The highest Capital - Lhasa

1. The Potala
2. The Jokhang and the Barkhor
3. Tibetan smiles

Quick Tips:

Make sure that you take enough time to acclimatize when you arrive in Tibet. Especially if you fly in from Chengdu and haven't been in great altitudes before, you might have difficulties at first.

Best Way To Get Around:

The old town of Lhasa is best explored on foot. If you want to go to the surrounding monasteries you can take the local busses without problems - but there are also plenty of taxis around. There are some hotels that rent out bikes (the Snowlands, the Kirey) which might be practical for getting around in the new part of town. If you want to take trips further outside Lhasa your only option is often to rent a Land Rover with fellow travellers.

The Yak Hotel is one of the most popular budget hotels in Lhasa. There is always a friendly crowd of travellers around and the staff is friendly as well. Beds in dorm rooms cost 25 Y, while doubles in the old wing cost 50 Y and 60 Y in the new one. There is 24 hour hot water in the clean showers. Other available services include laundry, internet, a popular notice board and a travel agency. Also, you can leave your luggage in a storage room if you leave Lhasa for a short trip.

This is one of the Hotels that people are often booked into when they first arrive on a tour group. It is a friendly enough place with bike rental, internet and a restaurant. Beds in a dorm room cost 25 Y. However, the beds in the dorm rooms were so hard that I only stayed two nights, not three as I had booked with my tour groups. There is a second wing with more expensive rooms - maybe the beds are softer there!

The Pentoc is another popular budget hotel in Lhasa. The rooms are clean and the staff is friendly. You can book rooms in advance and leave your luggage while you take trips around Lhasa. Dorm rooms cost 30 Y, Singles 50 and doubles 60. Movies are shown every night on the second floor.

There is a nice store in the hotel - they sell Tibetan and Nepali clothes, postcards and handicrafts.

The Makye Ame in my opinion is one of the best restaurants in Lhasa. It serves mainly Nepali food, but also has some Western, Indian and Tibetan items on the menu.

The interior is friendly and warm as is the staff and if you sit by the window you can watch the pilgrims go by on the Barkhor.

The food is excellent and the shakes can only be recommended.

This is also a great place to do e-mail or relax on the sofa and read one of the many books available.

Tashi's is a very friendly place and if you come several times you can be sure to be treated like a friend. The food is good as well although the menu isn't all that extensive. The main courses are mainly Tibetan while you can also have a decent Western breakfast. I can highly recommend the Momos!

Lhasa's highlight and most famous attraction, of course, is the Potala Palace which - until the Chinese invasion in the 1950s - housed the Dalai Lama. This impressive building towers over the city and is an impressive sight from various locations in the city. Not all chambers and rooms are open to the public but there is enough to see in the ones that are. Some travellers decide to skip seeing the Potala from the inside as the entrance ticket is relatively expensive - 40 Y plus a hefty 50 Y charge for photographs. But just looking at the Potala pays off.

Another option would be walking the Kora around the Palace. You get good views of the Potala as you walk amongst pilgrims, vendors and beggars through prayer flags and wheels - a truly Tibetan experience. Also, you could climb up the hill in front of the Potala across Beijing Donglu -from up there you have a great view of the Potala and the whole city.

Another highlight of Tibet's capital is the Jokhang Tempel, the holiest temple in the world of Tibetan Buddhism. It lies on the edge of the Barkhor area, the only Tibetan part of town left. In front of the temple is a large square - it is fun to just sit there and watch the bustling life, pilgrims, vendors, tourists and locals.

Inside you can go into several chapels and listen to the monks chant - an unforgettable experience. But for me the nicest part about the Jokhang was sitting up on the roof during sunset (enter through the side entrance and walk up the stairs in the courtyard) and watching the city, the mountains and the Potala Palace in the most gorgeous evening light while hundreds of pilgrims were doing their prostrations below me.

Aside from these architectural beauties, a great thing to see in Lhasa is the old Tibetan town in the Barkhor area. It definitely pays of to just walk around, get lost in the cobblestone streets, chat with children, look at the beautiful painted window frames, listen to chants, watch the locals and receive countless wonderful warm Tibetan smiles.