India
Spiti Valley
The middle land — cold desert and cliff monasteries
Why go
Spiti is what Ladakh was twenty years ago — harder to reach, barely developed, and all the more rewarding for it. The road in from Shimla climbs slowly enough to acclimatise; from Kaza you visit Key Monastery stacked on its conical hill, Kibber and Langza with their fossils and Buddha statue, and Hikkim, home of the world's highest post office. Add the camp beside Chandratal lake and the drop back down to Manali over the Kunzum Pass. Mid-June to September only; this is a summer trip.
Trip highlights
- Key, Dhankar and Tabo monasteries
- Kibber, Langza, Komic and Hikkim villages
- Camping beside Chandratal lake
- The Shimla–Spiti–Manali circuit over Kunzum La
Ways to travel Spiti Valley
The full circuit
In gently from Shimla via Kalpa, through Kaza and the villages, out to Manali over Kunzum Pass and Chandratal.
Monastery focus
A slower loop of the Kaza-area gompas timed for a masked-dance festival, with a homestay night or two.
Winter Spiti
A hard-core January trip for snow leopard tracking in the Kibber–Kaza area with expert spotters.
Spiti Valley itineraries to start from
Ready-made routes you can tweak — change hotels, add nights, combine with another destination.
Let's build your Spiti Valley trip
Send us a rough idea — a destination, a month, a budget — and we'll come back with a plan you can actually picture yourself on.