Travel through Lanzhou to Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Day 1 Arrival in Lanzhou
You can choose to fly or take a high-speed train to reach Lanzhou, and our guide will be waiting for you at the airport or railway station. After leaving your luggage in the hotel, your private Lanzhou Xiahe Xining tour officially starts. Our guide will escort you to see the Statue of Mother Yellow River, and learn more about traditional irrigation tools at the Waterwheel Garden. Afterwards, we will take a short hike on White Pagoda Mountain and enjoy the breathtaking sunset view at Zhongshan Bridge.

Meals: No meals, advice freely available
Accommodation: Legend Hotel
Day 2 Lanzhou – Xiahe
Bingling Grottoes
After breakfast, our guide and driver will escort you to Liujiaxia Reservoir dock, which is about a three-hour drive from Lanzhou. From there we will take a speed boat to see the Bingling Grottoes. In the Tibetan language, “Bingling” refers to thousands of Buddhas, and indeed the temple boasts numerous niches and Buddha statues engraved on cliffs. Touring by boat on Liujiaxia Reservoir is the best way to capture the full view of the grottoes.

We then return to the dock and hop into our vehicle to continue on to Xiahe, which will take around three hours. Upon arrival, you will check into a local hotel for a good rest.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Labrang Civil Aviation Hotel
Day 3 Xiahe
Colorful Buddhist scriptures in Labrang Monastery
The highlight of your 6 days Lanzhou tour to Xiahe is the Labrang Monastery, a Tibetan Buddhist temple just second to the Potala Palace in terms of scale and reputation. The whole complex is grandiose with arrays of exquisite palaces. During our morning visit, you will also get a chance to witness monks chanting sutras, which enables you to experience the most authentic Tibetan Buddhist culture.

After that, we will take a 1.5-hour ride to Ganjia Grassland. There are many Tibetan nomadic families who still live on the grassland. A local family visit is scheduled for you to learn about their life. Then we will return to the hotel in Xiahe.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Day 4 Xiahe – Tongren – Xining
Ganjia Grassland
After breakfast, we will head for Tongren City (a 3.5-hour ride), and then start our tour with a visit to Rongwo Monastery. Built along a hill slope, the temple enshrines exquisite Buddha statues and displays numerous artworks and cultural relics such as murals, Buddhist scriptures, thangka (paintings on scroll), barbola (small models of fruit or flowers made from plastic paste) and Buddhist scriptures.

Afterwards, we will pay a visit to Wutun Temple, which is comprised of the upper and lower monasteries, and houses a collection of precious hairs from Sakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, and various sculptures. Monks in the temple are good at painting, clay sculpting and carving, which are worthy of your glimpse. Then, our Qinghai tour from Lanzhou continues to Xining. After driving for about 2.5 hours, we will reach the hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Xing Ding An Hotel
Day 5 Xining
Qinghai Lake
Our exploration today starts with a visit to Qinghai Lake, a real stunner of nature. It takes about 2.5 hours to reach the lake by our private vehicle and we will pass by the Sun and Moon Mountain in Huangyuan County on the way.

Upon arrival, you will be guided to tour Erlangjian Scenic Area, an essential sight of Qinghai Lake, where you can appreciate the wide lake view adjoining the grassland and desert. Our guide will also accompany you on a boat ride on the lake to take in the marvelous scenery. When the tour is finished, you will be escorted back to the hotel in Xining.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Friendly Tips

If visiting Qinghai Lake in May or June, visitors are able to watch tens of thousands of migratory birds at the Bird Island. Besides, during July and August, boundless golden rape flowers bloom offering great scenes alongside Qinghai Lake. If you are interested in the above sights, please contact us for your tailor-made itinerary.
Day 6 Departure from Xining
Monks are debating sutras, Ta’er Monastery
Before departure, we will seize the morning to sight-see Dongguan Mosque. Featuring classic and ethnic architectural styles, the grand mosque could accommodate over 3,000 Muslim worshippers. Then we will make a visit to Ta’er Monastery, the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Yellow Hat Sect – a branch of Tibetan Buddhism. There you can fully absorb authentic Tibetan culture.

Afterwards, our driver will transfer you to the airport or railway station for your on-going journey. By the way, if you intend to have an extension tour to other cities in China, you can go to see the astonishing rainbow mountain in Zhangye, continue your Silk Road Tour to Dunhuang, or visit the Terracotta Army in Xian, via high speed train trip of 2 hours, 3.5 hours and 4.5 hours respectively. If you want to customize your on-going tour, please contact our travel consultant for options.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast