Tibet Tour Alternatives; Tibetan Parts of Sichuan with Rich Culture, Scenery & Tradition – Jiuzhaigou Valley

Recently we received several of emails from our clients asking the suggestions for the Tibetan area tour alternatives in Sichuan during February to April when it is impossible to get the Tibet travel permit to Lhasa, Everest and other parts of Tibet.  To avoid the geographical names and explanations the foreign tourists may have troubles to understand, here we list the tour itinerary day by day with emphasising on the highlights of the line. On this page, we introduce the visit of Jiuzhaigou Valley.

Jiuzhaigou Winter Snow Scenery

3 Days Jiuzhaigou & Mounigou Tour: the best itinerary for the winter season (November to March)

Day 1: Chengdu – Mounigou – Jiuzhaigou

There are two ways to get to Jiuzhaigou from Chengdu, by driving and flight. It takes one day to arrive at Jiuzhaigou by either of the way, we usually suggesting our clients driving there so that they can see the scenery and culture varing on the road.

Get up early and after the breakfast at about 7:00am, drving about 2 hours to arrive in Wenchuan, the center of Sichuan Earthquake 2008, and stop to refresh there. Then head to the lunch spot and don’t expect too much for the food during this itinerary as it is hard to grow the vegetables on the Plateau. As the Chinese tourists always say about the western of Sichuan: Eyes in the Heaven while Body in the Dell, which means you can enjoy the great scenery and experience the touched culture, but you are not able to eat and stay as well as on the regions of Han Chinese.

In the afternoon, visit the Mounigou with the high altitude of 3105m and the highlights are Zhaga Waterfall and Erdao Lakes. It is featured virgin forests, mountainous lake, hotspring, large calcified wafterfalls and ponds. You will totally get lost in the picturestique scenery which is perfectly formed by mountains, water, trees.

Zhaga Waterfall

Then continue to Jiuzhaigou, and visit a Tibetan family on the road, where you will have the chance to taste the real Tibetan food – Zanba, Butter Tea, Barley Wine, Yak Meat and Highland Funguns. Dance and sing with the Tibetan family. Transfer to the Jiuzhaigou hotel for the dinner and sleep early for the next day’s Jiuzhaigou visiting.

Tibetan Food at Zhuoma Home

 Day 2: All-Day Jiuzhaigou Exploration

Your tour guide will escort you to visit the Jiuzhaigou valley and see the winter scenery from the photos below which were taken by our staff on 11 December, 2014.

Jiuzhaigou Winter Tour

Jiuzhaigou Winter Tour

Jiuzhaigou Winter Tour

Day 3: Get back to Chengdu from Jiuzhaigou Valley

The first stop of today is the source of Minjiang river, the mother river of Sichuan Tibetans. During the Tibetan New Year festival, the Tibetans will get together here to thank their mother river and pray. The second stop is a real Tibetan village with the blue sky and colorful culture. After lunch, drive directly to Chengdu.

Tibetan Village – Happy Shangmo