Day 1-2: Arrive Leh & Acclimatize
Day 1: Fly into Leh. Complete rest for altitude adjustment. Evening stroll in the bazaar — Tibetan turquoise, pashmina shawls, dried apricots. Overnight Leh.
Day 2: Gentle exploration: Leh Palace, the old town’s winding lanes, Shanti Stupa at sunset with meditation. Evening Ladakhi cooking class with a local family. Overnight Leh.
Day 3: Alchi — A Thousand Years of Buddhist Art
Drive west along the Indus to Alchi Monastery, Ladakh’s artistic crown jewel — 11th-century Kashmiri-style murals preserved in extraordinary condition. The Sumtsek temple’s three-story mandala paintings are unlike anything in the Tibetan world. Visit Likir Monastery’s 23-meter gilded Buddha visible for miles. Return via Magnetic Hill and the Indus-Zanskar river confluence. Overnight Leh.
Day 4: Thiksey, Shey & Hemis — The Monastery Circuit
Full exploration of Ladakh’s great gompas. Shey Palace (12m copper Buddha), Thiksey Monastery (miniature Potala, 15m golden Maitreya Buddha, butter tea with monks), Hemis Gompa (richest monastery, extraordinary museum). Overnight Leh.
Day 5: Khardung La to Nubra
Cross Khardung La Pass (5,359m). Descend to Nubra Valley — Bactrian camel ride through dunes, Diskit Monastery’s 32-meter Buddha, sea buckthorn groves. Overnight Nubra camp.
Day 6: Nubra to Pangong Lake
Spectacular drive to Pangong Lake (4,350m via Shyok route). Afternoon arrival — the lake’s impossible blue. Sunset photography, stargazing. Overnight Pangong camp.
Day 7: Pangong Sunrise & Return
Dawn at Pangong — still water, pink-gold mountains. Return to Leh via Chang La. Afternoon at leisure. Farewell dinner. Overnight Leh.
Day 8: Departure
Morning transfer to Leh airport.
