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Voykit pocket guide · China
Shelkar
Stop at Shelkar Junction only if you need a bed or fuel on the Friendship Highway; the town sits 7 km off the road and has no public transport. One night is enough.
Shelkar is a town in Xigaze Prefecture, 7 km off the Friendship Highway. Travellers often skip the town itself and stay at the hotels near Shelkar Junction, where the road to town meets the highway. There is no public transport, so you need your own vehicle or a driver. Whether you stop is a fuel-and-bed decision, not a sightseeing one.
- Country
- China
- Best months
- check
- Avoid
- check
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- CNY
- Money
- Alipay and WeChat Pay accept Visa, Mastercard, JCB and Amex cards; single payments over ¥200 carry a fee of about 3% on a foreign card (smaller ones are free), and per-payment and yearly caps apply — check the app. Keep a second way to pay.
- Daily spend
- Budget check · Mid check · High check (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- A roaming eSIM from outside China routes traffic through its home network, so Google, WhatsApp and Instagram work without a VPN — the simplest setup.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire 119 · Ambulance 120
- Plugs
- Types A, C, I · 220 V · 50 Hz · Many sockets take flat two-pin (A), round two-pin (C) and angled three-pin (I) plugs; UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Restaurants: No tip; upmarket hotels add 10–15% service.; Taxis and DiDi: No tip.; Tour guides and drivers: Expected on organised tours: about ¥100–200 a day for a guide, ¥50–100 for a driver.; Hotel porters: Not expected; ¥10–20 in luxury hotels.
- Water
- Not for drinking from the tap; bottled water ¥2–5, and kettles and free bottles in hotel rooms. Restaurants serve hot water or tea.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are frequent and free; squat toilets outside hotels and malls. Carry tissues — many have no paper.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Meal at a junction restaurant | check |
| Petrol (per litre) | check |
| Bottle of water (1.5 L) | check |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
Typical fares
- Shelkar Junction → town centre
- 7 km (4.3 mi), drive yourself or hitch4.3 mi (7 km), drive yourself or hitch
- Shelkar → Everest Base Camp (one way)
- about 100 km (62 mi), 2–3 h driveabout 62 mi (100 km), 2–3 h drive
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
No public transport. You need your own vehicle or a hired driver. The junction to town is 7 km (4.3 mi) each way.No public transport. You need your own vehicle or a hired driver. The junction to town is 4.3 mi (7 km) each way.
See and do
Known for
- Gateway to Everest Base Camp
- Shelkar Junction hotels
- PetroChina filling station
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Everest Base Camp | check | check |
| Tingri | check | check |
| Gyirong | check | check |
Sleep
- Shelkar Junction
- The cluster of hotels and guesthouses at the junction with the Friendship Highway; closest to the road and the petrol station.
- Town centre
- 7 km (4.3 mi) off the highway; quieter but requires your own transport.4.3 mi (7 km) off the highway; quieter but requires your own transport.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | 你好nǐ hǎo |
| Thank you | 谢谢xiè xiè |
| How much? | 多少钱？duō shǎo qián? |
| I don't understand | 我不懂wǒ bù dǒng |
| Where is the toilet? | 厕所在哪里？cè suǒ zài nǎ lǐ? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and a nod; use surnames with a title; avoid: Hugs and cheek kisses
- Face: Disagree privately and indirectly; avoid: Correcting or embarrassing someone in front of others
- Gifts: Give with two hands; expect the gift to be refused once or twice and opened later; avoid: Clocks, umbrellas, white flowers, sets of four
- Business cards: Present and receive with both hands, read it, keep it on the table; avoid: Writing on it or pocketing it at once
- Queues and crowds: Hold your ground politely in scrums at buses and lifts; avoid: Taking pushing personally
- Temples: Walk clockwise around Tibetan stupas and prayer wheels; remove hats; avoid: Touching statues or photographing where signs forbid
- Politics: Listen; follow your host's lead; avoid: Raising Tibet, Taiwan, Xinjiang, 1989 or the party leadership
- Numbers and colour: Red and 8 are lucky; red envelopes carry money gifts; avoid: Writing names in red; the number 4
Scams and watch-outs
- No public transport to or within Shelkar — you must have your own wheels or a driver.
- Hotels at the junction and food there are pricey for what you get.
- Altitude is high here: check current guidance and take it easy on arrival.
- The Everest Service Center Hotel sells Everest Base Camp tickets, useful if you are heading that way.
Shelkar is safe. The main risks are altitude sickness (4,300 m) and the cold at night. Drive carefully on the Friendship Highway — trucks and animals on the road.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Shelkar yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Gateway to Everest Base Camp
- Shelkar Junction hotels
- PetroChina filling station
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Shelkar, revision 5020958 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5020958
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/shelkar). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.