Himalayas rafting holiday & homestays
| country: | India |
| location: | Indian Himalayas |
| trip type: | A small group adventure |
| departures: | Summer 2009, dates to be confirmed |
| price: | From £1045 (13 days) excluding flights, based on 2 people travelling together. A discount will be offered to groups of 4 or more. |
the amazing things you'll be doing
This trip is for those wanting a pleasant and relaxing introduction to Himalayan white-water and to sample the unique Spiti culture.
The Spiti expedition covers 100 km of white-water starting on the Spiti River and finishing on the Pin River. On this trip one experiences the diverse culture of India; visiting Buddhist temples, meeting nomadic herdsmen and of course staying in the home-stays.
We meet many Spitian people along the way and learn about their ancient way of life.
Located between the Kullu Valley in the south, Ladakh in the north and Tibet in the east, the twin valleys of Lahaul and Spiti are nature at its wildest. This area is inaccessible for most of the year due to snowed out mountain passes and extremely low temperatures. The landscape is defined by glaciers, 6000 meter peaks, wide valleys and pastures with a minimum elevation exceeding 3000 meters.
This is a high altitude trip (max. height 4440 m). Please contact us to discuss the implications of this and your own personal fitness.
On arrival in India you will be met at the airport. At the end of the trip, depending on your personal itinerary, you will be transferred to the train station. We also have more challenging rafting holidays, see here.
Extensions: Please contact us for sightseeing in Delhi, or a visit to the Taj Mahal at the start or end of this trip. We can also tailor this trip with a trek or wildlife safari.
The Spiti expedition covers 100 km of white-water starting on the Spiti River and finishing on the Pin River. On this trip one experiences the diverse culture of India; visiting Buddhist temples, meeting nomadic herdsmen and of course staying in the home-stays.
We meet many Spitian people along the way and learn about their ancient way of life.
Located between the Kullu Valley in the south, Ladakh in the north and Tibet in the east, the twin valleys of Lahaul and Spiti are nature at its wildest. This area is inaccessible for most of the year due to snowed out mountain passes and extremely low temperatures. The landscape is defined by glaciers, 6000 meter peaks, wide valleys and pastures with a minimum elevation exceeding 3000 meters.
This is a high altitude trip (max. height 4440 m). Please contact us to discuss the implications of this and your own personal fitness.
On arrival in India you will be met at the airport. At the end of the trip, depending on your personal itinerary, you will be transferred to the train station. We also have more challenging rafting holidays, see here.
Extensions: Please contact us for sightseeing in Delhi, or a visit to the Taj Mahal at the start or end of this trip. We can also tailor this trip with a trek or wildlife safari.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Delhi to Manali (2050 m). Take the train leaving Delhi at 7.40 a.m. to reach Chandigarh at 11.00 a.m. We then drive up into the Himalaya to Manali. This beautiful hill station is in the Alpine lower reaches of the Himalaya. The town has a special atmosphere and is one of the best skiing destinations in the greater Himalaya. Overnight hotel. |
| Day 2: | Relax in Manali. Enjoy a relaxing day after yesterdays long day of travel. Explore the town visiting Manali market, the Roerich Art Gallery and the Hadimba Temple. Overnight hotel. |
| Day 3: | Manali to Paldhar Plains (3120 m). Rise early and drive further north gaining altitude along the way. We stop regularly for chai and plenty of photo opportunities. Throughout these first three days the landscape changes from flat agricultural land, to alpine meadows, peaks and forests, to the barren high altitude desert of Spiti, an amazing and adventurous journey. Overnight camp. |
| Day 4: | Paldhar to Rangrik (3550 m). Rise early and drive to Kiato, the starting point of our river trip. We have a complete safety talk and then paddle to Rangrik. The rapids are gentle class II and the scenery of snow-capped mountains, glaciers, villages and meadows is inspiring. Overnight in home-stay. |
| Day 5: | Rangrik to Gette (4270 m) to Rangrik. We spend the day trekking in the area. We visit Kaza, Kibber and Gette villages stopping to meet the local people of Spiti. We return to Rangrik in the evening for a hot meal. Overnight in home-stay. |
| Day 6: | Rangrik to Langza (4440 m). We wake up and have a relaxed breakfast and the drive to Langza. We stop along the way to view fossils and other geological sites. In Langza we visit the Lang (temple). It is considered to be the headquarters of all the deities of the valley and is home to some beautiful old frescoes and thankas (paintings on silken canvas). Overnight home-stay. |
| Day 7: | Langza to Mikkim (3087 m). We return to the river and paddle for two hours to Attargo bridge. This section has more good class II rapids. We pull out at Attargo bridge and then drive to Mikkim. We stop at the Dhankar Gompa (Buddhist Monastery) along the way and then go to Mikkim in the Pin valley. Overnight home-stay. |
| Day 8: | Mikkim to Tabo (3050 m).We depart the home-stay in Mikkim after breakfast. We first visit the Kungri gompa and then raft three hours to Poh, a small hamlet by the river. We take out at Poh and drive down river to Tabo. Tonight we stay in a local hotel, as there are no home-stays. |
| Day 9: | Poh to Tabo. We take the short drive back to Poh and descend the river back to Tabo again. On this section the white-water gets more exciting as we encounter many class III rapids. We stop at Giu village in the evening to see a mummified monk. Overnight hotel. |
| Day 10: | Tabo to Sumdo. This our last day of the river expedition has the biggest rapids as we run the lower gorge to Sumdo. We take out at Sumdo bridge just upriver of the confluence of the Spiti and Pare Chu Rivers. River expedition ends. |
| Day 11: | Tabo to Sangla (2880 m): 8 hrs. A lengthy drive today along the Old Hindustan-Tibet road, one of the oldest trade routes in the Himalaya. We begin on our journey back towards the Indian subcontinent and Delhi. Overnight Camp. |
| Day 12: | Sangla to Shimla (2434 m): 7 hrs.We drive further south to reach Shimla. Shimla, the capital of Himachal, was built by the British Raj as a hill station to avoid the harsh summer heat of the southern Indian plains. Overnight hotel. |
| Day 13: | Shimla to Delhi: 8 hrs. Another early start driving to Delhi, making plenty of rest stops along the way. Trip ends. |
small group adventure holiday
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends its good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as seeing new places.how this holiday makes a difference
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We have teamed up with Ecosphere, an NGO developing alternate and sustainable livelihoods for the local community that link to the development and conservation of the region’s culture and nature. Ecosphere ensures that the local community receives a fair price for their services and has developed mechanisms that ensure equitable benefit sharing in the local community.
Staying in somebody’s home, experiencing their way of life, is undoubtedly the best way to view any country in the world. Traditional Spiti homes are made of mud and stone to ensure that they are warm in the winters and cool in the summers. The kitchen is the hub of all activity in these houses. Traditional cuisine in Spiti is similar to Tibetan cuisine of noodles, thukpa, momos and bread. A real delicacy is a dish called Skew, which consists of wheat dumplings in a tasty gravy of vegetables & potato. And of course, one couldn’t visit a home-stay without getting a taste of the famous Butter Tea, which incidentally is salty.  Something that one would never forget are the traditional toilets. The good thing about them is that they are environmentally friendly, use limited resources and in fact ensure you contribute to the region. We have teamed up with an environmental organisation, Climate Care, to help you to repair the impact of your flights on the global climate. Climate Care funds sustainable energy and forest restoration projects in India and all over the world that reduce carbon dioxide on your behalf, by the same amount as your share of the plane’s emissions. We sponsor Clean Himalaya, a recycling and waste management project, dedicated to maintaining the sanctity and beauty of the Ganges and Himalayas. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |