Solo travel info in Tibet

saarle

Hello guys, i know it's india travel forum. but seems like some people here got some knowlage about Tibet, which is kind of hard to find.
im planning to do some trekking in Tibet, but really not intrested to do a travel company guided tour. anyway, my questions are:
1. is it still possible to get solo permit theis days?
2. if not what the chances of getting cought after spliting from a guided tour?
3. how samrt is it to do that ? and what the best way to avoid getting coutgh ?
4. any other good tips?

Thank you very much!

Saar

vko

Welcome to IndiaMike!

1. I think this post belongs to the Crossing the Border forum.

2. I did see some travel forums specific to Tibet. Try searching on Google.com for "Tibet Travel Forum". You may get a better response there.

3. I don't think whatever you are planning is smart or safe (if it includes splitting from a guided tour and trying not to get caught).

(Btw, Don't let my comment dampen your 'solo' spirit. What do I know about Tibet? Nothing!)

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-Vikas

vistet

After March 2008 everyone/every group is required to have a guide, all the time . There seems to be some leeway in Lhasa etc. to the guide actually being in your company , you can walk around a bit on your own , but the guide is held responsible for you.

High. What is certain is that your guide and his company will be in serious trouble, the guide will probably lose his job to start with. The group also faces problems , our group had problems exiting Tibet in 05 because two members had returned to Nepal two days earlier , for a legitimate reason , and at the same border post.

There are large areas that are culturally Tibetan outside the dotted line of the "Tibetan Autonomous Region" , with striking landscapes to go : Amdo , Kham and more. These see a fraction of the tourists that go in to "real" Tibet , and are a lot easier to do indepently. Suggest you research these.

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high road to ..

saarle

thank for the answer, ofcourse i dont wanna get anyone in troubles includeding myself.
i guess i will have to pay the price. if i didnt have ticket already i would probbly cancel my trip.
it's such a shame that restrictions.

Per

It varies with the political situation. Some periods it can be quite liberal at others you can hardly get out of Lhasa. At the time being I it is likely to be very tight, due to the uprising in Sinkiang, Dalai Lama´s visit to Taiwan, etc. Not much fun to travel in an occupied country.

If you want to meet tibetanspeakers there are several areas in India where Tibetan dialects are the local languages and the people are at liberty to practice their own culture. Especially, Ladakh and Spiti are interesting. And, no, they are not Tibetans any more than the Swiss are Germans.

theyyamdancer

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"Wandering seemed no more than the happiness of an anxious man." - Albert Camus

theyyamdancer

If you want to meet Tibetans, go to Arunachal Pradesh!

vistet

March 2008 was a watershed : while travel restrictions come and go we are still nowhere near the more liberal periods over the last decade. Next politically sensitive period comes up now in October , the sixty year anniversary of the Peoples Republic. Nothing good will happen before that.