Tibet's Peak Season Has Begun Much Earlier Than Usual

Tibet's peak tourist season has begun since late March, when peach trees in Nyingchi area of southeast Tibet came into blossoms.

The peach blossoms attracted thousands of visitors, an indication that the temperature in Tibet began to rise.

"We have already received a large number of bookings since early February," said Ms. Debbie Deng, the OP manager of Tibet Travel Org CITS, a well-known tour company in Lhasa. "The air tickets to Nyingchi from Chengdu and Chongqing were sold out one month ago."

"Tibet Tourism Bureau also started to process applications of Tibet Travel Permit in late March. It was about half a month earlier than usual," Debbie said,

i["We sent dozens of tour groups from different countries to Tibet in early April. The first tour group to Everest Base Camp this year was also from our company."

"In early March, some tourists who planned to travel to Tibet in April were quite worried about their Tibet permits.

It turned out that their worry was really unnecessary. We haven't had any difficulty in applying for the permit since late March.

This also made us confident in Tibet's tourism market in 2014,"]i Debbie said.

Tibet Travel Org CITS has 400-500 clients visiting Tibet this April, up 20% over the same period of last year. Most of them have obtained permits, according to Debbie.

Tibet is a seasonal tourist destination, with a peak season from April to mid-October and a low season from late October to next March.

During its peak season, the weather is favorable and many traditional festivals are celebrated. Therefore, it attracts millions of visitors during this period every year.

According to the statistics issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau, the number of tourists to Tibet from April to October in 2013 was about twelve million, an increase of 21.6% as compared to the same period of 2012. This year, there must be a bigger increase.

Debbie also gave some advice to travelers who are planning to visit Tibet this year.

1. April and May is the best time to view and climb Mt. Everest.

The world's highest peak, even the whole Himalayas, is plainly visible over 90% of the time.

2. The grandest religious festival in Tibet, Saga Dawa Festival, marking Buddha's birth, will be celebrated with various activities for a whole month in Lhasa, Shigatse and at Mount Kailash. The highlights are going to fall on June 13.

3. Summer, especially from July to August, is the best time to visit the grassland in northern Tibet. The annual Ngachu Horse Racing Festival will be held on the vast grassland dotted with billions of colorful flowers.

Visitors can witness Tibetan nomads' excellent horsemanship and archery. In addition, the most popular traditional festival, Shoton, will also fall in August, with a weeklong celebration in Lhasa. Travelers can watch Buddha Painting exhibition at Drepung Monastery and Tibetan Opera in Norbulingka.

4. September is the best time to photograph in Tibet. The landscape of Tibet, particularly western Tibet, is the most diverse in color in this month.

Tibet Travel Org CITS(www.tibettravel.org), the online Tibet tour operator, annually sends more than 1,000 individual travelers and over 100 tour groups to Tibet.