Ladakh Heritage Tour

Day 1 - Arrival and local Sightseeing

Arrive at Leh airport or at Leh bus stand by yourself and check into the Hotel that we have booked for you. You are advised to take complete rest for the day to adapt yourself with the new environment at 11,135 feet altitude. Later, in the evening you can visit the Leh Market, Leh Palace, known as ‘Lachen Palkhar’ or Shanti Stupa, located on a hilltop near Changspa, reaching the top you will see the beauty of whole Leh town.

Overnight stay at Leh.

Day 2 - Central Ladakh Sightseeing.

Total is for visiting some of the main monasteries in central Ladakh.  

After breakfast at the hotel, we will drive towards Shey Monastery, Which is just by the Leh-Manali Highway near a beautiful pond. Shey was once the capital of upper Ladakh and is originally called Shel because of the pond below the Palace. Shelmeans Glass or Mirror in the local language.

We will then drive to Thiksey Monastery, a little eastward along the Highway. Thiksey Monastery is one of the most monasteries in whole Ladakh belonging to the Gelukpa order of Tibetan Buddhism. It is sometimes also called the mini Potala due to its resemblance with Potala Palace in Lhasa Tibet.

Further east along the Indus we will drive along the Leh-Srinagar Highway and cross the river Indus to visit the Hemis Monastery- the biggest monastery in the region. Hemis monastery is known to have rare collections of artefacts and arts dating back to hundreds of years and also host one of the biggest religious festival in Ladakh -  Hemis Tseschu.

Later, we will visit the Stok Palace by driving to the other side of the river Indus. Stok Palace is the royal residence of the Royal family of the kingdom of Ladakh and still home to the descendants of the Namgyal dynasty of Ladakh.

Return back to Leh by evening.

Overnight stay at  Leh.

Day 3 - Leh - Aryan Valley

After breakfast in the morning, we will start driving to the Dha Hanu in western Ladakh. These villages are also known as the Aryan valley, as the people residing there are believed to be the last remaining of the pure Aryan race. Aryan peoples have distinct facial and physical features, they are also culturally quite different from the rest of Ladakh. The route is along the Leh-Srinagar Highway up to Khaltse and diverts from there to follow the direction of the Indus river.  Along the way, we will visit several sightseeing places like Hall of Fame museum, which was built in the name those martyrs passed away in Kargil war, and also visit Magnetic hill and Sangam, (Confluence of Zanskar & Indus River).

Overnight stay at Aryan Valley.  

Day 4 - Aryan valley to Kargil via Batallik

In the morning after taking breakfast and exploring the Aryan village of Dha Beema, we will ride further westward alongside the river Indus up to Batallik sector, which is very close to the border and among the least taken routes. We will then divert towards Kargil away from the Indus and reach Kargil, the second biggest town in the Ladakh region to reach by evening.

Overnight stay at Kargil.

Day 5 - Kargil - Leh via Lamayuru

In the morning, have breakfast at the hotel. Soon we will start driving back to Leh. We will follow the Srinagar-Leh Highway, also known as NH1D, the roads are mostly wide and well-laid tarmac but consist of innumerable hairpin bends through mountains and beautiful villages. We will get to see some of the most renowned monuments of Ladakh like Lamayuru monastery, Basgo monastery etc. We will retrace the same route after Khaltse and reach Leh by evening.

Overnight stay at Leh.  

Day 6 - Festival Day

Today is reserved for attending a local festival. Usually, we will try to overlap with a local / Monastic festival in Leh or its outskirts.

If there’s no festival is up around your date. You can visit the local market, nearby places or simply relax at the hotel.

Overnight stay at Leh.

Day 7 - Departure from Leh

Early morning our driver will pick you up and transfer to the Kushok Bakula Rinpoche Leh airport to board a flight back to your next destination. The journey ends with lots of memories and adventure stories to be related once back home.