Basics of Ladakh

A cultural round trip with dayhikes

Our beginner’s program for people who want to see the most important highlights of but don’t have so much time on their hands. In those two weeks you visit the most important monasteries and see the most impressive landscapes of Ladakh.

group-symbol

Fixed departure: Basics of Ladakh
Price: 1.350 EUR / 1.620 USD

Date: 07.-20. July 2019 with Hemis-Festival
Status: Available

Date: 04.-17. July 2019 with Thakthok-Festival
Status: Available

As Individualtour: Choose your prefered time of travel!
Best time of travel: June-October
Price for 1 pax: on request
Price for 2-3 pax: 1.490 EUR/person or 1.780 USD/person
Price from 4 pax onwards: 1.350 EUR/Person or 1.620 USD/person
Price for 8 or more pax: on request

thikse

But this is by far not the only exceptional insider tip on this trip – we will show you hermitages, hidden villages and many more secret beauties tucked away off the beaten path.

Places to be seen on this tour

Highlights at a glance

Lonely villages and mystic hermitages
The moon-like landscape of Lamayuru
Nubra: the north of Ladakhs with its picturesque oasis villages
Almost daily beautiful hikes

Itinerary
Prices & dates
Services included
As individual tour

Itinerary

Day 1

Departure from home

Day 2

Arrival in Delhi and Leh

In Delhi we will bring you to the other/domestic terminal or you stay at the same terminal and just go to the upper floor. The flight over the Himalayas and the landing in Leh is an adventure in itself and even when you are tired from your long journey, that experience will wake you right up. Your guide is already waiting for you at the airport in Leh and will bring you to your accomodation facilities. On the first day you can relax and ONLY relax to better acclimatize to the high altitude. (It is a conscious decision not having planned any activities on the first day, it is crucial for your adaptation to the high altitude!) B,L,-

Note: The flights are not included but we will book for you, if you wish so.

likir

Day 3

In the focus: Leh

The first day of sightseeing dedicated to Leh. At first sight Ladakh’s capital seems chaotic and not very charming, but if you look closely you can discover many exciting aspects. You visit the central city monastery – the Gonpa Soma – , the bazar of Leh with its market women selling fresh produce from their gardens and the polo field, where polo was already played long before the British came. After lunch at the hotel there is time to relax, the second part of the program only starts later in the afternoon. A car will take you to Tsemo monastery, then you walk over green pastures along beautiful Ladakhi houses, with laughing children and friendly Leh-pas (Leh’s residents) to the hidden Samkhar monastery. To complete the day you visit Shanti-Stupa, built in the 1980’s, where you have a great view over Leh and the Indus valley. B,L,-

Day 4

Monks and Nuns

After breakfast we leave for Hemis, where we find a hidden monastery – one of the wealthiest in Ladakh. There is a lot of time to explore the historical monastery before having lunch in the nunnery of Nyerma, where you can also gain insight into the daily life of the nuns of Ladakh. The neighboring monastery of Thikse is within walking distance, its impressive architecture and exposed status make it one of the most beautiful monasteries in Ladakh. In any case, it is the most photographed. Later in the afternoon you will be brought back to your already familiar hotel. B,L,-

Day 5

Adieu Leh! Julley Sham!

In the morning we leave Leh and drive westward, to the Sham region. Sham is located at a lower altitude, therefore it is warmer and more fertile. We make a stop in Likir, visit the local monastery and marvel at the giant statue of Buddha Maitreya. Then we do some hiking and walk to Saspol. From there we drive to Alchi, where one of the oldest monasteries of Ladakh can be found. We spend the night at a beautiful resort in Ulley Tokpo, where we can hear the sound of the Indus flowing through rocks underneath us in the valley. B,L,D

Das Kloster von Basgo in stimmungsvoller Szene

The monastery of Basgo in special scenery

Day 6

Hidden village and moon valley

Again we are following the Indus, we cross it at some point and hike two to three hours up a side valley, where we find a hidden village. A friendly local family will invite us to have lunch with them and show us the way to prepare meals in Ladakh – we can even try and make our own hands dirty. We walk back down to the Indus valley and drive on to Lamayuru, where we visit the impressive monastery and marvel at the breathtaking view over the moon-like landscape that surrounds the village. Overnight stay at a simple hotel. B,L,D

Day 7

Villages & passes

From Lamayuru we drive east again, through the village of Tingmosgang and continuing to Ang, the starting point for our three to four hour hike over two passes to Hemis Shukpachan. In Hemis Shukpachan we will have lunch, after which we return to B,L,-

Day 8

Hermitage & Nubra

And again we have to say goodbye to Leh. Early in the morning we drive to a hidden hermitage, put on our hiking boots and walk to Thakthok, where back in the day Guru Rinpoche is said to have meditated in a cave there. Then we drive over the lesser-known Wari pass (at 5,200 m) and get to our destination for today – Nubra valley. We spend the night in Tirith in a deluxe camp under apricot trees. B,L,D

Day 9

Highlights of Nubra

We stay in Nubra valley, named after the river Nubra, wer visit the hermitage of Entsa (if the temperature is agreeable we can hike, if it is too hot, we will refrain from doing so), a small mystic lake and the large Samstanling monastery in Sumur. B,L,D

Day 10

Shyok-Valley

In the morning we are exploring Shyok valley with its villages of Diskit and Hundar, we will walk along sand dunes and camels (left behind by caravans long gone) just to stretch our legs a little. We are going to spend the night back at our base camp in Tirith. B,L,D

Nubra (c) Josef Reifenauer

Day 11

Khardong: village & pass

We are beginning to see the end of our trip, as nice as it was – we have to get back to Leh. This time we drive the classic route: through Khardong village (we stop here to rest and visit the village), that is already located at a very high altitude over the pass with the same name. The elevation of Khardung La is 5,360 m, but local summit signs and dozens of stores selling shirts in Leh incorrectly claim that its elevation is in the vicinity of 5,600 m and that it is the world’s highest motorable pass. But who cares about exact elevation – we are really, really, really high up and your heavy breathing will tell you it is totally high enough 😉 B,L,-

Day 12

Free time in Leh

What would you like to do on your last day in Leh? You can do some last minute souvenir shopping, drinking coffee or just take some time to relax. You can spend this day exacly like you want to, enjoy! B,-,D

Day 13

Hello Delhi!

And there we are in Delhi again – in the afternoon we are exploring the exciting parts of Delhi. We visit Old Delhi, which is rich in culture, we stride through bustling markets and marvel at impressive buildings. In the late afternoon we bring you to the airport, where your flight back home is departing in the early morning. B,-,-

Day 14

Flight home

Prices and dates

Baisc data at a glance for the group tour:

Date: 07.-20. July 2019 with Hemis-Festival
Date: 04.-17. August 2019 with Thakthok-Festival
Min/Max participants: 4/10
Price: 1.350 EUR/1.620 USD
Single room supplement: 320 EUR / 380 USD

Basic data for individual tours:

Prices only valid until end 2017

Best time of travel: June-October
Price for 1 pax: on request
Price for 2-3 pax: 1.490 EUR/person or 1.780 USD/person
Price from 4 pax onwards: 1.350 EUR/person or 1.500 USD/person
Price for 8 or more pax: on request
Single supplement: 320 EUR / 380 USD

For tours during off season (before and after july and august) we offer a discount of -5% on the prices above (except single supplement)!

Services included

Services from/to Delhi
Accommodation in guest houses/standard hotels/deluxe camps with full/half board according to itinerary / double room
Tour guidance by Dorjey Namgyal Vajira (in English, basic knowledge of German)
All drives/transfers according to itinerary
All entrance fees and permits

Not included

Flights
Insurance (travel insurance is recommended)
Tips
Drinks
Visa for India (about € 60,-)
Vaccinations
Additional costs caused by illness, accident, route changes due to acts of nature beyond control, etc.
Additional costs caused by cancelled or delayed flights

As individual tour

You can choose your own date, but we will happily assist you if you need some help.

Of course this travel can be modified according to your wishes: extend, shorten or change! We are open to (alomst) anything.

In general we’d like to arrange this tour also for single travelers. Only during the very busy times in high season we might have to refuse. Simply ask for possible dates!

Book this tour