Lhasa
Lhasa Overview
Lhasa, “La” in short, is the capital of Tibet autonomous region of China, an international tourist city with highland and ethnic characteristics. At the altitude of 3658 meters, Lhasa is the holy land of Tibetan Buddhism, also famed as...
Chinese Name: 拉萨
English IPA: Lhasa
Location: Located in the southeast of Tibet, the north side of Himalayas, and the central part of Qinghai Tibet Plateau
Population (city): 902,500
Language: Tibetan Language
Zip code: 850000
Tel code: 0891
Time zone: UTC+8
Lhasa, “La” in short, is the capital of Tibet autonomous region of China, an international tourist city with highland and ethnic characteristics. At the altitude of 3658 meters, Lhasa is the holy land of Tibetan Buddhism, also famed as ‘the Sunshine City’ for its annual sunshine time. Located in the central part of the Tibetan plateau, north of the Himalayas, the mid-stream valley plain of the Lhasa river, Lhasa is the political, economic, cultural, scientific and educational center of Tibet. As one of the first batch of national historical and cultural cities, Lhasa is famous for its beautiful scenery, long history, unique folk customs and situations, and strong religious color.
Highlights:
- Famous Attractions: Lhasa is featuring many historical sites, Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple and Norbulingka are listed as world cultural heritage sites. Other main attractions include Namtso Lake, Barkhor Street, Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery, etc.
- Dietary Culture: There are a large number of Tibetans in Lhasa, so the food is featuring strong Tibetan characteristics. Traditional Tibetan food are mainly barley, meat and dairy products. Zanba, buttered tea, highland barley wine, yogurt, yak meat, Tibetan noodle, sweet tea and other popular food and drinks are recommended.
- Ethnic Festivals: When travelling in Lhasa, taking part in a traditional Tibetan festival or religious festival will help you learn Tibetan culture better. Main ethnic festivals in Lhasa include Shoton festival, Tibetan New Year, horse racing festival, butter lantern festival and Saka Dawa festival, etc.
- Local Specialty: There are many handicraft products full of local flavor and ethnic style in Tibet, including various kinds of traditional Tibetan weaved and knited products like wooden bowls, silver bowls and bamboo bowls. There are also Tibetan knife, Tibetan mask, thangka and so on.
- Lhasa Cultures: Lhasa is famous for its beautiful scenery, long history, unique folk customs and situations, and strong religious color. Therefore, cultures in Lhasa mainly include historical culture, Tibetan culture and Tibetan Buddhism culture.
Hot Destinations in Lhasa
Other Destinations in Lhasa
Lhasa Attractions
Attractions in Lhasa is second to none in China. Lhasa is vertiginous not only for its altitude, but also for its strong exotic charm. Anyone who likes to travel is attracted by its mysterious charm, and Lhasa also absorbs the cultural customs of all parts of the world. Therefore, there are many natural and cultural landscapes in Lhasa. Top Attractions Lhasa is well-known for its fascinating landscapes, mysterious thousand-year-old history, splendid Tibetan culture. The magnificent palaces and temples are the outstanding highlights, they reveal the brilliant attainments in architecture and [...]
Lhasa Tours
Lhasa is the gateway city of Tibet, a right place to adapt to the plateau environment. Most tourists go to Lhasa first when travelling to Tibet. Lhasa tours usually include Namtso Lake, Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple and other famous attractions, as well as the other classic destinations in China travel like Beijing, Qinghai, Yunnan, etc. These tours not only allow you to explore the brilliant Tibetan culture and authentic Tibetan customs, but also allow you to [...]
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Climate & When to Go
With its azure sky, sparkling rivers, mystery, religion, architecture, simple and unsophisticated Tibetan people, Lhasa is definitely a dream place for many tourists. Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world, with an average of more than 3,000 hours of sunshine every year. Climate in Lhasa is generally divided into dry season and rainy season, with the precipitation mainly concentrated from June to September. The air here is thin, the overall temperature is relatively low, and the temperature [...]
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Transportation
As an important gateway city and transportation hub in Tibet, and the transportation in Lhasa is relatively convenient. Currently, the main modes of transportation to Lhasa include plane, train, coach, road trip and even hitchhiking and hiking. Air travel is the most time-saving and efficient way, and train travel to Lhasa is also very common. Road trip, hitchhiking and even hiking to Lhasa on well-designed routes are also interesting and eye-opening, but in the meantime, you should pay attention to [...]
Festivals and Activities
Various Lhasa festivals and events are celebrated in different ways. If time is sufficient, it is suggested to visit Lhasa during the festivals and enjoy the lively scenes with the local Tibetan people. As the main minority inhabited in Lhasa, Tibetan people created brilliant culture and customs, among which the unique ethnic festivals of Tibetans enjoy high reputation and attract a crowd of tourists home and abroad. Here below are some festivals and activities in Lhasa worth to experience. Festivals in Lhasa Besides some Chinese traditional festivals, like Spring Festival(usually in [...]
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Travel Tips
To have a better travel experience in Lhasa, here are some useful Lhasa travel tips which may be helpful for your Lhasa tour. When plan your trip to Lhasa, view our answers to questions about Lhasa travel to get better understanding of Lhasa Tibet. Useful Numbers Here below are some useful numbers in Lhasa, in case the emergency while you are traveling (such as fire or traffic accidents), or have other complaints or questions. Area code 0891 Fire 119 Police 110 Ambulance 120 Weather Broadcast 121 Consumer Complaint 12315 Phone Number Inquiries 114 Tourist complaint Center 0891-6833476 Airport Inquiry 6833446 Long-distance Phone [...]
Useful Maps
If we go to somewhere new, maps are good support for us. To help you have a better understanding of Lhasa City, we provide you different Lhasa maps including Lhasa transportation map, Lhasa tourist attractions map, Lhasa region map and Lhasa location map, etc, through which you can probably know how to get to Lhasa and what to discover there. [...]
Lhasa Accommodation
Lhasa accommodation lists the recommended luxury, comfortable, economic and cheap hotels and hostels in Lhasa, which can help you stay in Lhasa City with great environment and service. With the development of tourism, hotel and lodging industry in Lhasa is getting better. Visitors can choose from many modern or traditional Tibetan hotels in Lhasa. Tourists can choose to stay in the city center, where there are more options. You can also stay near the scenic spots like Namtso Lake, Potala [...]
