By road
~1,020 km by road from Delhi (~620 km aerial, about 1.5 hours by flight)
North India · Ladakh
Ladakh
High passes, monasteries and wide skies · ~1,020 km by road from Delhi (~620 km aerial, about 1.5 hours by flight)
Getting there
By rail
No railway reaches Ladakh; Jammu Tawi (~650-700 km) is the nearest station
By air
Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport, Leh — right in the city
Best time to visit
May to September; winter for Chadar-level adventurers only
Don't miss
Pangong Tso
Thiksey and Hemis monasteries
Shanti Stupa
Magnetic Hill
Leh Palace
Things to do
Pangong lake trip
Monastery circuit
Khardung La ride
River rafting on the Zanskar
Where to eat
What to pack
Altitude meds and a rest day, layers, high-SPF sunscreen, cash
A quieter corner
Turtuk village — Balti culture at the Nubra valley's last open edge
Before you go
Ladakh's gompas are living Tibetan Buddhist monasteries -- dawn prayers at Thiksey and the Hemis festival are the highlights; acclimatise for a day or two at 3,500 m before touring.
About Ladakh
- Mountains
- Desert
Where it is
Ladakh is a union territory of India in the high trans-Himalaya, lying between the Karakoram and the Great Himalayan ranges along the upper Indus river; Leh, its main town, stands at about 3,500 m.
History
Ladakh was an independent Buddhist kingdom for centuries, ruled from the 15th century by the Namgyal dynasty, whose palace still overlooks Leh, and it grew rich on the caravan trade between Central Asia, Tibet and Kashmir. The Dogra general Zorawar Singh brought it under Jammu in the 1830s, and Ladakh became a separate union territory in 2019.
People
Ladakhis speak Ladakhi, a Tibetic language, as well as Hindi and Urdu, and the region is home to Ladakhi, Balti and Purgi communities and to Changpa nomads who herd goats and yaks on the Changthang plateau. Barley, apricots and butter tea are staples of the Ladakhi table.
Known for
- Pangong Tso and other high lakes
- Monasteries such as Hemis and Thiksey
- Khardung La and other high passes
- The Hemis Festival
- Rafting on the Zanskar and Indus
Did you know?
Fine pashmina wool comes from the soft undercoat of Changthangi goats, which are raised by Changpa nomads on Ladakh's high Changthang plateau.
Shrines and sites
- Hemis Monastery
- Thiksey Monastery and its morning prayers
- Shey Palace and Monastery
- Alchi Monastery
Traditions
- Buddhist
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.