Frequently Asked Questions
The thought of traveling can be a daunting experience for many, without ever leaving your own home. Where to go, am I fit enough to do the hike, who will the other hikers be? These are serious questions demanding prompt, accurate answers.
At Alpine Interface, let us be the interface between the idea of your journey of a lifetime and the reality. Our toll-free number, 1-800-368-5056, is your direct link to us. Call us and we should be able to answer all of your questions regarding one of our destinations. We also endeavor to answer all of your emails as quickly as possible, meaning straight away if during business hours.
Below you will find questions most asked by our guests. Our answers are honest and try to shed light on what an Alpine Interface journey is like.
- How do we get to Tibet?
- Where and how do we obtain our visa for Tibet?
- How much cash do I need for the trip, how much do I have to calculate for tips?
- Can I change dollars/euros and are there ATMs, and where?
- How much driving do the Tibetan trips involve?
- What are the accommodations like in Tibet and in Kathmandu?
- Will we be able to stay in contact with people at home, by email/phone?
Can people reach us on the trail in case of emergencies at home? - Should women wear skirts, is it generally okay to wear shorts/show your legs?
- Do we need a sleeping pad whilst on the trek, or is something provided?
- Can we leave clothing/items behind in Kathmandu whilst trekking? Is it safe to leave things behind?
- I read about burning toilet paper while on the trail, should I bring a lighter? Do I have to bring a small trowel?
- I have read various things about gifts for people - please advise
- Water issue: Do we receive boiled water each day before we start hiking?
- Will we have access to (hot) showers?
- Will there be outlets to charge batteries, can you recommend the type of adapter?
- Is It OK to eat meat, or should we stick with rice and lentils to avoid GI upset?
- Can we wash clothes while on the trek, if yes, how?
1. How do we get to Tibet?
All of our trips to Tibet begin in Kathmandu, Nepal.
For information how to get to Nepal, please check out our Nepal Travel Links
We will then fly to Lhasa, a short two hour flight to one of the highest cities in the world.
We will most likely have one to two days in Kathmandu. The return journey will be overland via one of the most spectacular roads in the Himalaya. We will exit Tibet using Toyota jeeps and will drive about one day from the last day of trekking. If all goes well, we should be back in Nepal late in the afternoon.
2. Where and how do we obtain our visa for Tibet?
Visas for Tibet will be obtained by our agents in Kathmandu.
You will be required to send us a scanned passport copy and also 6 passport size photographs several months prior to the start of the trip. Your passports will then be taken from you by our agents in Nepal and then they will take them to the Chinese consular office in Kathmandu. Obtaining a visa for our trips in Tibet should take no more than two days. The Chinese authorities deliver group visas for this sort of trip. If you decide to leave the trip, we will be able to obtain a single exit visa for you.
3. How much cash do I need for the trip? How much do I have to calculate for tips?
Alpine Interface trips tend to be all-inclusive except for drinks, laundry, insurance etc. You therefore do not really need to bring too much cash with you to Nepal and Tibet. That said, there are many beautiful souvenirs to buy.
In most shops, credit cards are accepted but a 3-7% commission is added. Sometimes it's better to pay with cash. Once we are on the road in Tibet, it will be difficult to change money. There is not all that much to buy; the occasional carpet or very expensive zi stone, which can cost upwards of $5000.
It is best to carry US dollars or Euros in good condition. Generally, smaller denomination notes are easier to change on the trail but the exchange rate will not be as good as in Kathmandu. It is best to change some yuan in Lhassa and this will make buying drinks and anything else you may want much easier.
For a 20 day-trek, you should carry about $500. Once inside of China, pretty much all of our expenses are taken care of, including most drinks. You will therefore not have to spend much along the way.
Tipping policy:
For our treks in Tibet, we will be using our Sherpa staff coming out from Nepal with us. Sherpas should get something like something like $60-$100 per person. What we normally do is collect all the money and then distribute it equally amongst the team. In Tibet we will also be using yaks and not porters to carry the gear and camping supplies. The yaks are taken care of by Yakmen. They too should be tipped as they will be working very hard loading and unloading the animals and helping with campy chores. They should be given something in the area of $25-40 per person.
4. Can I change dollars/euros and where, are there ATMs, and where?
In Tibet, it is best to change money when you arrive in Lhassa. There will not be too many opportunities to change money at other times during the trek. China being China is very centralized and changing money can take some time. Best to get it out of the way early and not have to worry about it anymore.5. How much driving do the Tibetan trips involve?
Trips in Tibet involve some amount of driving as the distances are great. From Lhasa to the start of the trek in Tingri will take about three days of driving on fairly good roads. The Chinese authorities have made tremendous improvements to the infrastructure of Tibet.
Only a few years ago, the roads were in appalling condition but they have significantly improved. Because of the extreme elevation of the Tibet plateau, we tend to take our time reaching the start of the trek.
Each day is arranged in order to give you sufficient time to enjoy the views, hike a bit and to relax before getting back into the jeep.
On most treks in Tibet we normally average about 6 hours of driving. The roads are still very dusty and there is increasing truck traffic to this distant provinces of China.
6. What are the accommodations like in Tibet and in Kathmandu?
The capital of Nepal has some very luxurious hotels, rivaling some in the West.
For all of our destinations in Nepal and Tibet, we use the very elegant and centrally located Hotel Tibet.
This hotel is run by a Tibet family who is also in the business of selling carpets. The hotel, near the many embassies in Lazimpath, one of the quietest locations in the city, has internet connections, a conference room and all the services found in comparable hotels in Europe and in North America.
Accommodations in Tibet are less luxurious and are often fairly large, spiritless affairs. The rooms are for the most part comfortable and clean but do not expect the Hyatt. Once we leave Lhasa, the standards are lower with fairly basic accommodations in Tingri, Kodari, and Zangmu.
7. Will we be able to stay in contact with people at home, by email/phone?
Can people reach us on the trail in case of emergencies at home?
Internet 'cafes' are abundant in Kathmandu and Lhasa.
Any web based email address is okay to use, hotmail, yahoo, or AOL, as long as you can access your email account from the AOL website, meaning you have an userid as well as password to access. If this is not set up as of yet, you would have to do this before you leave home.
The same goes for calling home, you can call from anywhere where they have internet, which would be Kathmandu and Lhasa. As soon as we leave Lhasa, there won't be any possibility anymore to email/phone home.
Before you are leaving for your trip, we will send you a list with hotels/phone numbers where people can reach you in case of an emergency. While on the trail, we will be using a satellite phone, and we will give you the number as well.
However, this number is ONLY to be used when there really is an emergency, not for calling people on a regular basis.
8: Should women wear skirts? Is it generally okay to wear shorts/show your legs?
The temperatures in Tibet are fairly low, even during the trekking season so women should consider wearing trekking trousers.
Temples and monasteries should never be entered wearing shorts, this is a rule even for men, if possible.
9. Do we need a sleeping pad whilst on the trek, or is something provided?
You don't need sleeping pads. During the days you will be camping or if you are on a camping trip, sleeping pads will be provided. Please bring a very warm sleeping bag for treks in Tibet. You would need something in the range of -20C comfort level as temperatures can drop low at night.
10. Can we leave clothing/items behind in Kathmand whilst on the trek? Is it safe?
Some guests like the idea of leaving some clean clothes in Kathmandu , so upon their return, they have something clean to wear.
Some also leave some rolls of films behind, some shoes they don't need while on the trek, souvenirs already purchased, etc.
Things left behind will be stored in the hotel in Kathmandu, we never had any theft. You can lock your belongings with a small lock in your duffle bag..
You will also be leaving your airline tickets with our agent in Kathmandu as he will need them to re-confirm your flights back to your home country.
11. I read about burning toilet paper while on the trail, should I bring a lighter? Should I bring a little trowel as well?
Burning toilet paper is definitely an option, which should be used anywhere where you can't get to a toilet anymore.
If you have to go while on the trail, any toilet paper should be either burned or carried out.
This should be, by the way, the standard for any hike/trek anywhere in the world, be it the Alps, the Himalaya, or in the US National Parks.
You don't need to bring a trowel, a lighter is good enough. Feces should be slightly buried or covered with rocks while on the trail.
While camping, each time we set up a camp site a toilet tent will be erected and a latrine dug. The latrine will be covered/fill in with earth in the morning before we are leaving the site.
12. I have read various things about gifts for people, please advise
People, especially kids, do like gifts.
You will encounter many kids asking your for 'school pens', 'bonbons' or even money.
Giving them money is not such a good idea, however, if you want to take a bag of pens with you, they will be gone after a few days.
Don't overdo it, but give generously if you feel like it.
One thing that goes over very well with Yakmen is giving pen knives or a leatherman.
They are very useful to them. Another good gift is giving out sunglasses, gloves, socks etc.
Any small gift which is useful could be useful to these people.
13.Water issue: Do we receive boiled water each day before we start hiking?
We will be boiling water each morning for the day’s trek.
Due to the high altitudes, we will not be able to boil water at very high temperatures and therefore, will also be filtering our water. If you have a small, compact water filter, please bring it along. This will save time and reduce the amount of fuel we will have to burn during the trip.
There will be several streams per day where we will be able to fill up our bottles.
14. Will we have access to (hot) showers?
Showers (mostly hot) should not be a problem in Kathmandu and Lhasa, and other villages we will be staying in hotels in Tibet.
Once we begin the trek, you will have access to hot water each day in order to take a sponge bath.
Due to the fact that we simply cannot carry enough gas bottles allowing each member of the trek a hot shower each day, we will be limiting the showers to one per person every three days.
15. Will there be outlets to charge batteries, can you recommend the type of adapter?
Charging batteries while on the trek could be difficult. However, it won't be a problem in Kathmandu or Lhasa.
Once on the trail in Tibet, there will be no way to charge batteries. You should think about bringing a solar panel for charging or possibly bring sufficient batteries for entire trip.
Please keep in mind that due to the low temperatures, batteries will suffer quite a bit and you will need to keep them close to your bodies during certain parts of the trek.
16. Is It OK to eat meat, or should we stick with rice and lentils to avoid GI upset?
During our trips in Tibet, we are able to buy fresh meat at the beginning of the trek.
Most of the food we use for our trips in Tibet is purchased in Nepal and shipped in trucks which meet us at the start of the trek. Despite the fact that we are camping, our cooks are very creative and are able to prepare a variety of meals.
17. Can we wash clothes while on the trek, if yes, how?
There will be several occasions to wash your clothes during the trek but it is best to bring enough to avoid to having to do so. You can certainly have everything washed when you get back to Kathmandu.
