Buddhist Pilgrimage Tour – Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan & India

We will take a flight to Tibet today leaving Kathmandu. The beautiful mountains view from the plane will lead us to Lhasa for the second part of our pilgrimage tour. After landing at the airport, our representative will receive you there and drive you to your hotel in Lhasa. You can try some local cuisine and rest for the day there. In the evening, head out for a market tour in here and explore the local traditions. Overnight at a hotel in Lhasa.

We will start the day with a drive to Potala palace, a majestic masterpiece of Tibetan architecture and Buddhist culture. Our guide will explain the significant role of the palace exploring the rooms and courtyards of the palace. We will also visit small shrines throughout the premises. The prayer room and halls have Buddhist sculptures, paintings, and murals, which one can gaze and admire.

Our tour turns next to one of the three Gelug monasteries in Tibet, Drepung monastery. You can explore the chief building and four colleges here. After spending a spiritual time here, we will return to our hotel in Lhasa. Overnight at Lhasa.

After breakfast, we will head to the Barkhor Street and Jokhang Temple. One of the major religious centers in Tibet, we can explore and circumambulate through the markets to learn more about Tibetan culture here. The second of the three Gelug monasteries, Sera monastery is next to visit in Lhasa. We will explore the monastery, the great assembly hall and three colleges here and head towards the Norbulingka Palace. We will complete the UNESCO world heritage site list with a visit to this magnificent Summer Palace of the Dalai Lamas. Locals gather and celebrate festivals on the premises here which have one of the most beautiful gardens in our tour. Overnight at Lhasa.

We will take a short drive to the northeast end of Lhasa and visit the Ganden monastery after breakfast. The scenic drive here concludes three primary Gelug monastery visits of Lhasa. Although not in its prior condition, this monastery stills reflects the shades of Tibetan Buddhism and architecture. We will head towards the DraYerpa cave from here. We will visit the major monastery and number of meditation caves in the premises Yerpa. One can get a bliss of nature and Buddhism with centuries-old caves and constituents in this visit. We will return to Lhasa after the visit and rest for the day. Overnight at Lhasa.

We will head towards Shigatse today visiting the monasteries in between to lead our Buddhist pilgrimage tour to the Tashilupo monastery at Shigatse. The drive is smooth with majestic landscape views. We will have a ride besides the glazing holy Yamdrok Lake. The pristine lake with a view of the surrounding peaks and glaciers is one to treasure. From here we will do the Gangbala pass and reach Gyantse. A brief exploration of this historically significant city in Tibet will follow the premises of Pelkor monastery or Palcho monastery. Continuing our drive, we will reach Sighaste in the afternoon. Here we will visit the Tashilupo monastery, one of the biggest functioning monastery in Tibet. Overnight at a hotel in Shigatse.

We will start a highway ride to Tingri and the Rongbuk Monastery from Shigatse. Rongbuk monastery is also the highest monastery in the world at an elevation of 4980 meters. Passing high passes and small settlements with Tibetan art and culture in the way, we will reach Tingri. We will get majestic views of Mt. Everest nearing the monastery. After reaching Rongbuk, we will rest for the day at a guesthouse there. Overnight at Rongbuk.

We will start early today with a view of a beautiful sunrise over the Everest. After exploring the Rongbuk monastery, we will continue our drive to the Nepal-China border in Kerung/Gyirong. The vegetation changes with green hills coming in for rocky terrain. Beside the Trishuli River, we will stay on the Chinese side for the day. Overnight at Kerung.

After parting with your Tibetan guide and driver, our Nepalese escort will bring you to the capital Kathmandu from Kerung. We will stop by small settlements and enjoy the surrounding environment to reach Kathmandu. The hill highway drive with segments of adventure packed portions makes this drive memorable. We will head towards our hotel and rest for the day at Kathmandu.

We will take a morning flight from TIA Kathmandu to the airport in Paro Bhutan today. The Himalayan flight with divine views and scenery will lead us to Paro valley. Our representative will receive you at the airport and drive you to Thimphu.

Stop on the way to the Paro-Thimphu highway to visit the 16^th-century old Tachogang Lhakhang temple. The temple means the hill of the excellent horse. You need to cross an old bridge to visit the temple. From the bridge, enjoy the scenic views of the villages. Continue to drive to Thimphu.

We will take a short drive to the Dochula pass from Thimphu. The trip is relaxed, and the scene from the road is outstanding too. We will visit the 108 Chortens in the pass, also known as Druk Wangyal Chortens here. The Druk Wangyal Monastery and Royal Bonatical Park are two other significant attractions you can visit here. The view of the Himalayas highlighted by Mt. Gangkar Puensum (7,158m) is pristine from the pass. We will then return to Thimphu and visit the Tashichho Dzong and the Zileukha Thangthong Dewachen Nunnery above the dzong here. After that, explore to Late King's Memorial Chorten, Bhutan Postal Museum, Folk Heritage Museum, Takin Zoo, and Great Buddha Dordenma Statue. Overnight at a hotel in Thimphu.

We will drive to Paro early today and start the Taktsang Monastery hike. A scenic drive will take us to the foot of the hill of Taktsang monastery. After reaching the top, we will explore the monastery and the caves where Guru Rinpoche meditated to tame a Tiger demon hence also called the Tigers lair. The full hike exploration and back will take about 5 hours, and we will return to Paro from the hike. We will travel to KyichuLhakhang, a Buddhist temple here in Paro. After the visit, we will return to the hotel and have lunch. Then, visit to the beautiful Paro Dzong, the National Museum of Bhutan, and Kyichu Lhakhang Temple. Overnight at Paro.

We will leave Paro and head for Delhi today. The guide will drive you to Paro airport before the departure, and we'll reach Delhi after 2.5 hours of flight. Our representative will meet you at the airport after landing and transfer you to the hotel. You will visit some of the major attractions in Delhi depending upon your flight time here. You can visit the India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhawan (Residence to the president of India) & Parliament house near the hotel. Overnight at a hotel in Delhi.

We will continue our Delhi exploration, before the flight to Varanasi today. Qutub Minar and the Lotus Temple are among the places we will visit alongside the one we've missed exploring today. You can try some local cuisine here too. We will drive you to the airport for the flight to Varanasi next. After reaching there, you will head towards the hotel and rest. In the evening, we will take a short walk to the Ganges Ghat and witness the SandhyaAarti (evening prayer) there. Overnight at a hotel in Varanasi.

We will take an early morning drive to Dasaswamedh Ghat today. Here, we will take a boat to cruise in the mighty Ganges and enjoy the Sunrise view. We will return to the hotel for breakfast before taking a drive to Sarnath. Sarnath is a holy place for Buddhist pilgrims all around the world as it was the site of Lord Buddha's first sermon. MulgandhaKutiVihar, Dhamekh Stupa, Thai Temple, Deer Park, Chaukhandi Stupa, Horinji Temple, and Tibetan Temple are some of the major places you're going to visit in Sarnath. After the visit, we will return to Varanasi. Overnight at Varanasi.

We will take a drive to Bodhgaya today from Varanasi after breakfast. Stopping in the cities in between for snacks, we will have a smooth ride to Bodhgaya. Bodhgaya is the place where Lord Buddha attained his enlightenment and is one of the four major pilgrimages related to his life. After reaching Bodhgaya, we will rest for the day at a hotel. Overnight at Bodhgaya.

Our religious tour of Bodhgaya commences after breakfast today. The area is a place of salvation for devotees and pilgrims all around the world. We will visit the Mahabodhi temple, also known as the Great Awakening Temple here first. The Bodhi tree is a giant tree which is said to be the exact place where Lord Buddha found enlightenment here. The Great Buddha Statue, Thai Monastery, Mankamana, Indonesian Temple, Nippon Japanese Temple, and Muchalinda Lake are some of the significant sites we will visit today at Bodhgaya. In the evening, we can join the other devotees and take a walk around. Overnight at Bodhgaya.

We will visit the remaining temples in Bodhgaya before our drive to Patna today. The journey is short, but we will be visiting many attractions in the way. Starting the drive after breakfast, we will take a slight detour to Rajgir. We will have a short hike to the Vishwa Shanti Stupa in Rajgir. We will also visit Griddhakuta Peak (Vulture Hill) where Lord Buddha used to sit and preach. We can also pay a visit to Nalanda, the site of the 2nd ever university of the world. From here we will worship at the Stupa of Sariputra and visit the temple of Black Buddha. Then we will continue our drive to Patna. Overnight at a hotel in Patna.

We will drive to Kushinagar from Patna today. The relaxed drive is about 6 hours long, and we will also visit some of the religious sites in the way. First, we will visit the Buddha stupa, followed by the Lion Pillar (Ashokan Pillar) about 40 km from Patna. This pillar holds historical and archeological values from the times of 200 BC and before. We will continue the drive to Kushinagar stopping for snacks on the way. After reaching Kushinagar, we can visit some of the sites here today. Overnight at a hotel in Kushinagar.

Kushinagar is said to be the site where Lord Buddha is said to have attained Parinirvana after his death. We will visit the Ramavar Stupa, which was built over the ashes of Lord Buddha. Next, we will visit the Mahaparinirvana Temple, where a statue of Sleeping Buddha lies. We will then visit the Myanmar Temple and Vietnamese Temple to end the tour. With the tour of Kushinagar, we will conclude all four (Lumbini, Bodhgaya, Sarnath, and Kushinagar) major pilgrimage related to the life of Lord Buddha.

After tour, we will continue drive to Lumbini via Sunauli Border (Nepal India Border). Overnight at Lumbini

After breakfast, Lumbini tour today. One of the most divine place for Buddhist pilgrims all around the world, Lumbini is a complex of temples and archeological findings of the Shakya kingdom (500 BC). The Maya Devi temple, Ashokan pillar, World Peace Pagoda Myanmar Golden Temple, Dharma Swami Maharaja Buddha Vihar, and China temple are the primary sites we will be visiting here. We can join the monks and pilgrims for the tour and enjoy the calm atmosphere here.

Overnight at Lumbini.

We will drive back or flight to Kathmandu after breakfast in Lumbini. The drive is pleasant and scenic from the plains of terai to the green hills. Passing by the lush jungles and hill settlements on the way we will enter the valley. In your spare time today, you can visit some local stupas and monuments from the hotel. Overnight at Kathmandu.

Our religious tour of today constitutes of three major UNESCO world heritage sites in Kathmandu valley. We will start the day with a short drive to the Buddhist temple of Swoyambhunath. One of the oldest temple of Nepal and also popular as 'The monkey temple,' there are many small and big stupas and Buddhist sculpture in the premises. Next, we will drive to Boudhanath, the most significant Buddhist stupa in the valley. The white dome here and hundreds of pilgrims circumambulating it is a pleasant experience to join. After the tour, we can visit the Kathmandu durbar square near the hotel and rest for the day. Overnight at Kathmandu.

*Note: We will apply for the Tibetan visa today as it might take up to 3 days for visa arrival at the Chinese embassy. With your original passport and 2 pp size photos for this purpose.

We will drop you at airport for the international departure based on your flight time.

With a feeling of being close to nirvana and lifelong experiences, your Buddhist pilgrimage tour ends today. The Asia Experiences team will stay connected for your valuable suggestion and feedback.