Day 1: Chandigarh / Delhi → Shimla
Morning pickup from Chandigarh or Delhi. Reach Shimla by late afternoon. Check in near Mall Road. Evening Mall Road walk, Christ Church, and an early dinner. Rest properly, the next week is mountain roads. Night stay: Shimla (2,200 m)
Day 2: Shimla → Sarahan
Easy 4 hr drive with a lunch break. Reach Sarahan by afternoon. Visit the Bhimakali Temple, one of the most striking wooden temples in the Himalayas. Free evening at the hotel. Night stay: Sarahan (2,100 m)
Day 3: Sarahan → Sangla → Chitkul → Kalpa
Drive into Kinnaur through the Sangla Valley. Long lunch at Chitkul, India’s last village before the Tibet border, with its meadows, wooden houses and the Baspa River. Continue to Kalpa by evening. Night stay: Kalpa (2,960 m)
Day 4: Kalpa Rest and Explore Day (Base Stay)
Full day at the base, no packing or unpacking. Morning for the Kinner Kailash sunrise from the hotel itself, which stays with you long after the trip. Short drive to Roghi Village and Suicide Point viewpoint. Afternoon free for orchard walks and cafes. Night stay: Kalpa (2,960 m)
Day 5: Kalpa → Nako → Tabo
4 hr drive across the Kinnaur to Spiti crossover. Lunch break at Nako Lake, flat and easy to walk around. Continue to Tabo by afternoon. Evening visit to the 1,000 year old Tabo Monastery and the ancient meditation caves. Night stay: Tabo (3,280 m)
Day 6: Tabo Rest and Explore Day (Base Stay)
Deliberate rest day at the base. Late breakfast, gentle local walks, a proper visit to the monastery and the bakery everyone recommends in Tabo. Afternoon free for quiet time, this is the day your body thanks you for later at Kunzum. Night stay: Tabo (3,280 m)
Day 7: Tabo → Dhankar → Kaza
Morning drive to Dhankar, short walk to the old monastery and the Spiti–Pin river confluence viewpoint. Continue to Kaza by late afternoon. Evening in the Kaza market, bakeries, and the local Sakya monastery for sunset. Night stay: Kaza (3,650 m)
Day 8: Kaza Day Trip to Langza, Hikkim and Komic
Morning at Langza for the Buddha statue and the fossil hunt in the fields. Postcard home from Hikkim, the world’s highest post office. Short visit to Komic, one of the highest villages in the world connected by motorable road. Back to Kaza by afternoon. Night stay: Kaza (3,650 m)
Day 9: Kaza Day Trip to Key, Kibber, Chicham and Pin Valley
Morning at Key Monastery, the clifftop monastery on every Spiti poster. Short drive to Kibber village and the Chicham Bridge, Asia’s highest suspension bridge. Afternoon drive into Pin Valley up to Mudh village, a completely different landscape from the rest of Spiti. Back to Kaza. Night stay: Kaza (3,650 m)
Day 10: Buffer Day in Kaza
A full buffer day kept empty on purpose. If weather shifts, you rest. If a road opens late, you wait without panic. If everyone is feeling great, we use this day for a deeper Pin Valley visit, or a quiet monastery morning, or simply a do nothing day with coffee and a book. This buffer is why the circuit feels peaceful and not like a checklist. Night stay: Kaza (3,650 m)
Day 11: Kaza → Kunzum Pass → Chandratal
Morning start across Losar and Kunzum Pass (4,590 m). Proper photo and chai stop at the top. Continue down to the Chandratal base, with camp check in by afternoon. Short easy walk to the lake itself for sunset. Dinner at camp, early night under the stars. By this point you have been above 3,000 m for a week, so Chandratal’s altitude is no longer a surprise to your body. Night stay: Chandratal base camp (4,200 m)
Day 12: Chandratal → Manali → Chandigarh / Delhi Drop
Sunrise at the lake, early breakfast, and descent to Manali via Batal and Gramphu. Reach Manali by afternoon. Continue to Chandigarh by night, or Delhi by next morning if Delhi drop is selected. For those who prefer a gentler Day 12, we add a Manali overnight and do the drop on Day 13 as an add on.
