Despite COVID-19 cases, China launches winter tourism campaign in Tibet; Potala Palace and others to open soon

Overwhelming number of COVID-19 cases isn’t something that’s going to stop China’s winter tourism campaign in Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). Recently, China has announced that the top tourist attraction in Tibet’s capital Lhasa – Potala Palace – will soon reopen to visitors.

If reports are to go by, the iconic Potala Palace will reopen after being closed for several months. Along with the Lhasa landmark, China is working towards opening several other religious tourist attractions in and around Tibet’s capital city Lhasa.


This new Winter Tour Campaign is launched in order to attract more tourists to the Tibet Autonomous Region.


Potala Palace as a tourist attraction
The iconic and historic Potala Palace is the winter residence of the Dalai Lamas. As per the tourism campaign, admission to the Potala Palace will be free of charge till March 15. The palace will be open to the public daily from 9:30AM to 2:00PM. However, all visitors to Potala Palace will be required to show their IDs.


Several organisations have spoken against this move, pointing at the obvious COVID-19 situation, and also using a historic place such as Potala Palace to bring in tourism to Tibet Autonomous Region while the region is still under the illegal Chinese occupation. As of now, the residents are forbidden to use the Tibetan language to express their culture and traditions.



As for visitors wanting to visit Tibet, they will have to keep in mind several rules and regulations regarding travel within China and Tibet. As of now, there are separate rules for Chinese tourists and Tibetan tourists when it comes to travel within mainland China and Tibet. Even foreign nationals have to follow specific rules.


Foreign visitors planning to visit Tibet will require an additional permit for Tibet along with the Chinese visa.