Ladakh Travel

State: Jammu and Kashmir
Location: Cradled by the Karakom and Great Himalayan ranges at 11,000 ft in Jammu and Kashmir.
Area: 45110sq km
Language: Boti is the mostly spoken language apart from English and Hindi(official language). Other local languages are Balti, Shina, Brokshat and Changshat.

Introduction:
Ladakh is a land full of unparalleled beauty of nature. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in India and nestled between two of the world's greatest mountain ranges, the great Himalayan and the Karakorom range. Perched at an altitudes ranging from about 9, 000ft (2750 m) at Kargil to 25, 170ft (7,652m) at Saser Kangri in Karakoram, Ladakh is known as 'land of mountain passes'.

Divided into two districts namely Kargil and Leh, Ladakh region is located in eastern part of Jammu and Kashmir. Leh, the largest town of Ladakh region has numerous Gompas (monasteries), that are the centre of religious and spiritual teachings of Buddhism. Apart from Buddhist community, Leh district is also home to 15 percent of Muslim population.

Ladakh is a high altitude desert due to which the people of this region suffers from excessive shortage of water. The climate of Ladakh has made it a unique region to live. It is the only region in the entire world where a man can suffer from both sunstroke and frostbite at a same time.

Places To Visit:
Apart from its unmatched natural beauty, Ladakh has some more alluring things to offer its guests. Some of the most sought after tourist spots of Ladakh are

Leh Palace: Leh palace is a imposing building of 9 storey. It was constructed by the Sengge Namgyal in the starting years of 17 century A.D. Till 1940, it was the residence of royal family of Leh.

Stok Palace Museum: This museum is a part of the Stok Palace, which is open to tourists from 7a.m to 7 p.m every day. It houses some very beautiful artifacts of the royal family that till stays in the Stok Palace

Shanti Stupa: As the name suggests, Shanti Stupa was created for World Peace by Japanese people. It is perched atop a hill top at Changspa and was inaugurated by His Holiness Dalai Lama in 1985. The artistry design of this monument attract thousands of visitors.

Spituk Monastery: Founded by Old-Ide in 11th century, Spituk monastery is 7km (4.34 miles) to the southwest of Leh. It was the first Gelupa(Yellow Hat)monastery which starts the monastery tradition in the region.

Namgyal Monastery: Built by King Tashi Namgyal after the reunification of lower and upper Ladakh.

Beside there are some more important monasteries such as Tsemo gompa, Sankar Gompa, Thiksey Monastery, Hemis monastery etc.

Adventure Activities To Do:
Thanks to the unusual topographical features, of late Ladakh region has emerged as one of the hottest destination for adventure sports in India. To attract more number of travellers to this region, the Jammu and Kashmir has started some measures to promote various kinds of exciting adventure sports in Ladakh. Some of the popular sports of Ladakh are

Trekking: Ladakh has numerous trekking routes such as Markha valley trek, Henaskut to Wanla trek, Lamayuru to Padum trek, Tsomoriri to Kibber trek etc. Trekkers from all over the world comes here to enjoy a trekking expedition.

Mountaineering: Ladakh is region famed for mightiest mountain ranges of world. Mountain ranges like Karakoram, Zanskar and Ladakh ranges attracts mountaineers from around the globe. The Stok Khangri massif is the most famous and easily accessible one.

White-water rafting: Indus river that flows across the northwest to south east is the important site fro river rafting. Some of the famous river rafting routes in Ladakh are Phey-Nemo route, Phey-Saspol route, Kharu-Spituk and Saspol-Khaltsey.

Travelers can also enjoy cycling and jeep safari in this barren mountainous region.

Best Time To Visit:
As Ladakh region is located at a high altitude, so the winter temperature touches as low as minus 30 degrees. Through out the winter season, the temperature remains very chilled. So the best time to visit Ladakh is in summer season. The most ideal time for trekking is June to October.

How To Reach:
By Road: There are two routes that joins Leh to Srinagar and Leh to Manali. From early June to November, the Leh-Srinagar road remains open whereas from mid June to early October, the Leh-Manali road remains open. Regular bus services are there to reach Leh from both Srinagar and Manali.

By Air: The most easy way to reach Ladakh is by air. Indian airlines operates regularly from Delhi to Leh, twice a week from Jammu to Leh, and once in a week from Srinagar. Jet airways also operates daily flights from Leh to Delhi.