A. A Xinhua report of January 9, 2003 said, "At the end of last year, the regional tourism administration abolished the requirement that tourists from China's Hong Kong and Macao have "identity confirmation letters" when traveling in Tibet, and that foreigners must travel in a group of five or more, local tourism sources said." This would mean that Tibet is open to individual travelers; however, there may be confusion about this. Until now, Chinese embassy, consulate personnel, and Chinese tour operators regularly tell tourists that only groups are allowed.
Individual travelers have been able to travel by land to/in Amdo and Kham without a group, however permits are required for some areas. Official bus travel into the TAR from Amdo in possible only by purchasing appropriate permits and from Kham, an Alien Travel Permit is required to cross restricted and closed areas near Chamdo. By air, it is also possible to fly into Lhasa from either Kathmandu or Chengdu without being part of a group. However, new regulations and restrictions around tourism in Tibet are common, so do not rely entirely by what you read here. Check as many sources as possible.
Q. Is Tibet sometimes closed to individuals, but not to groups?
A. Chinese authorities periodically close Tibet particularly to individual travelers when pro-independence demonstrations occur or are suspected to occur. Both individual and group travel can be halted or disrupted, but groups are much more likely to continue to be able to enter Tibet even if there are some "disturbances."
In recent times, Tibet was suddenly closed to individual travelers during the Panchen Lama controversy and when the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was accidentally bombed by NATO planes, border closing took place in Kathmandu and individual travel from Chengdu was halted for a week. When Tibet is "closed," it is almost always done by not selling plane or bus tickets from Kathmandu, Chengdu and Golmud. Within a week or two, the situation usually changes and travelers can proceed into Tibet. This is happening less than it used to but even in May, 2007 a demonstration disrupted some individual travel.
Visas
Q. Where and how should I get a visa for Tibet?
A. Obtaining a visa for travel in Tibet in the last decade has been a mixture of policies and regulations that are always changing. The following information is valid as of June 2006, but know that this information could abruptly change, and often does.
As of June 2006, travel in Tibet required getting a) a Chinese visa, b) an Alien Travel Permit, and c) if you go outside of Lhasa, other area permits (obtained through a travel agency).
It has been reported that Chinese embassy officials do not issue individual Chinese visas if Tibet is written or stated explicitly as an intended destination. Generally, individual travelers visit Tibet as part of "group" organized on the spot in Chengdu or Kathmandu, or through a more formal arrangement with a tour operator at a much-inflated price tag. In Kathmandu, the usual procedures require travelers' passports to be submitted by a tour operator to the Chinese embassy, which issues a special "Group Visa" restricting each individual to traveling and leaving Tibet with the other members of the group. A Group Visa is issued for the duration of the group tour in Tibet. In Kathmandu, the Chinese embassy regularly cancels any pre-existing China visas, however there have been exceptions. Individual Chinese visas (i.e. a non-group visa) issued in Kathmandu are sometimes endorsed as not valid for travel to Tibet. However, individual Chinese visa issued in Kathmandu in October/November 2000 were valid for travel in Tibet.
Travelers may hear of a "Tibet Permit." A Tibet Permit is a list of people traveling together in a group into Tibet. Normally, one can stay in Tibet for as long as the Chinese visa is valid, not for how long the group's "Tibet Permit" was issued. Therefore, if traveling into Tibet with a Chinese visa that is longer than the group tour, and the visa was not cancelled in Kathmandu or the border, the individual will be able to stay for the duration of the visa. Upon arrival in Lhasa, travelers can usually choose to participate in or forego the guided tour although some Chinese tour guides have been rather insistent upon participation in recent years. Also, individuals may make arrangements with local tour operators to visit other parts of the TAR from Lhasa and such visits in most cases requiring travel permits that are obtained through the operators.
An individual visa should say "L" at the top corner; this means tourist (Chinese: Luyouzhe). An "F" in the top corner would indicate a business or foreign expert visa. In August 2000, it was reported that an F visa was no longer valid for entry into Tibet.
Visa Extensions
Q. Is it difficult to extend my visa once I am in Tibet?
A. Extending a visa is can be much more problematic in the TAR than outside the TAR. As of June 2006 it was impossible to get an extension in Lhasa. It has been reported that visa extensions are sometimes easier to obtain in Shigatse. The Public Security Bureau (PSB) almost always require one to produce evidence of having booked a flight or vehicle leaving Tibet.
Outside the TAR, visa extensions for one month can virtually always be obtained in Ziling (Chinese: Xining) (in Amdo), Kanding (in Kham), or in Chengdu, and some travelers have been able to secure a second month extension. Usually an extension is obtainable only in the last few days of the previous visa. Fines for overstaying a tourist visa are a steep 500 yuan per day (Ch. VII, Art. 42, PRC Law on Entry & Exit of Aliens) and have been enforced in Lhasa recently, while at the border, bargaining and bribes to lower the fine have been reported in the recent past.
Before 1999, travelers who flew from Kathmandu to Lhasa on a group visa were usually able to obtain an individual visa extension in Lhasa at the end of their group tours. Travelers should not assume that these visa extension possibilities are always available as it has varied from month to month in the second half of the year 2000. Travelers on group visas to Lhasa intending to travel by air into China are likely to be able to get individual visas in Lhasa on presentation of their onward tickets, particularly if they apply through a Lhasa agent of their Kathmandu tour operator.
In August 2000, the Chinese authorities established Tibet FIT (foreign individual travel) in Lhasa, located on the second floor of the Snowlands Hotel. Tibet FIT is the "Management and Reception Center" of the Tibet Tourism Board that officially assist foreign travelers in Lhasa with visa extensions and all travel (jeep and air) out of the TAR, working in conjunction with Tibet FIT in Chengdu. The Lhasa police stated to tourists in November 2000 that Tibet FIT are the only official tour operator who can organize jeep travel from Lhasa to Kathmandu. The stated purpose of Tibet FIT by the Lhasa police was to "reduce competition because for the last year, too many tour operators were doing business which was causing a reduction in the quality service. To have only one very good tour operator is what is needed." Despite Tibet FIT, smaller tour operators in Lhasa are still able to work behind the "official" scene to provide overland transport to Kathmandu from Lhasa, and air tickets out of Lhasa can still be purchased at the air ticket office on the west side of Ngangra Lam near the Potala Palace. While Chinese authorities have attempted to corner the market with Tibet FIT (charging more than double than other tour operators for overland transport) and control the movements of individual travelers, it appears that it has been ineffective.
Please remember that PSB regulations for visas can abruptly change and this information is current as of June 2006.
For up-to-date information we suggest posting/researching questions on travel websites such as Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree Forum: http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/
What Not to Take With You
Q. Will I get into trouble for bringing the photo of the Dalai Lama or other Tibet materials to Tibet?
A. It is very important it is to be aware that photographs of the Dalai Lama, anti-Chinese literature, any book, audio cassette or video of/by the Dalai Lama, or the Tibetan national flag (yellow border with two white snow lions with blue and red rays radiating from a sun above) in the possession of a Tibetan can lead to their detention and questioning and in serious cases, even arrest, torture and imprisonment by Chinese authorities. There is usually minor implications for foreigners themselves who have individual copies of books, magazines, etc. They are usually confiscated if found, and sometimes the traveler is fined. However, sometimes tourists have been expelled from the country, especially if they have larger quantities of Dalai Lama pictures, or other literature that shows they intended to distribute them. Therefore, we advise caution and extreme discretion in taking the following to Tibet:
Photographs of the Dalai Lama to Tibet, including those in guidebooks.
Any literature, photographs, or pictures to Tibet that could be construed as political in nature by Chinese authorities, especially the Tibetan national flag.
Any recorded video or audiocassette tapes to Tibet that are political or connected in any way with the Dalai Lama or the Tibetan government-in-exile.
To be aware that delivering packages or letters from outside Tibet can lead to suspicion and confiscation by Chinese authorities and could result in dire consequences including questioning, detention, or punishment and imprisonment for the Tibetan recipient.
Resources
Paradox Lost: How Not To Be A Tourist In Tibet: by the International Campaign for Tibet (available as a PDF download: http://www.savetibet.org/documents/document.php?id=229
On This Spot: Lhasa by the International Campaign for Tibet.
Tibet Travel Adventure Guide 1999 by Michael Buckley, 265pgs. Available for $17.95 from ICT.
Many common questions about travel and visas are dealt with in Tibet guidebooks. We recommend Tibet: A Travel Survival Kit by Lonely Planet, but all travel guides contain dated information about access for individual travelers and visas.
