甘南藏族自治州

Why this place

Gannan is the Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Gansu, and its Labrang Monastery at Xiahe is one of the six great monasteries of the Gelug school — a whole monastic town with thousands of monks. The surrounding grassland is high Tibetan plateau country.

What to see

• Labrang Monastery at Xiahe — the monastic town, the scripture halls and the butter sculptures
• The Sangke grassland and the Tibetan nomad country around Xiahe
• The Langmusi monastery and town, on the Sichuan border
• The Yellow River's first bend and the Zoige wetland country to the south

What to eat

• Tibetan food: yak meat, butter tea, tsampa and the local dairy
• Gannan is known for its 'zanba' and its yak yogurt

Best time

June–September; the monastery festivals are in the first and seventh lunar months

Practical tips

• Xiahe is at 2,900m and the monastery takes a full day — walk the kora with the pilgrims at dawn if you can