Spiti Valley 15 Days Itinerary – How to BEST Plan your Trip

by Vargis.Khan

Continuing from the previous article where I talked about how you can plan your trip to Spiti valley in 14 days; in this article, I will suggest how to draft an ideal Spiti Valley 15 days itinerary. To be honest, there will not much difference in 14 or 15 days itinerary for Spiti. But yes, adding another day to the travel plan will definitely open a few possibilities to explore a little more.

Also read: How to Plan a Trip to Spiti Valley – A Complete Travel Guide

The itinerary that I am actually suggesting below is actually what I prepared for a family who recently drove on the Spiti circuit. They followed this travel plan and were able to complete the journey successfully. I am copy-pasting the itinerary here for everyone’s information. If you were planning to visit Spiti in the near future and have a total of 15 days for the trip, you too may travel in the following manner.

spiti valley 15 days itinerary

For the sake of this article and the itinerary; I will assume that you are coming from Delhi. If your starting point however is different, then the journey for just first and the last day will be different. For remaining days, it will still remain the same.

Spiti Valley 15 Days Itinerary

Your final travel plan will of course depends on several factors like how are you traveling; alone or in a group; is there any budget restriction etc. But the details below should give you a fair idea on this journey can be completed. You may not be able to follow the itinerary below to the last detail but will at least be on your way to draft your own. If, after reading the article, you have any other questions, then you may ask in the comments area towards the bottom of this page.

For a map of the entire Spiti route that you can reference with the itinerary below, please read Spiti Valley Road Map and Route Guide.

I will start the itinerary below from Shimla and end it at Manali. This is usually considered as the “traditional” and probably the best way to travel to Spiti valley. The biggest reason behind this is that when you go from Shimla; the gain in altitude is gradual and by the time you reach Kaza, your body had already acclimatized to high altitude. This way, chances of acute mountain sickness are almost next to none. If you are with family, then it is highly recommended that you start your journey from Shimla only.

Delhi to Chail – Day 1

  • 336 kilometers of total journey
  • Will take you 7-8 hours to complete depending upon your speed and breaks
  • In the evening, Visit Kali ka Tibba and enjoy sunset from there

Chail to Narkanda – Day 2

  • About 80 kilometers in total, easily doable in 3 to 4 hours
  • Visit Hatu Peak at Narkanda after arrival

Narkanda to Sarahan – Day 3

  • 100 kilometers of journey doable in 3 to 4 hours
  • Visit Bhimakali Temple and Bird Sanctuary at Sarahan

Sarahan to Sangla – Day 4

  • 85 kilometers of distance, doable in 3 to 4 hours
  • Visit Kamru fort and Nages god temple at Sangla

Sangla to Chitkul – Day 5

  • 25 kilometers, doable in one hour at most
  • Spend the day relaxing at Chitkul

Chitkul to Kalpa – Day 6

  • 65 kilometers total, doable in 3 hours
  • Enjoy views of Kinner Kailash from Kalpa

Kalpa to Nako – Day 7

  • 100 kilometers total, doable in 4 to 5 hours
  • Visit the Monastery and Lake at Nako Village

Nako to Tabo / Dhankar – Day 8

  • 60 Kilometers total, doable in 2 – 3 hours
  • Visit Tabo Monastery
  • See the 500 year old Mummy at Giu Village

Tabo / Dhankar to Mudh Village – Day 9

  • 65 Kilometers total, doable in 5-6 hours
  • Visit Dhankar Monastery on the way and also trek to Dhankar Lake

Mudh Village to Kaza – Day 10

  • 50 Kilometers total, doable in 3-4 hours
  • See Kaza Monastery

Kaza to Kibber / Komik / Langza / Hikkim to Kaza – Day 11

  • 100 Kilometers of total day trip
  • See the remote villages of Spiti valley

Kaza to Chandratal – Day 12

  • About 100 kilometers of travel, time taken will be about 6-7 hours
  • Cross Kunzum Pass
  • Camp at Chandratal
  • Take a walk along the lake

Chandratal to Keylong/Jispa – Day 13

  • 115 Kilometers total, travel time of about 8 hours
  • Explore Lahaul Valley on last day of the trip
  • Either reach Keylong or go further 25 kilometers and camp at Jispa

Keylong / Jispa to Manali – Day 14

  • From Keylong or Jispa, continue driving towards Sarchu
  • Drive until the top of Baralacha Pass
  • See Deepak Taal and Suraj Taal on the way
  • Drive back to Keylong and continue to Manali via Rohtang Pass

Manali to Delhi – Day 14

  • 550 Kilometers of journey
  • 14-15 hours travel time depending on your breaks and speed

spiti valley in 12 days

This of course is just a sample travel plan. The journey can be completed in multiple other ways. A different version of the itinerary can be as mentioned below.

Spiti Valley in 15 Days Itinerary # 2

  • Delhi to Shimla / Narkanda – Day 1
  • Shimla / Narkanda to Sarahan – Day 2
  • Sarahan to Chitkul – Day 3
  • Chitkul to Kalpa – Day 4
  • Chitkul to Nako – Day 5
  • Nako to Mud Village – Day 6
  • Mud Village to Kaza – Day 7
  • Kaza – Day 8
  • Kaza to Chandratal- Day 9
  • Chandratal to Keylong – Day 10
  • Keylong to Udaipur – Day 11
  • Udaipur to Killar to Jispa – Day 12
  • Jispa to Baralacha La to Keylong – Day 13
  • Keylong to Manali – Day 14
  • Manali to Delhi – Day 15

The first itinerary focuses spending more time in Kinnaur and Spiti valley. It just leaves 2 days to explore Lahaul valley. The second itinerary however gives you ample time to explore 4 valleys; Kinnaur, Pin, Spiti, and Lahaul.

The thing with both the itineraries above however is that they can only be followed when Manali Kaza route is open as well; which is only from late May to early October. But what if you were traveling at a time when Kunzum pass was blocked completely? In that case, you may follow the itinerary as mentioned below.

15 Days Itinerary for Spiti Valley – Itinerary # 3

  • Delhi to Narkanda – Day 1
  • Narkanda to Sarahan – Day 2
  • Sarahan to Sangla – Day 3
  • Sangla to Chitkul – Day 4
  • Chitkul to Kalpa – Day 5
  • Kalpa to Tabo – Day 6
  • Tabo to Mud Village – Day 7
  • Mud Village to Kaza – Day 8
  • Kaza – Day 9
  • Kaza to Kibber – Day 10′
  • Kibber to Langza / Hikkim – Day 11
  • Langza / Hikkim to Kaza – Day 12
  • Kaza to Rampur – Day 13
  • Rampur to Chail – Day 14
  • Chail to Delhi – Day 15

This is an itinerary for when the Manali Kaza Highway is closed. In this case, you have no other option but to return the same way that you came. You will start your trip from Shimla, reach Kaza, and then go back to Shimla only. The good part however is that the time you spend here will really see you covering almost every tourist destination. It will be a very relaxed journey that you will enjoy to the fullest. Even if you were traveling by public transport, this itinerary can easily be followed.

chandra taal

Spiti and Ladakh Itinerary

With 15 days in hand, it is also possible that you can cover both Ladakh and Spiti. It will involve long travel hours on a few days but you will be able both Spiti and Ladakh. Below is the itinerary that you can follow.

You may not be able to cover all tourist places but will have plenty of time to cover the major tourist attractions at least.

  • Delhi to Narkanda – Day 1
  • Narkanda to Chitkul while covering Sarahan on the way – Day 2
  • Chitkul to Nako while covering Kalpa on the way – Day 3
  • Kalpa to Nako to Tabo – Day 4
  • Tabo to Dhankar to Pin Valley to Kaza – Day 5
  • Sightseeing in Kaza – Day 6
  • Kaza to Chandratal – Day 7
  • Chandratal to Jispa – Day 8
  • Jispa to Leh – Day 9
  • Leh – Day 10
  • Day trip to Nubra Valley and return to Leh – Day 11
  • Leh to Pangong Tso – Day 12
  • Pangong Tso to Pang – Day 13
  • Pang to Manali – Day 14
  • Manali to Delhi – Day 15

Spiti, Ladakh and Kashmir Itinerary

Now covering the above-mentioned plan, you went to Ladakh via Manali Leh highway and came back the same way. What if you wanted to cover Srinagar Leh Highway as well? Is this possible? Yes, it is.

A word of caution though. The traveling hours, following the itinerary below, will increase on a lot of days. A lot of your time will get spent on the road and it may get tiring as well. But if you were up for it, here is the itinerary that can be followed.

  • Delhi to Narkanda – Day 1
  • Narkanda to Sarahan to Chitkul – Day 2
  • Chitkul to Kalpa to Nako to Kaza – Day 3
  • Sightseeing in Kaza – Day 4
  • Kaza to Chandratal – Day 5
  • Chandratal to Jispa – Day 6
  • Jispa to Leh – Day 7
  • Leh – Day 8
  • Leh to Nubra Valley to Leh – Day 9
  • Day trip to Pangong Tso and return to Leh – Day 10
  • Leh to Kargil – Day 11
  • Kargil to Srinagar – Day 12
  • Srinagar to Gulmarg or Pahalgam to Srinagar – Day 13
  • Srinagar to Jammu – Day 14
  • Jammu to Delhi – Day 15

Spiti Valley and Sach Pass Itinerary

To end the article, let me suggest another adventurous itinerary. This one will see you covering Spiti Valley and Sach Pass. This itinerary can only be followed between June 10th and September 20th. Sach Pass is usually the last pass to open each year and closes the first.

Before June 10th, the chances of it opening are very less. Even if it did, the roads may not be safe enough to travel. The pass starts to receive snow by the end of September. So a trip after 20th September will also be a risky affair.

  • Delhi to Narkanda – Day 1
  • Narkanda to Chitkul – Day 2
  • Chitkul to Kalpa – Day 3
  • Kalpa to Nako – Day 4
  • Nako to Pin Valley – Day 5
  • Pin Valley to Kaza – Day 6
  • Kaza – Day 7
  • Kaza to Chandratal – Day 8
  • Chandratal to Jispa – Day 9
  • Jispa to Baralacha La to Jispa – Day 10
  • Jispa to Udaipur – Day 11
  • Udaipur to Killar – Day 12
  • Killar to Dalhousie – Day 13
  • Dalhousie to Delhi – Day 14
  • Buffer Day (Spend at a place of your liking) – Day 15

Conclusion

I hope the information above on an ideal Spiti valley 15 days itinerary was of help. If you have any other questions; or need any further details; please feel free to ask in the comments section below; or at our Community Forum; and I will be glad to answer.

Related Articles

7 comments

Umesh January 31, 2024 - 8:12 am

Hi Dear,
Superb work that you have done. What we have to do is just to read you and all things are there. So much in detail.
Many thanks for that.

Reply
Vargis.Khan February 17, 2024 - 2:10 pm

Thanks Bhai !!!

Reply
Kaushik Kumar Das August 20, 2021 - 10:52 am

Hello Sir,
Me and my wife propose to visit Spiti valley from Shimla side. We will reach Shimla on 30th Sept 2021 and wish to commence journey on 3rd Oct 2021 by hired vehicle . We would like to visit Narkanda, Sarahan, Sangla, Chitkul, Kalpa, Nako, Tabo, Dhankar, Mudh, Kaza, Kibber, Komic, Lanza, Hikkim ,Chandratal then to Manali. We also propose to Scale Mount Kanamo peak. We are not in hurry and wish to see these places comfortably. Time is not a constraint for us. Our preference is ‘homestay’. Please guide us suitably.
Kaushik Kumar Das (M) 8902550905

Reply
Anjli July 15, 2020 - 7:23 am

Hi, I am anjli, I am from Kangra & haven’t seen Himachal ever like you explained. It seems you are very familiar with all the places. Amazed to read your blog. Actually after years of work I am going to take one month off by end September / or in October. I really want to travel to my homestate & visit Dharmshala, Spiti Valley, Manali may be. Could you help me with some itinerary. I will be in Delhi & then in hometown Kangra. I can Strat from any place. Look forward to hear back & once again Thank you for wonderful article 🙂

Reply
Anita Punjabi March 1, 2020 - 3:17 am

Hi Vargis. I like the itinerary. Can you let me know some offbeat places to visit in Spiti and aslo some good homestays (I am a backpacker). Would appreciate if you revert back Thanks

Reply
Vayu shukla October 12, 2018 - 9:40 am

Hello sir, thank you for this information. Sir i wanted to know the current sitution of routes kaza to manali and sir chandrataal lake.. yet we are planning to go by bike

Reply
Vargis.Khan October 12, 2018 - 2:00 pm

Chandratal is already close for the year Vayu. Manali to Kaza is open right now now but it can get closed anytime now.

Reply

Leave a Comment