Ladhak With Hemis & Phyang Festivals

Arrival at Delhi. Welcome at the airport and transfer to hotel. Overnight at hotel

Very early morning transfer to airport to catch flight for Leh. Arrival at Leh and transfer to Hotel. Complete day for acclimatization. In the evening short walk around Leh bazaar. Overnight stay at hotel.

Morning Sightseeing of Stok Palace, Stok Monastery or Stok Gompa or Palace is a Buddhist monastery .It was founded by Lama Lhawang Lotus in the 14th Century and has a notable library including all 108 volumes of the Kangyur. After Lunch visit to Spituk Monastery, also better as Spituk Gompa or Pethup Gompa, is a Buddhist monastery. The site of Spituk was blessed by the Arhat Nyimagung. It was founded by Od-de, the elder brother of Lha Lama Changchub OD when he came to Maryul in the 11th Century. He introduced the monastic community. & Phyang Monastery. Overnight at hotel in Leh.

Breakfast at the hotel later visit Thiksay Gompa or Thiksay Monastery is a gompa (monastery) affiliated with the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located on top of a hill approximately 19 kilometres east of Lehin Ladakh.The monastery is located at an altitude of 3,600 metres (11,800 ft) in the Indus Valley. It is a twelve-story complex and houses many items of Buddhist art such as stupas, statues, thangkas, wall paintings and swords. it contains a 15 metres (49 ft) high statue of Maitreya, the largest such statue in Ladakh, covering two stories of the building., Hemis Monastry is the wealthiest monastery in India and famous for its rich collection of ancient remnants like the statue of Buddha made of copper, stupas made of gold and silver. Monastery also has sacred Thangkas, murals and various artifacts.
The Tibetan Buddhist monastery belongs to the Drukpa Lineage or the Dragon Order of Mahayana Buddhism. Gyalwang Drukpa, Tsangpa Gyare Yeshe Dorje in founded Drukpa Linegae 13th century. King Sengge Namgyal re-established it in the 17th century. And Shey gompa. The Shey Monastery structures located on a hillock in Shey, 15 kilometres to the south of Leh Shey was the summer capital of Ladakh in the past. The palace, was built first in 1655, near Shey village, by the king of Ladakh, Deldan Namgyal, also known as Lhachen Palgyigon. It was used as a summer retreat by the kings of Ladakh. Overnight at hotel in Leh.

Breakfast at hotel. Later drive to Alchi with packed lunch, enroute visit, Hall of Fame, Magnetic Hill, Gurudwara Patthar Sahib, confluence of Zanskar and Indus rivers. Arrive at Alchi and visit Alchi Monastery. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

Day four of your Ladakh tour takes you by road from Alchi to Lamayuru. Lamayuru is famous for its ancient monastery and the surrounding landscape which closely resembles the surface of moon. This is where Ladakh gets its name The Moonland. Later visit the Rizong monastery and Chulichan nunnery and drive back to Leh. Dinner and overnight at hotel in Leh.

HEMIS FESTIVAL -:       

Hemis Gompa, the largest and richest Buddhist monastery in Ladakh plays host to the popular yearly festival day called Hemis Festival. The day has been declared as the state holiday. This 2-day festival is celebrated on the 10th day of the Tibetan lunar month and remembered as the birth of Padmasambhava, the founder of Tibetan Buddhism. During the festival, the locals get dressed-up in traditional clothes, where men wear cummerbunds and women wear vibrant headgears and loads of jewelry. The Lamas perform sacred masked dance, known as Chaam while they are accompanied by musical drums, long horns and cymbals. This is an extremely well-known festival. The most mysterious form of celebration are the mystic mask dances. The Mask Dances of Ladakh are referred collectively as chams Performance. Chams performance is a fundamental a part of Tantric tradition. Chams are performed only in the monasteries that practice Vajrayana teachings of Tantric Buddhism.

 PHYANG FESTIVAL -:     

Phyang Festival is a monastic festival has sacred dance – dramas and the main attraction is the pilgrimages to the huge Thangka of Skyabje Jigten Gombo which is kept on exhibition during the two day festival.

The annual Tse-dup festival takes place at the Phyang Gompa, situated on a hill overlooking the Phyang village. The sacred dance-drama of the resident monks culminates with ritual burning of the votive offerings. On the occasion of this auspicious event, the huge antique thanka painting of Skyabje Jigten Gombo, the founder of the Dri-gung-pa monastic order, is exhibited for the public every 3rd year. Phyang Gompa is one of the best maintained gompas in Ladakh and lies only 17 kilometers west of Leh.

Dressed in colourful bright brocades with vibrantly decorated and richly adorned paper-mache masks (some extending over 1 metre in height) the masked dancers simulate combat between good spirits and evil demons to the cacophony of drums, cymbals and long horns.

The crowd unites in uproarious song and dance when the dough idol of evil is destroyed by the leader of black hat dancers signifying that good has prevailed.

After breakfast at hotel start your drive to Nubra Valley. En-route stop at Khardung la Pass, the highest motorable road in the world at 5600 meters. The views from the top of the pass are amazing. After spending some time continue drive on to Nubra Valley. On arrival check-in at the Tents. In the afternoon visit Diskit Monastery and walk around the town of Diskit. Dinner and overnight at the tents.

Breakfast at the hotel. Later visit the White Sand Dunes at Hunder. You can enjoy a camel ride on the Dunes. Visit Hunder and Diskit monasteries. In the Evening trek to Samstaling Monastery.

Nubra Valley Known for its orchards, scenic vistas, Bactrian camels and monasteries. Nubra Valley is known as the Orchard of Ladakh and was originally called Ldumra which meant the valley of flowers. Surrounded by snowcapped Himalayan ranges, Nubra valley lies sandwiched between Tibet and Kashmir. The view of the valley is picturesque and breathtaking. During winter, the whole valley looks like landscape of the moon (reason for calling Moon land) and in summer full of greenery.

Dinner and overnight at the tents.

After breakfast visit Sumoor and Panamic hot sulphur springs. You can also take a ride on double humped Camel (at your own cost). After lunch drive back to Leh.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.