Things to Know Before Planning a Trip to Ladakh

Planning a trip to Ladakh is mostly a question of how you get in, because the way you arrive decides how hard the altitude hits you. The Srinagar road gains height over two days with a halt at Kargil, while the Manali road crosses four passes above 15,000 feet in quick succession. The approach is the first decision, because flying in is the fastest way to lose two days to altitude.

This is the short version, written to travel with an itinerary. For the permit position, the acclimatisation guidance and booking windows across the country, the general guide on how to prepare for travelling in India covers all of it.

When to plan a trip to Ladakh

May to September for the roads, and the two roads do not open together.

• Srinagar to Leh. Usually opens first, typically three to six weeks ahead of the Manali road. It crosses Zojila.
• Manali to Leh. Opens later and closes earlier. Four passes above 15,000 feet.
• Both. Cleared by the Border Roads Organisation, with the dates announced each year rather than fixed, and the Leh district administration posting the orders.
• October to April. Roads shut. Leh is reachable by air and the winter trips run then, including the frozen river and the snow leopard valleys.

One change is coming and it is not here yet. The Zojila tunnel achieved its breakthrough on 9 June 2026, is 13.153 km long, and is expected to open to the public in February 2028. It will cut the Zojila crossing from about an hour and a half to fifteen minutes and take the pass out of its usual three-month winter closure. The Sonamarg tunnel below it has been open since January 2025. Neither changes the current season.

How you arrive decides how the altitude hits you

Three ways in, and they are not equivalent for the body. Leh sits at roughly 3,500 metres and the flight from Delhi gains about 3,300 of those in ninety minutes.

• By air. Fastest and hardest. You arrive with no adjustment at all, which is why the first two days are rest days rather than sightseeing days.
• Srinagar road. The gentlest. Height comes over two days with a night at Kargil, which is roughly 2,700 metres.
• Manali road. Quick and high. Four passes above 15,000 feet in close succession, which is harder on the body than the distance suggests.

The published acclimatisation guidance sets the numbers. What it means here is practical. Build the first two days into the itinerary rather than treating them as lost, and do not put Khardung La or Pangong on day two whichever way you came in.

Does Ladakh need a permit

Not from an Indian passport holder, and that includes Nubra, Pangong and Tso Moriri.

• Indian passport. Nothing. The Inner Line Permit was removed in 2021 and replaced by a fee paid online, which is a charge rather than a permission.
• Foreign passport, and an Overseas Citizen of India card counts as one. A Protected Area Permit is still needed for Nubra, Pangong, Tso Moriri, Turtuk, Dha-Hanu, Batalik and Hanle. It goes through a registered agent in Leh and the rules want a group of two or more.
• Why the confusion is everywhere. The Leh requirement was abolished in 2014, reinstated in 2017 and removed again in 2021. The full position, by passport rather than by place, is worth reading once.

Ladakh festivals worth planning around

Two are worth building a trip around and one of them does not fall when you would expect.

• Losar, the new year. Ladakh observes it about two months before the rest of the Tibetan Buddhist world, in December rather than February.
• Hemis Tsechu, in June or July, the largest monastic festival in Ladakh.
• The summer monastery calendar. Most gompas hold their own masked dances, and the dates follow the Tibetan calendar rather than the Gregorian one.
• Winter festivals fall in the months the roads are shut, which is the whole reason they are quiet.

Monastery etiquette in Ladakh

Clockwise, shoes off, and ask before the camera comes out. Everyday etiquette for travellers covers the general version.

• Walk clockwise around a stupa, a mani wall and the inside of a prayer hall.
• Shoes off at the door of a prayer hall. Socks are fine and the floors are cold.
• Ask before photographing a monk, a prayer hall interior or anybody at prayer. Many gompas ban it outright.
• Do not point your feet at an altar or at a person. Sit cross-legged or kneel.
• Do not climb on a mani wall or move its stones.
• A small donation at the prayer hall is normal and is not a ticket.
• At a homestay, the kitchen is the main room of the house rather than a service area.

How long you need in Ladakh

Seven days is the working minimum and ten is the comfortable one, because two of them go to altitude before anything else happens.

• Under five days. Leh and the Indus valley monasteries only. Not enough for Nubra or Pangong.
• Seven days. Two acclimatising, then Nubra or Pangong, then the Sham valley.
• Ten days. Both valleys, Tso Moriri, and time that does not have to be made up.
• Fourteen days or more. Zanskar, or the quieter western villages.

Most of what goes wrong on a Ladakh trip is an altitude problem wearing a schedule problem's clothes. A pass attempted on day two, a lake added because the days were tight, a flight home booked too close to a high night. Our eight-day cultural journey through Ladakh is built around the Indus valley at a pace the altitude allows, and customised tours is where the dates and the approach get settled together.

Also Read

1. Understanding the Land: How Ecology Shapes Local Life
2. Destinations in India: Discovering Places Through Culture, Stories and Everyday Life
3. How Festivals Temporarily Reshape Indian Destinations

Frequently Asked Questions

When do the roads to Ladakh open?

Usually between April and June, with the Srinagar road opening three to six weeks before the Manali road. The Border Roads Organisation clears both and the dates are announced each year rather than fixed. The Leh district administration posts the official orders, which is the thing to check rather than last year's date.

Which route to Leh is easier on the body?

The Srinagar road. It gains height over two days with a night at Kargil at roughly 2,700 metres, so the body has time to adjust. The Manali road crosses four passes above 15,000 feet in quick succession, and flying from Delhi gains about 3,300 metres in ninety minutes.

Which Ladakh areas are restricted for foreign nationals?

Nubra, Pangong, Tso Moriri, Turtuk, Dha-Hanu, Batalik and Hanle. A foreign passport holder, including anyone with an Overseas Citizen of India card, needs a Protected Area Permit for all of them. It goes through a registered agent in Leh and the rules want a group of two or more.

When will the Zojila tunnel open?

February 2028 is the stated target. The 13.153 km tunnel achieved its excavation breakthrough on 9 June 2026 and the remaining work is surfacing, ventilation and electrical. It will cut the Zojila crossing from about ninety minutes to fifteen and remove the pass's usual three-month winter closure.

Can you visit Ladakh in winter?

Yes, by air, and that is the point of a winter trip. The roads shut from around October to April, Leh stays reachable by flight, and the winter itineraries are built around what only happens then. Expect far colder nights and a much shorter list of open places.

Is a week enough for Ladakh?

Just about, and only if the first two days are treated as acclimatising rather than wasted. That leaves five working days, which covers Leh, the Indus valley monasteries and one of either Nubra or Pangong. Fitting both into seven is where itineraries start going wrong.