Leh-Ladakh Travel Guide: A 10-Day Itinerary
✈️ Based on my visit to Leh-Ladakh. Written by Debarun Sana.
⚠️ Read this before anything else: altitude sickness is a real risk here
Leh sits at roughly 3,500 meters, and several stops on this itinerary — Khardung La, Pangong Tso, Chang La — go well above that, some past 5,000 meters. Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) is genuinely common in travelers who fly directly into Leh and start sightseeing immediately, and severe cases can be fatal; deaths from AMS happen in Ladakh most years, almost always from people ignoring early symptoms or pushing to higher altitude too fast. The single most important rule: spend your first full day (ideally two) in Leh doing essentially nothing — no sightseeing, no alcohol, minimal exertion, just rest and hydration, before attempting Khardung La, Nubra, or Pangong. Symptoms to take seriously rather than push through: persistent headache, nausea, dizziness, and especially shortness of breath at rest or difficulty sleeping. If symptoms worsen rather than improve with rest, descend to lower altitude and seek medical attention — don't continue the itinerary as planned. Consult a doctor about altitude sickness medication (commonly acetazolamide) before your trip if you have any relevant health concerns, and don't treat this section as boilerplate travel-blog caution — it's the one part of this guide that can genuinely affect your safety.
Ladakh is a high-altitude cold desert in India's far north, genuinely unlike anywhere else in the country — Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, some of the highest motorable roads in the world, and landscapes closer to what you'd picture in Central Asia than mainland India. This 10-day route covers Leh town and its monasteries, Nubra Valley, and Pangong Tso.
Best Time to Visit
June to September is the standard window when Leh's roads (including Khardung La and the routes to Nubra and Pangong) are reliably open and clear of snow. Winter (December-February) sees genuinely extreme cold and most high passes closed, though a small niche of visitors come specifically for winter activities like the frozen Zanskar River trek (the "Chadar Trek") — a specialized trip well outside the scope of this standard itinerary.
How to Reach Ladakh
By Air: Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport in Leh has flights from Delhi and other major Indian cities — this is the standard way most visitors arrive, though it's also exactly why the "rest on arrival" advice above matters so much, since flying directly to 3,500 meters gives your body no time to adjust.
By Road: The Manali-Leh and Srinagar-Leh highways are both open seasonally (roughly the same June-September window) and offer a genuinely different, gradual-altitude-gain alternative to flying — worth considering specifically if you want to reduce AMS risk, since gradual ascent over 2 days by road is generally easier on the body than an immediate jump by air.
Entry Requirements and Permits
- Leh town itself requires no permit for anyone — you can explore the market, Leh Palace, and surrounding area with just your standard ID and, for foreign nationals, passport and visa.
- For restricted areas beyond Leh — Nubra Valley, Khardung La, Pangong Tso, Tso Moriri, and Hanle among others — Indian citizens pay an online Environment/Development Fee (not a traditional Inner Line Permit in the older sense) through the official lahdclehpermit.in portal, then carry the receipt along with a government photo ID. Processing this before arriving in Leh, rather than at the DC office in person, saves real time.
- Foreign nationals need a Protected Area Permit (PAP) instead, generally arranged through a registered Leh travel agency rather than independently, and often requiring a minimum group size of two people. PAP validity typically runs 7-15 days depending on current rules.
- Hanle specifically has an extra restriction for foreign nationals as of 2026 — visits are permitted only with a stay at a registered Astro-stay, and movement is restricted to designated roads near the Indian Astronomical Observatory.
- Carry several printed physical copies of any permit — mobile connectivity is unreliable at many checkpoints (South Pullu, North Pullu, Lukung, Chumathang), and checkpoint staff generally want a physical copy, not just a phone screen.
- Verify current fees and exact covered locations on the official portal before your trip — this system has been simplified more than once in recent years, and older blog posts referencing the traditional "ILP" process by name are often describing an outdated version of the current fee-based system.
A 10-Day Itinerary
Days 1-2: Leh — Acclimatization
As covered above, treat these two days as genuine rest, not a missed sightseeing opportunity — this is what makes the rest of the trip both safer and more enjoyable. Once you're feeling normal (no headache, no shortness of breath at rest), a gentle walk through Leh Market and a visit to Leh Palace, a 17th-century royal residence with a genuinely good view over the town, are both low-exertion enough to count as easing back into activity rather than pushing too hard too soon.
Day 3: Leh Monasteries
Shanti Stupa, a white-domed Buddhist monument on a hilltop above Leh, offers sweeping views over the town and surrounding mountains — reachable by a manageable set of stairs or a short drive. Thiksey Monastery, built in a style closely resembling Tibet's Potala Palace, and Hemis Monastery, the largest and wealthiest monastery in Ladakh (and host to the well-known Hemis Festival, typically in June or July), are both active, functioning monasteries worth visiting with genuine respect for ongoing religious practice, not purely as photo stops.
Days 4-5: Nubra Valley
The drive from Leh to Nubra Valley crosses Khardung La, historically marketed as the world's highest motorable pass (a claim that's genuinely disputed depending on measurement methods, but it's unquestionably very high, at roughly 5,359 meters) — stop briefly for photos, but don't linger long at this altitude, especially if you're not feeling fully acclimatized. Nubra Valley itself sits at a considerably lower elevation than the pass, which is part of why the drive down feels like real relief. Diskit Monastery, with a large Maitreya Buddha statue overlooking the valley, and the sand dunes near Hunder — genuinely unusual to see set against snow-capped mountains, with double-humped Bactrian camels available for rides — are the valley's signature stops. Turtuk, a village close to the Line of Control that only opened to tourists in 2010, offers a genuinely different Balti culture and architecture from the rest of Ladakh, worth the extra drive if time allows.
Days 6-7: Pangong Tso
The drive to Pangong Tso crosses Chang La, another high pass, before descending to the lake itself — a genuinely striking sight, with the water shifting between shades of blue and turquoise depending on light and time of day, and roughly two-thirds of the lake actually extending into Chinese-controlled territory beyond the visible Indian shoreline. An overnight stay in a lakeside camp is the standard way to see both sunset and sunrise over the water, which look genuinely different from each other. Given the altitude here (over 4,200 meters) and the fact that this typically comes after Khardung La and Nubra, keep monitoring how you're feeling rather than assuming you're automatically acclimatized just because you've already been at altitude for several days.
Day 8: Return to Leh
The drive back to Leh allows for a slower pace and any stops missed earlier — Alchi Monastery, known for some of the oldest surviving wall paintings in Ladakh, is a worthwhile detour if your route and energy allow.
Days 9-10: Leh and Departure
Use the final days for local markets — Ladakhi handicrafts, pashmina, and Tibetan Buddhist artifacts are all worth seeking out from local artisans — and a slower pace before departure from Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport.
Ladakhi Cuisine
- Thukpa — a noodle soup, genuinely warming and practical given Ladakh's cold climate
- Momos — steamed or fried dumplings, reflecting the region's strong Tibetan culinary influence
- Butter Tea (Gur Gur Cha) — a traditional salted, butter-based tea, an acquired taste for many first-time visitors but worth trying at least once as a genuinely local specialty
- Skyu — a traditional pasta-and-vegetable stew, a genuine Ladakhi staple beyond the more internationally familiar Tibetan dishes
Travel Tips
- Altitude, again: This is worth repeating — respect the acclimatization schedule, watch for symptoms, and don't treat the itinerary as fixed if your body is telling you otherwise.
- Permits: Sort online fees/permits before arriving in Leh where possible and carry physical copies.
- Connectivity: Mobile networks (particularly for non-local SIM cards) are unreliable or unavailable in many parts of Ladakh — download offline maps and inform someone of your general itinerary before heading into remote areas.
- Fuel and supplies: Petrol stations are sparse outside Leh — fill up before heading to Nubra or Pangong rather than assuming you'll find a station en route.
- Cultural etiquette: Modest dress and respectful, quiet behavior are expected at monasteries; ask before photographing monks or religious ceremonies.
- Packing: Warm layers matter even in summer, given the elevation — nights get genuinely cold regardless of daytime temperatures.
Ladakh's combination of genuinely extreme, otherworldly landscape and deep Tibetan Buddhist culture makes it one of the most distinctive trips available anywhere in India — but it's also one where taking the altitude seriously, not just the sightseeing, is what actually determines whether the trip goes well.
Have a correction or update for this guide? Email me at dscreationconnect@gmail.com
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