Breathe In Tibet July 7 through July 19, 2015 (Mt. Kailash Extension-July 7 through 24, 2015) historical and is where heads of State often stay when they are in Kathmandu. Breathe In Tibet Here is the link to the hotel: July 7 through July 19, 2015 Mt. Kailash Extension-July 7 through July 24, 2015 http://www.yakandyeti.com/home/index.php On our first day we will get settled in our hotel and greet everyone as they arrive. If we Traveling in Nepal have the time and the energy we may take in a sight before dinner. We will have an all hands meeting and get prepared for our first full day in Nepal. 1. Traveling to Nepal 5. Travel and Accommodations The retreat begins in Kathmandu on July 7, 2015. You may arrive in Kathmandu by any route that you wish. KLM usually has good flights that depart from San Francisco, Our local guides will be Shangri-la Nepal Trek who are located in Kathmandu. The owner of changes planes in Amsterdam and then continues to Delhi. From Delhi, it is a one hour the company is Jiban Ghimire.They will be arranging our tour in Kathmandu, our transpor- flight to Kathmandu. tation to Tibet and our tour in Tibet. If you are coming from Delhi, both Jet Air and Air India have cheap flights that leave Delhi in the morning and arrive in Kathmandu in the late morning. In my experience, 6. Food In Nepal Jet Air is an excellent airline. Most of the food in Nepal tends to be either Indian or Chinese. I have found the soups Other possibilities are China Southern through Guangzhou and Etihad Airways through to be especially enjoyable. The food at the Yak and Yeti is good and it has an amazing break- Abu Dhabi. fast buffet. 2. Visas in Nepal We will always have vegetarian offerings available. We believe that eating a vegetarian diet is the best way to avoid getting sick traveling in Asia. There is a new visa requirement for Nepal. You must apply for your Visa online. You should submit the application no later than 15 days before the trip. You will also need Breakfast an extra passport photograph that you bring with you to Nepal. We recommend that you get the 30 day visa. Our trip package includes breakfast. Here is the website for the new Visa requirements: Lunch http://www.online.nepalimmigration.gov.np/tourist-visa We will often eat lunch together as a group while we are out seeing the sights. Although you Please make sure that your passport is valid for at least six months from the date of are responsible for your lunch, our guides typically arrange lunch and negotiate reasonable entry into Nepal. group rates. 3. Health and Immunizations Dinner Here is the link to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention which has health Each of you will be responsible for your own dinner. This will give you the flexibility to eat information for travelers to Nepal: when, what and where you desire. In our experience most hotels offer dining for those who do not want to go out on the town. http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/nepal 7. Weather in Nepal 4. Arrival in Kathmandu and Our First Day July is the rainy season in Kathmandu so we recommend that you bring an umbrella or rain When you arrive in Kathmandu, you will be greeted by a Shangri-La Nepal Trek repre- jacket. However, the temperatures should be mild-70s in the day and 60s in the night. sentative and transferred to the Yak and Yeti hotel. This is a luxury, five star hotel, it is 5. Weather in Tibet TravelingTibetin In July, the average high temperature is 73 and the average low is 52. However, due to the 1. Visas in Tibet altitude, sunburn is a problem and it is important to bring high quality sunscreen, hats, and long sleve shirts. It may also be quite cold at night, especially at Everest Base Camp. We will obtain our visas and permits to travel to Tibet when we are in Kathmandu. Jiban will make all of those arrangements for us. For those taking the Mt. Kailash extension, bring weather suitable for extreme cold. Please make sure that your passport is valid for at least six months from the date of 6. Altitude entry into Tibet. The highest altitude we will reach is 15,500 feet at Everest Base Camp. It is important that 2. Health and Immunizations you train for high altitude before the trip. Below is a link to the Alpine Ascents Website that has information on training for altitude. The training they recommend is for Everest Base Here is the link to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention which has health Camp which is higher than what we will be experiencing. information for travelers to China: If you are going on the Mt. Kailash extension, the highest altitude will be the Dolma-La pass http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/china at 18,600 feet. However, everyone has a different tolerance for altitude and it is better to be over trained 3. Travel and Accommodations In Tibet than undertrained for this trip. Our local guides will be Shangri-la Nepal Trek who are located in Kathmandu. The owner of http://www.alpineascents.com/everest-trek-train.asp the company is Jiban Ghimire.They will be arranging our accommodations and providing us with guides. You can expect clean, simple and pleasant hotels. We also recommend that you consider using a personal trainer to get in shape. 4. Food 7. End of the Retreat and Flights Home Here is information about the food that you can expect in Tibet: For the main trip, the last day of the trip is July 19 and your accommodations for the night of July 18 are included within the trip. If you wish to stay longer in Kathmandu, let us know http://www.tibettours.travel/travel-guide/foods-of-tibet.html and we will be happy to book some extra nights. The rate is $140 per night. Breakfast Those who wish may extend their trip by exploring Kathmandu or the surrounding villages of Patan and Bhaktapur. Jiban will arrange any extensions that you may wish. Our trip package includes breakfast. The last day of the Mt. Kailash extension is July 24, and your accommodations for the night of July 23 are included within the trip. Lunch 8. Tipping the Guides. Our guides will arrange lunch for us and have proposed that you contribute $10 per day which is the estimated cost for lunch (i.e., some lunches will be more expensive than We will let you know what the suggested tip for the guide and the driver will be. Naturally, others). Then, at the end of the trip, any money that is left over will be returned to you. this is optional but we know that the quality of the experience will make this appropriate. You may opt out of our lunch arrangement if you choose. For those who are interested we will pool our money at the end of the trip. Dinner Each of you will be responsible for your own dinner. This will give you the flexibility to eat when, what and where you desire. July 7 Arrive in Kathmandu On our first day we will arrive in Timetable Kathmandu and will be greeted at the airport and taken to our hotel. We will stay at the delightful and historical Yak and Yeti Hotel. Because some of us may be arriving at differ- ent times, we hope to take in one of the sights in Kathmandu in the after- noon. We hope to visit Thamel. Thamel is a huge outdoor shopping district with arts, crafts, clothes, trekking and mountaineering gear. It has many small temples, restau- rants, fascinating side streets and is a packed with sights and activity. We will gather in the evening for our first group dinner! We will have a briefing about the trip. July 8 Day Tour of Kathmandu and China July 9 Flight Kathmandu-Lhasa Visas Transfer to the airport for the flight from Kathmandu to Lhasa on Air China. This We will arrange our travel permits and one hour trans- Himalayan flight will give visas in the Chinese embassy. We will us an opportunity to have an aerial view take a day tour of Kathmandu. of the Mt. Everest and other Himalayan peaks (weather permitting). Arrival at We will organize our gear and Gonggar airport around 13.30 hrs. local purchase any additional items we may time. need. After clearing immigration and customs it will be a two hour drive to cover the 93 km. to Lhasa which is at an altitude of 3650 meters (13,000ft). Upon arrival we check in at the hotel, right in the heart of the old city July 10 and 11 The first day of sightseeing starts from Lhasa's July 12 Lhasa - Gyantse (3900 m.) (8 hours) cardinal landmark- PotalaPalace, a structure of massive portions. Your first sight of the Potala will In the afternoon, we will arrive in Gyangtse and be an awe-inspiring moment. It takes at least a good tour the Palkhor Temple, built in the 15th century, 2 hours to visit the rooms, halls and chapels. We’ll and situated in the west of GyantseTown with explore the grandest of its myriad rooms, its audi- mountains enclosing form three sides of the east, ence halls, the immense, jeweled burial chortens of west and north.