Upon arrival in Lhasa, airport reception and transfer to the hotel. On the way to Lhasa, enjoy spectacular scenery and typical Tibetan villages. Spend the remainder of the day at leisure acclimatizing to the high altitude.

Begin the day with a morning tour to the splendid Potala Palace (1 hour visit). The Potala Palace is the religious center of Tibetan Buddhism and the former residence of the Dalai Lama. The giant structure looks like an ancient fortress. It was originally built in 637AD by Emperor Songtsen Gampo to greet his new bride, who was coming from China. Construction of the current structure began during the reign of the fifth Dalai Lama. In 1645, the White Palace was completed and the Red Palace, was completed in 1694. The palace remained virtually unchanged until 1922 when the 13th Dalai Lama renovated many chapels and assembly halls and added two stories to the Red Palace.

Next, visit Norbulinka, the summer palace of His Holiness Dalai Lama. The 8th Dalai Lama designated it as a summer retreat but the majority of the buildings were not erected until the reigns of 13th and 14th Dalai Lamas. Every year as the chill air warmed, the Dalai Lama would leave Potala in a grand procession for six months residence in the Norbulingkha. It is worth a visit and the park is a great place to be at festival times and public Holidays. During the seventh Lunar month of every year the Norbulingkha is crowded with picnickers for the Shotun festival.

In the afternoon, visit the oldest and the most revered religious structure in Tibet, Jokhang Temple. It dates back to 639 to 647, construction initiated by King Songsten Gampo to house a Buddha image Akshobhya brought to Tibet by his Nepalese wife. But now, the main statue in this temple is of the Sakyamuni, which was a gift from his Chinese wife Won Cheng in 641 A.D to King Songsten Gampo. The statue of Akshobhya has been switched to Romoche. Pilgrims from all over Tibet come to worship here and prostrate themselves in full length in front of the main doors of the temple. It is truly a moving and unrivaled experience to witness such a sight and more so to actually join them in their pilgrimage around the temple.

Finish the first day in Lhasa at Barkhor Market. The word Barkhor refers to the middle of the three concentric holy circuits around the Jokhang. The Barkhor Circuit runs through the heart of the old city where life has changed little down the centuries and it gives a curious sensation of having slipped through time into a medieval carnival. It is an area unrivalled in Tibet for its fascinating combination of deep religiosity and pushes – and – shoves market economics. This is both the spiritual heart of the holy city and the main commercial districts being the center of Tibetan capital's trade for centuries.
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Morning visit to the Sera Monastery. 5km (3 miles) north of Lhasa, its setting is one of the prettiest in Lhasa, hugging the ridge that forms the Northern wall of the Kyi Chu Valley. Founded in 1419 by Sakya Yeshe (a disciple of Tsongkhapa, belonging to the Gelugpa sect), it is one of the three great monasteries of Tibet, the other two being Drepung & Ganden. In its heyday, Sera hosted a huge monastic population and five colleges. Like Drepung, the colleges in Sera specialized in Sera Me (fundamental precepts of Buddhism), Sera Je (instruction of itinerant monks) and Sera Ngagpa (Tantric studies).

About 8km (5 miles) to the west of central Lhasa lies Drepung Monastery, one of the world’s largest. It was built in 1416 by Jamyang Choje, a pupil of Tshong Khapa (the founder of the Gelugpa sect). Drepung literally means “heaps of rice” and the fertility of its fields supported a monastic community that, before 1959, ranked as Tibet’s largest with 7,770 monks. For over 500 years Drepung served as the major pillar of the theocratic state, serving as the main political headquarters for the Gelugpa sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It also served as the residence of the Dalai Lamas until the Potala Palace was constructed in 1645. Suffering only minor damage during the Cultural Revolution, Drepung is full of historical relics, Buddhist scriptures and art.
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Transfer to the airport for the onward travel arrangements or continue with the add-on of choice.