Experiences
Days worth planning a trip around
Prayers at a gompa at 7 am, a walk to a high lake, an evening in a family kitchen. Each one with its duration, best time and what it really costs.
Browse by kind or by hive. Every experience can be added to any trip in any tier: tell us which ones you want and we build the days around them.
By hive
A few from each valley
One experience from each of the places our trips stop at most. Every hive page has the full list.
Kashmir
Photo: Suhail Skindar Sofi · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Dawn shikara to Dal's vegetable market
Before sunrise, farmers from Dal's floating gardens paddle their produce to a gathering point near Rainawari …
Photo: Nandanupadhyay · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons
Betaab Valley and Chandanwari by union taxi
Follow the East Lidder upstream from Pahalgam to Betaab Valley and the roadhead at Chandanwari, the start of …
Photo: Arup1981 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Gondola to the Apharwat ridge
The Gulmarg Gondola climbs in two phases from the meadow to Kongdori and then to the Apharwat ridge close to …
Photo: Mike Prince from Bangalore, India · CC BY 2.0 · Commons
Aru to Lidderwat along the stream
A long but steady walk of about 10 km each way leads from Aru village through fir forest and meadow to Lidder…
Ladakh
Photo: KennyOMG · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Leh old town and palace morning walk
A slow walk from Main Bazaar through the mud-brick lanes of the old town to Leh Palace, finishing on the pala…
Photo: KennyOMG · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Diskit Monastery and its giant Maitreya
The oldest and largest monastery in Nubra, founded in the 14th century on a ridge above the Shyok, and the 32…
Photo: Prof Ranga Sai · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Alchi's painted temples with a local guide
Visit the Dukhang and Sumtsek at Alchi, whose paintings in a Kashmiri style are among the oldest surviving in…
Photo: Apthomas1 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Sunrise on the shore at Spangmik
Watch first light move across Pangong from the gravel shore below Spangmik, as the lake turns from grey to de…
Himachal
Photo: Reflectionsbyprajakta · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Hadimba temple and Old Manali on foot
A morning loop from the Mall up to the 1553 Hadimba temple in its cedar grove, then across the Manalsu stream…
Photo: NikkSingh · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Ride the Kalka–Shimla toy train
A UNESCO-listed narrow-gauge line from Kalka at about 650 m to Shimla at 2,076 m, with 102 tunnels, arched st…
Photo: Sumita Roy Dutta · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Sunrise over the Kinnaur Kailash range
Wake before dawn and watch first light reach the Kinnaur Kailash range across the Sutlej, its summit around 6…
Photo: Pratishkhedekar · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Naggar Castle and the Jagatipatt shrine
Explore the timber-and-stone fort of the Kullu rajas, now an HPTDC hotel. See kath-kuni walls up close, the c…
Spiti & Lahaul
Photo: Nrr1729 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Old Kaza and Sakya Tangyud morning walk
An easy first-morning walk through the mud-walled lanes of Kaza Khas to the Sakya Tangyud monastery, perfect …
Photo: Sumita Roy Dutta · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Nako's 11th-century temple halls
Step into the dim halls of Nako's temple complex, founded in 1025 CE and named for the translator Rinchen Zan…
Photo: Arup1981 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
The thousand-year-old halls of Tabo
Walk through the mud-walled temples of Tabo, founded in 996 CE, to see painted walls and clay deities that ha…
Photo: Adarsh Patel · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Morning walk around Chandratal
Walk from the camps to the lake and around its shore at sunrise, when the water is still and the crescent ref…
Garhwal
Photo: Bhuvi Uniyal · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Evening Ganga aarti at Triveni Ghat
Every evening at sunset, priests at Triveni Ghat swing brass lamps over the Ganga while bells and chants fill…
Photo: Vaibhav 369 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Learn to ski on the Auli slopes
Auli's main slope, with a chairlift and ski lift, is where most Indians learn to ski. Take a day lesson with …
Photo: Anubha khare · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Tapt Kund dip and Badrinath darshan
Bathe in the hot springs of Tapt Kund, then join the queue for darshan of the black stone Badrinarayan image …
Photo: AjitK332 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Sunrise climb to Tungnath and Chandrashila
A pre-dawn climb on the paved path from Chopta to Tungnath temple, then the steep last 1.5 km to Chandrashila…
Kumaon
Photo: Alexkom000 · CC BY 4.0 · Commons
Kasar Devi and the Crank's Ridge walk
Climb to the Kasar Devi temple, where Swami Vivekananda meditated in the 1890s, then walk the pine ridge beyo…
Photo: SudiptoDutta · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons
Sunrise walk to Zero Point
Walk 2 km through dark oak forest to the watchtower at Zero Point, about 2,400 m, and watch the sun light the…
Photo: Esha.haldar0310 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Dawn birding walk around Sattal
Sattal's mix of oak forest, pine, streams and small lakes draws a long list of Himalayan birds within an easy…
Photo: Incorelabs · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
A dawn row to the Naina Devi temple
Start before the town wakes: a hand-rowed boat from Tallital across the still lake, the ridges lit from the e…
Nepal
Photo: Nabin K. Sapkota · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Dawn kora at Swayambhunath
Climb the eastern stairway to Swayambhunath at first light and walk the circuit with the morning pilgrims. Yo…
Photo: Gaurav Dhwaj Khadka · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Sunrise over Machapuchare from Sarangkot
Drive or walk up to the Sarangkot ridge before dawn and watch the sun hit Machapuchare, Annapurna South and D…
Photo: Bijay Chaurasia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Bandipur bazaar and its Newar houses
Walk the car-free main street of Bandipur at dusk, reading the story of a trading town in its brick and timbe…
Photo: Super Trekkers · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Namche's Saturday market
See how the Khumbu shops for the week: porters and traders from lower valleys lay out rice, vegetables, eggs,…
Darjeeling & Kalimpong
Photo: Souviksen · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Toy train joy ride to Ghum and Batasia Loop
A 2-hour round trip on the 2 ft gauge Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, climbing from Darjeeling to Ghum station …
Photo: Pinakpani · CC BY 4.0 · Commons
Kurseong station, DHR museum and bazaar walk
Walk the heart of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in its headquarters town: the dead-end station with its on…
Photo: Sumit Surai · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Kalimpong cactus and orchid nursery visit
Tour two or three of Kalimpong's family-run nurseries, which grow cacti, succulents, orchids, gladioli and bu…
Photo: Sandipanjalpaiguri · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Neora Valley National Park forest day
Enter Neora Valley National Park from Lava with a forest permit and guide for a day in one of eastern India's…
Sikkim
Photo: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
An evening on MG Marg and in Lal Bazaar
Walk Gangtok's car-free main street at dusk, then take the stairways down to Lal Bazaar for chhurpi, fermente…
Photo: Amitabha Gupta · CC BY 4.0 · Commons
Morning at Lachung monastery
Walk or drive up to the village monastery above the Lachung Chu before your Yumthang trip or on a spare morni…
Photo: Amitabha Gupta · CC BY 4.0 · Commons
Pemayangtse and its wooden heaven
Visit Pemayangtse, founded in 1705 by Lhatsun Chempo and one of Sikkim's most important monasteries. Climb to…
Photo: Prof Ranga Sai · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Lachen monastery above the village
Climb to the village monastery above Lachen, a Nyingma gompa at the heart of Lachenpa religious life, with pa…
Bhutan
Photo: Original: Nina R from Africa Derivative work: … · CC BY 2.0 · Commons
Hike to Taktsang, the Tiger's Nest
The classic Bhutan day: a steady climb of about 500 m from the car park to the cafeteria viewpoint, then on t…
Photo: L Shyamal · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons
Punakha Dzong and the rivers that meet below it
Cross the cantilever bridge over the Mo Chhu, walk through the three courtyards of Bhutan's most photographed…
Photo: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Tashichho Dzong at flag-lowering time
See the seat of Bhutan's government and the summer home of its monk body in the hour after offices shut, when…
Photo: Sumeetmoghe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Dawn crane watching on the Phobjikha marsh
Watch black-necked cranes leave their night roost and spread across the marsh to feed, calling as they go. St…
Arunachal
Photo: Rohit Sharma · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Dirang Dzong village and the hot springs
Walk the lanes of an old stone Monpa settlement on a rise above the river, then go down to the hot springs wh…
Photo: Rumelade · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Morning prayers at Tawang Monastery
Join the early assembly at India's largest Buddhist monastery, when young monks chant in the prayer hall and …
Photo: Harpreet 712 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Arunachal's orchids at the Tipi centre
A short stop on the Bomdila road to see Arunachal's orchids in the glasshouses and beds of the state's orchid…
Photo: Rohit Sharma · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Evening prayers at Bomdila's upper gompa
Climb above the market to Bomdila's large Tibetan-style monastery as the light softens, listen to evening cha…