Xian Lhasa Flight Experience (Tips, Photos & Map)

The two daily flights by Eastern China Airlines are direct flights taking 3 hours and five minutes while the only daily flight by Sichuan Airlines is an indirect flight with one stopover at Xining ( the capital city of Qinghai Province) taking 4 hours and 50 minutes.

Timetable for the daily three Xian - Lhasa flights

Xian Airport has two terminals - T1 and T2. The airlines at T1 include China Southern Airlines (CZ), Xiamen Airlines (MF), Sichuan Airlines (3U) and Chongqing Airlines (OQ). The airlines at T2 include Air China (CA), Hainan Airlines (HU), Shenzhen Airlines (ZH), Shanghai Airlines (FM), Shandong Airlines (SC), East Star Airlines (8C), Lucky Air (8L), Kunpeng Air (VD) and Grand China Express (GS).

Make sure you have the right terminal when you use Xian Airport. So we go to the Terminal 1 for the flight by Sichuan Airlines, which is just next to the Terminal 2.

We first fly from Xian to Xining ( the capital city of Qinghai Province ). The 770km Xian to Xining flight takes takes us 1 hours and 10 minutes. At Xining Airport, we have to take all our carry-on bags, disembark, get temporarily boarding passes for the transit flight and wait in the lounge of Xining Airport. The whole flight transit at Xining takes about one hour. Then we board the same plane with the same seats again for the flight from Xining to Lhasa.

We arrive at Lhasa at 12:40 as scheduled. This is my second visit to Lhasa. Seeing the familiar Lhasa Airport reminds me of the my first Tibet Trip eascorting a tour group from Romania.

This time we are very lucky to use the just completed Lhasa Airport Expressway from the airport to the city of Lhasa. The newly finished Lhasa airport expressway shortens the old airport highway from 90km to 65km, taking us just one hour from the airport to Lhasa city.

See below some of the photos I take on my flight from Xian to Lhasa vis Xining crossing the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau:

The boarding gate for 3U8687 Xian Xining Lhasa Flight. Boarding the plane Airbus A319

Hassle-free Lhasa Guided Tours

If you don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours, here are some options for guided tours to Lhasa:

Further Readings