This unusual journey leads you from Qinghai province in China to Tibet. You visit some very important monasteries of Gelukpa-sect in Tibet Buddhism like Kumbum, Jokhang, Drepung, Sera, Barkhor and Tashilunpo as well as the Potala Palace, experience exotic local conditions and customs, and enjoy the natural landscapes: snow-covered mountains, crystal clear highland lakes, broad meadows, emerald-green forests, peculiar plants and rare wild animals in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. The highlight is that to experience traveling to Lhasa by the newly built Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

A Brief Introduction to Qinghai-Tibet Railway:

Qinghai-Tibet section of the railway is the world's highest railway , and some 960 kilometers of the tracks were laid at 4,000 meters above sea level, with the highest parts reaching 5,072 meters. The railway is still the world's longest plateau railroad which extends 1,972 kilometers from Qinghai 's provincial capital Xining to Lhasa in Tibet . The Golmud-Lhasa section, completed on Oct. 12 this year, zigzags 1,142 kilometers across the Kunlun and Tanggulamountain ranges. Travelers can enjoy the world-class tourist sites along the newly-built line during the trip. According to the official, the trains running on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway are the most advanced ones in China . All the carriages of the trains are installed with oxygen-supplying equipments and every passenger will be provided with an oxygen mask. Passengers will not feel altitude reaction or sickness. The train will run 1,972 kilometers from Xining , capital of Qinghai Province , to Lhasa , capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It will take 26 hours to complete the one-way travel. Stations are built near scenery spots, according to the Qinghai-Tibet Corporation. As oxygen is thin in the region, trains, including sleeping cars, dining car and sightseeing cars, will be equipped with oxygen system for those who need. The 1,142-km-long section of Qinghai-Tibet Railway from Golmud to Lhasa has been completed on Oct. 12, 2005 and is scheduled to open to traffic on July 1, 2006 . In addition to Beijing , some other Chinese cities, including Shanghai , Guangzhou and Chengdu , will also launch direct railway passenger transportation to Lhasa as of July 1 2006 .

Train Schedule (2006 trial announced on 27 th June 2006 ):
SOFT BERTH: 4 persons in 1 cabin
Hard Berth: 6 persons in 1 cabin

Train information : Lhasa-Beijing :         47 hours 04 minutes      distance :  4064km Lhasa-Chengdu :      45 hours 40 minutes     distance :   3360km Lhasa-Chongqing :   46 hours 32 minutes     distance :   3654km Lhasa-Shanghai :      48 hours 58 minutes     distance :   4373km Lhasa-Guangzhou :   56 hours 10 minutes     distance :   4980km Price to Lhasa by Train: NEC Travels Kathmandu organize these tickets to Lhasa.   Departure Destination Distance Hard-Seat Hard Berth Soft Berth Beijing(west) Lhasa 4064 km 389RMB 813RMB 1262RMB Chengdu Lhasa 3360 km 331RMB 712RMB 1104RMB Chongqing Lhasa 3654 km 355RMB 754RMB 1168RMB Lanzhou Lhasa 2188 km 242RMB 552RMB 854RMB Xining Lhasa 1972 km 226RMB 523RMB 810RMB Guangzhou Lhasa 4980 km 420 RMB 896 RMB 1434RMB Shanghai Lhasa 4373 km 406 RMB 707 RMB 1131RMB Timetable and Ticket Prices for Trains to Tibet : Train # From Dep. Time To Arr. Time Total Distance Total Hours T27 Beijing 21:30 Lhasa 20:00 (3rd day) 4,064km 46hrs 30min Frequency (Year 2007): Daily T28 Lhasa 08:30 Beijing 07:34 (3rd day) 4,064km 47hrs 04min Frequency (Year 2007): Daily T22/3 Chengdu 20:36 Lhasa 17:21 (3rd day) 3,360km 44hrs 45min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct T24/1 Lhasa 10:45 Chengdu 08:25 (3rd day) 3,360km 45hrs 40min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct T222/3 Chongqing 19:42 Lhasa 17:21 (3rd day) 3,654km 45hrs 39min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec T224/1 Lhasa 10:45 Chongqing 09:17 (3rd day) 3,654km 46hrs 32min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec K917 Lanzhou 17:15 Lhasa 21:50 (2nd day) 2,188km 28hrs 35min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec K918 Lhasa 11:20 Lanzhou 15:27 (2nd day) 2,188km 28hrs 07min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct N917 Xining 20:28 Lhasa 21:50 (2nd day) 1,972km 25hrs 22min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct N918 Lhasa 11:20 Xining 11:44 (2nd day) 1,972km 24hrs 24min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec T164/5 Shanghai 20:08 Lhasa 21:00 (3rd day) 4,373km 48hrs 52min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct T166/3 Lhasa 10:00 Shanghai 10:58 (3rd day) 4,373km 48hrs 58min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec T264/5 Guangzhou 13:07 Lhasa 21:00 (3rd day) 4,980km 55hrs 53min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct, Even Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec T266/3 Lhasa 10:00 Guangzhou 18:10 (3rd day) 4,980km 56hrs 10min Frequency (Year 2007): Odd Days in May/Aug/Nov/Dec, Even Days in Jun/Jul/Sep/Oct

* As the sharp demand of the train tickets, all the tickets agency in China require RMB150 (US$18)/ticket as service charge.

Contact: janaki@ccsl.com.np
Attn: Janaki