationality to get a Tibetan permit. Is that true?

At this stage, at least 5. But I dont know if Brits are being issued permits yet even to enter from Nepal.

Insolventnonentity - save your energy. It is extremely unlikely that you will be issued a permit to enter Tibet this year. Read posts #386 and #388 which were written by folks who have lots of friends in the travel business in Tibet. Other posts suggest that it is only larger groups of citizens with the same passport (think 10+ people) traveling together who apply with agencies that have connections. Your chances are so slim as to make it difficult to suggest that you don't seriously consider alternatives. Effectively Tibet is closed to most independent travelers.

Ruth

Hi all,

Since I was previously glued to this forum a few weeks ago, I wanted to stop back and give you all some good news/hope. Our group of 8 Americans just finished up an 11-day tour of Tibet. We were originally supposed to enter Tibet on June 19th. However, our permits were granted on June 19th and we were able to begin our tour on June 20th. We flew from Chengdu to Lhasa to begin our tour and ended our tour on June 30th at the Nepali border.

Overall, the experience was an incredible one. However, Tibet - especially Lhasa- is very different than the last time I visited nearly a decade ago. Lhasa is in complete lock-down now following the self-immolations. You must now go through a metal detector to enter the area around the Jokhang and there are army guards and fire extinguishers everywhere.

We were originally supposed to go to EBC and were not allowed anywhere close. We saw a group of Germans at Namtso lake, but other than that we saw no tourists other than Chinese. We really didn't experience any trouble at all though we did have to stop constantly at check points to have our tour guide present our travel permits and occasionally 'register' us with the local Chinese authorities in several regions.

We booked our tour back in March and our tour company required a 50% deposit. When it looked like we would not be granted permits they immediately offered to refund our money. However, we decided to wait and see and were fortunately able to get the permits. I would encourage you all to find tour companies you trust and continue to try and make it in to Tibet. Best of luck to all of you!

Thanks for your report. A quick question - was this group of 8 known to one another and always planning to travel together? If so, it would appear to confirm earlier statements that it is smaller groups of independent travelers who are likely to have the most difficulty. And thanks for the update about EBC, it would appear that rumors are correct that it is closed to foreign travelers.

Ruth

lula_belle who was your tour operator? We are a group of 4 Americans, hoping to find 5 that plan to do a tour similar to yours in October.

Seems like there will be a few of us in Western Sichuan, Qinghai and Southern Gansu this summer....