Shangri-La, situated at the northwest corner of Yunnan province, the starting point of the overland route to Tibet, also offers convenient and comparatively cheap flight.
Diqing Shangri-La International Airport is the only airport in Shangri-La. At present, Tibet Airlines and China Eastern Airlines run two flights between Shangri-La and Lhasa everyday.
The special note is you’ll need a Tibet Travel Permit issued by Tibet Tourism in Lhasa to board the flight from any city in China to Tibet. Please feel free to contact us for more information on the Tibet Travel Permit.
| Flight No. | Airport & Time | Duration & Stopover | Frequency | Plane Model | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MU5939 Eastern Airlines |
DIG(10:50)-LXA(12:55) | 2h5m Nonstop |
Everyday | Boeing 737 |
| Flight No. | Airport & Time | Duration & Stopover | Frequency | Plane Model | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MU5940 Tibet Airlines |
LXA(13:45)-DIG(15:35) | 1h50m Nonstop |
Everyday | Boeing 737 |
Please note:
1. Tibet Airlines also share flight with Air China Airlines and Shenzhen Airlines regularly.
2. Due to the seasonal difference, the flight schedules above are for reference only, please contact us for the latest details.
Flight Type: Nonstop flights
Flying Distance: 542 miles (872km)
Altitude Difference: 3280m (Shangri-La) - 3650m (Lhasa)
Airport Information: Diqing Shangri-La International Airport (DIG) - Lhasa Gonggar Airport (LXA)
Diqing Shangri-La Airport is southeast of Shangri-La county, 5.5km from the city center. There is no shuttle bus available so you can only take a taxi or book a private pick up or send off service. It is better to ask your travel consultant to write a note for you in Chinese and you show it to the taxi driver since most of them does not speak English.
Flying from Shangri-La or any other cities in China to Lhasa, you need to show your passport, China visa as well as the original Tibet Permit. We will mail the permit to your hotel in Shangri-La. After you get through the security check point in the airport, you do not need to show it again. Please keep the permit and give it back to our guide when you arrive in Lhasa. It is needed for the PSB application if you travel out of Lhasa. After you finish your tour, we need to return the permit back to Tibet Tourism Bureau.
Yes, except for flying you can still travel overland from Shangri-La to Lhasa. Lijiang is the start point for an overland tour from Yunnan to Tibet, but it is definitely OK to start from Shangri-La. This is a journey including ethnic culture, raging rivers, turquoise lakes, dense forests, stunning snow mountains. This route is one of the Ancient Tea Horse Roads. The other one is the from Sichuan to Tibet. In old times, people in Yunnan and Sichuan traveled by these routes to exchange horses with tea in Tibet. Hence these two pathways were called the Tea Horse Road.
Yes, there are also flights from Kunming Changshui International Airport and Lijiang Sanyi International Airport to Lhasa. If you fly from Lijiang or Shangri-La, please inform your Tibet travel consultant early about your hotel information in these cities since the permit delivery from Lhasa to these cities takes longer time than mailing to other cities in China.
Your Tibet travel should always include the airport pick up and send off. When you get out of the airport, please go to the parking lot where your guide will be waiting for you holding your name sign. For private tour, your guide will be there according to your flight arrival time. If you join in a group tour, we have certain airport pick up time. It is better if you book a flight around that time otherwise you might need to pay extra for arranging a private airport pick up.
