Dharamsala to Leh- monastic tour (Himachal & Ladakh)

Package Itinerary

• Day 1Arrive Delhi

  Delhi

  On arrival our office representative will meet and drive you to your hotel from the airport for the overnight stay in Delhi.
  

• Day 2Delhi to Amritsar by train

  In time transfer to the railway station to board your train for Amritsar- a holy and old city in Punjab, literarily means a pool of nectar. Amritsar is one of the most important pilgrimage centres especially for the Sikhs in the country. The city is characterized by some of the must visit religious, historical as well as contemporary sites of importance. The Golden Temple, where Sikhs from all over the world come to pay their reverence to Guru Granth Sahib and take a dip in the Amrit Saras Kund (Pool of Immortality) for spiritual purification is the major landmark of the place.
  On arrival, your guide for the tour will meet you at the railway station and escort you to your hotel in cars. After check in, you move to visit the famous Golden Temple and Jallianwala Bagh, which is a historical monument that tells the sad story of mass killing during the independence movement in India, Jallianwala Bagh is another must visit in Amritsar. Here lies the memorial of the martyrs of the 1919 massacre by British General Dyer. Return back to your hotel for dinner and overnight stay.
  

• Day 3Full day in Amritsar with visit to Indo- Pak border at Wagah

  It is advisable to visit Golden Temple once again in the early morning to have a divine experience under the first rays on sun. Later we visit Durgyana Temple which is another big temple in the city and the Mata Lal Mandir. After lunch we proceed to Wagah Border, which is 30 Kms from our hotel. Wagah is the only road border crossing between India and Pakistan and lies on the Grand Trunk Road between the cities of Amritsar (India) and Lahore (Pakistan). Wagah itself is a village through which the controversial Radcliffe Line was drawn. The village was divided by independence in 1947. Today, the eastern half of the village remains in the Republic of India while the western half is in Pakistan. The Wagah border, often called the “Berlin Wall of Asia”, is a ceremonial border on the India- Pakistan frontier where each evening there is a “retreat ceremony” called 'lowering of the flags', which has been held since 1959. At that time there is an energetic parade by the Border Security Force of India and the Pakistan Rangers soldiers. The parade/ retreat ceremony is worth to watch, later we drive back to our hotel in Amritsar.
  

• Day 4Amritsar to Dharamsala, 190 Kms/ 5 hours

  Himachal Pradesh

  After breakfast we drive for Dharamsala. On the way you visit a temple near Batala that is dedicated to Lord Ganesha where according to a religious story of Hindus, lord Ganesha and his brother Kartikey were asked to prove the superiority between two. The various spheres of life through the villages and fertile land of Punjab is visualized and we stop for picnic lunch on the way and move towards our final destination by leaving the plains and gradually climbing the mountains to Dharamsala. The drive is scenic and once we reach the base of Dharamsala, the mighty mountain ranges of Dhauladhar are highly exciting and welcoming. Trilokpur rock cut temple can be visited before reaching Dharamsala which is a miracle of nature. From Dharamsala, we climb up further 10 Kms to the Mc Leodganj which is the house of His Holiness Dalai Lama, administration center of Government of Tibet in exile, monasteries and various other Tibetan centers. We visit the residence of HH Dalai Lama and Namgyal Monastery this day. A walk on the roads of Mc Leodganj is quite interesting and educating about the life of Tibetans in exile.
  

• Day 5Dharamsala full day excursion of Tibetan Establishments & monasteries

  Morning we start exploring this high valued and spiritual destination through monasteries, Tibetan Medical and Astro centre, Tibetan library, Tibetan Parliament in Exile, Tibetan Handicraft center and Tibetan Children village. Lunch at Norbulinga Institute can be always advisable. This centre is the mirror of Tibetan rich art, craft and culture. A visit to Tibetan kitchen in the evening would be a nice memory for ever. The whole day will reflect a day one could spend in Lhasa with the Tibetans, their activities which are much on rituals and their respect to the high seat of Potala which in Dharamsala is the Namgyal Monastery. The day includes a visit to Lord Elgin’s Memorial, the mausoleum of the famous Scottish Eighth Viceroy of India, Lord Elgin. Located in the premise of St. John’s, the mausoleum was built in the year 1852. The memorial is famous for its Gothic style architecture and glass stained windows depicting the meeting of John the Baptist with Jesus.
  

• Day 6Dharamsala full day excursion of Tibetan Establishments & monasteries

• Day 7Dharamsala to Manali with a visit to Norbulinga

• Day 8Manali to Jispa with a visit to Kardang Monastery/ 140 Kms

  Leaving Kullu Valley and Manali behind, the drive climbs up to Rohtang Pass through several curves, small villages and settlements. The view from Rohtang Pass on both sides is awesome, from here, we enter into Lahoul Valley. Getting down for 19 Kms is the place Koksar, the first village and settlement in Lahaul side. We drive through Sisu and Gondhla, two prominent places of cultural and heritage values in the valley. The Gondhla Fort is visible from the road but it is in the worst shape because of lack of care. On the other side are the cave monasteries which were used by several monks and nuns for meditation. The next place is Tandi, after 7 Kms, which is the confluence of Chandra and Bhaga Rivers. We stop at Tandi to see this meeting of two rivers at Chanderbhaga Sangam and climb up to Tupchiling Monastery and further drive to Kardang Monastery, which was once the capital of Lahoul and a monastery of Drukpa Lineage. The monastery is believed to have been built in the 12th century and houses a large library of Buddhist literature. The monastery was in ruins until it was renovated in 1912 CE by Lama Norbu Rimpoche (died 1952), who, with Lama Kunga, turned it into a proper educational and training establishment. After meeting the monks, we continue to Jispa which is a small village with a nice monastery and a good hotel for our overnight stay.

• Day 9Jispa to Sarchu drive

  Ladakh Himalaya

  We leave Jispa and drive towards Sarchu through small settlement on the way called Darcha, the prominent bases for trekking to Zanskar from ancient times and now the entry point of Shingo La pass to Padum road in Zanskar. The trail’s second pass, Baralacha La (4830m) lies some 73 Kms beyond Keylong. Another 33 Kms of relatively rougher road bring you to the busy little hamlet of Sarchu which marks the border between the states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. Overnight at fixed camps.
  

• Day 10Sarchu to Leh drive over Tanglang La pass

  From Sarchu, the road flattens into a good straight stretch of 25 km known as the Lingti Plains and then climbs through a 10 km stretch of amazingly circuitous hairpin bends known as the Gatta Loops which number all of 21. The road eventually reached the Nakee-La Pass (4800 m) with a fantastic view. Just downhill from this pass is the Whiskey Nallah, beyond which the road begins to climb to the Lachalung la Pass, 54 km from Sarchu, with a panoramic view of snow-clad peaks. Crossing the vast expanse of flat area called the Moray Plains which are a part of the Tibetan Plateau. The next high pass is the Tanglang La (5359M), the second highest motorable pass of the world. This is also the last pass on Manali-Leh highway. After the Tanglang La descent, small villages, green fields and people of Ladakh do appear and we enter into Leh.
  

• Day 11Full day in Leh to visit monasteries

  This will be the full day visit to the Indus Valley monasteries to get a flavor of the history and culture of Ladakh India. With a visit to Thiksey, Shey and Hemis you cover the best known monuments around Leh.
  You also pass Sindhu Ghat by the Indus River. In the late afternoon you visit Shanti Stupa, Leh Palace, Namgyal Shemo Gompa and then stroll through Leh Bazaar.
  

• Day 12Full day in Leh (sightseeing)

• Day 13Leh to Delhi fly

  Morning we drop you to the Leh airport to fly Delhi, full day free in Delhi to visit important places and we will drop you to the airport in the evening for international flight or any other Indian destination.