Getting to Tibet

This is not easy and is frustrating as hell. My agent at the Far east hostel in Beijing has sorted this for me but it has been a pain and I still not sure if it will work

1) Had to buy a 1 day tour in Lhasa in order to get the permit
2) There were issues with my permit for some reason (I think cause my chinese visa is a business one)
3) As I wanted to go to Xian first, the permit is being faxed to my hostel in Xian who are supposed to be getting me that hard to get ticket to Lhasa from Xian. Due to faxing of permits, I can't fly. You apparently need to real permit to get a flight but train is OK to just have a copy???

Overall my impression is that the situation is completely out of whack and how to get there changes daily. Its as frustrating for the agents as for us. I trust my agent having booked a few things through them

But this is what travelling is about. If it was easy everyone would do it and there would be nothing special about doing it!!!

Just because #2 did not get his permit checked doesn't necessarily mean that everyone else won't. Those of you who decide to follow his advice and go without a permit, please make sure you know his personal details and contact number in case you're caught without the permit and need him to bail you out. Or for your lawyer to sue him.
Cheers!

Excuse me?! Since when am I selling any Tibet permits?! I haven't even been to Tibet myself, for goodness sakes. I'm sorry but you're totally out of your mind.
Cheers!

Oh and also, you can't even tell that I'm not a "he". Marvellous.
Cheers!

In my experience you do need a travel permit and ellyse does not appear to be a permit vendor. The permit is purchased with your train/plane/bus ticket. I got my plane ticket +TTB in Chengdu (booked through Holly's Hostel") and left for Tibet a day later. Chengdu is probably the most convenient staging point for excursions into Tibet.

WeiLong in Tibet

hendri, for goodness sakes stop your nonsense. I do not sell permits and I have never claimed to be a expert on Tibet.
Cheers!

Hi all,
I am looking to travel to Lhasa in late July. I've looked through the posts and it looks like TTB permits are really difficult to get hold of at the moment. I am planning to fly from Beijing to Lhasa, I wonder if anyone has any idea which travel company/hostel I should contact to get hold of a TTB permit and whether you think that the situation is likely to change by the end of July (i.e. The Chinese Government ceasing these restrictions on individual travel in Tibet).

Thanks