Planning a trip to Tongren

Getting There

The Tongren Bus Station (tel. 0973/872-2014) connects Tongren with Xining (hourly; 4 hr.; ¥31) between 7:20am and 4pm; with Lanzhou (5 hr.; ¥60) at 6:50am; with Xiahe (4 hr.; ¥24) at 8am; and with Linxia (4 hr.; ¥35) at 8am. Uphill from the bus station is a large roundabout. To the right is Zhongshan Lu, the main street, which runs west to Xiaqiong Lu.

Tours & Guides

The Rebgong Cultural Center at Fengwu Zhonglu 217 (tel. 0973/879-7139; rebgonglibrary@yahoo.com) is the town's community center. The center features a library of Tibetan, Chinese, and English books, and can help arrange art classes. Sherab (tel. 0/139-0973-4619), a friend of the director's, is a jolly ex-monk who knows everyone in town and can act as an English-speaking tour guide.

Fast Facts

Banks, Foreign Exchange & ATMs -- None available.

Internet Access -- Immediately east of the entrance to the Telecom Hotel is the nonsmoking Huangnan Dianxin Fengongsi Wangba (tel. 0973/872-4196; 8am-midnight) which charges ¥3.

Post Office -- The main post office (Mon-Fri 8:30am-5:30pm; Sat-Sun 10am-4pm) is located on Xiaqiong Zhong Lu, next to the junction with Zhongshan Lu. Unless you read Chinese, the post office has nothing to sign itself and is without the familiar logo; it's the yellow building with a small China Telecom plaque outside.