Leh Ladakh Self-Launched Explorer: Monasteries, High Passes & High-Altitude Lakes

Fly into Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport (most travellers connect via Delhi — book a morning flight so you land before the afternoon winds kick up). Take a prepaid taxi to a guesthouse in Changspa or near Main Bazaar (~£3-4). The single most important thing today is doing nothing: Ladakh sits at 3,500m, so drink 3-4 litres of water, skip alcohol and heavy meals, and nap. Wander only as far as Leh Main Bazaar and the lanes of the old town for an hour in the late afternoon. Register your stay at your guesthouse (they handle the required Form C for foreign guests). Book your onward day trips at a local travel desk on Fort Road — ask for shared-jeep seats, which cost a fraction of a private car.

🚌Prepaid airport taxi ~£3-4; everything else on foot

🛏Guesthouse in Changspa or Main Bazaar, Leh (twin/dorm, ~£10-16)

• →Airport transfer to Changspa guesthouse
• →Gentle walk through Leh Main Bazaar and Old Town
• →Book shared jeep seats for Indus Valley day trip

Join a shared jeep or the local morning bus towards Hemis and hop off at each of the three big sites — this is the classic 'Indus Valley day excursion' without a private guide. Start at Shey Palace (summer residence of the Ladakhi kings), then Thiksey Monastery, where the 15m Maitreya Buddha fills a three-storey hall — time your visit for the 6am or 7am morning prayers if you can. Finish at Hemis, Ladakh's largest and wealthiest monastery, home to a superb museum. Entry is roughly £2-3 per monastery. Get back to Leh by late afternoon and rest — you're still acclimatising.

🚌Shared jeep seats or local bus to Hemis, ~£6-9 for the day

🛏Guesthouse in Leh (~£10-16)

• →Shey Palace
• →Thiksey Monastery and Maitreya Buddha
• →Hemis Monastery and museum
• →Shared jeep / local bus along the Indus Valley

Cross Khardung La (5,359m) on a shared jeep — book seats the day before at a Fort Road travel desk, or team up with other travellers at your guesthouse to split a private jeep (~£45-60 per vehicle for the day). The pass itself is a 20-minute photo stop, not a hike — altitude here is no joke. Descend to Nubra, check into a basic guesthouse in Hunder or Diskit, then visit Diskit Monastery and its giant Maitreya statue, and walk the white sand dunes at Hunder where the double-humped Bactrian camels graze. The camel ride is ~£5-7 if you want it — you can arrange it directly at the dunes.

🚌Shared/private jeep from Leh over Khardung La, ~£20-30 per person

🛏Guesthouse in Hunder or Diskit (~£12-18)

• →Khardung La pass (5,359m)
• →Diskit Monastery and Maitreya statue
• →Hunder sand dunes
• →Optional Bactrian camel ride (~£5-7)

Return over Khardung La to Leh on the same shared jeep arrangement. Afternoon is free: this is your shopping window for pashmina shawls, Ladakhi wooden handicrafts and Tibetan silver in the Main Bazaar and Moti Market — haggle politely and expect to pay 40-60% of the opening price. If you have energy, walk up to Leh Palace and the Shanti Stupa for sunset (both free or a couple of pounds). Sort out cash today: there are ATMs in Leh but none on the lake circuit.

🚌Shared jeep back to Leh, ~£20-30 per person

🛏Guesthouse in Leh (~£10-16)

• →Return over Khardung La
• →Leh Main Bazaar and Moti Market shopping
• →Leh Palace and Shanti Stupa at sunset
• →Withdraw cash for the remote legs

A long but spectacular drive over Chang La (5,360m) through Durbuk and Tangtse to Pangong Tso. There's no usable public bus for this, so share a jeep — travel desks in Leh routinely put solo travellers together, ~£35-45 per person for the leg. Stay in Spangmik or Man village in a basic guesthouse or seasonal camp. Afternoon and evening on the lakeshore: the colour shift from grey-blue to cobalt as the sun moves is the whole point. Electricity is typically limited to a few evening hours and heating is minimal — bring thermals and a sleeping bag liner, especially in April/May or October.

🚌Shared jeep Leh–Pangong, ~£35-45 per person

🛏Basic guesthouse or seasonal camp at Spangmik/Man (~£15-22)

• →Chang La pass
• →Durbuk and Tangtse villages
• →Pangong Tso lakeshore at sunset

The longest driving day of the trip — leave early. Head via Mahe Bridge and stop at the Chumathang hot springs (a shallow riverside pool, free, great for stiff legs). Carry your Inner Line Permit paperwork: foreign visitors need a Protected Area Permit for the Tso Moriri/Nubra/Pangong areas, arranged in Leh for ~£10-15 via a travel agent (bring passport copies and photos). Arrive at Korzok village on the shore of Tso Moriri by late afternoon. This is Changpa nomadic country — very remote, very basic, and utterly worth it.

🚌Shared jeep Pangong–Tso Moriri, ~£35-45 per person

🛏Basic guesthouse or homestay in Korzok (~£15-20)

• →Chumathang hot springs
• →Mahe Bridge crossing
• →Tso Moriri lakeshore at Korzok
• →Changpa nomadic settlements

Return westward, stopping at the Tso Kar salt lake and its wetland (good for black-necked cranes and bar-headed geese if you have binoculars), the small monastery at Thukje, the Puga geothermal springs where sulphur steam rises from the valley floor, and the Rebo nomad tents near Polo Kongka La — some families sell butter tea and curd, a genuinely lovely stop. Roll into Leh by evening and treat yourself to a proper meal: Tibetan thenthuk or a Ladakhi thali at a Main Bazaar spot for ~£4-6.

🚌Shared jeep Tso Moriri–Leh, ~£30-40 per person

🛏Guesthouse in Leh (~£10-16)

• →Tso Kar Lake and wetland
• →Thukje Monastery
• →Puga geothermal springs
• →Rebo nomadic tents at Polo Kongka La

Take a local bus or shared taxi west from Leh along the Srinagar road to Likir, home to a large open-air Maitreya Buddha and a working monastery school, then continue to Alchi — the highlight, with 11th-century Kashmiri-style murals in the three-storey Choskor temple that have survived nearly a thousand years (no photography inside; entry ~£2-3). Base yourself at Uleytokpo or Alchi in a village guesthouse or small camp by the river. Local buses on this road are cheap (~£1-2) and frequent in the morning.

🚌Local bus Leh–Likir–Alchi, ~£2-4

🛏Guesthouse or camp at Uleytokpo/Alchi (~£12-18)

• →Likir Monastery and Maitreya statue
• →Alchi Choskor temple and 1,000-year-old murals
• →River-side walk at Uleytokpo

Day trip deeper into the west valley. Lamayuru (Yung Drung) is Ladakh's oldest gompa, perched above a lunar-looking eroded landscape, and worth a slow hour. Rizong Monastery sits in a dramatic gorge and follows strict monastic discipline — quiet, contemplative, few visitors. Chulichan is the small nunnery nearby, where a modest donation is welcome. Hitch a lift on the morning bus towards Kargil and get off at the Lamayuru turn, or split a shared taxi with your guesthouse neighbours (~£25-35 per vehicle for the day).

🚌Shared taxi / local bus west valley, ~£8-12 per person

🛏Guesthouse or camp at Uleytokpo/Alchi (~£12-18)

• →Lamayuru Monastery
• →Rizong Monastery
• →Chulichan Nunnery
• →Moonland landscape viewpoint

Bus back to Leh in the morning. Spend the afternoon at the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies or the Leh old town heritage walk (self-guided, free), or simply sit in a Changspa café garden and let your lungs catch up. Final shopping stop in the bazaars. Confirm your airport taxi for tomorrow and, if you're flying to Delhi, note that early flights are far more reliable than afternoon ones due to wind and mountain weather.

🚌Local bus back to Leh, ~£1-2

🛏Guesthouse in Leh (~£10-16)

• →Leh Old Town heritage walk
• →Final bazaar shopping
• →Option: Central Institute of Buddhist Studies
• →Confirm airport transfer

Prepaid taxi to the airport and fly out — typically to Delhi, where onward international connections depart. If your flight is cancelled due to weather (it happens), most guesthouses will happily hold your room for another night, and airlines rebook you onto the next service. Keep one buffer day in your plans if you can afford it.

🚌Prepaid taxi to Leh airport ~£3-4

🛏None (departure day)

• →Airport transfer and departure