Yumbulagang Palace

Yumbulagang Palace is an ancient palace in the Yarlung Valley, Nêdong County in the vicinity of Zêtang the seat of the prefectural administration of Lhoka.According to legend it was the first building in Tibet and the palace of the first Tibetan king, Nyatri Tsenpo. Yungbulakang stands on a hill on the eastern bank of the Yarlung River in the Yarlung Valley of southeast Naidong County, about 192 km southeast of Lhasa, and 9km south of Tsetang. The towering and outstanding Yumbulagang Palace looks like a blockhouse. "Yumbu" means female deer named after the shape of the Jormo Zhaxi Ceri Mountain which looks like a female deer. "Lagang" means sacred palace. Yumbulagang, "palace of mother and son" in Tibetan dialect, is the first palace and one of the earliest buildings in Tibet and it has a history of more than 2,000 years. Yumbulagang Palace is mainly divided into two parts: the front part is multi-layer palace, while the back part is a square watchtower of a high blockhouse connected with the front part.

In the 7th century, Songtsan Gampo moved the capital to Lhasa and Yumbulagang gradually became a Buddhist palace. The ground floor is the palace of ancient Tibetan Kings. Now in the middle you would see a statue of Buddha with Nyatri Tsanpo's statue on the left and Songtsan Gampo's to the right. The walls are painted with beautiful murals which tell the early history of Tibet. The most famous one of those is the first one on the left which tells the story of the first Tibetan King Nyatri Tsanpo. The highest point of Yumbulagang is a watchtower. It’s said that Princess Wencheng lived here for her first summer in Tibet. Standing on the top and looking around, you can enjoy the excellent panoramic view of the valley. Address: in the south from the Tradrug county.  Contact number: 0086-10-85968802  Admission Fee:CNY 60  Opening Hours: 09:00-18:00