Ladakh: Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake
Overview
- Duration: 12 days / 11 nights
- Departures: Private, any date
- Group size: Private, from 2 travellers
- Accommodation: Comfortable hotels in Delhi and Leh; simple camps or guesthouses in the Nubra Valley and at Pangong Lake
- Country: India
From Delhi, fly up to Leh and settle in slowly before crossing high passes to the dunes of the Nubra Valley and two quiet nights beside Pangong Lake, then finish among the old temples west of Leh in Ladakh.
This twelve-day route is for travellers who want the wide, empty landscapes of Ladakh and are happy to trade a few comforts for them. You need no trekking experience, but you should be in reasonable health and prepared to respect the altitude. Walking is light: monastery stairs, village paths and slow strolls along the shore.
The shape is a loop. After a night in Delhi, you fly to Leh and take two deliberately empty days before a morning among the Indus monasteries. Then you cross the Khardung La to the Nubra Valley for two nights, follow the Shyok river to Pangong Lake for two more, and return to Leh over the Chang La. A gentler day west of Leh at Alchi, and a final night back in Delhi, close the trip.
We spread the hardest days out and never stack two long drives together. Some honest notes before you decide:
- Altitude: Leh is at around 3,500 metres and Pangong Lake at around 4,200 metres. Headaches and broken sleep are common in the first days.
- Long drives: three days involve five to seven hours on mountain roads, some of them rough.
- Simple stays: Nubra and Pangong nights are in camps or guesthouses, and nights by the lake are cold even in July.
- Flexibility: weather and road closures sometimes change the order of the days.
If you would rather spend fewer nights at the lake, prefer more village walks, or want to add a few days of trekking, we can reshape the route around you. Tell us what kind of trip to India you have in mind and we will plan it with you.
Day-by-day itinerary
A driver waits for you at Delhi airport and brings you to your hotel. Take the day as it comes: sleep off the flight, sit in the garden or eat a light dinner nearby. Tomorrow’s flight into the mountains leaves early, and arriving in Leh rested makes the first days at altitude noticeably easier, so an early night is the best plan.
Overnight: Delhi
The morning flight to Leh crosses the main Himalayan chain in about an hour and a half, and on a clear day the peaks seem close enough to touch. Leh lies at around 3,500 metres, so today your only task is to rest. Lie down, drink water and herbal tea, skip alcohol and leave exploring for later. A short, slow walk near the hotel at dusk is plenty.
Overnight: Leh · Meals: Breakfast
Your guide joins you for a second gentle day. Wander the mud-brick lanes of the old town under Leh Palace, peer into small shrines and stop often. After lunch and a rest, a short drive takes you up to Shanti Stupa, where the light slides across the Indus Valley and the Stok range towards sunset. Keep the pace easy: your body is still adjusting.
Overnight: Leh · Meals: Breakfast
Head up the Indus in the morning. Thiksey Monastery stacks its whitewashed buildings up a rocky hill, and if you arrive early you may hear the monks’ morning chanting. Pause at the old royal palace at Shey, then follow a side valley to Hemis, among the largest and wealthiest monasteries in Ladakh. Return to Leh by mid-afternoon and rest before tomorrow’s pass.
Overnight: Leh · Meals: Breakfast
The road north climbs in long switchbacks to the Khardung La, one of the highest motorable passes in the region. Keep your stop at the top short, take photographs of the prayer flags and carry on down. The Nubra Valley opens up about five hours from Leh, broad and green where the Shyok and Nubra rivers meet. Late in the day, visit Diskit Monastery and its tall Maitreya Buddha.
Overnight: Nubra Valley · Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Nubra sits lower than Leh, so sleep usually comes more easily. Walk out onto the pale sand dunes near Hunder, where shaggy Bactrian camels graze, and ride one if you like. Later, explore a village of stone houses, barley fields and apricot orchards fed by narrow channels. If the roads are open, your guide can suggest a longer outing further down the Shyok valley.
Overnight: Nubra Valley · Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
When the road is open, you follow the Shyok river south-east from Nubra to Pangong Lake, a long, remote drive of about six to seven hours through empty, mineral-coloured mountains. If the route is closed, we go back through Leh instead and adjust the days. You reach the shore in the afternoon, at around 4,200 metres, in time to watch the water darken at dusk.
Overnight: Pangong Lake · Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Pangong rewards slowness. Rise for the early light on the water, when the surface is often still, then spend the day as you wish: a gentle walk along the shore, a visit to a small herding village nearby, or simply sitting with a flask of tea as the lake shifts through every shade of blue. Move slowly at this height, and wrap up well for the cold night.
Overnight: Pangong Lake · Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
After breakfast, drive back towards Leh over the Chang La, another high pass where you stop only briefly. The descent passes small villages and chortens before rejoining the Indus Valley, about five hours in all. Back in Leh, the afternoon is free for a hot shower, a nap or a slow stroll through the main bazaar.
Overnight: Leh · Meals: Breakfast
Today drops gently in height as you drive west along the Indus. See the ruined fort and temples at Basgo on their crumbling ridge, then Likir Monastery with its large seated Buddha. The highlight is Alchi, a cluster of old temples on the riverbank whose wall paintings date back many centuries; photography is not allowed inside. Stop where the Zanskar river joins the Indus on the way back.
Overnight: Leh · Meals: Breakfast
Fly from Leh to Delhi in the morning. Mountain flights depend on the weather, which is why this route returns a day before you leave India. Your driver meets you in Delhi and takes you to your hotel. In the late afternoon, if you have energy, visit Humayun’s Tomb, the garden tomb that came before the Taj Mahal, as the heat eases.
Overnight: Delhi · Meals: Breakfast
Use the morning for Old Delhi: the great courtyard of the Jama Masjid, then a cycle-rickshaw ride through the crowded lanes around Chandni Chowk, where spice sellers and sweet shops press in on every side. Depending on your flight time, rest at the hotel in the afternoon before your driver takes you to the airport. End of your trip.
Overnight: — · Meals: Breakfast
What’s included
- Accommodation with breakfast, plus dinner in the Nubra Valley and at Pangong Lake
- Private airport and hotel transfers
- Private car and driver throughout Ladakh and in Delhi
- Local English-speaking guide in Ladakh and for sightseeing in Delhi
- Domestic flights between Delhi and Leh, as in the itinerary
- Protected-area permits for the Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake (we arrange them)
- Entrance fees to the monasteries and sights in the itinerary
- 24/7 support during your trip
Not included
- International flights
- Visas
- Travel insurance that covers travel at high altitude
- Meals not listed
- Tips
- Personal expenses
- Optional activities, such as camel rides
Good to know
Sample itinerary: we adapt the route, hotels and dates to you and confirm everything in your written quote. Best June–September, when the high passes are usually open.
You fly between Delhi and Leh, about an hour and a half each way, and mountain weather can delay these flights, so we leave a spare night in Delhi before you fly home. In Ladakh you travel by private car with your own driver. Drives over the passes to Nubra and Pangong take about five to seven hours on mountain roads, and closures caused by snow, landslides or road works can mean changing the order of the days.
Frequently asked questions
Leh is at around 3,500 metres, and the passes and Pangong Lake are higher still. Two easy days and a moderate day of sightseeing give your body time to adjust, which lowers the risk of altitude sickness. If you have heart, lung or other health concerns, talk to your doctor before you book.
Yes. Parts of the Nubra Valley and the Pangong area are protected and need a permit, and the rules differ for Indian and foreign visitors. They change from time to time, so we arrange your permits and confirm the current requirements when we book.
The direct road along the Shyok river is the most scenic way, but it can close after rain, landslides or road works. In that case your driver returns to Leh and continues to Pangong over the Chang La on a different day, and we rearrange the nights to keep the trip balanced.
Expect simple camps or guesthouses with private bathrooms, warm bedding and set dinners, rather than full hotels. Electricity and hot water can be limited, especially by the lake. See our Ladakh guide for more on what to pack.
