Vehicles we are using for your Tibet tour

Tibet would be a place that you must go in your lifetime, for its breathtaking landscapes, massive historical sites, atmospheric monasteries, unique folk customs, and for the last pure land on earth. However, as of its special situation, international travelers are not allowed to travel Tibet independently, they are required to book a tour through the local Tibet travel agency to not only include a local licensed tour guide and Tibet permit, but also have a private tourist vehicle with a driver.

For the transportation to travel within Tibet, there are 2 exceptions to this rule, one is that travelers can take a taxi to travel in Lhasa with your guide’s accompany; the other is that, between Lhasa and Shigatse, travelers can choose to ride a train rather than a private tourist vehicle with your guide’s accompany, while for those traveling to the rest places of Tibet, it is required to hire a private tourist vehicle with a licensed driver.

As travel safety is our top priority, to ensure the safety and comfort of our clients during their tour in Tibet, strict standards are applied to the drivers and tourist vehicles that we use for their Tibet vacation. Usually, in order to have enough space for our clients and their luggage, and create a more comfortable experience, we will purposely leave some spare seats in the tourist vehicles.

There are 7 types of different tourist vehicles from 5-seater 4WD to 29-seater tourist bus provided to our customers, which are all in good condition and function well. There is a seat belt for every seat and curtains for windows to block off the strong sunlight in Tibet. The drivers that we arranged for you are non-smokers with rich driving experience and they are required to have a clear and comprehensive understanding of your travel route prior to your Tibet tour start. To make sure of a smooth trip, the driver will check the vehicle status (oil, water, engineer, etc) every morning before the departure, in addition, regular function checks will be arranged in advance to weed out the potential malfunctioning ones as early as possible.

1. 4WD Land Cruiser

Brand: Toyota
Total number of seats: 5 seats in 2 rows
Usually used for: a group of 1-3 travelers

In the past, 4WD land cruisers were the most popular tourist vehicles in Tibet due to its bad road conditions. However, with the rapid development of Tibet’s economy and tourism, the roads in Tibet have been significantly improved into a greater condition in recent years, which makes most places in Tibet accessible by the more economical tourist vans and buses. Today, the 4WD land cruisers are ideal for driving through snowy roads when traveling in winter or rocky and bumpy roads to off-the-beaten-path like the far west Nagri area and Changtang grassland.

2). 7 seater minivan

Brand: Buick
Total number of seats: 7 seats in 3 rows
Usually used for: a group of 1-4 travelers

It is one of the most popular tourist vehicles used among tourists traveling in Tibet. It is perfect for small group tours as it has a cheaper cost but larger capacity than a 4WD land cruiser, furthermore, it is comfortable, with a separate compartment in its back to store the luggage. Please note that the window in the back 2 rows can not be fully opened, travelers who have car sickness can take the front seat beside the driver, which usually is the guide’s seat.

3). 8-9 seater minivan

Brand: Korean Hyundai or Foton
Total number of seats: 8-9 seats
Usually used for: a group of 5-6 travelers

If you are a group of 5 to 6 people, it is possible to take this kind of minivan to explore Tibet. Please note that the 8 seats Hyundai minivan’s layout is quite similar to the 7 seat Buick minivan, however, they have 3 connecting seats on the second row rather than 2 separate seats, and the seat close to the door is more like an extra seat which can be folded. In addition, the available number of the 9 seat minivan is rather limited in Tibet, hence, it is highly recommended to book the tour as early as possible to reserve this minivan if needed.

4). 15 seater van

Brand: Ford Transit
Total number of seats: 15 seats
Usually used for: a group of 5-10 travelers

This van is popularly used among a group of 5-9 travelers, maximum of 10 people if tourists don’t have too much luggage. Because there is no separate compartment in this kind of van to put the luggage, some spare seats are required to be left for the luggage storage.

5). 17-seater minibus 

Brand: Korean Hyundai 
Total number of seats: 17 seats
Usually used for: a group of 9-13 travelers

This is another popular tourist vehicle used in Tibet for a group of 9-13 travelers. The minibus is comfortable with large space for passengers to stretch their legs. Besides, there is a separate luggage compartment for luggage storage while traveling.

6). 23-seater bus

Brand: Suzhou Kinglong (Higer)
Total number of seats: 23 seats
Usually used for: a group of 13-18 travelers

This kind of tourist bus is widely used for larger tour groups, usually with a group of 13-18 tourists. It has a large and comfortable space for tourists to stretch their legs during the driving and also has a separate large trunk for luggage. However, please kindly note that the space between seat rows is narrower than the 17 seat Hyundai minibus, for travelers who are looking for a higher standard, it’s better to take the 29 seats Yutong bus.

7). 29 seat bus

Brand: Zhengzhou Yutong
Total number of seats: 29 seats
Usually used for: a group of 19-26 travelers

We would recommend a 29 seats tourist bus, which has a large space to make passengers more comfortable. In addition, there is a storage area for luggage at the bottom. Please note that the tourist coach has a slower speed comparing to the 15-seat or smaller vehicles, and there are some CCTVs on the head of the coach to spy driver’s behavior as well as the driving speed.

Besides the vehicles mentioned above, there are some other special ways to explore Tibet such as cycling or riding a motorbike or even self-drive their own car. For this type of traveling, most travelers will bring their own motorcycles or bikes, and the bikes can be also purchased in Lhasa upon arrival. Please feel free to contact us directly for more details.

As a place with natural wonders including snow-capped mountains, sacred lakes, deep valleys, vast alpine grasslands, etc., there are lots of overland routes in Tibet worthy for a driving tour. With the significant improvement of the rodas, currently, most places in Tibet can be accessed by all types of tourist vehicles. Here are the most popular overland routes that we carefully handpicked for you.

It is one of the most popular overland routes for traveling in Tibet, bringing unique rewards with nicely-balanced natural beauties and cultural relics. Generally, no matter driving from Lhasa to Kathmandu or vice versa, travelers would spend about 4 days along this route to appreciate the breathtaking view including the famous Himalayan ranges with Mt. Everest, one of the 3 holy lakes – turquoise Yamdrok Lake and historical Shigatse and Gyantse. The section of road in Tibet is well-paved with asphalt, making it possible to travel along the part in Tibet by all the vehicle types mentioned above. While for the section of road in Nepal, it is highly recommended to take a private jeep to pass through the bumpy mountain roads.

It is considered to be the most beautiful highway in China, stretching over 2,100KM from Chengdu of Sichuan in the east to Lhasa of Tibet in the west. An overland driving along this route takes you through magnificent landscapes of beautiful lakes (Mugecuo Lake, Rawok Lake, Basum Tso Lake, etc.), crystal-clear glaciers (Midui Glacier), vast grasslands (Maoya Grassland, etc.), majestic snow-capped mountain peaks (Haizi Mountain, etc.), turbulent rivers (Lancang River, Jinsha River, etc.), deep canyons (Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon), and primeval forests (Lulang Forest, etc.) as well as unique folk villages. Currently, the road condition of this route has been greatly improved too, allowing all tourist vehicles to pass through. However, if traveling in winter and the monsoon season, a 4WD land cruiser would be the best option for small groups.

The Qinghai-Tibet Highway starts from Xining and ends with Lhasa. It is one of the highest and longest asphalt roads in the world. It is also the shortest, best, and safest road to Tibet. The landscape along the way is magnificent and rich, with vast grasslands (Northern Tibet Grassland, etc.), salt lakes (Qinghai Lake, Chaka Salt Lakes, Namtso Lake, etc.), uninhabited Gobi and wetlands (Kekexili Nature Reserve), snow-capped mountains, deserts, etc. Open to traffic throughout the year, it is the busiest highway among the five highways into Tibet. As of its good road condition, it is possible to pass through this route by all the vehicles listed above, but in the wintertime, the best option should be to take a 4WD land cruiser too.

With an average altitude of over 4,500 meters, Xinjiang-Tibet Highway is the highest but sparsely populated highway among the highways entering Tibet, which starts from Kashgar, traverses 5 huge mountains over 5,000 meters. Alongside, the oxygen content in most areas is less than 50% of the sea level. It can be said to be the most dangerous highway in the world that combines high altitude, dangerous roads, poor road conditions, and a harsh natural environment. The whole line is mostly the endless Gobi, desert, and perennial snow-covered mountains including the famous Mt Kailash, lakes like sacred Lake Mansarovar and Pangong-tso, often no people for hundreds of kilometers. For the section of road between Lhasa and Zanda, all types of tourist vehicles are fine, however, for the road between Zanda and Kashgar, the best option is to take a 4WD land cruiser due to the poor road conditions, or smaller vehicles (under 7-seat) as the borders between Tibet and Xinjiang may not allow big vehicles to pass through.

It is a popular overland travel route to Tibet from Yunnan, with a total length of over 2,200KM stretching from Kunming to Lhasa. It passes through the top travel destinations of Yunnan including Dali, Lijiang, Shangri-la and joins the southern Sichuan-Tibet Highway in Markham. It has the lowest altitude among the highways entering Tibet and mainly follows the route of the ancient Tea Horse Road. A drive through this route usually takes about 7-10 days and you will experience different kinds of climates and landscapes en route. It has the same situation as driving along the Sichuan-Tibet highway, during the monsoon season and wintertime, it is highly recommended to take a 4WD land cruiser.

As a reliable local travel agency with 14+ years of experience, we at WindhorseTour always do our best to guarantee a worry-free service for our clients. We definitely can design a unique trip to Tibet with reliable and professional local guides and drivers, tourist vehicles with excellent conditions, and accommodations with good serves, etc. There are lots of well-designed Tibet group tour and private tour on our website for reference. For any further thoughts and comments, please do not hesitate to share!