Shigatse Brief
Located around 300km west of Lhasa, this second largest city of Tibet whose name means "Fertile Land" is situated at an altitude of 3800m above sea level. The highlight of Shigatse is surprisingly high snow capped peaks, most of the highest peaks in Tibet, including Mt. Everest, are around Shigatse. And this city is dotted with some of the most sublime and important monasteries like Tashihunpo, Sakya and Shalu Monasteries.

Top Attractions

Tashilhunpo Monastery: Tashilhunpo Monastery is one of the six big monasteries of Gelugpa in Tibet, the full name in Tibetan of the monastery means: "all fortune and happiness gathered here" or "heap of glory". Founded by the First Dalai Lama in 1447, the monastery's structure was expanded by the Fourth and successive Panchen Lamas. The Maitreya Tempe on the west side is the tallest building of the monastery, it was erected in 1914 by the Ninth Panchen Lama to house a gigantic statue of the Maitreya Buddha and is 26.2 meters in height. Besides the grand palace and gigantic status, the Tashilhunpo Monastery also treasures characteristic wall paintings.

Mt. Everest: Mt. Everest, also called Mount Qomolangma, is the highest peak in the world. The altitude of Mt. Everest is now about 8,844.43 m, it is the dominant peak of Himalaas, the northern brae in Dingri County of Tibet and the southern in the Nepal. The top part of the mountain is covered with snow all the year round. Pilgrims trek long distances to present a pious worship, climbing enthusiasts run great risks to challenge its high altitude and the common tourists also yearn for a reverent look at this holy peak. In recent years, more and more mountaineers start from the Everest Base Camp trying to conquer the world’s highest peak while tourists trek to the foot of the peak to enjoy its beauty.

Sakya Monastery: Sakya, meaning "Grey Soil" in Tibetan since the soil surrounding it is gray. It is the first Sakyapa sect of Tibetan Buddhism in 1073, occupied 14,700 square kilometers. Sakay Monastery is famed as the "Second Dunhuang" due to its colossal collection of numerous Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, murals and Thangkas. According to statistics, about 40,000 volumes of scriptures are housed there. Sakya Monastery not only records the history of the combination of religion and politics in Tibet, but also deemed as the sign that Tibet was brought into Chinese domain officially.

Shalu Monastery: built in the 8th century, Samye Monastery was the first Buddhist monastery to be founded in Tibet. This monastery is hugely popular with all Buddhist pilgrims from around the world, and the beauty of its construction beckons tourist who comes to Tibet. The construction of Samye Monastery began in 762 AD and was completed in 779 AD. The monastery is modeled on the Odantapuri Temple in Bihar, India, it is a popular pilgrimage destination for Tibetan Buddhists, some of whom travel on foot for weeks to reach it.

Yamdroktso Lake: Yamdroktso Lake is one of the three holiest lake in Tibet, there are more than 10 islands in the lake, the large ones can hold 5 to 6 households while the small one are only 100 square meters or so. There have plenty of natural fodder for the fish in the lake, the lake has a fish reserve of about 300 million kilograms, that's why it is called "the Fish Store of Tibet". The holy lake is also a pilgrimage site for Tibetans, every summer, pilgrims trek here to pray and receive blessings.

Recommended Tours
The beautiful city is surrounded by spectacular mountain ranges including the famous Mount Everest. Being the second largest city in Tibet, Shigatse is the transportation hub for mid-Tibet and the gateway to this vast western area, arriving to Shigatse is relatively easy with good connections by highway to the nearby capital city of Lhasa. Its long history gives this city a strong cultural heritage, especially in respect of Buddhism, dozens of monasteries belonging to different sects enhance the atmosphere of Buddhism.
(TE-001) Beijing-Lhasa-Gyantse-Shigatse-Lhasa-Xi'an-Shanghai (14 Days)
(TE-006) Beijing-Lhasa-Gyantse-Shigatse-Tingri-Shigatse-Lhasa-Shanghai (16 Days)
(TE-002) Beijing-train to Lhasa+Yambajing-Xi'an-Shigatse (15 Days)
(THY-001 ST-020) Kunming-Dali-Lijiang-Zhongdian-Deqin-Yanjing-Mangkang-Bangda-Basu- Nyingchi-Tsedang-Lhasa-Shigatse-Gyantse-Tingri-Rongbuk Monastery-Zhangmu (25 Days)
(ST-003) Beijing-Train to Lhasa-Gyantse-Shigatse-Zhongdian-Lijiang-Dali-Kunming-Shanghai (22 Days)
(TE-007) Beijing-Train to Lhasa-Gyantse-Shigatse-Shegar-Everest Base Camp-Tingri-Zhangmu (16 Days)

Shopping & Entertainment
In Shigatse, visitors can buy most things that are sold somewhere else in Tibet. The national handicraft industry of Shigatse produces items completely unique in style and quality, there are a large number of handicrafts with unique characteristics of local nationality, such as the carpet, gold and silver ware, silk cushion, wooden bowl and so on. In the northern section of Shigatse City, there is a bazaar where various goods for daily life are sold.

Tibetan opera is certainly a precious treasure of Shigatse, you can enjoy number of live performances of Tibetan opera. Besides Tibetan opera, a great number of great works have also been composed and being another great treasure.