Ladakh is region located in the north most part of the India having beautiful landscapes, mountains and high altitude passes. Leh is the capital city of Ladakh region and is a gateway to the Ladakh.
How to reach Leh Ladakh from Delhi
- Flight – There are direct inexpensive flight available from Delhi IGI airport to the Leh airport.
- Road – There are two main routes to reach Leh by the road
- By Manali – This is the shortest and most commonly used route. This route has passes which are more prone to the snowfall. So, this route is not available in the winter time.
- By Srinagar – This is Srinagar-Kargil-Leh highway, generally accessible till end of December. If there is light snow, roads can be opened in 1-2 days, for heavy snow it could be closed for longer duration. All part of the highway is less prone to snowfall except the Zoji-la pass and region around Dras town.
As of writing the article the Zoji-la tunnel (would be Asia’s longest tunnel) is under construction and would be completed by 2030. After the completition of the tunnel, the Srignagar-Kargil-Leh highway would be accessible throughout the year.
In Summer, people use to go by one route and return via other route to complete whole Leh circuit. Use below link to check the live status of the above roads: https://leh.nic.in/weather-and-road-status/ or use google search – “leh highways live status“. It is recommended to start the journey via Srinagar route to better acclimatize for the high altitudes.
- By Manali – This is the shortest and most commonly used route. This route has passes which are more prone to the snowfall. So, this route is not available in the winter time.
Ladakh Map
Best time to visit Ladakh
The summer weather is best to visit Ladakh (from April to August). Road could be challenging in winter season with the snowfall and with the harsh weather condition such as very low temperature at the passes (temperature at Chang La Pass and Khardung La pass could be easily averaged at -25 degree celsius). In winter, road can be easily blocked by heavy snowfall at high altitude passes. In winter, it is recommended to go via flight. The Ladakh temperature is towards the low side of scale.
Itinerary (New Delhi to Ladakh)
Day 1 (New Delhi to Pathankot, 500 KM, 10 hours)
Day 2 (Pathankot to Srinagar, 310 KM, 9 hours)
You could also visit the Vashnio devi temple, and went to the Katra form Pathankot (Pathankot to Katra, 150 KM, 4 hours)
Day (Optional) (Srinagar to Gulmarg, 50 KM, 2 hours)
You could head toward the Gulmarg early morning from the Srinagar. After reaching Gulmarg could you enjoy the gondola rides (please book the gondola in advance, especially in winter season). After visiting Gulmarg return to the Srinagar. You could also stay in Gulmarg, but it is generally recommended to stay in Srinagar in winter seasons, because there are chances for road blockage due to snowfall.
Day 3 (Srinagar to Sonmarg, 125 KM, 3.5 hours)
After travelling in Srinagar you could head to next destination Sonmarg.
Day 4 (Sonmarg to Kargil, 125 KM, 3.5 hours)
Visit the Kargil museum.
Day 5 (Kargil to Leh, 215 KM, 5 hours)
Day 6 (Leh to Nubra Valley, 160 KM, 5 hours)
Day 7 (Diskit to Pangong Lake, 230 KM, 6 hours)
Day 8 (Pangong Lake to Sarchu, 250 KM, 6 hours)
Day 9 (Sarchu to Manali, 180 KM, 5 hours)
Day 10 (Manali to Chandigarh, 280 KM, 6 hours)
Day 11 (Chandigarh to New Delhi, 260 KM, 5 hours)