Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh

Information about Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh Culture and Tradition, Places to Visit and the Best Time to Visit

Overview

Spiti Valley is located in Himachal Pradesh at an altitude of 12500 feet above the sea level. The place is popular for having around 250 days of sunshine a year. The place is regarded as the Trekking Mecca and a Virgin Paradise. The place is the coldest place in the country for almost 6 months a year.

The word Spiti means “The Middle Land” as the place stands as the border to India and Tibet. Spiti is an adventurous place like trekking for adventure lover. The trek starts from Kaza the capital city to the different peaks of the Himalayan Mountains.

Trek for approximately 2 KM along the Spiti River from Dhankar Lake which gives the joy of viewing the beautiful village. There is a mountain ropeway to Chichum from Kibber which is another beautiful attraction of village and also for the Bird Lovers as they can spot the varieties of birds.

Culture and Tradition

The people here are Tibetan Buddhism. Most of the people here are farmers and produce crops like Barely, Peas and Wheat.

Festivals

There are number of festivals celebrated here they are Dechhang Festival which is celebrated in the months of December to January, Losar Festival or Halda Festival, Gothsi/ Gochi Festival and Fagli Festival in the month of February, Tsheshu Fair in the month of June, Ladarcha Festival or Fair on 17^th, 18^th and 19^th of August, Tribal Fair in Keylong on 14^th– 16^th of August, Pauri or Pori Fair in the 3^rd week of August, Gataur Mela in the 4^th week of September, Chakhar Mela in the last week of September.

Places to Visit in Spiti Valley

Key Monastery, Chandratal Lake, Dhankar Monastery, Suraj Tal, Pin Valley National Park, Kunzum Pass, Dhankar Lake, Toba Monastery, Trilokinath Temple, Shashur Monastery, Gandhola Monastery, Tangyud Monastery,, Tayul Monastery, Stargazing, Tibetan Shopping, Yak Safari, Fossil Haunting and many more one can visit on their visit to the Spiti Valley.

How to Reach

There are many routes to reach Spiti Valley. Some are from Delhi, Manali and from Shimla.

The distance from Manali to Spiti is 196 KM and takes nearly 5 hours to reach the place. The route is the most effortless way to reach Spiti.

The distance from Shimla to Spiti is 413 KM which takes about 11 hours to reach. If you choose this route foreigners should take the Inner Line Permit from the District Collectors Office.

The distance from Delhi to Spiti Valley is 730 KM and takes about 17 hours to visit the valley.

One should take a cab or taxi to reach this place. One can choose either of the routes but the best way is choosing Shimla to Spiti route to avoid altitude sickness.

One can easily visit the place from Kaza as it takes one 6 minutes its 5.5 KM to reach the place.