For a truly amazing Tibet tour, after getting the local folk culture, scenery, festivals and some other elements, there is an increasing number of small and simple family-run guesthouses hidden in the backstreets of the Tibetan quarter. There are many money-saving hotels waiting for you.

Banak Shol Hotel

Once the place to stay back in the early days of independent travel, Banak Shol is looks pretty tried these days. It is still got several things going for it, including the good Nam-tso Restaurant, reliable luggage storage and pleasant wooden verandas, but the stuff seem jaded, the walls of the cheaper rooms are paperthin, and most rooms look onto either the noisy main road or a courtyard that seems perpetually full of reversing Land Cruisers. The doubles with a hot-water bathroom are among the cheapest such rooms in Lhasa, but they are not terribly well maintained. Other plus points include an efficient branch of FIT and free laundry (though the staff won't touch your crusty socks after a week's trekking!). The majority of the guests these days are Chinese backpackers. The hotel doesn't accept reservations.

Snow Lands Hotel

Snowlands is another of Lhasa old-timers. It was a favorite with backpackers and carpet traders back in the 1980s, but the mood has changed a bit since then. Despite the almost perfect location beside Barkhor Square, Snow-lands is quieter than both the Yak and the Banak Shol, largely because the standards are lowers. The cheaper rooms suffer from paper-thin walls, the shower block is hit-and-miss Quiet but dark doubles with bathroom are discounted to 100 Yuan in the low season and come with a heater. The deluxe rooms offer new beds and Tibetan décor. Laundry costs 2 Yuan per piece.

Kirey Hotel

The third of Lhasa's old-timers, the Kirely deserves more custom than it gets. It is friendly and clean, and has reliable hot water in the shower block around the back. The Tashi II restaurant is on the premises and there is lots of balcony sitting service is free-put your washing in the bags provided and hand it in to reception before 9 am. The main grumbles we have are scarcity of sinks and the crummy shared toilets. The dim doubles with private bathroom at the back of the courtyard are not really up to much either, though the upstairs rooms are better.

Choosing them, it is equal to establish your home there, cozy and fresh!