Ladakh tour, tailormade
| country: | India |
| location: | Ladakh |
| departures: | This trip can be tailor made at a time to suit you between August and September |
| price: | From £895 (16 days) excluding flights |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
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introduction to Ladakh tour, tailormade
This is a thoughtful fun packed tour of the north western provinces of India including Delhi, Amritsar, Dharamsala & the Mcleod Gunj (Dalai Lama’s residence), a Himalayan overland journey and Ladakh.
After arriving in Dehli we take a tour of the red fort and the following day enjoy the incredible flight across the Himalaya to Ladakh. A trip to Ladakh is a journey back in time. The Ladakhi people have a great hospitable nature and here you will see first hand the landscapes and culture of “Little Tibet”. Here we explore the area around Leh the capital, visiting Thikse Monastery and the Shey Palace – the ancient residence of the King’s of Ladakh.
The highlight in Leh will surely be two days visiting the festival where locals try their hands at archery, horse racing and polo as well as dancing and cultural displays. The overland trip commences camping with nomads at a high altitude lake before driving in 4WD jeeps across the Himalaya to Manali and on to Dharamsala. Here we visit the Dalai Lama’s residence with the temple and Norbulinka before then moving on to Amritsar to visit the Golden temple. This is a superb finale to an incredible all round adventure. It is a serious “Must Do” for all explorers with a cultural interest.
After arriving in Dehli we take a tour of the red fort and the following day enjoy the incredible flight across the Himalaya to Ladakh. A trip to Ladakh is a journey back in time. The Ladakhi people have a great hospitable nature and here you will see first hand the landscapes and culture of “Little Tibet”. Here we explore the area around Leh the capital, visiting Thikse Monastery and the Shey Palace – the ancient residence of the King’s of Ladakh.
The highlight in Leh will surely be two days visiting the festival where locals try their hands at archery, horse racing and polo as well as dancing and cultural displays. The overland trip commences camping with nomads at a high altitude lake before driving in 4WD jeeps across the Himalaya to Manali and on to Dharamsala. Here we visit the Dalai Lama’s residence with the temple and Norbulinka before then moving on to Amritsar to visit the Golden temple. This is a superb finale to an incredible all round adventure. It is a serious “Must Do” for all explorers with a cultural interest.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Arrive in Delhi and tour of Red Fort. Accommodation: City Hotel B&B |
| Day 2: | Internal flight to Leh. A remarkable flight over the Himalaya, Stok and Ladakh mountain ranges. Accommodation: Leh Hotel B&B |
| Day 3: | Leh. Firstly we will go to Shey Palace, a beautiful temple now, sitting majestically on a spur looking out on the plains of the Indus valley. This is the old palace of the Kings of Ladakh. We then visit the picturesque Tikse Monastery, a 15th century monastery complex. Accommodation: Leh Hotel B&B |
| Day 4-5: | Drive to Hemis Shukpachen and visit Alchi en route to visit the 11th century monastery built in a unique Kashmiri style. In the afternoon we can visit the nunnery and village of Hemis amongst the apricot orchards. The next morning we walk through a beautiful landscape with superb colours in the mountains. We look out for the many species of wild flowers on the way to Tingmosgang. Accommodation: Fully catered tented camp |
| Day 6: | Lamayuru Monastery. Visit Lamayuru Monastery in the morning, an ancient monastery amazingly perched up on the cliff top above a lunar landscape. We later return to Leh through this fabulous landscape and visit Basgo Fort on the way. There is an optional visit up to the Saspol Caves where you can see well preserved wall paintings. Accommodation: Leh Hotel B&B |
| Day 7-8: | Ladakh Festival. We spend two days at the Ladakh Festival enjoying some of the programme of events– with local contests in the ancient sports of archery and horse racing, polo games, cultural dances and displays. Accommodation: Leh Hotel B&B |
| Day 9: | Overland trip across Ladakh. Today we commence our overland trip across Ladakh and through the Himalaya. We start by experiencing a night’s camping with the Ladakhi nomads at the high altitude lake of Tso Khar Accommodation: Fully catered tented camp |
| Day 10: | Ladakh to Keylong. After breakfast along the lakeside we drive out to the main “highway” and drive through the stunning arid mountain landscape of the Ladakh to Keylong. Accommodation: Guesthouse B&B |
| Day 11-12: | Himalayan alpine region. Today we see the transition as we head through the greener lush landscape of the Himalayan alpine region. Manali is an alpine resort town in the Kulu Valley and here we will spend a couple of nights visiting the temples, Rohriech’s Art Gallery and the Naggar Castle from where there is a beautiful view of the Kullu Valley and surrounding mountains. Accommodation: Hotel B&B |
| Day 13-14: | Drive to Dharamsala. We drive to Dharamsala, and have a day to visit the Tibetan craft centre at the Norbulinkha and the Dalai Lama’s Mcleod Gunj residence and temple. Accommodation: Hotel B&B |
| Day 15: | Journey to Amritsar. Today is our final journey to Amritsar, the capital of the Punjab region. The Golden Temple is the most important temple for Sikhs; we shall join the pilgrims to visit this amazing complex during the afternoon. The waters around the temple represent the “lake of nectar” which is the literal translation of the name Amritsar, and they are believed to bring peace and tranquility. Accommodation: Hotel B&B |
| Day 16: | International Departure. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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When you travel with us you benefit and so does the local community. Here are five good reasons to travel with us:
Superior value & lower cost with no extra fees or land charges: Our pricing policy rewards customers for choosing to take their holiday with us. People can visit the HQ of several NGOs in Leh such as SEMol, Women’s Alliance and Ecological Development Group Campus. Local economic development is at the heart of our operation – with almost 95% of revenue going into the local economy. We use Ladakhi Guides and support staff. All staff are trained by our company. Leaders give a full trip briefing which includes topics: We only use locally run accommodation and furthermore support heritage buildings and authentic building materials, avoiding patronisation of buildings that contrast to local architecture and are against the culture and authenticity. All facilities and services are locally provided. In Ladakh only Ladakhi’s can run businesses. Our hotel is a run by a Ladakhi family and has it’s own vegetable garden. Maximum group size is 12 to minimise impact and maximise the benefit to the members – avoiding the feeling of herding of large groups and enables good contact with local staff and facility providers to interact and exchange. |
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. |
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