Things to Do and Tourist attraction to Visit in Leh Ladakh

Ladakh has always been a secret land for all. When it concerned exploring this incredible land in ladakh there is a great deal of things to do and a hell lot of locations to visit in Ladakh. This fantastic land has actually continued to surprise it visitors with its imposing peaks and snow-capped Himalayan and Karakoram mountain varies, the rapidly-flowing Indus and Zanskar rivers and numerous streams carrying the glaciers from the mountains tucked amidst rich green valleys, all conjure a travellers dream.

Certainly, a tourist’s check out to India is never complete without a tour to Ladakh. It is not only a traveler’s paradise but a delight to every traveler as it uses tranquility and tranquility in the middle of picturesque and scenic views of nature. With every check out to this land, each traveler creates a great deal of memories from various places. Whether you are a nature fan and desire to take in the idyllic beauty of nature or you are a passionate experience seeker with thrills and frills on your trip or bike lover to have bike trip at ladakh which is a wonderful land for a number of activities.

Pangong Lake

Pangong Lake

This stunning water reservoir has to do with 134 Km long and 60% of the lake falls under China. At an elevation of 14,270 ft. the clear blue water of the lake shows the imposing mountains all around. The beautiful appeal with the tranquil and tranquil environment appears to be so unbelievable to the traveler. Drinking in the interesting landscape one just loses all sense of time and area.

Also Visit – Leh Ladakh Pangong Lake Tour

Royal Leh Palace

Developed by King Sengge Namgyal in the 17th century the Royal Palace of Leh is a nine-storey high structure which offers a grand panoramic view of the town of Leh, Stok Kangri and the Indus River. It has a museum which displays rare collections of ritualistic crowns, dresses, jewelleries, ornaments etc.

Magnetic Hill The Ladakh travel guide also offers Magnetic hill or gravity hill as it is in some cases called is a curious natural phenomenon. The hill falls on the National Highway from Leh to Kargil to Baltik. The hill can pull any car up its steep slope with the ignition of the lorry off. A Gurudwara near the hill is likewise an added tourist attraction here.

Tso Moriri Situated at a height of 15,000 ft. Tso Moriri Lake is a fresh water lake unlike the Pangong Lake which has saline water. The journey from Leh to Tso Moriri is stunning offering a sudden modification in the landscape from rough and rugged to lavish green filled with plants. There is likewise a warm spring on the trail to Tso Moriri.

Zanskar Valley Zanskar valley is among the most isolated places to visit in Ladakh where about 14,000 individuals making up of generally Buddhists live. The valley is sandwiched in between the Great Himalayan ranges and the Zanskar mountain ranges. The Zansker river which has actually provided its name to the valley flows through the valley. Zanskar valley surrounded by lofty mountains and deep gorges is closed for about eight months in a year due to heavy snowfall in the region.

Nubra Valley The Nubra valley, also called the Valley of Flowers, has to do with 150 Kms. away from Leh, the capital town of Ladakh. The journey takes us through the Khardung La pass which is the highest motorable roadway worldwide. There are some guest homes and small hotels at Diskit which is the primary village of Nubra.

Shanti Stupa The Shanti Stupa constructed by a Japanese is very near to the town of Leh and is set on a steep hilltop. Being at a height of about 4267 metres the place affords a splendid panoramic view of Leh and the snow-clad mountains. The daybreak and sundown are worth-seeing from this Stupa. There is also a Buddhist temple with the Shanti Stupa, the Dalai Lama had inaugurated this temple in 1991.

Also Visit – Leh Nubra Tour

Kargil (Kashmir – Leh Highway)

Kargil was once a hectic town as it was within the trade path to and from China, Afghanistan, India, Turkey. It is the 2nd most significant town of Ladakh and lies in the west of Leh facing the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. The town ended up being popular after a war was contested the area between India and Pakistan. However, the town has stayed largely serene till then and is house to a variety of scenic tourist attractions.

Khardung La

At a height of 18,380 ft. Khardung La pass is the highest motorable road on the planet. The pass lies on the trail from Leh to Nubra valley. In summertime the weather can alter all of a sudden while in winter the pass receives heavy snowfall with temperature level going below -400 C. The pass is about 40 Kms from Leh.

Lamayuru Monastry

Located at a height of 3510 metres and about 127 Kms from Leh this is the oldest Tibetan Buddhist abbey. The monastery is maintained by the Red Hat sect of Buddhism.

Lovely collections of wall paintings rich in colour, murals, thangkas and scriptures make the check out to the monastery worthwhile. The landscape here resembles a moonland like terrain and has resulted in a spurt in camps and journey carried out in this area.

Alchi Monastery

This is maybe the only abbey in Ladakh which is located on a flat ground and not on a hill top like others. The Indus river flows by the abbey. Some wall painting purported to be 11/12 centuries old are rather stunning as well as well-preserved. The Indian impact on the paintings is rather discernible. The abbey offers a couple of guest homes with the standard facilities.

Shey Monastery

Shey monastery about 15 Km from Leh was earlier the summertime home of the royal family. This is situated on the banks of the river Indus and is embellished with a number of shrines and stupas. The abbey has the statue of blue-haired Maitreya Buddha which is 17.5 metre high and made from copper and brass.

Also Visit – Kashmir Leh Ladakh Tour

Diskit Monastery

The Diskit abbey in the Diskit town of Nubra valley is a 14th century structure and is considered to be the earliest monastery in the Nubra valley. There is a big 106 ft high statue of Maitreya Buddha in the prayer hall of the abbey.

Gurudwara Pathar Sahib

There is another tourist attraction in Ladakh which you need to visit throughout your leh ladakh tourist attraction. Gurudwara Pathar Sahib is situated 25 miles from Leh in Ladakh location in Jammu and Kashmir, Gurudwara Pathar Sahib remains at where Guru Nanak, the organizer of Sikh religious beliefs and the principal master, is accepted to have overcome a wicked existence.

In spite of that the place is prevalently Buddhist, Gurudwara Pathar Sahib is additionally revered and loved by Buddhists. Tibetan Buddhists love Guru Nanak as Guru Gompka Maharaj and as Nanak Lama. There are lots of legends related to this hill and has actually ended up being extremely famous among the basic individuals as well.

Sangam Point

This is one of the most popular spots in Ladakh and likewise a preferred among the people. The conference point of the Indus and Zanskar is referred to as the Sangam Point. As the water of the Indus River is extremely warm and the Zanskar is frozen, this becomes a remarkable sight for the onlookers.

The two rivers fulfill at this point and then streams to Pakistan. The convergence of these rivers occurs at a range of 30 km west of Leh. Soak yourself in the majestic view of this area in addition to the river as they clash.

Spituk Gompa

For those of you who are still looking for some various spot to visit in Ladakh then here we bring you another location. Restore yourself as you visit this well-known Gompa. Spituk Gompa reviews the Indus Valley with various mudbrick structures tumbling gladly down a lofty hillock to Spituk town.

The monastery is around 5km from focal Leh, incoherently roosted neglecting the air terminal runway. Inside the fundamental religious community complex, the most appealing structure is the Skudung Lhakhang, with ambiguously Chinese-looking into swung corners to its plated roof. The dazzling old dukhang (Tibetan petition passage) contains an unmistakably yellow-hatted statue of Tsongkhapa.

Namgyal Monastery

There is another abbey which is a should visit for you in Ladakh Tour. Namgyal Tsemo Monastery worked by King Tashi Namgyal after the reunification of upper and lower Ladakh and accomplishment over Hor. Their (Hor) bodies are set under the photo of Mahakala, the watchman divinity to stop motivate invasion of Hor.

The Leh royal home known as ‘Lechen Palkhar’ was worked by Singay Namgyal in the start of seventeenth Century A.D. The nine-storied royal home is currently abandoned, and the ASI (Archeological Survey of India) has used up the redesign work.

Hemis National Park

Found 40 km southeast of Leh untruths this spectacular National park.The Hemis High Altitude National Park that connects more than 600 sq. km. is named after the prominent cloister, Hemis gompa. The National Park includes the catchments of Markha, Rumbak and Sumdah nalas. It is known for some uncommon species like the bharal and the snow panther.

Hemis has actually in certainty been acknowledged as a snow panther hold under a venture moved by the Central Government went for keeping track of the species, its victim base and its delicate bumpy house.

Tso Kar Lake

There is another should see destination in Leh ladakh tour and that is the Tso Kar Lake. Also called ‘White Lake’ is among the three high height seawater lakes in Ladakh. The Tso-Kar Lake is called ‘White Lake’ on the grounds that the white salt of the water stores everywhere throughout the lake shores. Tso-kar Lake is the smallest lake among the 3 vital lakes in Ladakh.

The Tso-Kar lake is extremely popular with bird watchers. The variety including Tso-kar lake is abundant with wildlife and birds. Be that as it may, the principle fascination amongst the bird’s life at Tso Kar is dark necked cranes. The dark necked cranes, understood for their devotion, come to Tso Kar to lay eggs.

Visit to Drass valley

Drass valley is called the Gateway to Ladakh and is the second greatest and coldest lived in area on the planet after Siberia. The valley begins at Zozi La and extends till Kargil. Throughout the summer months the valley completely alters from a snow-bound place to lavish green meadows with colourful fragrant flowers improving the beauty of nature.

Hemis Monastery

The town of Hemis is popular for its abbey is the largest monastic organisation in the Ladakh district. The Hemis abbey is considered to be the among the wealthiest abbeys in India with some really uncommon and exquisite antique collections like the copper statue of Buddha, inctricately carved gold and silver stupas and some exotic Thangkas.

The Tibetan design architecture within the monastery is extremely brilliant and vibrant in contrast to the surrounding landscape. An included destination is the Hemis National Park is located close to the abbey and is house to the several threatened and uncommon aniumals such as Snow leopards.

See to the Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame near Leh is in fact a museum devoted to the Indian army’s heroic battles during the war in Kargil and Siachen sectors. It’s an extremely fascinating museum showing the weapons employed during the Kargil war and possessions of the enemy soldiers including their attires discovered after the Kargil war.

Also, on display screen is the different clothing of the heroic soldiers with multi-layered shoes to protect them from frostbite, their frozen foods which they warm with balls of Hexamycin tablets prior to supper. Due to the excessive cold in the area with temperature hovering in between -300 C to -500 C it is challenging to strike a fire. This is likewise the reason why there were numerous deaths of our brave soldiers throughout the Siachen war.

Thiksey Monastery

The Thiksey abbey is positioned in the Indus valley and is just 18 kms away from leh. The 12-storey abbey contains 10 temples with an assembly hall and living quarters for the monks as well as a nunnery. The 40 foot. high statue of Maitreya Buddha is the prime attraction here and is committed to the Goddess Tara. Other than these one can also see some rare, valuable stupas, wall paintings, statues and swords in the monastery. The Ladakh travel guide lists a few of the finest monasteries to be gone to on your Leh Ladakh Tour.

For more information on Leh Ladakh Tour packages contact Swan Tours one of the leading travel agents in Delhi India.

Most Popular Tourist Attractions in Leh-Ladakh!

Leh-Ladakh Tour Packages

One of the most exciting travel destinations in India is Leh-Ladakh, which is a part of Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. In the recent times because of the increased air connectivity and opening of number of hotels and resorts in the area, the tourism activity has gone up multi fold times.

Ladakh brings one face to face with primordial nature. Mountains assume fantastic forms, deeply caverned and castellated, recessed by jagged ridges that glint in the sun even though the sky above may be leaden. There is a sense of dramatic contrast here, and heightened color; tints of yellow, gold and ochre are predominant, but brown and green hillocks, blue and black boulders intersperse the oatmeal sweet of the sandy plains and the central plateau. Hamlets with their barley fields break the pattern of the mountain wilderness. From a distance, it is difficult to distinguish a village fort from its rocky background; all seem part of a marvelous unity.

For a traveler, the rapid changes of terrain are astonishing, one moment you are in a 100-metre wide valley with a panoramic view of an ochre wasteland. In the next instant, you see alluvial fans rising towards the foot of the hills. You may find yourself hemmed in by granite walls sometimes narrowing to a fissure no more than three-meters wide, where the sun does not penetrate and the sky is not visible; the earth is arid and unforgiving, with not a tree in sight, nor a footprint to follow. Yet just a few kilometers away you could stumble upon a rich meadow with lush grass for the mules to munch, migratory wildfowl from Siberia on the lake shore, dogs herding the peacefully grazing sheep, yaks being milked and scruffy little children playing in this pastoral setting.

In the National Park region, the highest in the world, piercingly cold winds blow through the gaps in the mighty ridges, which are often etched sharply against a magnificent blue sky or as often, obscured by mist. If you are lucky, you can spot the rare ibex (whose horns are believed to be good luck charms which frequently adorn flat roofs), or the snow pheasant with a neutral tint that merges with the rocky terrain. More visible with its luxuriant fur is the martnot, a mountain rodent of clumsy gait, which moves surprisingly fast to escape into its burrow.

At every step the landscape gets wilder. Bare rock protects the earth from the burden of heavy snow and the fierce height of the sun. On a clear, well-lit day, the fast-melting snow increases the volume of water cascading down the gorge. The silence of the mountains is broken only by the sighing winds, the call of an unseen animal, the whistle of a bird and the sound of water which resembles a song of joy as it dances down from its icy heights.

From Nymeo, where the confluence of the Zanskar and the Indus can be seen in the distinct blue and green shades of the water, up to Phiyang, where the river divides into a number of channels, the hillsides and the river bed are lush with extensive cultivation. This spot is very popular with the tourists.

As the Indus widens, trees begin to appear and the valley opens up. Broad meadows interspersed with irrigation channels are visible from the road. Tangible symbols of Buddhism appear as one approach a village: Chortens (Tibetan stupas) and mane walls (stones engraved with prayers and invocations, invariably kept to the right of the traveler) start to dot the landscape.

Closer to Leh, the mountains hem you in again, until a sudden dip in the ridge ahead gives you your first view of the capital. Prayer flags strung together sweep upwards to the rocky eminence of Palace Hill crowned by the fort and temple of Namgyal Tsemo.

Flat-roofed, whitewashed houses reach up to the walls of Leh Palace. The road winds past lofty, gaily painted chortens. The poplar grove thins out. Nine storeys high, with a frontage extending 75 meters, it towers over a pile of mud houses, its wall sloping inwards as if shrinking from the touch of plebian huts below. Further up the road is the broad stretch of the Leh bazaar, the open market that awaits customers from Delhi and Srinagar. In bygone days, it was the kafilo (caravan) from Persia or Yarkand that brought the market alive with the ’emporium trade’. When monsoon winds made Indian ports inaccessible, the rice of Parsia travelled up the Ladakh route. Along with rice, other goods from thousands of kilometers away also made their appearance. Even today traces of the ’emporium trade’ are evident, and the Leh bazaar is a good place to buy Chinese soup bowls, shoes, exotic jewelry, metalware and thangkas.

Leh town is enclosed by a low wall, interspersed with towers, approachable through a labyrinth of lanes. Ladakhi dressmakers, general merchants, dealers in antiques and bric-a-brac are present at every corner.

 

The Ladakhi male’s dress is much like a Tibetan coat, with colorful facings and a cummerbund. The women wear a beautiful styled dress gathered at the waist and lined with brocade. It is worn with coloured pajamas in addition to which modern Ladakhi women also sport the Punjabi chunni, a long scarf. The most popular women’s hairstyle is an intricate design of slim plaits held together at the bottom with a simple string or a gorgeous silver clip.

On festive occasions, women wear a unique headdress, the perak, shaped like a cobra-hood from red felt onto which uncut turquoise stones are stitched in rows of three, eight or ten. Two curved flaps covered with lamb’s wool extend outwards over the cars.

A goatskin stole is another regular feature of the village woman’s attire, replaced with brocade by the affluent. It is a becoming adornment to a dress that is graceful in its simplicity, besides performing a functional role too by preventing the dress from becoming soiled by back-loads. Silk and velvet gondas (hats) are also a part of women’s toilette, adding the desired touch of colour for daily wear as the perak is too heavy to be worn. Ladakhi women have always enjoyed wearing and displaying jewelry — silver necklaces, amulets and rings, and in the old days, they would not go about without a silver toothpick, tweezers and ear-cleaners as well.

With weather-beaten faces, merry smiles and hats at a jaunty angle on top of their elaborate coiffures, the market women make a lively, attractive group. Wherever you go, in Ladakh a beaming lulley!’ will greet you and soon it becomes quite spontaneous for you to call out julley!’ yourself. Without your being aware of it, your identification with Ladakh is well on its way.

Excursions from Leh: The most popular travel excursions from Leh are day trip to Nubra Valley, trip to Pangong Lake, visit to Hemis Monastery, Visit to Thiksay Monastery, these trips can be pre-booked and the details can be found on the below links:

Leh Ladakh Pangong Lake Tour , Leh Nubra Tour and Kashmir Leh Ladakh Tour

For more information on Leh Ladakh tour packages,  contact Swan Tours – one of the leading travel agents in India.

Enter the Tourist in Leh Ladakh

Leh-Ladakh Tour Packages

Ladakh has always haunted the traveller’s imagination because of its sheer inaccessibility. Zealously guarded because of its strategic location, it was opened to tourism as recently as 1974. It is no longer the valuable Pashmina wool or the rice, salt and tea of the old trade system that draws the traveller, but the composite world of Ladakh — the fascinating fusion of ancient religions, history and stormy political events which were the result of the proselytizing role of Buddhism. Although Ladakh is now a part of Jammu and Kashmir, it retains its independent character this is what makes Ladakh unique —not its resemblance to Tibet, with which it was once identified, but with which ties have now become tenuous.

The Ladakh is as a people are naive and spontaneous, as yet not undermined by the outsider. Their environment which defeats all those who are alien to it endows them with the capacity to retain their sturdy identity. The lonely tiers of the Lamayuru monastery appear to symbolize this spirit of endurance as do the defiant apple-green rivers that flow undeterred through narrow valleys. And the dun-coloured plateau seems to have beaten back the snow-bound, sunless gullies to provide a haven to those for whom Ladakh is home. Given Ladakh’s strategic importance, it has benefited by the creation of a logistical infrastructure, but has yet to receive a push towards industrial development.

Urbanization is getting under way, but the intrusion of modernity is limited. The old trade routes through the central plateau have been converted into roads that cut through the bronze and silver setting of the Karakoram, Ladakh and Zanskar ranges. The Border Roads Organization and the large military establishment maintain the roads but peasants and traders still use century-old routes.

A community in change

In a natural environment, which is by turns a hostile arctic desert and an oasis, water becomes the life-giving force, fundamental to the needs of development now visible in Ladakh. The pre-Buddhist peasant and wandering minstrel, who sang about the heroic vision of the Kesar Saga, would be amazed to see the changes that have been wrought into his world which was then still young and free of man’s pressing need for more room and greater resources. Now the emerging pattern of emerald valleys attests to his impulse for expansion.

The economic structure of Ladakh, sustained by the monastic system and what has been termed the ’emporium trade’, is being eroded by government-sponsored construction activity and agricultural improvement. The collective spirit and the community approach on which the monastic system was based still survive, but the living standards of the people haven’t improved much.

Only since 1947, when Ladakh became a part of the Indian Union, have Ladakhi skills been used for its advancement. Educated young Ladakhis have not been lured away by the promise of a brighter future outside their homeland but have stayed behind and helped in its development.

A prime example is the Stakna hydroelectric project – a tribute to Ladakhi engineers who have adapted design and technology to meet the challenge of stringent local conditions. The dam catches the Indus just below Hemis at 3,450 metres, and has been operated even in freezing weather in a region where forests are scarce and temperatures plummet to extreme lows, the advent of electricity has humanized the environment dramatically. Only a frequent visitor to Ladakh would be alive to the radical changes brought about by electricity to the work-style, architecture and social pattern of the electrified villages. Evenings in Leh can now be stretched beyond the 11p.m. deadline when diesel generators used to shut off.

Today, outside influences are tampering with Ladakh’s historically determined scheme as the land is subject to undreamed-of pressures, The transitory visitor is unaware of the impact of 1-is presence but it is obtrusively visible in the extending tentacles of the road network, in the pollution emitted by increased traffic and in the demand for services which are not expressive of the Ladakhi way of life. One again, it is the historical vulnerability of Ladakh’s economic system that becomes apparent as the genius of the people is mobilized to benefit the outsider.

Literacy in Ladakh

I2-year-old Stanz in Zangpo did not know what a train was. He could not recognize a cow or a buffalo. At school, during, geography lessons, he could not understand what a plain was and what a sea was. He only identified the jagged peaks near Diskit en route to the Siachin Glacier. When 30 Ladakhi children were brought to Delhi and taken to the zoo, they ran away in fright on seeing an elephant. The children were taken to Qutb Millar to learn about heights; they had never written a letter and were taken to the post office. After the Gujarat earthquake, they were taught about the causes and effects of quakes. They were present for the Army Day and Republic Day Parades to inculcate in them a sense of belonging and identity with the rest of India. Overjoyed with their new experiences in Delhi, one of them thought that the most exciting profession was that of an engine driver — a career that gave one freedom to travel and see the wonders of the country.

For more information of Enter the Tourist in Leh Ladakh and leh ladakh tour packages contact Swan Tours one of the leading travel agents in India.

Information on my Leh Ladakh Tour

“If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here,” exclaimed the Moghul king, jahangir, moved to such ecstasy by the beauty of Kashmir. He was doubtlessly, enthralled by the valley’s lush greenery, its abundance of flowers and fruits, its shimmering springs and translucent lakes. He could not possibly have been thinking of that arid region in eastern Kashmir which is known as Ladakh and which recent historical events have brought into the limelight. But if Ladakh cannot boast of nature’s bounty, its high desert plateaus and granite peaks have a rugged charm of their own. And its isolated, ancient culture endows it with a mystery which irresistibly attracts the explorer and the tourist alike.

Its location has earned Ladakh the nickname of “Central Asian Diamond,” which brought the various realms of Asia together through gcertain important trade routes connecting lands lying on all its four sides. The minor routes acted links to the major routes lying to the north and south of Ladakh. For example, the “Silk Route” that connected China with the Middle East lay to the north of Ladakh. It was never a terminal point for any major route, never a cul-de-sac or a blind alley, but always a transit area, a region of interaction for people from neighboring regions. Also Visit – Leh Ladakh Pangong Lake Tour

With its borders touching Tibet, Chinese Sinkiang and Baltistan, and with the Soviet Union, Pakistan and Afghanistan in close proximity, Ladakh occupies a highly strategic position. It remained closed to visitors for almost a quarter century, and it has only recently been opened to tourists. Of the roads leading to Leh, the capital of Ladakh, the only one suitable for motor traffic is that from Srinagar, a two-day drive. This highway remains. Snow-bound from October till May. It takes one month to clear about ten million cubic feet of snow from a ninety kilometre stretch of the road and costs six million rupees a year.