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Dargye Monastery Deshi Hotspring Guest House

(above) Village and mountain scenery nearby; (right) guest house; (below) dining room
Hotspring pool

     
  • The Guest House is located in an authentic Tibetan home belonging to Gyalten Lobsang Shamba Rinpoche, complete with traditional furnishings and attached temple.
  • Natural open-air hotspring pool are only fifteen minutes' walk away.
  • The area has a spectacular mountain backdrop.
  • Dargye Gonpa, a major Gelug order monastery, is less than one kilometer away.
  • Horseback excursions can be arranged to other monasteries and villages in the mountains, for example Hadhi Nunnery.
  • Bed rates are 35 to 100 yuan per person per night (last we heard), including Tibetan tsampa breakfast.
  • This place is reachable via public bus.

DIRECTIONS: See this map of the local area. Take a public bus or other vehicle from Kangding to the Ganzi County seat, a ride that normally takes one day. Luxury Yaxing buses depart from Chengdu on odd days, take two days to reach Ganzi with a stopover in Kangding, and are worth the price. Outside the Ganzi county town transit depot (bus station) there are minibuses that depart 2-3 times daily for Rongbatsa. These are privately operated buses and so their schedule is somewhat fluid. After about one hour in the minubus look for Dargye Monastery on the right (north) side of the road. It's large and right next to the highway, so it's quite unmistakeable. In Chinese, the name is Dajin Si. Watch this monastery go by, and look for a small pond on the right side a few tens of meters past the monastery. After the pond, there is a sign for the guest house pointing you up a jeep track heading over barley fields on the right. Get off the minbus here. Walk on the jeep track about 1 km to Gyalten (say "Ja-den") Rinpoche's house.