This trip takes you through Kinnaur, Spiti and Lahaul located in the dizzy heights of the Himalayas, with passes that remain closed for six months. Till now, a forbidden land. It has now been opened and gives one the opportunity to discover what had been hidden from the world for centuries.


Our trip begins from Shimla, which used to be the summer capital of the Raj, and has an air that reminds one of a bygone era. Located at 7000 Ft and with pine trees abound and a salubrious weather its an ideal spot for relaxation. From here we will proceed to the Sangla valley situated on the right bank of the Baspa with the gigantic Kinner Kailash peak (6500 m) forming the backdrop.

Next on the itinerary is Tabo, an ancient village on the left bank of the river Spiti. Tabo, a thousand years old gompa, is the only living gompa of the western school which died out in the twelfth century. The gompa has murals dating back to the 8 & 9 centuries AD and is regarded by many as next in significance to the Tholing gompa in Tibet. Next camp would be set up at Kaza (3600 m), the district headquarters of Spiti. Here we will visit the famous Ki and Kibber monasteries. From here we proceed to Keylong via Kunzum-la pass (16000 Ft). Keylong is a mélange of green fields, willow planted water courses, brown hills and snowy peaks. Also we will visit a few monasteries enroute Jispa. From Jispa we depart for Sarchu via the Baralacha Pass (4883 m) over the Zingzingbar plains. From here one can view the Mulkila and Barashigra peaks.

The last 4 days of our trip we would spend to explore Leh, the capital of Ladakh and its surrounding areas. Ladakh or Little Tibet is a wildly beautiful desert region, high in the western Himalayan plateau. Ladhak is flanked by two of the most imposing mountain ranges, the Karakorams to the North, the Himalayas to the South. Its Monasteries are treasure house of Buddhist art with richly decorated thankas, scrolls and wall paintings, gold and copper statues and icons.

Leh at an altitude of 3500 m is the capital of Ladakh. A vast highland desert is inhabitated predominantly by Budhists and, accordingly, it is the center of Budhist culture. During our stay here we would first visit the Shey monastry about 15 Kms from Leh. This was the summer palace of the old Raja of Leh and is situated on top of a hill. There is a two storey high-seated image of Budha cast from copper, covered with gold leaf and is about 80 Ft. 49 Kms from Leh is the famous Hemis gompa. One of the biggest and the wealthiest monastry in Ladakh containing large number of gold statues, stupas and thangkas. Hemis was founded in 1600 AD. Also we would be visiting the Thicksey monastry situated on a hill top. One can enjoy the splendors of green Indus valley from its roof top. It is a good place to watch religious ceremonies.

Itinerary :
Day 1 : Delhi >> Day 2 : Nalagarh >> Day 3 : Simla >> Day 4 : Sarahan >> Day 5 : Chitkul(Sangla valley) >> Day 6 : Chitkul >> Day 7 : Nako-Tabo >> Day 8 : Kaza >> Day 9 : Losar >> Day 10 : Keylong-Jispa >> Day 11 : Sarchu >> Day 12 : Leh >> Day 13 : Leh >> Day 14 : Leh >> Day 15 : Leh >> Day 16 : Delhi.