Tibet has often been called the "Roof of the World." The plateau is probably the largest and highest area ever to exist in Earth history, with an average elevation exceeding 5000 m (16,400').

From Tingri (4,390 meters) its possible to see four of the highest peaks in the world, including Mt. Everest.

The Tibetan Plateau covers an area about half that of the lower 48 United States and is bounded by the deserts of the Tarim and Qaidam Basins to the north and the Himalayan, Karakoram, and Pamir mountain chains to its south and west. Its eastern margin is more diffuse and consists of a series of alternating deep forested valleys and high mountain ranges that run approximately north-south, bounded by the lowlands of the Sichuan Basin of China.

Tibet has remained a very difficult place to visit and is more fantastic than imagined. It is a land of immense contrasts: snowy peaks and sandy deserts, barren plateaus and forested mountains, empty expanses and crowded cities, and a deeply religious people ruled by an avowedly atheistic government.