Leh
Bearing a passing similarity to the Potala Palace in Lhasa (Tibet), this nine-storey dun-coloured edifice is Leh's dominant structure and architectural…
Must-see attractions in Ladakh
Ladakh
Glorious Thiksey Gompa is one of Ladakh’s biggest and most recognisable monasteries, photogenically cascading down a raised rocky promontory. At its heart…
Ladakh
The original murals and statues within these four outwardly modest 11th-century temples are considered the crowning glory of Ladakh’s Indo-Tibetan art…
Ladakh
Above Wanla village, tiny medieval Wanla Gompa is dramatically perched on a towering knife-edge ridge flanked by two shattered tower remnants of a now…
Leh
Behind Leh’s central Jamia Masjid, winding alleys and stairways burrow between and beneath a series of old mud-brick Ladakhi houses and eroded chortens…
Nubra Valley
Directly above Old Diskit, a 2km spaghetti of hairpins winds up to this photogenic monastery complex, much of which dates to between the 14th and 17th…
Ladakh
Lamayuru's gompa is one of the most photogenic Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh. Behind glass within the gompa’s main prayer hall is a tiny cave-niche in…
Leh
Founded in the late 14th century as See-Thub (Exemplary) Monastery, impressive Spituk Gompa surveys the Sengye Tsangpo (Indus) Valley, with surreal views…
Leh
Dominating Leh from a high, rocky ridge, this gigantic white spired pudding of a stupa was built between 1983 and 1991 by Japanese monks to promote world…
Ladakh
Spectacularly viewed across barley fields and buckthorn bushes, Chemrey village is dominated by the beautifully proportioned Thekchhok Gompa covering a…
Ladakh
Restored by the army in the late 1990s, this tiny white cube of a temple is said to date back to the time of the 'Great Translator' Ringchen Zangpo (10th…
Ladakh
Predating Hemis Monastery by several centuries, Gotsang is a hillside hermitage with two attractive main temple buildings. The main shrine is the mountain…
Leh
This arts-media trust occupies an adjoining pair of 17th-century Ladakhi mansions, one of which was the home of the munshi (king's secretary) and thus one…
Leh
Visible from virtually everywhere in Leh, 16th-century Tsemo (Victory) Fort is a defining landmark that crowns the top of Palace Ridge, though there's…
Ladakh
The trio of millennium-old temple chambers at Manggyu share many of the features that you'll see at the world-famous Choskhor temple complex at Alchi but…
Ladakh
This stately three-storey edifice was built in 1820 by King Tsepal Namgyal – a good investment, it turned out, since 14 years later his larger main palace…
Nubra Valley
The Yabgo rajas of Chorbat-Baltistan trace their dynasty back to Central Asia, and have had a palace in Turtuk from at least the 15th century. What…
Ladakh
Rising above Basgo village on a surreal collection of eroded earthen pinnacles are the photogenic stubs of a once-great palace dating from when Basgo was…
Nubra Valley
At 5602m, Khardung La is claimed (and disputed) to be the world’s highest motorable pass. A plethora of prayer flags festoons a flanking chaos of rocks…
Ladakh
This expansive, 17th-century monastery is the spiritual centre of Ladakh’s Drukpa Buddhists; it was the fifth Gyaling Drukpa who founded Hemis after…
Nubra Valley
Remote 600-year-old Ensa Monastery, 35km north of Sumur on the west bank of the Nubra, feels like it's close to the end of the world. The monastery itself…
Ladakh
Perched on a impressive ridge above the village, this little-visited gompa commands stupendous valley views. Ladakh's only major Sakya Buddhist monastery,…
Leh
One of Leh's most remarkable buildings, this tapered four-storey stone tower is a modern construction based on a historic Lhasa mansion and built on the…
Ladakh
Sitting on a knoll in the heart of Phyang, this large Drigung Kagyud school monastery complex has been heavily rebuilt in the last decade but its core…
Ladakh
Little visited, Chiktan's shattered palace ruins are a startlingly dramatic sight. Originally the 16th-century palace of the Chiktan royals, the structure…
Ladakh
The golden form of Ney's 21st-century Buddha statue is claimed to be 26m tall. In reality it looks about half that high but is still an impressive sight…
Ladakh
The greatest attraction in Shey's palace complex is the royal temple, with its splendid 17th-century Buddha statue. The highly revered 7.5m-tall gilded…
Ladakh
Small but visually impressive, the 1618 Stakna (Tiger's Nose) Gompa crowns a rocky outcrop that rises abruptly from the Indus Valley floor. The heart of…
Ladakh
The orchard town of Saspol is backed by a conglomerate promontory topped with the ruins of Toyos Khar fortress-palace. Somehow still surviving in the…
Ladakh
Over 200 years old, this beautifully preserved traditional house has been in the same family for six generations. Used until 2001, it remains almost fully…
Nubra Valley
At the centre of charming Tegar village is the ancient little Manekhang Gompa from which a mani wall and a line of chortens leads down a sloping lane to…
Ladakh
Originally King Dragpa-Bum's 15th-century fortress, Timishgan's three-storey palace site has an obvious defensive strength commanding the confluence of…
Ladakh
Mulbekh is overlooked by the impregnable site of King Tashi Namgyal’s 18th-century castle, high above the road. Burnt during an 1835 raid, the castle has…
Leh
For a charming wander, follow canal streams in the captivating yet relatively accessible area around little Sankar Gompa and the one-room geological…
Leh
The timeless two-storey Sankar Gompa is Upper Leh's modest main monastery. It's a calming, meditative place, and the walk to reach it from Sankar Lane…
Leh
Ladakh's largest stupa is unlike anything else in the region – a giant, bulky mud-brick structure that looks like a half-built ziggurat (stepped pyramid).
Ladakh
Though founded in 1065, this monastery’s current incarnation as a Gelukpa monastery originated in the 15th century. The main prayer hall to the right on…
Ladakh
Along the top of Shey's ridge, a series of fortress ruins bracket the three-storey, 17th-century Royal Palace, which has enjoyed a wholesale…
Ladakh
Hemis National Park covers the roadless villages of Rumbak and Yurutse, the whole Markha Valley, and the passes and access trails to Stok trekking point…
Ladakh
The region’s only Nyingmapa monastery, Takthog's name means ‘stone roof’, referring to a small but highly revered cave shrine where the great 8th-century…
