Just back from Tibet I must share my more than bad experience with the House of Shambhala in Lhasa, a hotel which is supposed to be one the better places to stay in Lhasa – and where I had been booked for a total of four nights.
To get to assigned room 301 one has to either go out on the street and then climb two dimly lit narrow stone staircases and then another flight of filthy stone steps. (Picture attached). The entrance to the room is shown on the attached picture and it gives a first idea as to how “clean” the room – and for that matter the whole Hotel - was.
The room: upon entering three out of 5 light fixtures did not work at all. I was told that this would be repaired – and when coming back in the evening I was proudly told that now all the lights are working. In fact the one in the bathroom stopped after about 10 minutes – leaving a dim 20W bulb with not enough light to even see clearly the toilet – never mind enough light to shave.
When I inquired which number to dial to get the reception I was told that the fancy phone in the room was only for show – and had no connection whatsoever. As a matter of fact I was told that I might be able to call a Lhasa Number from the reception but if I were to call e.g. my wife (having stayed in Beijing) I would have to find in town a public phone booth (or use my European mobile phone at US$ 5,-/minute). If I wanted something from the Reception (information e.g.) I had to climb up a wooden ladder, cross the open roof (very nice as it was raining that evening), climb down another wooden ladder and then two more stone staircases. And of course the same way back!
I must say I felt sort of trapped wondering how I could get help if I were not to feel too well or worse needed help.
The “sitting area” on the second and third floors had pillows which probably never had been cleaned. Just look at the photos to get the “picture”.
The worst however was next morning’s breakfast. Having gone up the roof and coming down to the breakfast area there was dog [--] and piss to step through left from the 2 Huskies who seemed to be permanently chained on at the second floor breakfast area. Have a look at the attached picture; otherwise my story would be hard to believe (even for Tibet). Refusing to eat there breakfast I was “invited” to come into the bar to have breakfast there. And what a breakfast: A goblet filled with an unidentified Yoghurt, a small bowl of grains which were more suited to be fed to chicken than to humans and – not wanting eggs – I was served after repeated requests two slices of dry toast – no butter, no jam. When I went to the counter where the two servers were deeply engaged in coming their hair I got half a tea spoon of marmalade, not enough to cover the surface of one slice of toast. Requesting more I was given – reluctantly – an even smaller quantity of jam – as if jam was more precious than gold. Oh, not to be forgotten, I did manage to get a cup of lukewarm tea. That was my grand breakfast at the House of Shambhala – returning to my room I had again to step carefully to avoid the dog [--] and piss still on the concrete floor. When I complained about this to the man at the reception his response was: no problem, just tell us what you want and we will serve it in your room – but to tell them what I might have wanted would have required the stairs up crossing the roof the stairs down and then the same way back! Remember the phone was just for show and not to be used.
The room had no accessible electric outlet (e.g. for recharging batteries) and one light switch was hidden behind a heavy closet.
The bed was not turned down at night – nether was the basket emptied which contained the accumulated toilet tissue (not to be put in the bowl) – providing a “certain” aroma during the night!
The pictures speak for themselves – but I also asked my guide to come to the room and to see how dirty it was. She could leave her initials in the accumulated dust just about everywhere; she turned the dirty cushion of the two sort of chairs in the room to discover that the backside was plain filthy! She saw the mirror in the bathroom which must not have been cleaned for ages – so dirty that the magnifying side did not even reflect an image. There were neither foot mats nor slippers – just two pairs of plastic beach shoes which also had never been cleaned before. The two towels ( a tiny face one and a medium size bath towel were whet – either having been washed and not dried or – which is more likely – whet from the previous occupier just being newly folded. The water pipes leading to the one of the faucets in the shower was badly pinched making it next to impossible to mix hot and cold water to get an acceptably warm shower. It was either cold or too hot.
The House of Shambhala form part of the reputed Red Capital Group in Beijing – and if they are honest they should rename this the “House of Shame”. Based on my experience all I can say stay away from this dump - and don’t be trapped (as I was) by a most deceptive web site!
I moved after the first night to a non-star Hotel which was heaven compared to the House of Shame.

PS Sorry but I seem to be unable to get the pictures attached. If you want to see them please send me an email to hschmie@attglobal.net and I will gladly send you the full set.

My son (age 34) and I (age 61) stayed at the House of Shambala for three nights in June. I travel a great deal, have stayed at world class hotels (on business. . . ) and found this hotel to be unique, comfortable and charming. This is an old house that has been lovingly and impeccably restored. Yes, every now and then the bathroom smelled a little tiny bit, but this was a small irritant - especially when you considered the absolutely glorious view from the roof deck, the charming and helpful staff, and the really good yak meat (didn't think I would like it, but it is excellent). I like my comforts on the road, and this place was not lacking. The spa next door has a gorgeous soaking tub, and you can get a fabulous massage there after a day of trekking around Lhasa.

We may have lucked out - the other people staying there were very congenial, and dinner time felt like a small house party. Sitting on the roof deck, enjoying a glass of nice wine while members of the staff put on a small show of Tibetan dances and sang Tibetan folk music - in my mind, it doesn't get any better.

We spent three nights at the House of Shambhala in mid-June, and the experience was fantastic. The are two real plusses with this place.

The first is the location. Shambhala is located in the heart of the old Tibetan quarter (Barkor), which has an historic Tibetan “look and feel.” In contrast, the Chinese quarter of Lhasa is ugly and not worth spending any time in. The Jokhang Temple, the center of Barkhor, is only a five-minute walk from the hotel (although given the complexity of the alleys, it was not until the third day that we finally found the most direct route back to the hotel). Shambhala is on a lane too narrow for cars. While there are few motorcycles, there are plenty of locals and pilgrims walking by, often with prayer wheels swinging and sometimes singing. Tibetans are amazingly friendly.

The second plus of Shambhala is the hotel itself. The 10 rooms are located in a small three-story building with a small, central open courtyard, tastefully done, with the architecture/furnishings done in the style of traditional Tibetan nobility. There is a covered outdoor deck on the second floor, a great place for coffee and breakfast. The best part of the hotel is the huge open terrace above the third floor. One can see all of the surrounding mountains, the Potala, and the rooftops of Barkor, including the Jokhang, painted with a colorful array of prayer flags. One night we enjoyed some local dancing to traditional Tibetan music. An outstanding experience in a rare environment.

Shambhala at its restaurant serves “classic” Tibetan food. We learned that Tibetan food (boiled Yak???) is different, so most evenings we had western food at nearby restaurants (Snowland, Dunya).

If there was a disappointment, it was the poor English spoken by the staff. They understand the basics (e.g., what time is breakfast, may I use your Internet computer), but more complex matters (e.g., can you rent a car for me) were more challenging. In fairness, few people in Lhasa speak English, so I suspect the issue is one of demand availability. While their English skills were minimal, staff was always anxious to assist to the extent they knew how.

Prior reviews talked about rooms “smelling like a toilet.” Without question, Lhasa has a substandard sewer system; one is not supposed to put toilet paper into the toilet. Which is worse – having soiled TP in the bathroom wastepaper basket, or incense to cover the smell? We adjusted given that we were there for only three nights and were looking for the experience.

Another reviewer found the beds uncomfortable. We found them comfortable, and slept very well.

Yet another reviewer complained about soundproofing – “the sound of pilgrims laughing and chatting under the hotel windows.” But isn’t that part of the experience? Yes, there are no TVs in the rooms, but who in their right mind would want to watch Chinese propaganda as opposed to hearing the sounds, smells and sights of the Tibetan community?

We give the House of Shambhala a huge “thumbs up,” and would certainly stay there again if we ever return to Tibet.

We stayed at the House of Shambhala for 4 night during June 2007. The staff was very helpful and the hotel was nicely decorated. If you enjoy a Tibetan style hotel (owned by an American living in Beijing we were told) and want to stay in the old Tibetan section of Lhasa, then you came to the right place. We had 2 rooms (201 and 202) and both had a smell of sewage coming from the bathroom. They burned incense in the bathrooms, but that only helped for a while. The free internet in the small lobby was nice but the connection was very slow. The rooftop restaurant was lovely. We did not care for the dog (tied down on the rooftop) who was chewing bones and went to the bathroom right where guests pass to go and have breakfast. Our kids, who stayed in room 201, has to be moved to another room because there was a major water leak during a severe rain storm. The breakfast, included in the room price, was nice but the choices were limited.
Nevertheless, the hotel was overall very charming and in a terrific location. I do think the price was a little high but we would probably stay there again.