Norbulingka

Norbulingka, the jewel park, was laid out from the 1750s as a summer residence, and successive occupants added palaces, chapels and pavilions among willows, poplars and pools, so it is a garden with buildings rather than a single palace. It covers around thirty-six hectares behind a wall, and it is inscribed by UNESCO as part of the historic ensemble of the Potala Palace. Interiors include murals, thrones and, in the newest palace, mid-twentieth century furnishings. During Shoton, the yoghurt festival in summer, the grounds fill with families picnicking in tents and Tibetan opera is performed for days.

History

Its story begins with a spring here that the 7th Dalai Lama used in the summer months for his health; with permission from the Qing court he built a palace by it as a resting pavilion, and work on the palace and park began in 1755, about a century after the Potala. The complex was completed in 1783 under the 8th Dalai Lama, who added palaces and gardens, and from then until 1959 it was the summer residence of successive Dalai Lamas, who also stayed here for their studies before enthronement; most of the later expansion is credited to the 13th and 14th. Its 36 hectares are considered the largest man-made garden in Tibet, and in 2001 it was added to the UNESCO listing of the Historic Ensemble of the Potala Palace (Wikipedia, Norbulingka).

What's there

• The summer palaces - several buildings from different periods in the garden.
• The murals and interiors - painted halls, thrones and furnishings.
• The gardens - willows, poplars, pools and pavilions across the grounds.
• The Shoton festival - opera and family picnicking in the park in summer.

When to go

April to October, with the garden greenest in summer; Shoton falls in late summer and is the liveliest time. Winter is bare and cold. Foreign visitors travel with a permit and guide.

Good to know

The garden is large and the palaces spread out, with a lot of walking at 3,650 metres. Photography inside is restricted. Outside festival days the grounds can feel quiet and empty.

Nearby

The Potala lies east; the Jokhang is in the old town.

Key facts