Fancy a Road Trip to Tibet's Village of Happiness?

Love savings? Then you'll love the fact that from September we will again travel from Lhasa to Kathmandu by road, saving you up to $450 or £300 on internal flights. It makes for a great overland journey through Tibet, admired as one of the most scenic high routes in the world.

Since the April 2015 earthquake damaged the Friendship Highway, the main arterial road linking the two cities forced travellers to fly in and out of Lhasa and backtrack to the Tibetan capital after an overland exploration, meaning the overland journey was more expensive and took longer to travel.

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Kyirong

With the opening of a new border crossing and new road access, this allows for more convenient and cheaper travel between Kathmandu in Nepal and Kyirong in Tibet without the need to book return flights.

The new border post is located west of the Langtang Himal mountain range (the Friendship Highway previously used a border crossing to the east of Langtang) and new access by road opens one of the lesser known parts of Tibet: Kyirong, the ‘village of happiness’.

At 2,800m high, Kyirong is known for its subtropical climate and abundant vegetation, both of which are unusual for the Tibetan plateau.

The area is fondly remembered by Heinrich Harrer in the autobiographical travel classic Seven Years in Tibet – “I shall never cease thinking of this place with yearning”, he says – where he describes idyllic scenes, such as how in the middle of a bamboo grove hot springs bubble, near the banks of an ice-cold glacial river.

What's More

What's more, all Tibet trips departing from Kathmandu now include a side trip to the relaxing Balthali Village Resort, a lovely escape in the hills and away from the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu. So, while you're having your Tibetan Travel Permits processed by the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu, you can unwind or take a day walk exploring some of the exceptional scenery and cultures around the area.

En route back to Kathmandu from your stay in Balthali, travellers also stop at Bhaktapur, one of the three ancient cities that have fused to create modern day Kathmandu. Despite some damages from the 2015 earthquake, there are many reasons to visit this wonderful city, including the UNESCO listed Durbar Square that many relate to be the finest in the Kathmandu Valley.

Are you Ready?

As the first adventure travel company to run commercial treks in Tibet in 1981, World Expeditions remain one of the handful of operators offering the iconic overland journey between Kathmandu and Lhasa in September, when the new road linking the two cities is completed. Ready to take the scenic road?

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