# Namtso Lake (纳木错)

Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region · Southwest, China · Guidebook rating: 5/5
Canonical: https://cnatrip.com/en/places/namtso-lake
Language: en

## Key facts

- **Admission:** ¥145 in low season (entry ticket + sightseeing shuttle); ¥210 in peak season (entry ticket + sightseeing shuttle)
- **Time needed:** 1–2 days
- **Getting there:** 1. Namtso Lake is about 60 km from Damxung County town. The road is entirely unpaved and crosses Nagen Pass at 5,190 m. Damxung is 164 km from Lhasa on the Zhongni Highway (中尼线). No public buses run to Namtso. Many travellers rent a vehicle together: a minibus for a two-day round trip costs ¥1500. You can look for travel companions on the notice boards at YAK or Balang Xue Hostel (八廊学旅馆). Alternatively, board a small bus in front of Kirey Hostel. This option is cheaper and more convenient, and it departs at 7:00. However, check with Kirey Hostel the night before, as the arrangements are sometimes unclear. 2. If you enter the plateau via the Qinghai-Tibet Highway (青藏线), you can charter a car in Damxung to go up to Namtso. Prices vary by season. Because your body has not yet acclimatised when you first arrive on the plateau, staying overnight here often brings noticeable altitude sickness. The beauty of the place is matched by the hardship. Most people acclimatise in Lhasa first and then go to Namtso.
- **Good for:** Nature

## About Namtso Lake

For many people who have been to Namtso, it is one of the most majestic places they have ever seen. If you can visit only three places in Tibet, travellers who have been there recommend Namtso, the Himalayas and Mount Kailash (Kangrinboqe).
Namtso is China's second-largest saltwater lake after Qinghai Lake, and it is the highest saltwater lake in the world. Five islets dot the lake, and the massive Tashi Peninsula is visible from far away. On Tashi Island, two small hills rise. If you climb to the summit of the taller one, you will see a huge pile of mani stones and prayer banners, along with a line of small mani stone piles stretching for hundreds of metres. This is the highest point of Namtso, with the vast lake spreading out around you like a sea. Along the shore stand snow-capped mountains, and on clear days you can see the main peak of the Nyainqêntanglha Range.

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Source: China Self-Guided Travel 2025 (《中国自助游》, Tianjin Science & Technology Press, Aug 2024), p. 547. Prices, hours and transport details are as printed in the August 2024 edition and may have changed. Always confirm with the venue before you travel.
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