Fly In Drive Out - Saga Dawa Festival

Our representatives will receive you at the airport in Kathmandu, and guide you to the hotel in Kathmandu. Later, we will have a small briefing session on the trip, and meet the other group members, overnight at the hotel.
 

 Today, we'll take a tour of a few well-known Hindu temples in the Kathmandu Valley. We will visit the Pashupatinath, Gujeswari Shaktipith, and Jalnarayan Temple. Later, you can get some supplies for the Yatra if necessary. Overnight at a hotel in Kathmandu. 
 

 We will visit some of the major attractions in Kathmandu Valley today, while we wait on receiving our visas (FOR NRI). Explore the Doleshwor Mahadev Temple – the ‘shir’ head part of Lord Kedarnath in Uttarakhand. We will then visit the Bhaktapur Durbar Square, the most preserved cultural heritage in Kathmandu, and return to the hotel. Overnight at hotel. 
 

 We drive to the Tribhuwan International Airport, and take a flight to Lhasa. We will receive you at the airport upon your arrival in Tibet and drive you to the hotel. The rest of today, go slowly so that you can acclimate to the altitude more quickly. For the lengthy trip ahead, keep in mind to drink lots of water and get plenty of rest.
 

 Morning breakfast at the hotel, and we visit the capital city of Tibet, the old residence of The Dalai Lama, Potala Palace. We will visit the Potala Palace, approx. 3 hours in the old Palace Residence in the heart of the city. We will then head onwards to the Barkhor Street, then visit the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa. Explore around the place, and back to the hotel. Overnight stay in Lhasa.  
 

 Our route passes via Gyatse to Shigatse, the capital of the Tsang region, home to the Panchen Lama, the second pope in Tibet. Excursion to the Tashilhunpo monastery (founded in 1447) early in the morning, stopping at the temple of Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future, as well as other monastic temples. We will stop over at the Yamdrok Lake for a nice view of the gigantic freshwater lake. Hotel overnight stay.
 

 Your route today will take you across beautiful, over 5000-meter-high passes. You are kept busy by various activities, such as lakes and nomads pursuing tens of thousands of yaks and sheep, while you drive across Tibet's mountainous and sandy terrain. By late afternoon, you will have crossed the Bramha Putra River and be at the characteristic Tibetan and Chinese town of Sag for the evening.
 

 After our breakfast at Saga, we will be driving to the highest fresh water lake in the world, the holy Mansarovar Lake, lying at an altitude of 4558 meters, stretching wide with a pristine greenish-blue color. The holy lake is believed to be the resting place of Lord Bishnu. It is surrounded by Mt. Kailash, Mt. Gurula-Mandata, and the Lake Rakshasha (Rakshash Taal). The Rakshash Taal is believed to be created by the Evil King Ravan, and the locals believe the water is poisonous. Overnight at guest house around Lake Mansarovar. 
 

 We will get into our spiritual selves, and perform some rituals (puja) at the bank of the holy lake mansarovar. Our staffs will provide a bucket of hot holy water for each yatri from the lake Mansarovar for bathing. After our puja and prayers, we will complete the Parikrama of the Mansarovar Lake on a Jeep, and continue to the base camp of Kailash, Darchen. It is a village town right in front of the sacred Mt. Kailash. Overnight at hotel. 
 

 We will embark on a three – day parikrama. We first drive to the small settlement of Tarboche, also called as Darboche. It is the starting point of the Kailash Kora, and is also known as the Valley of Gods. Yamadwar, the gatewat of the God of Death, is located here in Tarboche. We will walk for a few hours to arrive at the settlement of Derapuk, settling right in front of the North Face of Mt. Kailash. Overnight and rest at a guest house. 
 

 Among the three days of Kora, today is the longest and the most difficult day. We will be heading towards the village of Jarok Donkhang first, and hike towards the Shiva-stal. We will rest for some time, and take a steep downhill and get to the banks of Lham-chu Khir river. We catch sight of the Holy Pond of ‘Gaurikunda’. We reach the village of Juthulpuk, this place is named after. The famous cave of Juthulpuk, Zruthulpuk cave, also known as ‘the miracle cave’. We will also catch sight of the Buddha’s Footprints along the way. Overnight at a guest house. 
 

Trek to Chongdo and Drive to Darboche valley. Exploration of Saga Dawa festival. 
Morning visit at Juthulpuk Monastery. Start all flat walking about 6 kilometers up to our driving crew. Further, drive to Darboche valley and observe and celebrate the Saga Dawa Festival. All the Tibetans gather here for the final day of the Saga Dawa Festival. It is also difficult to get accommodation here for newly arrived people.

After concluding the Saga Dawa Festival morning rituals, we will start our drive back to the town of Saga. After 7 hours of driving on paved roads, we arrive at Saga, where we will be spending the night in a guest house.

 Today will be a simple day. We drive in comfort and amazing scenery to Kerung, the last village town of Tibet to Nepal. We will be staying overnight and resting today 

 After completing the immigration procedures at the Nepal-Tibet border, we will drive back to Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu. Afternoon souvenir shopping and overnight at the hotel.
 

Our representatives will drop you at the airport as per the flight timings, we conclude our Lhasa Kailash Tour with great memories.