Being the second largest city in Tibet, Shigatse is the transportation hub for mid-Tibet and the gateway to this vast western area. The city has a well established highway system with links to most of the important parts of Tibet.The major highways linking Shigatse include the 318 National highway, the Shigatse-Yadong Highway, the Lhasa-Ali highway and the China-Nepal Highway.

Foreign tourists are officially forbidden from using bus in this area. And the only choice is to travel by car.

The easiest and most popular way to travel in the region is to hire a Landcruiser which can seat up to 6 people. Prices are approximately RMB3-3.5/km for imported jeeps, RMB3.5-4.5/km for luxurious jeeps, RMB5.5-6.5/km for a 20 seater coach and RMB7-8/km for a 40 seater coach.

THE MOST COMMON TOURIST ROUTE OUT OF LHASA

This five day trip takes you southwest, towards Everest visible on a good day from Tingri, (at the far end of the journey from Lhasa), and consists of stops in the following towns: Shigatse - Lhatse - Tingri - Sakya - Gyantse - Nangartse.

It costs about RMB5000 and takes 3-4 days to visit Everst base camp.