Prayer flags, the minaret of Jama Masjid and Leh Palace
Rajiv Chowk (Connaught Place) is one of the main business and commercial centres in New Delhi with a major metro station. It is quieter than Paharganj, has good access to public transport and is central. Hotels here are more expensive and harder to find. Ringo Guesthouse (17 Scindia House, Connaught Lane) is an old favourite. Go along Janpath for 100m from Rajiv Chowk and turn left into Connaught Lane. The hotel is 50m further on your left.
The third budget area in Delhi is the Tibetan Refugee Colony at New Aruna Nagar, Majnu-Ka-Tilla. There are a few hotels, many restaurants, tourist offices and Internet cafés. It is the quietest of the three areas but is inconvenient for the city, being located about 3.5km north of Kashmiri Gate Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT), by the Yamuna River (and just north of Gurudwara Majnu-Ka-Tilla Sikh temple). It is convenient, however, for anyone who wants to go to Manali by bus. Take the metro to Vidhan Sabha (Yellow Line) and a cycle-rickshaw (2km, about Rs15) to the Tibetan Colony (recognisable by prayer flags). From the Kashmiri Gate ISBT, take a motor-rickshaw (3.5km, Rs50). Vehicles are not allowed inside. For accommodation check www.majnukatilla.com (choose Services).
Guesthouses may be busy at certain times of the year (such as Tibetan New Year – a moveable holiday dependant on the Tibetan, lunisolar calendar – and occasional gatherings of the exiled community) so check before arriving.
Sightseeing
Delhi has plenty of sights worth visiting, some of which are unmissable UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the Red Fort, Qutab Minar and Humayun’s Tomb. Add the Jama Masjid, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, Safdarjang’s Tomb and the Bahai’i House of Worship if you have a bit more time. The Taj Mahal in Agra is 200km south of New Delhi, and worth a day trip.
Getting to Leh from Delhi
By air or road?
Which of these options to go for is a question of balancing the advantages and disadvantages of each mode of travel. Your choice will largely be based on how much time you have, the current weather conditions and political situation.
Ladakh’s only public airport is in Leh with regular flights to Jammu, Srinagar and Delhi operated by a few airlines including Air India (www.airindia.in), Jet Airways (www.jetairways.com) and GoAir (www.goair.com). Because of the prevailing weather conditions, most of the flights take off and land in the morning. Flights are often delayed and sometimes cancelled. If you fly in or out of Ladakh, never make your succeeding schedule tight. Prices vary according to season and time of booking, and may be as low as Rs3000 or over Rs20,000 in the high season (one way). According to some Indian travellers, www.makemytrip.com is the best online booking service in India and can be used from Europe; it also enables on-line transactions made from other countries.
But unless your trip is planned at a time when the roads are closed, my advice is not to fly into Ladakh. Of course, if your time is very limited, you have no other option. Leh is at an elevation of about 3500m, at which most people suffer some symptoms of altitude sickness. To let the body adjust you will need to dedicate a few days for rest, and for not-too-taxing sightseeing. Of course, the sights are fascinating and you will not get bored hanging around in Leh, but be aware that flying to Ladakh is not necessarily the fastest way to the start of your trek.
Flying out of Ladakh at the end of your trek is a good idea and will avoid the uncomfortable trip by road. Seeing Ladakh from a bird’s-eye perspective is a great experience, and you might see some of the places you trekked from the plane!
Another option is to fly to Srinagar and then continue by air or road, but this is not a safe option at the time of writing (see below).
The approach to the Zoji La from the Kashmir side
For those with time taking a road route to Ladakh is an adventure itself and gives you the opportunity to observe the immense diversity and landscapes of the Himalayas. But when travelling on any roads in the Indian Himalayas, be prepared for delays. Have an extra jacket, hat, torch and bottle of water in your hand luggage. If you travel by bus, have a string or rope to fasten your bag to the roof (if there is no other option), as no one else will bother to do it.
There are two roads into Ladakh:
From Manali, entering Ladakh from the south
Passing through Srinagar in Kashmir from the west.
Both cross the Great Himalaya Range. There are passes exceeding 4000m on both routes and neither road is open all year round. The current status of roads may be checked at www.leh.nic.in. It takes three days at least to get to Leh from Delhi by either route.
The Manali road crosses higher passes and is more uncomfortable than the Srinagar road. It is more popular, however, as it passes through Manali, a famous destination, and because the Srinagar road through Kashmir is still regarded by most as unsafe, with the possibility of armed militant activity. That road also passes through Kargil, which is almost on the Line of Control with Pakistan. Check the current situation before heading anywhere near Srinagar.
The tiny pathway leading to the Stongde La (Trek 4)
Make sure you acclimatise properly en route: having left Delhi it is crucial to sleep at least one night at an elevation of around 3000m before going any higher. On the main route via Manali, Keylong (3100m) is the overnight stopping point for the Inter State buses. The Manali–Leh road is a hard test for your body, because it crosses a 5000m-high pass and you will spend many hours above 4500m. Stopping overnight beyond Keylong, in Sarchu (above 4000m), or going directly from Manali to Leh, which some private buses do, is not a good option and may lead to altitude sickness. Check where the overnight stops are planned before committing yourself to travelling with a particular company.
If the Srinagar–Leh road is safe there are two places to stay, Sonamarg and Kargil – the latter being stopping point for most buses. Ideally, stop in both places.
Although the buses usually stop for the night, the tickets sold in Manali and Srinagar usually cover the entire journey to Leh. That is fine unless you want to spend more than a night in Keylong or Kargil, or want to make an intermediate stop in Sonamarg. Both Keylong and Kargil have bus depots, so arranging onward transport there should not cause any trouble unless the buses are packed. Sonamarg is just a small village without a bus reservation office, so if you stop here for a night or two, it’s best to make arrangements for the onward journey in advance in Srinagar. If you cannot find a place on a bus leaving Kargil for Leh, try a shared taxi.
Getting to Leh via Manali and Keylong
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