Highlights:
Visit Tashilhunpo Monastery
Meditate with the monks in the Assembly Hall
Cross the scenic passes to EBC
Enjoy the vista of the Himalayas
Explore Everest Base Camp
Experience staying in a traditional yak-hair tent

In the morning, we will visit the famous Tashilhunpo Monastery. Built in 1447 by the first Dalai Lama, the monastery is the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, the second highest Buddhist incarnation in Tibet.

After touring around the monastery, we will enter the assembly hall, where the monks of the monastery practice their ritual chanting. Here we will be able to meditate for an hour or two, relaxing to the sounds of the ritual chanting, a mesmerizing sound in the silence of the monastery.

Before lunch, we will depart from Shigatse for Mount Everest Base Camp and the famous Rongbuk Monastery. The route to the base camp runs over three high passes, the first two being the Tsola Pass (4,600m) and the Gyatsola Pass (5,248m), which is the highest pass on the route to EBC. After cresting Gyatsola Pass, we will drop down and enter the Chomolungma National Nature Reserve, before climbing up to the amazing Gawu La Pass. At 5,198 meters above sea level, the views of the Himalayan panorama are outstanding, and you get a great view of several of the highest mountains in Tibet.

Later we will board the designated eco-bus to Rongbuk Monastery, known as the official highest Buddhist monastery in the world. Built in 1902, the monastery is a sacred site for the Buddhist Sherpas of the mountains, and is one of the few monasteries in Tibet where monks and nuns live together under one roof. You may enjoy the stunning sunset, as the orange glow of the setting sun reflects of the mountain s snow-clad slopes.

After taking the last of the photos in the dying light, we will stay overnight in one of the amazing tent hostels that are set up annually at the base camp for tourists and visitors. These authentic yak-hair tents are the traditional homes of the nomadic Tibetan herders, and the experience is one that you will never forget.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Yak Tent or Rongbuk Monastery guesthouse at Everest Base Camp.

Insider Tips:
Everest Base Camp is one of the highest points in Tibet for tourists, and the weather at the site is cold at night all year round. Even in the summer months, the temperatures can get down to almost freezing, so it is essential that you bring enough warm clothing to maintain a decent body temperature while you are here. It is also important to monitor your condition for the symptoms of altitude sickness, as the base camp lies more than 1,300 meters higher than Shigatse, the last place we stopped for the night.

The accommodation at the base camp is a yak-hair tent in the style of the traditional Tibetan nomads, and the facilities are very basic. There is no shower, an outside pit for a toilet, and cold water for washing. The tents only have dung-burning stoves for heating, so it can still get cold at night.