Miscellaneous

Transportation

There are now commercial taxis in Lhasa, but taxi drivers do not speak Eng­lish. As part of a tour group most of your travel arrangements are already taken care of. However, if you fee that you must use a taxi have the hotel call you one and ask the hotel to write the return address in Chinese or Tibetan on a slip of paper. Local place and Hotel names differ from those in Eng­lish.

Telephone, fax and e-mail

You can call direct from Lhasa to most places though the telephone lines. It is also possible to call international from various other places in Tibet. Telecom in Tibet has developed significantly. It is also relatively easy to fax out from Lhasa and our repre­sentative office there can help you emer­gencies. There are several cyber cafes in and around Lhasa.

Shopping

There are now quite a few Chinese run Supermarkets in Lhasa. The quality of the goods, however, may leave much to be desired for. However, the area around the Jokhang has large number of shops and hawkers selling traditional Tibetan product and curios. Tibetan hand knotted carpets and rugs can be bought at the factory.

Electricity

The electricity in Lhasa is 220 volts at 50 cycles. Lhasa is on Beijing time which is 2 hours 15 minutes ahead of Kathmandu and 8 hours ahead of GMT.

Airport Departure Tax

International airport departure tax is included in your ticket in Lhasa.

Eating Out

Lhasa does have quite a few restaurants. However, most of them cater to the local population and the Chinese living in Lhasa. There are some places around the old city, by the Jokhang which serve western style food and which are frequented mostly by tourists. Ask your local guide about these. The last decade has seen a tremendous growth in Karaoke joints which serve the local population and in Chinese Restaurant which cater manly to visiting Chinese. Some of these Chinese Restaurant are quite good and serve authentic Chinese food. However, Language can be a bit of a problem therefore the assistance of local guide should be sought if such a visit is contemplated.

Tipping

The same rules apply about tipping as elsewhere. Roughly 10% of bills at restaurants while drivers and guides on overland trips would expect the tips as well which depends on the number of days they are with you.  US$ 10-15  a day to guide and US$ 6-8 a day to tour car/bus driver would be good. However, this can be more or less based on the services you get from them.

Taxi drivers do not expect the tips.