Kangding is the gateway to the Kham region of the Tibetan Plateau. It is a nice town that is close to many amazing areas, such as Minya Konka, a 7556 meter mountain.
Kangding, known as Dartsendo དར་རྩེ་མདོ་ or Dardo དར་མདོ་ in Tibetan, is the capital town of Garnze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture དཀར་མཛེས་ཁུལ་ located in the Sichuan part of Kham. Kangding sits at 2600m and has a population of around 100,000. Part of the traditional Tibetan region of Kham ཁམས་, Kangding has always been the gateway to the Tibetan world. The town itself is roughly 40% Tibetan, 40% Chinese with the remaining 20% being other minorities such as Qiang, Yi and Hui. Everything east of Kangding is inhabited primarily by Han Chinese while everything west of Kangding is predominantly Tibetan.
Stupa on top of Dentok Mountain (Paoma Shan)
Dordrak Monastery on the west end of Kangding
Snow-capped peaks rising above the north side of Migoo Tso (Muge Cuo)
From 1939 until 1950, Kangding was the capital of the short-lived province of Xikang. Xikang comprised all of modern day Garnze prefecture as well as all of modern day Chamdo prefecture ཆབ་མདོ་ས་ཁུལ་ in the Kham region of the Tibet Autonomous Region. In 1950, the province was divided along the Yangtze River འབྲི་ཆུ་. Everything east of the river was incorporated into Sichuan province, while everything west of the river was incorporated into the Tibet Autonomous Region. Prior to the early 1900’s, Kangding/Dartsendo was the capital of the Chakla Kingdom, one of the 5 kingdoms of eastern Tibet.
Along with being the capital of Garnze prefecture, Kangding/Dartsendo also serves as capital of Kangding county. Kangding county covers an area of 11,125 square kilometers (4295 square miles). The county has 3 towns Kangding, Guzan and Xindu Qiao (Rangakha in Tibetan), along with 18 townships. Of all the townships, Tagong (Lhagang in Tibetan) is the the most popular place for travelers to visit. Tagong lies 112 kilometers northwest of Kangding town.
Monks walking out of Dordrak Monastery (Jingang in Chinese)
Kangding covered in winter snow
Zhilam Hostel, by far the best place to stay in Kangding!
Ngachu Monastery, known as An Jue Si in Chinese, is located in downtown Kangding
Kangding is well known throughout China. It has always been a major trading center between mainland China and the Tibetan world. Tea from Ya’an in mainland China was brought to Tibet in exchange for wool. This “tea road” went through Kangding. Foreigners living in Kangding during the 1930’s and 1940’s reported seeing many Chinese carrying well over 125 kilograms (275 lbs) of tea on their backs along the trade route. A series of statues near the Kangding bus station depict what back-breaking work it must have been carrying heavy loads of tea on one’s back for hundreds of kilometers over rugged mountains.
Kangding is also well known across China because of the Paoma Mountain, known as Dentok Ri in Tibetan. The Paoma Mountain can be seen from all parts of Kangding. The visible peak rises higher than 4500m, while the highest point of the mountain rises above 5500m. In the late 1990’s, a love song was written about Kangding and the Paoma Mountain. The song was a huge hit and can still be heard on the radio and in karaoke bars across China to this day. The Center Square in downtown Kangding has a monument to the famous love song with the lyrics written in Tibetan, Chinese and English.
Downtown Kangding during the summer
Glaciated peaks rising above New Kangding
Southeast face of Minya Konka མི་ཉག་གངས་དཀར་, known as Gongga Shan in Chinese
Kangding is the gateway to the Kham Tibetan world. If you are planning on traveling in Sichuan’s wild west, you will have to pass through Kangding. Most travelers to Kangding stay only 1 or 2 days. However, there is enough to see and do in the area to keep one busy for several days. There are 4 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in town. Ngachu Monastery, known as An Jue Si in Chinese, dates back to 1654. It sits downtown right across from the Kangding Hotel. Lhamo Tse Monastery (Nanwu Si) is on the far west end of Kangding about 2kms from downtown. Dordrak Monastery (Jingang Si) is more than 400 years old. It is located next to Sally’s Knapsack Inn on the south end of town. Dentok Monastery (Paoma Si) lies on top of Mt. Paoma, which overlooks all of Kangding. You can hike up this mountain to reach the monastery or take the cable car to the top.
Minya Konka, the highest mountain in the Kham region at 7556 meters, is located in Kangding county
Not far outside of town is the high altitude lake of Migoo Tso (Mu Ge Cuo). This lake sits at 3700m and offers plenty of hiking opportunities. From the tops of the mountains around the lake, there are great views of the Gongga Mountains. The nomadic grasslands of Lhagang (Tagong) are less than 2 hours away. This small town has a famous Buddhist monastery to explore as well as hiking and horse trekking opportunities. The snow-capped Gongga Range (also called the Da Xue Range and Hengduan Range) can be seen from the west end of Kangding. There are over 20 mountains rising above 6000m within 60kms of Kangding.
The highest mountain in the area is Minya Konka མི་ཉག་གངས་དཀར་, which rises to 7556m. It is the second highest mountain outside of the Himalaya’s and is considered holy by Tibetans. There is a pilgrimage kora around the mountain which many Tibetans circle each year. The Hailuogou Glaciers are located in nearby Luding county and can be easily reached from Kangding. Hailuogou is located on the southeastern face of Minya Konka and are the lowest glaciers in Asia.
In recent years, trekking around Minya Konka has become quite popular. The most popular route goes along the west side of the mountain and takes about 5 days to complete. The starting point of the trek is just a short drive from Kangding. Talk to the staff at Zhilam Hostel for more details on this amazing trek.
Minya Konka (Gongga Shan) viewed from the Hailuogou Glaciers
Glacier fed river and snow-capped peaks just outside of Kangding
Nomads living in tents not far from Kangding…along the road to Lhagang (Tagong)
Nomad woman from Lhagang in Kangding county
Kangding is a modern town with plenty of great restaurants and guesthouses to choose from. The most popular and best guesthouse in town is Zhilam Hostel. Zhilam Hostel is foreign owned with all Tibetan staff. Check out their website for booking and price information. From Chengdu, there are buses every hour to Kangding beginning at 7am and ending around 4pm. The 9am bus is non-smoking and has a bathroom on board. It normally takes between 6 1/2 and 8 hours to reach Kangding from Chengdu. From Kangding, there are buses to all of the other counties in Garnze Prefecture including Litang, Batang and Dege. In addition to buses to Kangding, there is also a weekly flight from Chengdu to Kangding. The flight schedule and prices vary. Contact a local ticket office for current prices. The Kangding airport is currently the second highest commercial airport in the world at 4280m above sea level.
Nomad man along the Minya Konka trek stoking a fire
High altitude lake along the Gongga Trek
Glacier fed river along the Gongga Trek near Kangding
Yaks on the grasslands near Tagong
Kangding/Dartsendo is the gateway to the Kham Tibetan world. Spend an extra day or two exploring this town and the area around town. For more information on this area, read the following links:
Nomad Khampa woman
Snow-capped peaks viewed from Zhilam Hostel
Peak rising among 6000 meters
Sun rising on the Zheduo pass between Kangding/Dartsendo and Tagong/Lhagang
Minya Konka (Gongga Shan) rising to 7556 meters
I’ve read your information on the best time to travel to Tibet. I am specifically interested in your opinion as to the best time to visit Kangding. I want to avoid major holidays and also understand that March/April is generally not possible.
I’m looking for the highest probability of clear weather and snow topped peaks. It looks like there is a high probability of rain in June/July/August. I don’t know when there is snow at higher elevations.
I am thinking of May 15-31 or October 15-31 as possible times. Other better choices?
Already set on staying at Zhilam Hostel. I’ve emailed Kris also, but am interested in a variety of opinions.
Thanks.
Lois, I would recommend late October. The weather then is generally clear skies with great views of the mountains.
wow, so wonderful and beautiful scenery in Kangding town, I fall in love with it and want to stay there..
This is a great article on Kangding, the photos are fantastic – Kangding is a fascinating place to spend some time exploring. I visited Kangding in 2010 and stayed at the Zhilam Hostel, which I highly recommend – it’s wonderful place to stay and relax, with fantastic staff and amazing homemade cakes!
I’m wondering if the photo above captioned “Monks walking out of Dordrak Monastery (Jingang in Chinese)” is actually Lhamo Tse Monastery (Nanwu Si) just a little up the hill from Dordrak? I had a great time talking with the Monks at Lhamo Tse and Dordrak.
I’m going to bookmark your website as I plan to return to the area and explore some more, hopefully soon.
Best wishes, Tim
someone posted on thorntree on may 8th 2012 that kangding is closed to foreigners at the moment
they said foreigners could not buy tickets past ya’an at the chengdu west bus station
any news about this, dude?
3 of us were planning a trek there this july
love the website
David, The Tibetan areas of Amdo and Kham (located in modern day western/northern Sichuan, all of Qinghai and southwest Gansu provinces) are always politically sensitive regions to travel to. Closures tend to happen often with absolutely no warning. It appears that this area is open now (from contacting local friends in Kangding) however it is impossible to say if the area will remain open. If there are any political protests, the region will close again for an indefinite time frame. The best thing to do is to have a Plan B when wanting to travel to these Tibetan areas.
hi Losang,
i see u have lived in kangding for a time.
i want to ask has the trek from Laoyulin – Konka Monastery – Shangmuju village
become heavily monetized by local authorities in recent years like most other attractive hikes in china
e.g enviromental protection fees
extortionate rates for pack animals
ridrculous 门票？
David…..No, there still is no protection fee required to do this trek. I come from the old school way of trekking that says if you need it, you pack it yourself. IF you really need pack animals, they can be arranged in Laoyulin. It will not be cheap as the trek will take 4 or 5 days. The animal owned will need to go with you to make sure his animal is well taken care of. When you reach Konka Monastery, the pack animals need to make the 4 or 5 day journey back to Laoyulin. So you will be required to pay for the roundtrip journey of the animals and the animal’s owner.
I’m old-school too hehe, but my wife and friends aren’t!
Thanks a million for the useful info
Hello,
what a great source of information, thanks a lot. Can I give you a ring and ask about your opinion on travelling with children? 6+9 years. I want to go Chengdu, Gongganshan, Seda and then to Litang for the horse riding festival (does it still exist?).
I have 14 days max. Not enough time to do all this, right? Even if own car and driver?
Thanks,
yours,
Chris
Does anyone know to which sect/order the monastery on Paoma Shan is? Or how many monks live there? The pictures are amazing!
Hi Losang, Thanks for the useful info. I am planning a trip to the Kham regions of Sichuan and Yunan in late OCtober and November this year. K
Love your website. I am planning a driving trip to Kangding and Xinduqiao this October, was wondering if it is possible to drive all the way to Yading. I can’t seem to find much info on the roads there so i would like to find out if it is possible, what kind of road conditions (tarmac etc) and do we need 4×4? Once again thanks and appreciated the work you are doing here.
Is it not possible to travel to Kanding-Tagong-Danba in March? I have a month holiday in Sichuan in March and I was hoping to take in this area in mid-March.
Damian…It is really hard to say if this area will be closed or not as it is a decision the government of Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (where Kangding, Tagong and Danba are located) will decide. Don’t expect the government to make any official announcements. The only way to really find out is to go there and see if they are open. In my opinion and experience, these 3 areas should be open to foreign travelers, though I would not be surprised if areas further to the west closed for a few weeks.
Losang
We are not sure which trip has the best chance of success (ie tourists being allowed) and were wondering what your opinion is. We are travelling late Feb 2013. We have 2 choices either to travel to Kangding via Zhongdian -> xiangcheng – Litang. Alternatively we could travel from Lanzhou -> Xiahe -> Langmusi -> Songpan -> Chengdu.
Which would it be better to try. We realise we won’t find out if places are open until we are actually there, but maybe you have an idea as to which we should try.
We would be interested to hear which of the 2 trips you would prefer in general as well.
Many thanks for advice and help. This is a great site, loads of info and excellent advice and ideas.
Tashi Delek,Losang…I would appreciate it if you could tell me how the weather is generally in November.. The bus trip from Chengdu is my intention … Is it a good time to traverse the distance in november ? Many Thanks.Ann
Ann….Yes, November is a good time to travel to the Sichuan region of Kham found in western Sichuan province. While it may snow some, it will be extremely unlikely that major roads would be closed. For the most part, expect clear skies. Since this area has elevations varying from 2000 meters to more than 4000 meters, temperatures are going to vary from area to area. Expect temperatures in the morning to be between -2C and -8C (again, depending on where you go) and highs to range between 8C and 12C.
I visited Dardo in 2011. What I saw was chinese flags flying everwhere, the monasterires were so destroyed that one could hardly recognized them! Actually it took long to me to really realize what I was seeing. Chinese police everywhere, inlcuding in the monasteries. Almost no sign of the dharma, of Lamas, of nothing that was Tibetan…I was toallt devasted with sadness.
Hi I am planning a trip in early August – 5th to 16th. Do you think there will be too much rain then, or it should be ok?
Cheers, Tina
Tina, the months from June through early September are the rainy months. While it won’t be raining everyday and the rain is usually light, don’t expect clear views of the mountains. The best months to view the many high mountains in the area are from Mid to late September through early May.
Losang
For those of us who are interested in Tibetan Buddhism would you mind mentioning what sect (Kagyu, Nyingma, Sakya, or Gelukpa) each of the monasteries you talk about on your blog is from. Thanks a lot! Great site I love the pictures…
Hi,
Do you think it is a good idea to visit over Chinese New Year? I will probably need to travel by bus from Chengdu and was wondering how easy this will be and it if it will still be possible to travel around the area.
Many thanks,
Stuart
ur website is of great help to me
i am looking for some materials to finish
my english thesis
it is good to find this introduction
best wishes
My husband and I will be visiting Sichuan, including the Kangding area, in April and May, 2016. We plan to use mainly bus and minibus transportation between cities and for excursions. We would like, however, to rent a car and driver on occasion for a day either for an excursion or to travel to another city. How easy is this to do? What is the cost? Where do you arrange car rentals? Thanks for your help!
Dear Losang,
Thanks very much for this article. I’m hoping to take the bus from Chengdu to Kangding in the next couple of days. I heard about buses leaving from the Kangding hotel in Chengdu as well as from Xinnanmen bus station. Which of these do you refer to in the article (or which would you recommend? It would be nice to take one without too many stops and detours.
Thanks again. Best,
Tabitha
Hello!!! 大家好！ I’m going to Chengdu at end of August and I’m planning to visit Kangding, but I would be glad to have your opinion about this… I’ll have only 6 days to visit Kangding.. What places can I visit in that period of time? What others cities? I’m a little bit lost 哈哈 多谢！
Pam….བཀྲ་ཤིས་བདེ་ལེགས་ Tashi Delek! I am going to change your Chinese to Tibetan as this is the language that has been used in the Kham region of the Tibetan Plateau for the past 4000 years. With your time frame, I recommend doing the 5 day trek along the west flank of Minya Konka. This is an epic trek that I highly recommend. If you are not a trekker, then I recommend starting in Dartsedo (Kangding) and then doing an overland route to Lhagang (Tagong) and Rongtrak (Danba). Another option is to go further west to Garze (Ganzi) and the holy lake of Yilhun Lha Tso. From there you can return to Chengdu.
Lobsang
Hello, what about travelling there during the Chinese new year? Weather conditions for driving? Too many tourists?
Thanks
Chris
Chinese people go home during Chinese New Year and do not usually go traveling to Tibetan towns in the mountains. You can expect almost no tourists in Kangding during Chinese New Year.
Lobsang
Hi Lobsang,
I sent you an e-mail yesterday and already got my message, thanks a lot for the infos. I guess I’ll focus in the Kham part of Sichuan, will be good to run away from the crowds of tourists I would see in Yunnan. The problem now is more the logistics. I have, in total, 8 full days, starting in Chengdu. I think I’ll get the bus to Kangding (the tickets are expensive by plane), which will “kill” maybe 1-2 days.
I saw some agencies do the trekking from Kangding to Tagong, but couldn’t find much info on the internet. Do you know about this route? Is it feasible independently? If not, do you have any suggestions of low budget agencies that arrange the trekking?
It’s the first time I read about this region, and it really looks like EXACTLY the experience I want to have with tibetan people…
Thanks a lot and congratulations for your work, it’s a valuable contribution to all travelers.
If you wanted to trek in the area, I would HIGHLY recommend the Minya Konka Trek (also knownn as the Gongga Trek). The trailhead starts just past Kangding in the small vilage of Yaoyuling. The trek takes 5 days to complete, is amazing and follows the west ridge of Minya Konka Mountains (a huge 7500 meter peak). Look up the Kangding section on my website for more info.
Lobsang
Hello lobsang, is it possible go to kangding from chengdu in early march? Im from Indonesia and i’ve booked flight to chengdu in early march. My plan is overland to shangrila.
Thanks a lot
Buses operate between Chengdu and Kangding all year long…through the winter too.
Lobsang