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 breat...