Tagong Grasslands

Tagong sits at around 3,700 metres on rolling grassland where Khampa herders graze yaks and horses, and its monastery, of the Sakya school, holds a revered statue of Sakyamuni said to be a copy of the one in Lhasa, made when a Tang princess passing through was persuaded to leave an image behind. Behind the settlement rises Yala, a glaciated peak of 5,820 metres held sacred locally. Around the town are a large stupa field, a nunnery, and open grassland where horses can be ridden. The horse festival in summer brings racing and gatherings from across the region.

What you actually see

• Tagong monastery - the Sakya temple and its revered Sakyamuni image.
• Mount Yala - the sacred glaciated peak behind the grassland.
• The stupa field - rows of white stupas outside the town.
• The grassland - yak and horse pasture rolling to the hills.

When to go

May to October, with grassland greenest and warmest in July and August; the horse festival falls in summer on the Tibetan calendar. Winter is severe at this altitude. Nights are cold year-round.

Honest expectations

At 3,700 metres altitude sickness is a genuine risk, especially arriving quickly from Chengdu. Accommodation is basic guesthouses with limited heating. Weather changes abruptly.

Nearby

Kangding lies southeast; Xinduqiao is south.