Permit Without Tour

Any foreign travelers who plan to travel to Tibet should obtain a Tibet Entry Permit which can only be applied by the Tibet travel agencies. Unfortunately, due to governmental regulations, we are no longer allowed to help with a Tibet Travel Permit for independent travelers.

Since the strict regulations of Tibet tourism release in 2008, all foreign travelers traveling to Tibet should book Tibet tour services. An experienced tour guide, a car and a pre-arranged itinerary should be involved in the whole tour in Tibet. When applying for the Tibet Travel Permit from the Tourism Bureau of TAR, the Tibet travel agencies have to submit their elaborate tour schedule for approval including your guide, driver, vehicle, accommodation, itinerary, etc. Once the permit is issued, tourists are not able to change their trip schedule and travel itinerary at all.

Therefore, travelers, especially backpackers who want to travel to Tibet, cannot just buy a plane ticket or a train ticket to reach Tibet on the spur of the moment. Accordingly, you must apply for a Tibet travel permit through a Tibet travel agency. If you wanna obtain the Tibet Permit without a tour, we have no choice but to say “no” to your inquiry. However, we have found some solutions to increase flexibility and reduce your cost as much as possible.

1. To Increase Flexibility

In order to increase the flexibility of your Tibet tour, you are suggested to apply for more destinations and a longer time than planned which makes it possible for you to extend or shorten your trip in Tibet flexibly within the validity of your permit.

2. To Reduce the Cost

There are Tibet group tours to help reduce the expenses as you can share the guide and vehicles with other travelers.  The maximum number for a group tour is around 12 pax but usually there are 4 to 8 people in a group. In this case, you can visit Tibet at an affordable price and get good care from the tour guide. Also you may choose 3-star hotels to lower the cost. For hotels with the qualification to receive foreign tourists in Tibet, the condition is pretty good.

3. To Obtain More Free Time

You can plan 1 to 2 free days shopping, resting, or doing other things you are interested in with an accompany of a tour guide.

4. Be Aware of Various Kinds of Permits

There are three kinds of Tibet Travel Permits, namely: Tibet Entry Permit, Alien Travel Permit and Military Permit.

• If you just want sightseeing around Lhasa, a Tibet Entry Permit will meet your requirements;
• If you want to explore other cities such as Shigatse, Nyingchi, Nagqu, etc, you need to obtain both the Tibet Entry Permit and Alien Travel Permit;
• If you want to travel to backend areas such as Ngari, you need to get an extra Military Permit.

For more details, please feel free to contact our travel consultant and we can arrange your permits accordingly.