The "East Swizerland" Nyingchi Travel Guide

Nyingchi is a prefecture lying in the southeastern area of Tibet. It borders with Lhasa to east, Shannan to southwest, Qamdo to south and Nagqu to north. With the lowest elevation of only 900m and the highest elevation of 7,782m (altitude of Namjagbarwa Peak), Nyingchi owns the biggest elevation gap in the world. The average altitude is about 3,100m, making it the lowest area of Tibet.

Traveling in Nyingchi is a unique experience. On the barren Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, you hardly believe that there is such a picturesque and fertile heaven land in wild Tibet. Nyingchi is blessed with beautiful lakes, deep gorges, immense forests, azalea-filled meadows etc. Stepping into Nyingchi, you will find the reason why Nyingchi is renowned as the "East Swizerland" and "Jiangnan of Tibet". In fact, there are no peach flowers in Swizerland and no snow-capped peaks in Jiangnan. So Nyingchi really enjoys the incomparable beauty.

● Top things to do in Nyingchi

Unlike other parts of Tibet, the Nyingchi area is known for its rich vegetation and well-preserved original ecological features. Many rivers such as the Yarlung Zangbo River run through the canyons of the Nyingchi region. There are quiet villages, waterfalls and other vast landscapes on both sides of the river. It has been hailed as “Switzerland in Tibet."

Among all the unadorned beauty, Nyingchi is especially known for its spring peach blossoms. In March, peach blossoms spread across gorges all the way to join the lofty snow-capped mountain peaks.

Basum Lake is one of the best known tourist attractions in Nyingchi. Tucked inside the alpine gorge, the sapphire-like lake reflects the surrounding snow mountains, as well as inhabited diverse wildlife.

Yarlung Zangbo River, the world highest river forming the deepest, narrowest and longest canyon in the world- the Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon.

Midui glaciers is the most important type Marine glaciers in Tibet,  At the end of the glacier on both sides of the mountain towering piton, snow-capped mountains and clouds interweave together, shines with the snow light all year round.

The landscape of Lulang Forest is particularly beautiful with snow mountains, glaciers, primitive forest, villages and rivers. The species of tree and vegetation are rich here with a large number of birds resting and living within the forest.

● Nyingchi Food&Drinks

Nyingchi has a shared culture and culinary backbone with Tibet, which means tourists can have a taste of traditional Tibetan delicacies.Nyingchi in eastern Tibet is rich in fresh vegetables and unique ingredient, like the crisp Matsutake, the conic Gymnadenia tuber, the wild Cordyceps Sinensis, the pygmy pig, the free-range chicken and other livestock, etc. Thus, food in Nyingchi provides tourists a wide range of choice.

Stone-pot Chicken is the most famous food in Nyingchi, just as its name implies, the stone pot-cooked chicken is stewed with a stone pot. After steaming for two hours, the dish smells warm and inviting.Cooked by the special stone pot, it usually takes over 2 hours to complete this dish.

● Nyingchi Weather

Influenced by the terrain of the river valley, the climate of Nyingchi is mild and humid. Since there is huge height difference in the river canyons, from 2200 meters to almost 4700 meters, there are different climate zones appearing in the valley, such as subtropical climate, temperate climate, humid climate, and semi-humid climate.

Thanks to the stay of southeast warm current from Indian Ocean and north cold snap, Nyingchi enjoys a multifarious climate containing a warm and humid tropic, temperate and frigid features. Abundant rainfall and humid climate fertilize the “Switzerland in Eastern” – Nyingchi in much luxuriant, green forests and stunning natural scenery of rivers, valley and mountains.

The annual temperature of Nyingchi is 9℃ with the annual rainfall of 679 mm. In the Nyingchi area, the four seasons are distinctive, but it is not too hot in summer and not too cold in winter. Even in winter, the average temperater is above 0℃.

Same as other prefectures, temperature in Nyingchivaries largely between day and night but is small throughout the year.

● Nyingchi Transportation

Get to Nyingchi by Flight

By air to Nyingchi is the most convenient way and popular among tourists. There are flights from Chengdu, Chongqing and Xi'an to Nyingchi.The Nyingchi Mainling Airport is located at an altitude of 2,949m. It is the lowest airport in Tibet, but it is known as the most difficult airport for planes to reach in the world because it is situated in the valley of the Yarlung Zangpo River and surrounded by over 4000m high mountains, enveloped by clouds and fogs throughout the year.

Get to Nyingchi by railway

The Lhasa–Nyingchi railway (Chinese: 拉林铁路) also known as the Lalin Line, is a single-track railway across the southeast Tibet, linking Lhasa and Nyingchi.It has a length of 435.48-kilometre and a designed speed of 160-kilometre per hour.The trains have been equipped with oxygen supply equipment. There are currently nine stations in the cities of Lhasa, Shannan, and Nyingchi that can handle both passengers and freight transportation.

Get to Nyingchi by road

With a length of 409km, The new Lhasa-Nyingchi highway runs from Liuwu New District of Lhasa to Bayi Town of Nyingchi City, is the fastest and best way to get from Lhasa to Nyingchi. It crosses a plenty of stunning natural scenery on the way. The road tops out at 4.900m above the sea level on Mi La Mountain Tunnel.