Lhasa
The magnificent Potala Palace, once the seat of the Tibetan government and the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas, is Lhasa's cardinal landmark. Your…
Must-see attractions in Lhasa
Lhasa
The 1300-year-old Jokhang Temple is the spiritual heart of Tibet: the continuous waves of awestruck pilgrims prostrating themselves outside are a…
Lhasa
The main assembly hall, or Tsogchen, is the principal structure in the Drepung complex and is the one chapel you must not miss. The hall is reached…
Lhasa
This is the largest of Sera’s colleges, generally accessed from a western side entrance. It has a breathtaking main hall, hung with thangkas and lit by…
Lhasa
The red, fortress-like structure of Tsongkhapa’s mausoleum is probably the most impressive of the reconstructed buildings at Ganden. It’s above a…
Lhasa
The main assembly hall (Tsogchen) is the largest of Sera’s buildings and dates to 1710. The central hall is particularly impressive and is noted for its…
Lhasa
The recently renovated tsogchen (assembly hall) has statues of the 16 arhats (literally ‘worthy ones’) and two huge statues of Tsongkhapa (only visible…
Lhasa
If you’re here in the afternoon, save some time to watch the monk debating (lots of shouting, hand slapping and gesticulation) between 2.30pm and 4pm in…
Lhasa
This hidden corner of Lhasa features more than 5000 painted rock carvings that were created on the back side of Chagpo Ri over the course of a millennium…
Lhasa
About 5km north of Lhasa, Sera was founded in 1419 by a disciple of Tsongkhapa as one of Lhasa's two great Gelugpa monasteries. About 600 monks are now in…
Lhasa
Along with Sera and Ganden Monasteries, Drepung functioned as one of the three 'pillars of the Tibetan state', and it was purportedly the largest…
Lhasa
You start the tour of the main Potala building from the top and descend through the bowels of the building to exit on the ground floor. The gilded buddhas…
Lhasa
Follow the pilgrims clockwise, past the Tsangba Kangtsang and Tsowa Kangtsang residential halls and several minor buildings, to Sera Me College. This…
Lhasa
On the roof of the Potala, the private quarters of the 13th and 14th Dalai Lamas are to the right. The Dalai Lamas would have watched festival dances…
Lhasa
About 50km east of Lhasa, this monastery, founded in 1417 by Tsongkhapa, was the first Gelugpa monastery. Still the order's heart and soul, it's the one…
Lhasa
There is usually monk debating here on weekday afternoons from around 3pm to 5pm, which provides a welcome relief from peering at Buddhist iconography…
Lhasa
To the east of the Assembly Hall's Ser Trikhang (Golden Throne Room) and slightly uphill, this residence contains the living quarters and throne of the…
Lhasa
For those with an interest in Tibetan Buddhism, Drak Yerpa hermitage, about 30km northeast of Lhasa, is one of the holiest cave retreats in Ü. Among the…
Lhasa
This significant but small monastery is jam-packed with ancient relics and hidden treasures. It’s only 30 minutes' drive southwest of Lhasa and is worth a…
Lhasa
This monastery, 10 minutes’ walk downhill from Drepung Monastery, is worth a visit for its historical role as the seat of the Tibetan State Oracle until…
Lhasa
In 1530 the second Dalai Lama established the Ganden Podrang, the palace that was home to the subsequent Dalai Lamas until the fifth built the Potala. It…
Lhasa
For your first visit to the Barkhor, enter from Barkhor Sq, a large plaza that was cleared in 1985. The square has been a focus for violent political…
Lhasa
Ngagpa is one of Drepung’s four tratsang (colleges) and was devoted to Tantric study. The chapel is dedicated to bull-headed Dorje Jigje (Yamantaka), a…
Lhasa
Loseling is the largest of Drepung’s colleges, and studies here were devoted to logic. If you have time, pop into the small debating courtyard west of the…
Lhasa
The main image at this temple is the fabulously ornate Jowo Mikyöba (Akshobhya) statue, which represents Sakyamuni at the age of eight. The statue is in…
Lhasa
Gyüme was founded in the mid-15th century as one of Tibet’s foremost Tantric training colleges, second only in Lhasa to the monasteries of Sera and…
Lhasa
From Sera the steep, relentless climb to the yellow-walled Sera Ütse retreat takes at least an hour (look up and see it high on the cliff above Sera; if…
Lhasa
A Tantric college, Ngagpa is also the oldest structure at Sera. The main hall is dominated by a statue of Sakya Yeshe (wearing a black hat), behind the…
Lhasa
At the foot of the hill Parma Ri, close to Beijing Zhonglu, is one of Lhasa’s four former royal temples. The ling (royal) temples were established by the…
Lhasa
Shartse Tratsang is one of several renovated kangtsang (residences) that offer the opportunity to meet the local monks away from the tourist trail. In the…
Lhasa
Phurbu Chok Monastery and its hilltop Rigsum Gonpo Lhakhang, dedicated to the popular trinity of deities, are best visited on a hike from Sera Monastery…
Lhasa
The small but interesting Tsome Ling is one of the four ling temples of Lhasa (along with Kunde Ling and Tengye Ling). To the east of the residential…
Lhasa
A path branches off the kora (pilgrim circuit) up side steps beside the thangka wall to the Chöding hermitage. The hermitage was a retreat of Tsongkhapa's…
Lhasa
This small but active monastery is a real delight and is invariably crowded with elderly Tibetans thumbing prayer beads or lazily swinging prayer wheels…
Lhasa
On the northern Barkhor Circuit, 10m down a side alley, is the entrance to the Jampa Lhakhang, on the right. The ground floor has a huge two-storey statue…
Lhasa
The wood-block printing press in the middle of this traditional housing compound doesn’t welcome visitors, so head instead to the atmospheric chapel in…
Lhasa
Just outside the Ramoche Temple, a doorway to the right by a collection of yak-butter and juniper-incense stalls leads to one of Lhasa's hidden gems, the…
Lhasa
Gomang is the second-largest of Drepung’s colleges. The main hall has a whole row of images, including those of Jampa, Tsepame and the seventh Dalai Lama…
Lhasa
This retreat complex high in the hills above Lhasa is home to 23 monks. The original hermitage lies in ruins in an incredible location on the side of the…
Lhasa
The first chapel you reach from the monastery's parking area is Ngam Chö Khang, one of Ganden's oldest. It is built on the site of Tsongkhapa’s original…