How to Get to Namtso Lake

Located at northwest of Lhasa, Namtso is renowned as the most beautiful lake in Tibet and was selected as one of the five most beautiful lakes in China by Chinese National Geography magazine in 2005. Namtso Lake's touching beauty should not be missed by any traveler to Tibet, but how to get to Namtso Lake to view its beauty?

namtso
Of course, you should to go to Lhasa for a couple of days’ acclimation and then head to Namtso for this lake is located at 4,718 meters (15,475 feet) above sea level. At present, you can go to Lhasa by train or by air, but by train is the most popular way for tourists can view the amazing scenery along the world’s highest railway, Qinghai-Tibet Railway. Taking train to Lhasa from Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai and Xining is very convenient nowadays. Of course, flying to Lhasa is the most convenient way.

train to namtso
When arriving in Lhasa, you need to stay at least two days in Lhasa before you go to another place with higher altitude. The altitude of Namtso Lake is much higher than that of Lhasa (3700m).

After a full acclimation, you can charter a bus or car with other travelers to Namtso Lake because there is no regular bus to Namtso Lake at present. If you rent a car by your own, it is troublesome with making the itinerary, signing the contract. So it is better to share a bus or car with other travelers. You can find information on renting buses/cars on message boards in front of many youth hostels in Lhasa, like Dong Cuo International Youth Hostel, Phuntsok Kasang International Youth Hostel in Lhasa, Kyeri hotel and Banakshol hotel.

road to namtso
As the road to Namtso is not very good, a 4WD is recommended, for example, Toyota 4500. The lowest price is 3.5CNY per kilometer during the peak tourism season of Tibet. The distance between Lhasa and Namtso is around 250km and it will cost you about 1700CNY from Lhasa to Namtso and back to Lhasa from Namtso.

namtso lake
Besides, you can join a tour group by a local travel agency, like Tibet travel org. Local travel agencies can arrange everything for you, including finding a car or bus for you to Namtso. It is more convenient. You can find Lhasa and Namtso tour groups easily during the peak season.