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Tibet Cultural Tours

Tibet cultural tours include cultural, historical and archaeological tour packages in central Tibet covering Lhasa, Shigatse, and Tsetang. During your exploration of the Tibet tourist destinations, Tibetan Buddhism Monasteries are the highlights of your cultural tour, as Tibetan culture is actually Tibetan Buddhism culture. Apart from touring the monasteries, we will also take you to the most precious and legendary places of Tibet, visit local villages, have a closer look at Tibetan monks, dine with Tibetans at teahouses, meet pilgrims en route to the holy places, etc.

Below are our hand-picked packages for the cultural tours. They are all flexible and ready to be customized to meet your interests, schedule and budget.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the best time to plan a Tibet cultural tour?

If you are interested in Tibetan culture, you’d better travel to Tibet during the celebration of Tibetan FestivalsTibetan New Year, Shoton Festival, Saga Dawa Festival, etc. Due to the sensitive background, Tibet would be closed to foreigners during the celebration of Tibetan New Year - the most important festival in Tibet. Summer is the best time to visit Tibet, because lots of festivals will be held in summer, such as the Nagqu Horse Racing Festival, Shoton Festival, Saga Dawa Festival, etc.  
 

There are lots of etiquette and taboos when visiting Tibetan Buddhism temples and monasteries. For example, you should take off your hat and keep your legs and arms covered before entering the temples and monasteries. It is considered impolite to bare shoulders, wear shorts or skirts. Do not touch the items in the temples. Do not speak loudly. If you want to take photos, you must ask for permission. 

There's a unique food culture in Tibet, which is light and fewer seasonings, except salt. Traditional Tibetan food and drinks include yak beef/mutton jerky, yogurt, Tsampa, butter tea, sweet tea, roast beef, roasted mushrooms, etc. If you're not interested in Tibetan food, you can also enjoy western, Chinese, American, Nepalese or Indian food flavors. 

The sky burial in Tibet is mysterious for most travelers but all travelers are not allowed to watch a sky burial. If you happen to witness a sky burial, please also respect the custom of the locals. Do not get closer to the sky burial site, keep silence, no talking or photographing. Remember, you are attending a funeral.

The yellow landmark of Lhasa is Makye Ame Restaurant, which mainly focuses on Nepalese, Indian, and Tibetan flavors. It's located in the southeast corner of Barkhor Street. Yellow is a holy color in Tibet as it's only for Monks. Makye Ame is where Cangyangjiacuo, the sixth Dalai Lama once met his lover. Cangyangjiacuo is not only a religious leader, but also a romantic Poet. He missed the lady daily and nightly, so he wrote a poem called Makye Ame. Someone said it's the name of the charming lady. Another saying is that Makye Ame means all good things. The platform on the top is superb to overlook Barkhor Street. 

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