8 Days Tibet Hidden Gems Photography Tour to Larung Gar & Yarchen Gar

Summary

Day 1 Chengdu-Kangding-Xinduqiao: Xinduqiao
Day 2 Xinduqiao-Tagong-Luhuo-Ganzi: Gongga Snow Mountain, Tagong Monastery
Day 3 Ganzi-Yarchen Gar: Yarchen Gar
Day 4 Yarchen Gar-Larung Gar: Larung Gar
Day 5 Larung Gar: Larung Gar
Day 6 Larung Gar-Guanyinqiao: Guanyinqiao
Day 7 Guanyinqiao-Chengdu: Free on your own, back to Chengdu
Day 8 Chengdu Departure

Day 1 Chengdu-Kangding-Xinduqiao

Pick up service can be arranged at Chengdu downtown hotel/Chengdu train station/Chengdu airport. Our guide will meet you with a welcome sign "China Private Tour". 

Tranfser to Xinduqiao from Chengdu directly, it takes around 5 hours from Chengdu to Xinduqiao. Xinduqiao is a famous tourist attractions in Kangding County Sichuan province for the photography, an ideal place to enjoy the scenery of sunset. Xinduqiao is a small peaceful Tibetan town in the wild West Sichuan, 81km west of Kangding City. It stands on the Sichuan-Tibet Highway (318 National Highway), close to Tagong Town and Danba Town to the north, Gongga Mountain to the south and Shangri-La to the west. 

After the tour, you will be taken back to your hotel in Xinduqiao town.

Day 2 Xinduqiao–Tagong–Luhuo–Ganzi

After breakfast, continue your photography tour from Xinduqiao to Gongga Snow Mountain, Tagong, Luhuo and others scenery along the way. Our guide will take you to visit the Gongga Snow Mountain, it stands across Kangding, Luding, Shimian and Jiulong, the four counties in western Sichuan Province. It covers an area of about 60 kilometers from south to north and 30 kilometers from east to west. With the highest peak of 7,556 meters above sea level, Mount Gongga is the highest mountain in Sichuan and enjoys the fame as "the King of Sichuan Mountains ".

Then, spend your leisure time to visit the Tagong Grassland & Tagong Monastery. Both of them are located in the Tagong Town, about 113km northwest of Kangding, with Sichuan-Tibet Highway passing though, and widely known as the “the lesser Lhasa”. Free on your own to shoot some picture of the Tagong Grassland, covering an area of 712 sq km, it is the most famous and beautiful grassland in Ganzi. Tagong Grassland is at its best in June till August, when the sun shines gaily, the pasture is lush, and the flocks of sheep and cattle play leisurely and freely. 

Next, our guide will take you to visit the Tagong Monastery, it is one of the three most important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in Garze, Sichuan Province. It is a temple of Sakya Tibetan Buddhist and has been a Buddhist shrine for over 1000 years, mainly because of the Sakyamuni Buddha statue and many precious Tibetan Buddhist classics and relics. Around the monastery, there is a forest of Buddhist pagodas.

After the tour, you will be taken to your hotel in Ganzi.

Day 3 Ganzi-Yarchen Gar

After breakfast, transfer to Yarchen Gar. It is an amazing monastery located about 400KM away from Chengdu. Yarchen Gar was established back in 1985, but it wasn’t until 2001 when the first demolishing of Larung Gar happened that many nuns and monks moved here. The official numbers of nuns and monks here are around 10 000 but according to the people living here so are the number closer to 20 000 now, might even have gone past it. Nuns will stay in their tiny meditation huts 24/7 and up to 100 days. Spend your day at Yarchen Gar to experience the life there.

You will see tiny white huts in the surrounding hills, and around the hill leading to a giant golden statue of Guru Rinpoche. From the top of the Yarchen Gar, you can get the panoramic view over the valley. Our guide will lead you to the best location for taking pictures. 

After the tour, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 4 Yarchen Gar-Larung Gar

Free on your own to taking the photos of the surrounding area. Drive you to visit the Larung Gar at a suitable time, while most of the monks/nuns in Larung Gar are there for study, so are many of monks/nuns at Yarchen Gar here for meditation. Larung Gar is an unique place around the world. Nestled 4,000 meters above sea level on the hillside settlement in the Tibetan region of Kham is Larung Gar. Also referred to as the Larung Valley, Larung Gar was founded initially by Dudjom Lingpa in 1880 and rebuilt 100 years later by Khenpo Jigme Puntsok. It is an ideal tourist destination for travelers keen on learning about Tibetan culture and way of life.

Spend a full day at Larung Gar to meet the thousands of red tiny dwellings that sprawl the hills around the main prayer halls. It is easy to spend entire day feasting on the smells, sights and sounds of this busy Buddhist monastery. 

After the tour, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 5 Larung Gar

Get up early in the morning, go with our guide to enjoy the charming sunrise scenery at Larung Gar. Climing to the top of valley and immerse yourself into an amazing views.

In the afternoon, you can attend to the local Sky burial ceremony starts at exactly 1 pm. It is an important Tibetan Buddhists’ funeral rite. The remains of the deceased are offered to vultures as an embodiment of the Buddhist concept of compassion and generosity. To get started, a specially trained monk prepares the dead body by skinning it. Once this is done, the waiting vultures descend to feed on the body as monks recite mantras. This ceremony is not for everyone, however. Visitors are neither allowed to view dead bodies nor take photos of them.

After the tour, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 6 Larung Gar-Guanyinqiao

After breakfast, our guide will take you back to Chengdu. You will stopover at Guanyinqiao, it is located in Jinchuan, Aba. Guanyinqiao Scenic Area is a national 4A level scenic spot, one of the key scenic area in Jinchuan County, loved by tourists. The scenic area is praised as “the mysterious religious shrines” and “the Nordic landscape in mainland China”. The scenic area is composed of 5 different kinds of landscapes which are Tibetan temples, alpine meadows, alpine lakes, alpine valleys and alpine colorful forest, with more than 36 main scenic spots. According to the attributes of landscapes, the scenic area can be subdivided into three different area, Religious Cultural Area, Alpine Meadow Area and Alpine Valley Area. Among three different area, Guanyinqiao Religious Culture Area is visited by most tourists. 

After the tour, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 7 Guanyinqiao–Chengdu

After breakfast, free on your own to explore the Jinchuan county. It is the hometown of “snow pear” and being praised as the "the back garden of Aba”. Every year in March, the white ocean of snow pear draws the most magnificent picture in Jinchuan. With average altitude only about 2000m, the climate in Jinchuan is mild and humid. Snow pears covered on the terraced hillsides of Jinchuan, dotted with colorful Tibetan Styled houses stretched over 100km in Jinchuan Valley. 

After the tour, transfer you back to Chengdu and drop off at your hotel.

Day 8 Chengdu Departure

Free on your own to explore Chengdu city until transfer to Chengdu train station or airport for your next destination.

Price Per Person in US Dollars

Price Includes 1. All transfer and city transportation 2. Air-conditioned car or van 3. Hotels specified in the itinerary, all based     on two persons sharingone standard room; 4. Meals specified in the itinerary: Western     breakfast in hotels Chinese lunch and     dinner in local restaurants 5. Sightseeing: All arrangements mentioned     in the itinerary will be covered All first     admission/entrance fees in the itinerary 6. Tour guide: Conducted by a professional     tour guide

Price Excludes 1. International air-tickets 2. Airport departure tax. 3. International or domestic air tickets which     are not listed in the itinerary. 4. Insurance coverage of personal loss, illness     or damages incurred during your trip 5. Tips to the tour guide and driver 6. Meals not specified in the itinerary. 7. Personal expenses: phone bills, laundry,     optional tours, postage, excess baggage     charge, entertainment fees out of the     itinerary. 8. Single Room Supplement.