Manali to Ladakh through the Passes

Meet our representative upon arrival in Chandigarh and proceed to your Manali – a popular hill station in Kullu valley and next to Beas River. A staging point for a number of treks and entry gate to Ladakh, via Lahaul and Spiti. After arrival in Manali, check-in at the hotel and spend rest of the day at leisure. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

Enjoy a full-day sightseeing tour of Naggar. Visit the Nicholas Roerich Art Gallery – Roerich’s house converted into art gallery. Gallery houses number of rare paintings and other specimen of art. Paintings here reflect the unmatched grandeur of sunlit Himalayan Mountains, which were experienced during the painter’s scientific expeditions to the central Asian regions of Sikkim, Tibet, Mangolia, China, Leh- Ladakh, Lahaul- Spiti and Kashmir. Later, also visit temples in Naggar – Jagatipatt Temple, Tripura Sundari Temple and Gauri Shankar Temple. In Manali, Hadimba and Vashisht Temples too could be covered. Return to hotel in Manali for dinner and overnight stay.

After breakfast, proceed towards Sarchu. We start our journey along what many consider the most spectacular drive in the entire Himalayas - from Manali to Leh. Travelling over 460km across mountain passes reaching over 5,300m, we’ll pass through lush Alpine foothills peppered with juniper, cedar and deodar pines, and see waterfalls crashing beside the road. We’ll depart early and journey towards the Rotang Pass (3,980m)where mighty peaks are visible in all directions, and onto Jispa, a picturesque village lying beside the river in a beautiful valley near the entrance to the Spiti Valley. Continue drive to Srachu (4100m) we cross the 4,900m Baralacha La and it’s from here that the landscape begins to change. Caught in the rain shadow the land now begins to dry up, to form the high altitude desert for which Ladakh is famous. The mountains, forced upwards as the Indian sub-continental plate smashes into Asia, form the most extraordinarily varied concoction of twisted peaks and sunken troughs of serrated granite ridges and fluted sandstone gorges, of alluvial plains and sandy steppes, all carrying a multitude of colours that simply defy belief. After reaching Sarchu and checking into our campsite there’ll be the chance to head off on a good walk – though at this altitude it is usually best to take it easy. All of the tents at the camp are large, walk-in constructions, complete with beds, lights and en-suite loos and basins. Overnight Stay at Camp.

Check-out from the camp and start your journey towards Leh. We travel over the 5,400m Tanglang La where the rare Ibex are often spotted. We’ll drive through a series of 21 hairpin bends, extraordinary red sandstone gorges, across a high altitude desert steppe and along spectacular canyons before finally reaching Leh. Upon arrival we’ll transfer to our hotel and spend time relaxing and beginning to acclimatise. Known as the ‘Land of High Passes’, Ladakh and its capital Leh have been important junctions on the famous Silk Route for centuries. Overnight Stay at Hotel

Day start with Hall of Fame, which was constructed by the Indian Army to commemorate the sacrifice of soldiers during Indo-Pak wars , Kali Mata Temple, followed by Spituk Gompa - an 11th century structure , Next on the list of attractions is the majestic Gurudwara Patthar Sahib. Nestled deep in the Himalayas, it was constructed by the Lamas of Leh in 1517 to honour the visit of Guru Nanak Dev - the founder of the Sikh faith. Drive another few km to witness the magic of Magnetic Hill that defies the law of gravity. It has been noticed that when a vehicle is parked on neutral gear on this metallic road, it seems to slide up and further. Driving through a picturesque landscape, we reach the confluence of the Indus and Zanskar River. Proceed back to Hotel via same route. Dinner and overnight stay at the Hotel in Leh

Check-out from the hotel after breakfast and drive to Nubra valley, driving over the highest motored pass in the world. The exciting journey through serpentine roads lead you to the Khardungla Pass at an awesome height of 5550 meters. We stop at the pass to admire and click some photographs of the fantastic view. The valley is situated on an old caravan route at the confluence of the Shayok and the Nubra rivers. On the way visit the charming valley, of Deskit – the tiny capital of Nubra. We will visit the Deskit Gompa, perched on a rocky spur above the village, with a commanding view of the entire valley. At Deskit Monastery you will visit 106-feet high, statue of Maitreya Buddha atop on the hill. The monastery has intriguing images of many deities. From Deskit we will drive to Hunder past an area of sand dunes and get acquainted with the famous Bactrian camels, small population of shaggy double-humped animals, which in the old days, were used as pack animals on the Central Asian Trade routes are now used as riding animals in the high deserts. We will ride the double hump camel at hunder on direct payment basis. In the evening we will drive back to the camp/hotel. Dinner and overnight in camp/hotel at Nubra.

After breakfast at camp/hotel we drive to next destination Pangong Lake (situated at 14, 500 ft above sea level) via Shayok and onto Tang Tse and Spangmik (Pangong). It’s a short cut and it's a beautiful route. The road follows the Shayok river, and climbs up a mountain before finally descending into Shayok village. It takes less than an hour to reach Shayok, and you will be delighted at the sight of the rather big village surrounded by barren mountains, the entire setting being very picturesque. Afternoon we reach at Pangong Lake and enjoy your day at Pangong Lake. Dinner and overnight stay in camp.

Get up early morning to witness the sunrise view at the lake. Enjoy your breakfast and drive back to Leh via Changla Pass 5486 Mtrs. Arrive Leh and check in at the hotel. Evening free for shopping or leisure. Dinner & overnight stay at Hotel.

After a leisurely breakfast, we drive to visit Shey Palace the former summer palace of the King of Ladakh. Later visit Shanti Stupa a Buddhist white-domed Stupa on a hilltop in Changspa, It was built in 1991 by Japanese Buddhist Bhikshu, Gyomyo Nakamura and part of the Peace Pagoda mission. Later also visit Leh Palace is a former royal palace overlooking the town of Leh. The palace was constructed circa 1600 by Sengge Namgyal. Later visit Local Market, Day free for shoping. Overnight stay at the hotel

After breakfast, you will be transferred to Leh airport for return flight.