Cycling China to Tibet - visa requirements

What those backpackers said is officially true. I'll let others expand on the rest. But there was a post yesterday (Or thereabouts) about extending a visa.

What are the chances in doing a tour just to get me through into Tibet and then traveling Lhasa to Kathmandu alone?

Where in China can I pick up a Tibet visa and are there any other requirements?
Will you take trian or flight into Lhasa, generlly your Tibet tour operator will courier the Tibet permit( known as Tibet visa) to you, the receiver's address must be in a Chinese city, such as Beijing, Shanghai or Chengdu. It really depends on where do you plan to enter Lhasa.

I also need to extend my Chinese visa, where can I do this?
I heard people tried this in vain to extend in big captial cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu due to restrictions. You can try your luck at some smaller cities, I heared some tourists succeeded.

Some backpackers told me I will need to book a guided tour through Tibet, is this true? If this is correct I am ok with this but I have to cycle because I'm doing the trip for a charity, ideally I would like to travel independently.

It is true that you need book a guided tour through Tibet, and I am sure that you have to pay a vehicle and driver too since no guide would like to cycle with you through Tibet, it is a tough trip for any guide even he is local Tibetan; but this will make this tour too expensive for you unless you can find some other like-minded tourirsts to cycle with you and share the cost, otherwise it will be tooooo expensive for just one of you under this charity run.

Cycling in Tibet is possible and fairly easy to arrange, however, you will need to be part of an organized tour that includes travel permits (these are not a "Tibet visa"), a tour guide and a support vehicle with a driver. Because foreigners are required to have the support vehicle with a driver, the cost of cycling in Tibet is quite high and is out of reach for most budget travelers. If you are traveling on a budget, it is best to find a small group of 3 or 4 others to join you to split the costs of the tour. Only a travel agency can arrange a cycling tour for you. All details of your trip will need to be arranged through an agency before you arrive in Lhasa. Independent travel along this route or anywhere within the Tibet Autonomous Region is NOT allowed.

Foreigners are generally not able to get visa extensions in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Chengdu and Xining would be your best options as both of these cities are gateways to Lhasa, however most cities in China will have a Public Security Bureau where you can extend your visa.

Seriously rethink your plans as the likelihood that you can arrange this in the next couple of weeks and then cycle this distance is slim to none.

Trips like this are difficult to impossible to do on the fly. Unless you can find others with whom to share the costs, this will break your bank to do on your own.

Not sure why you are having difficulty finding information. The thread at the top of this branch about Tibet Permits applies to any foreigner who enters - it doesn't matter whether you fly into Tibet, take the train, travel overland by bus or ride a bicycle. You need a permit, a preplanned itinerary, a guide and driver.

Regarding extending your visa, it is like obtaining a new visa. It is easiest to do in smaller places than in larger cities so avoid places like Chengdu in favor of nearby Leshan. Don't consider extending your visa until day 25 since an extension is basically a new visa and you will lose too many days if you apply too early. You can get one for certain and perhaps a second one but not in Tibet. Read this thread to understand the process and start from the end for the most recent reports: Chinese visa extension thread

Ruth

Yes there are rules and yes, they apply to all foreigners. And yet, somehow some people apparently manage to bypass certain rules. Last september i met a young French cyclist in Kathmandu, who had cycled there from France, through central Asia and then through Kyrgyzstan, Xinjiang and Tibet. He cycled alone, no guide, sometimes joined groups of Chinese cyclists. I was very surprised: How did you manage that? Visa? permit?? And here comes the sad part of the story. He explained that he had been diagnosed with cancer. He had a lot of (unofficial) paperwork in Chinese explaining his project and his disease as well. he said that at one checkpoint he spent a very long time before being allowed to proceed, others were more easy.

This was clearly a very special case. Even if the current situation in Tibet were still the same today as it was back then, there would be no guarantee at all that this would succeed. This guy had no idea whether he would get through, but he tried and somehow succeeded.

I am not actually recommending to try this. After all i did not do this trip myself, but only heard the story first hand from someone who did. Just thought it might be interesting to mention it in the context of this topic.