[robimahanta]

It was always a dream to drive my Thar to Tibet and after a lot of planning and with the help of some good friends I was able to do it this year along with a group of 8 other off roaders from 1st of June,2024. Since this drive involved extensive driving and crossing of multiple international borders, I carried minimal baggage and didn't even carry a camera. All images shared are with the phone.

The convoy included 4 Thars, 2 Hilux, 1 Jimny, 1 Endeavour and a VCross.

I started from Bangalore early morning at 4am and reached Nagpur around 6pm in the evening after an uneventful drive on Day 1.

We stopped for lunch at Food Pyramid near Kurnool.



Dinner in Nagpur at Puransingh Dhaba



Day 2, I headed to Prayagraj after breakfast near Lakkhangaon.

Paratha breakfast



Entering Prayagraj



Parked in a lane for the night





Lovely old haveli hotel



Views of the holy river



Random mural



Choti Kothi



Ganga Aarti



Sangam madness



Picking up some dinner




Day 3, we reached Gorakhpur via Ayodhya.

Chaos near Ram Mandir, Ayodhya





The Gorakhpur temple







CM's residence



Day 4 was the start of the actual trip. We started in the morning from Gorakhpur and entered Nepal via the Sanauli border. The paperwork took some time while we enjoyed a lovely Nepali thali

Entering Nepal



Immigration



Lunch stop at the Nepal border



Tasty thakali thali



Drove on to Chitwan for the night across one of the worst sections of road during the entire trip. Progress was painfully slow in Nepal.

In Chitwan, Nepal





Chitwan river vista

[robimahanta]

Next day, we drove to Kathmandu and had an extra day there for sightseeing as well as last minute preparations before crossing over to Tibet.

Roads improved as we headed out from Chitwan towards Kathmandu





Each turn was photo worthy





Local Kathmandu sights.

Streets of Thamel



Chandragiri Hill ropeway



Durbar Square



Decided to take an early morning mountain range viewing flight to check out Mt. Everest. It turned out to be a clear day with great views. It costs around 8k and I would definitely recommend it.

Boarding the flight



Mount everest, Lhotse, Makalu



Gauri Shankar



Lovely peaks



Another amazing Nepali Thali



Fake Red Bull



The next day we drove down through broken roads and slushy corners to Syapru Besi to be close to the Tibetan border (so that border control is convenient the next day)

Parked in a guest house at Syapru Besi



A nice river next to the guest house

[robimahanta]

Today we entered Tibet. The immigration and customs process was quite extensive including the baggage scan, scanning of the cars and the immigration officials even checked our phones.

Crossing the international border at Rasuwagadhi





Lined up to drive on the opposite side of the road



Our lead local escort was a Hyundai Elantra



Started driving towards Gyirong county, huge contrast in the quality of roads compared to Nepal









A water fall in Gyirong county





Reached the hotel for the night





Lot of Toyotas and Nissans



Did a short dirt trail near the hotel, first taste of off road in Tibet









Lovely local dinner

[robimahanta]

From Gyirong, we had a long drive to Shigatse which is one of the bigger towns of Tibet after Lhasa. The roads were fantastic and sights made the slow disciplined drive worth it. One feels like stopping everywhere to soak in the vistas. If not for the vistas, the drive would have been extremely boring.

Sharing some images from the drive to Shigatse and then continuing further north to Damxung.

Lovely Peikucuo Lake









Vast desolate stretches of roads

















Convoy in action



Amazing Landscapes











Basic mostly dilapidated Tibetan villages



Parked during the drive



Thar always draws attention from the locals, they are fascinated by the car



Damxung hotel



More great food

[robimahanta]

We traveled from Damxung to the high-altitude Namtso Lake and then continued to Lhasa. The infrastructure at the lake, which is almost 16,000 feet above sea level, is amazing. We drove to a parking lot a few kilometers from the lake, and from there, electric buses took us to the beautiful, untouched lake.

Electric buses at Namtso



The beautiful Namtso lake















A fantastic expressway







More amazing landscapes















Checked in at St.Regis, Lhasa

[robimahanta]

We spent a day in Lhasa exploring local sights. We visited the Potala Palace, Norbulingka Palace, Jokhang Temple, and Barkhor Street, then walked around the city squares. We also went to the Lhasa riverbank to enjoy some great views of the city.

The iconic Potala palace. They don't allows photos from inside in any of the palaces/monasteries























Next to a 50 Chinese Yuan currency note which has the palace



Norbunlingka Palace







Jokhang Temple and some city scapes















Monument of peace



Lhasa River side scapes











Some authentic Lhasa momos for dinner

[robimahanta]

We drove from Lhasa to the beautiful Yamdrok Lake and then headed towards the Everest Base Camp. The road was excellent all the way to the base camp. After spending some time near the base camp, we stopped for the night in Shigatse. Along the way, we also visited Pecucuo Lake.

Beautiful Yamdrok Lake











They had these huge Tibetan dogs for pictures



Tried a monochrome



I know it is getting monotonous, but yet more amazing lanscapes









Convoy in action



Road to Everest Base Camp











Entrance to Everest area (they call it Mt.Qomolangma)



My Thar with Everest in the background





Posing with the mountain range



Everest views







Old and New



Lake Pecucuo







Some Thar pics as we started our return journey

[robimahanta]

The next day, we began our long return journey. After crossing the Tibet-Nepal border, we drove straight to Chitwan, Nepal, for the night. The next morning, we left Chitwan early and headed directly to Jabalpur. Crossing the Nepal-India border was easy, and we reached Jabalpur in time for dinner. The following day, we drove non-stop to Bangalore, finishing our epic 18-day trip.

Entering Nepal from Tibet



Some lovely green mountain scapes was a welcome change







Somewhere in MP



Was happy to be finally at the Bangalore entrance toll



Overall spent close to 70k on petrol, surprisingly got amazing mileage of over 13kmpl in Tibet



Final trip odometer reading of the trip




Thanks for your time. Cheers!

[Rudra Sen]

Mod note: Thread moved to Travelogues. Thanks for sharing this amazing trip with superb photos.

[KarthikK]

Epic drive and fantastic photographs with engaging narration to boot from start to finish! This is a treasure trove of information for travellers. Looking forward to many more such travelogues robi!

[W.A.G.7]

That's a really good travelogue! I didn't know Indians could enter Tibet directly from Nepal. Keep sharing those pictures. Was this an arranged group tour, or did all of you plan and do it yourself?

[kkSolo]

Great travelogue Robi! Such lovely pictures! As someone who loves the Himalayas, the regions beyond, the Tibetan plateau are so enticing but I didnt know it was possible!

Originally Posted by robimahanta

Today we entered Tibet. The immigration and customs process was quite extensive including the baggage scan, scanning of the cars and the immigration officials even checked our phones.

Im curious, are we able to go into China, especially the Tibet regions so easily? I see your trip was in a group, but how easy or difficult is it to do it solo? What are paperwork challenges involved here. Would be great to know more on these details as well!

The motorcyclist in me is also very curious if motorcycles are allowed?

[rpunwani]

Wow, amazing drive and lovely photos ! Thanks for sharing.

Was it easy to get a visa for Tibet? Would be great if you could share details, thanks in advance

[SithDefender]

Originally Posted by robimahanta

The following day, we drove non-stop to Bangalore, finishing our epic 18-day trip.

What a spectacular trip! That pic of your Thar against the mighty Everest is one for the ages!

[Kashi053]

Robi,

By far this is the best travelogue I ever read.

I have some questions.

1. What all documents required for Nepal & Tibet for Indian (for individual + vehicle)
2. Can we enter Mongolia or Kyrgyzstan from Tibet? Is this allowed for Indians?