Tibet - kora around Kailash
17 DAYS
20 PEOPLE
3690 EURO
Tibet is the “roof of the world,” a mysterious place where explorers, pilgrims, invaders and adventurers have flocked for many centuries in search of miracles. And today, under the influence of all kinds of “popular” authors, people often fall into misconceptions. They expect immediate enlightenment at once after crossing the Tibetan border. But Shambhala is a spiritual concept; it cannot be found on Earth and cannot be touched with your hands. And enlightenment can be achieved only by accumulating merit over the course of countless reincarnations, or through mystical deeds, like the great yogi Milarepa. We should not expect miracles that will appear to us at every step, but it is not by chance that we ended up here. Our route is the Beginning - the first touch to the great and eternal.
Beautiful Tibet, the kora around Kailash is a step towards purification of karma, liberation from ignorance, anger and passions - three things that prevent a person from achieving nirvana. And, if you are drawn to the magic and mystery of Tibet, if difficulties do not frighten you, then go! We will start from the very heart of Tibet - the forbidden city of Lhasa, its famous monasteries and the residence of the Dalai Lamas - the Potala Palace, and we will make our first kora, around the ancient Tibetan shrine - the Jokhang Temple.
Moving west, we will explore the iconic monasteries of Central and Western Tibet, the sacred lakes of Manasarovar and Rakshastal. The main goal of our expedition is the 53-kilometer kora. This is a ritual circumambulation around the sacred Mount Kailash, the mythical center of the universe, the source of the great rivers: Karnali, Sutlej, Indi Brahmaputra.
The culmination and highest point of the kora is the Drolma La pass 5669m (which is higher than Elbrus). The peak of Kailash itself remains inviolable today - believers of 4 religions consider it the abode of the gods.
Buddhists believe that Demchok, the wrathful form of Buddha Shakyamuni, lives here, and Hindus believe that this is the throne of Shiva. Here the Jain patriarch Jina Mahavira achieved liberation, and from here the founder of the Bon religion, Tongba Sherab, descended. To clear your karma, you need to repeat at least once in your life the mystical feat of the enlightened - to circumambulate Kailash, the divine mountain that can change your future.
Our expedition to Tibet is not only the quintessence of Tibetan values, its main goal is the search for oneself, and we choose the words of the Dalai Lama as its motto: “I have this precious life, and I will not waste it.”
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ROUTE
- meetings at airports and transfers upon departure;
in Nepal:
- all transfers according to the program;
- excursions to Kathmandu with entrance tickets, private transport and Russian-speaking guide (indicated in the program);
- obtaining a group Tibetan visa (permit)
in Kathmandu:
- 5 nights in a cozy hotel in the center of Thamel with breakfast;
in Tibet:
- personal bus;
- accompaniment by an English-speaking Tibetan guide;
- group accompaniment by one or two Paganel leaders (depending on the size of the group);
- all specified excursions, entrance fees, fees, duties and permits;
- 9 nights in 2-4* hotels with breakfast;
- 2 nights in the best available guesthouses;
- pack yaks with drivers or porters while passing the kora.
A required condition is the absence of medical contraindications for prolonged stay at high altitude. You must have a foreign passport that is valid for at least one year, exactly that one you are sending a copy of for paperwork, and 6 photographs (with you, not in your things).
Weather: The best time to travel is from April to October. There may be snow at any time at Drolma La Pass. The minimum expected temperature is -10. It is warm in Lhasa, hot in Kathmandu.
Acclimatization: Most of the trip will take place at altitudes above 4000m. Therefore, you need to make sure there are no contraindications, prepare physically and have a personal first aid kit with products for the most common or chronic diseases. Ailments from high-altitude acclimatization are possible, but we will do everything to minimize them.
Meals: For most of the route, we will eat on our own in Tibetan taverns and shelters. Therefore, it is very important to take with you a traveling spoon, bowl, knife and, especially, a thermal mug for brewing instant porridge and soups. In addition, a separate topic deserves a set of products that we recommend taking with you on a trip. We will definitely cover this in the discussion of the group of expedition participants.
Important: The organizer reserves the right to change the program due to safety conditions or force majeure circumstances (outside our control). The team is not responsible for the actions of third parties or organizations such as airlines, local authorities of visited countries, opposition, etc.
Questions about equipment, training, and other organizational issues will be sent in an information letter.
IMPORTANT!
Due to the fact that our expeditions do not include international flights to the starting point of the program, we cannot be held responsible for changes in flight conditions by airlines or airport requirements. Since our travelers fly from many different countries and cities, we never participate in the purchase of air travel and limit ourselves exclusively to advisory services in the selection of flights. Air agents or airlines from which tickets were purchased are responsible for the purchase and technical support.
ITINERARY
Day 1
19.05.2025
Arrival in Kathmandu, the colorful capital of Himalayan tourism. Transfer to the hotel, accommodation.
Registration of permits to visit Tibet. While the permits are being processed, we will take you for a walk through the bright, cosmopolitan, Indian-style noisy and charmingly sloppy city.
Overnight at the hotel.
Day 2
20.05.2025
Day in Kathmandu. Today’s excursions are a gentlemen’s package for every “Nepalese”, without which not a single program can do.
We will climb the 365 steps of the oldest stupa in Nepal, Soimbu (Swayambu) - the monkey temple - the birthplace of Kathmandu, the home of dozens of small monasteries.
We will visit one of the holiest for all Hindus, the main ritual crematorium of Nepal, the Pashupati temple, where according to legend the head of Shiva is located.
We will talk with local sadhus - extremely colorful and unusual characters, with whom we will definitely take a photo.
We will visit the “small Tibet" area of the largest and most revered Buddhist stupa Buddhanath.
In the evening, we will spend a meeting evening in a cozy restaurant.
Overnight at the hotel. (Breakfast included)
Day 3
21.05.2025
We will go on a tour of the Kathmandu Valley and the ancient city of Patan.
The official name of the city of Patan is Lalitpur, which translates as "City of Beauty" or "City of Craftsmen". It is one of the three cities of the Kathmandu Valley, built in the medieval period when the Malla kings ruled here. It was they who called him Pathan. A city of artisans, Patan is home to some of Nepal's most luxurious temples.
It will also be optional to walk along Durbar Square (Royal Square), where there is an opportunity (not guaranteed) to see the Living Goddess Kumari.
Overnight at the hotel. (Breakfast included)
Day 4
22.05.2025
Free day, but we definitely will not let you get bored in Kathmandu. On this day we go to the market to buy the missing equipment. There is a huge selection for every taste and budget - you can even be fully equipped by arriving in shorts and slippers.
After completing the shopping and receiving the long-awaited permit, we repack our “suitcases”, leave everything unnecessary for safekeeping at the hotel and take only everything we need with us to mysterious Tibet.
Overnight at the hotel (Breakfast included)
Day 5
23.05.2025
Flight to Lhasa, transfer to the hotel. Visit to the charming ancient Tibetan part of the city (now there are about a million Chinese in the city).
We will walk along narrow authentic streets, look into colorful shops and local taverns, and together with the Tibetans we will make the first kora along Barkor Street around the ancient shrine of the Jokhang Temple.
The day will be dedicated to the first acquaintance with the capital and acclimatization at an altitude of 3750 m! So you need to move smoothly and try not to make unnecessary movements. Overnight at the Gangien 4* hotel or similar. (Breakfast included)
Day 6
24.05.2025
Excursions in beautiful Lhasa. We will climb the Red Hill to the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas - the calling card of the capital and Tibet as a whole - the golden Potala Palace. No palace in the world is located so high, 3767 meters above sea level! The area of the palace is 360,000 sq.m., height is 119 meters.
The palace has 9 floors and more than 2000 rooms. The amount of jewelry, sacred and magical relics here is probably greater than in the rest of Tibet.
Be sure to visit the huge and iconic monasteries of Drepung and Sera for Tibetan Buddhism. And, of course, we will make a pilgrimage to the first Buddhist temple of Tibet, Jokhang, to the sacred, jeweled statue of Jowo - the 12-year-old Shakyamuni Buddha.
The statue was brought in the 7th century as a dowry to the Nepalese princess Brikuti, one of the wives of Tibet's first Buddhist monarch, Srontzen Gampo. Overnight at the Gangien 4* hotel or similar. (Breakfast included)
Day 7
25.05.2025
Early in the morning we will visit the Ramoche Temple, which is as ancient as the Jokhang. There is another mystical relic there - a statue of Buddha Maitreya, the same age as Jowo, the dowry of the second Buddhist princess. Here we can witness the morning service in the Gelug tradition.
Next after breakfast, free day in the capital of Tibet. We love this city. We are sure that you will love it too. It will be possible to walk around the Tibetan quarter that has become native.
By clearing your karma, you can make more than one kora around the ancient Jokhang, while at the same time visiting countless souvenir shops. A separate entertainment is to eat delicious and varied Tibetan and Chinese food in restaurants, eateries and simply from street vendors. Lhasa has a sea of shops with a wide selection of all sorts of unnecessary things - from Tibetan carpets to strange Chinese medicines. If you do not buy them, it can be even interesting to look at them.
Overnight at the Gangien 4* hotel or similar. (Breakfast included)
Day 8
26.05.2025
After an early breakfast, the 1500 km journey to Kailash begins. Transfer to Shigatse along the mesmerizing canyon of the great Asian river Brahmaputra. Shigatse is the second city in Tibet after Lhasa.
Here we will visit the Tashilungpo Monastery - the residence of the Panchen Lama - the second most important spiritual hierarch in Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery, from our point of view, is one of the most beautiful religious complexes in the country.
The central place of the complex is the temple of the Buddha of the future - Jampa.
The world's largest metal Buddha statue was built in 1904 by the 9th Panchen Lama, has a height of 26 m, is decorated with hundreds of kilograms of gold and thousands of precious stones. Overnight at the hotel. (Breakfast included)
Day 9
27.05.2025
Moving to Saga is full of varied Tibetan landscapes. Today we begin to overcome countless road passes on the way to Kailash, about 5000m above sea level.
On the way, we visit the town and monastery of Sakya - the oldest and main one in the tradition of the same name. The rich history of the monastery is associated with the names and deeds of the great Sakya patriarchs, who essentially ruled China for 100 years, and it itself is full of wonderful relics. The gifts of the Mongol emperors to their spiritual mentors and the oldest library of sacred texts are kept here.
The monastery is the oldest one to survive the Cultural Revolution. According to our feelings, Sakya is one of the most impressive places with its mystical history and aura. The very place where we spent the night, Saga, is nothing more than a Chinese military town with a dozen taverns and minimarkets. Overnight at the hotel. (Breakfast included)
Day 10
28.05.2025
Transfer from Saga to the sacred lake Manasarovar (500 km 10 h) (Maphamyum-tso, in Tibetan means “Victorious Lake” for divine powers), located at an altitude of 4580m.
Today we will cross most of the Tibetan plateau with varied and piercing sky-high landscapes that cannot be compared with anything else. Snowy ridges of the Himalayas, sandy dunes of the high-mountain desert, adobe villages of shepherds, flat intermountain plains and passes, passes, passes... including the highest of them - Mayum La 5211m. Today we will see our first view of Kailash. Overnight at a hotel in Darchen, a village near Kailash itself at an altitude of about 4750 m.
From Saga we will eat on our own in local restaurants, if you can call them that. Your leaders will organize a joint purchase of fruits and vegetables, which we will take with us and replenish as soon as possible. I
t's worth taking the recommended small supply of food with you to complement simple meals. which we can obtain on the spot. Sometimes, for various reasons, food intake should be limited to the fruits we have with us. No one has ever died from this.
Day 11
29.05.2025
A day on the sacred Manasarovar and demonic Rakshasthala. (early departure and 1 hour journey from Darchen).
First, if possible, we will drive up to the demonic lake Rakshastal. A channel called the Ganga Chu, which is full of water in especially rainy years, connects both lakes.
Then we will move to Manasarovar - a lake of unreal beauty, sandwiched between Kailash and its guardian, the almost eight-thousander Gurla Mandata. The lake is considered the first object created by the consciousness of Brahma, is sacred to Hindus and Buddhists, attracts pilgrims of both religions and is surrounded by monasteries.
On the lake we will visit the Gossul Monastery, like most in the area, founded by the Buddhist master Gotsampa. Gotsampa was the first to establish the kora around Kailash as a purification ritual for Buddhists.
The highlight of the day will be a visit to Chiu Monastery. The monastery is built over the cave of Padmasambhava (Guru Rimpoche). Chiu is a sparrow in Tibetan.
The creator of Tibetan Buddhism, magician and yogi - Precious Teacher - flew here in the form of a small bird and spent the last three years on Earth meditating in a cave. According to one version, the mystic, going into nirvana, realized a rainbow body in it. Transfer from Lake Manasarovar to Darchen 4800-4900m to the place where the kora begins (1 hour). Overnight at the hotel.
Day 12
30.05.2025
The beginning of the expedition is the kora around Kailash. The gentle track goes along the picturesque Shershongdo valley of the Dirapuk monastery, passing three of the five sacred points of prostration - the worship of Kailash (22 km, 6-8 hours about 5000 m), which was founded by the same master Gotsampa in the 13th century.
Our path is guarded by giant guards - the mountain deities Amitayus, Vijaya, Tara, Chenrezig, Vajrapani, Manjushri.
We pass the Eastern Wall and stand opposite the famous “mirrors” of the Northern Wall of Kailash. Overnight in a guest house. Tibetan guesthouses are something between a local mud house, a mountain shelter and a very shabby hotel. Dining (dining room with stove), rooms with several beds (not double), mattresses, blankets.
You need to sleep in your own sleeping bags; there is no heating. “Gestas,” for all their simplicity, can be both cute and cozy and nauseating. For so many years, we have selected the best.
Day 13
31.05.2025
Today is the main mystical day of the expedition - the ascent to the Drolma la pass, this is the main point of the stretch, the highest and culminating during the kora (5669m). Transition - 18 km takes 7-9 hours.
On the way we pass Shiva Tsal, the place of parting with the unnecessary, and the Green Tara Pass itself, where, on the contrary, they turn their gaze to the future, formulating good wishes for themselves, loved ones and all living beings.
We will be delighted with stunning views of the Northern and Eastern edges of Kailash.
Overnight in a guest house near the Zutrulpuk Monastery, built over the cave of the great yogi Milarepa. (5000m).
Day 14
01.06.2025
The trek to Darchen, 13 km and 3 hours, is not difficult; along the way we will meet several more places associated with Buddhist saints.
Before the Barka steppes we will pass a small but very beautiful canyon with a noisy river below.
When you exit the gorge onto the plain, you will see an unrealistic view of the huge Gurla Mandata - the guardian mountain of Kailash.
The end of the outer cortex. The first step towards nirvana has been taken. After lunch, transfer to Saga 8:00 am. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 15
02.06.2025
We start heading home. Early morning departure from Saga. Day of moving to the border town of Kierong. All the way we will be accompanied by beautiful views of the Himalayan range, beautiful mountains of the lake, mountain forests and other beauties of Tibet.
We will spend about 6-7 hours on the way. Kierong itself is located in a charming green mountain valley, surrounded by snowy peaks and similar to the Alps. The altitude here is 2300, the air is thick, fragrant, appetite and sleep return after high-altitude adventures. Overnight at a hotel in Kierong. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 16
03.06.2025
In the morning we cross the Tibetan-Nepalese border. We start driving home to Kathmandu (about 6-7 hours).
Farewell to the “miner” - a faithful companion of high-altitude travelers. The road, to put it mildly, is not Chinese. But we will travel the entire kaleidoscope from the high Himalayas to the rice fields of the Trisuli Valley and in the evening we will be in our native Kathmandu.
You cannot imagine how familiar this city will seem, which at first seemed like a universal crap. How tasty and aromatic the food will be, and how thick the air will be))) Hotel accommodation. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 17
04.06.2025
Free day in Kathmandu. Shopping – here you will replenish your bags with what you did not buy in Tibet, and empty your pockets.
Farewell to the Himalayas. Transfer to the airport – flight home according to the purchased tickets. (Breakfast included)
WHY WITH PAGANEL?
We are unique
For many years, we have been traveling the world to our small planet's most remote and unusual places. We do not use the services of domestic travel agencies. The trips we invent and carry out are always unique and have their unique zest, charm, and adventurous spirit.
Creation
The first thing that interests us is creativity in everything. During the expeditions, we shoot a lot of videos, take pictures, write stories, draw pictures. If you are interested in a creative approach to life and travel, then WELCOME... we are very happy to meet you!
Interest
By joining our team, you join a kind of club family, which already consists of several hundred people who are interested in discovering the world with us.
Since most of the expenses for organizing a trip – air tickets and travel documents for other modes of transportation, accommodation, excursions, services of local companies and guides, etc. – are made by us in advance, long before the trip, the prepayment or payment for the trip is non-refundable in the event of cancellation.
Since most of the expenses for the organization of the trip are air tickets and travel documents for other types of transport, accommodation, excursions, services of local companies and guides, etc. are not refundable in case of your cancellation of the trip. We simply have no way to return it.
Please note that this itinerary is tentative. The weather always has the last word. The itinerary is designed to allow sufficient time at the end of the Expedition in case of any weather-related delays. If necessary, the captain can change the expedition route depending on external conditions!
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