Four-day Lhasa Holy Tour
Tour Description
Day 1
Tour starts from the religious Potala Palace (3700 m ) built in the 7th century by the famous Tibetan king-Songtzen Gampo. The present one was built by the 5th Dalai Lama in the 17th century. It became known as the "Winter Palace" by the 1750, when the 7th Dalai Lama built the Norbulingka Park as his summer residence. After lunch, you will visit Jokhang monastery, situated in the old section of Lhasa. King Songtzen Gampo built this temple in the mid-7th century A.D. Now it is the most sacred place in Tibet. Pilgrims come here to pay homage from all over Tibet. Visit Barkhore Street in the evening.
Day 2
Morning: Visit Drepung monastery the sacred land of Gelug Sect., which was established in 1416 and the second, third and fourth Dalai Lama once resided in. Afterwards visit Norbulingka, the summer residence of the Dalai Lamas.
Afternoon: Visit Sera monastery, which was created in 1419 and has always been an important Buddhist seminary. As rose are planted everywhere in the monastery, it is also called “the court of wild rose”. Today still 200 lamas live in there. The "Buddhism Scriptures Debate" in Sera is very famous.
Day 3
In the morning drive to visit Ganden Monastery, which was built by Tsongkhaba in present-day Dagaze County to the east of Lhasa in 1409 soon after the Monlam Festival was over. Ganden is one of the three main monasteries of Gelug Sect. Anyhow, different from Drepung and Sera, it once played a more prominent political role in Tibetan history.
The abbot of this monastery possess of a high religious position within the system of Gelug Sect, just inferior to Dalai and Panchan. The monastery was reconstructed in 1993 and restored its original appearance. The holy stupa of Tsongkhaba is just in the monastery. On the way visit the Dark Yerpa Monastery, where you’ll visit the famous ancient meditation caves in the spectacular limestone cliffs of the Yerpa Valley.
Attractions Visited in This Tour
