Spiti Valley with Family – How to Plan a Safe Trip

by Vargis.Khan

If you had suggested a trip to Spiti Valley with family to someone a decade ago, you would probably have probably received one of the two reactions. Either the person at the other end would have asked you where in the world Spiti Valley is or they would just have laughed at you and called you crazy.

Why? Well, the reason is behind the first reaction is that Spiti was largely unknown until some time ago. In fact, the tourism here was not even allowed till the late 90s. The reason behind the second reaction would be that it was definitely not considered a family place. The entire route was famous among bikers as Spiti Circuit and planning a family trip here was not deemed appropriate because of the challenging roads, harsh weather, and remoteness of the region.

Thankfully, such is not the case anymore. Tourism has been on increase in places like Ladakh and Spiti and with that, the pool of the kind of tourists also is increasing. It is now a place that gets considered for family vacations as well. What is more? I have even had people ask me whether they can visit Spiti for their honeymoon even.

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

So if you were wondering whether or not you can plan a family trip to Spiti Valley, the answer would be that yes you can. But there are a few things that you must keep in mind and prepare for, to ensure a safe and hassle-free journey.

spiti valley with family

How to visit Spiti Valley with Family

Spiti Valley is a high altitude cold desert and your entire preparation should be around this statement only. As you gain altitude, you reach a region that remains cold for all 12 months. The term ‘road’ here is just a relative one. You will travel on some of the toughest and narrowest roads you have ever been on in your entire life.

It is the least populated region of our country so there won’t be many people around. For the most part of your journey, you will be on your own. Something as simple as a flat tire here can ruin your day if you weren’t prepared.

Acute Mountain Sickness is Real

Kaza, the headquarters of Spiti Valley, is at an altitude of 3,810 meters (12,500 feet). Chandratal is at an altitude of 4,300 meters (14,100 ft). Of the two high altitude passes en route, Rohtang is at 3,980 meters (13,058 ft) and Kunzum La is at 4,590 meters (15,060 ft).

What am I getting at? The point I am trying to make here is that a trip to Spiti means you are bringing your body to altitudes that it has never been to before. So yes, the chances of altitude sickness are high and even more so at places like Chandratal.

For more details on what mountain sickness is, what its symptoms are and what can you do to avoid it, please read How to Handle Acute Mountain Sickness in Spiti Valley.

No Babies

The rule is quite simple really. You cannot make this trip with a baby in your arms. The lungs of a baby of under 1 year of age are not mature enough to handle altitude sickness. So a journey with an infant or a toddler is a complete no.

But even with babies over 1 year, I will not suggest making this trip unless your child is at least 3-4 years old. This way, your child will at least be able to communicate with you if they weren’t feeling well. You won’t be guessing half of the times about why they were crying.

Secondly, if your kid was under 3-4 years old, they will just be a liability on the trip and you will be tending to their needs more than enjoying the journey. Spiti Valley is not going anywhere. Let your child grow a little and then plan it a year later.

For more information on this topic, please read Necessary Precautions for a Trip to Spiti Valley with Kids.

Consult a Doctor

If you were bringing your parents or any other elder member of the family along, please consult a doctor first. Do not go asking around or seeking answers to questions on the web. Talk to a doctor first and take their professional opinion. Once you have consulted your doctor and have their OK to travel to Spiti, please ensure that you are carrying all of your prescribed medicines on your trip to Spiti Valley with family.

For more details on this topic, please read Necessary Precautions for a Trip to Spiti Valley with Elders.

Plan between late May to September

You should plan your trip only between late May and September. Within this window as well, if you can plan in May, June or September, it would be even better because you are then removing the risk of the monsoon season. The weather in these months is very pleasant and your family will be able to enjoy the trip better. All the routes and roads remain open at this time so you will be able to explore all areas and make the most out of your journey.

Any before May or after September means that you are bringing your family to an extremely cold environment and may also not be able to cover all tourist areas. There are numerous incidents when tourists traveling to Spiti after September or before May were stuck in different places and had to be rescued by the authorities. Do not take the risk; it is simply not worth it.

For more details, please read When is the Best time to visit Spiti Valley.

Medical Conditions

A doctor will be able to advise on this better but if you are a heart patient or have respiratory ailments like Asthama, I will not recommend that you take the risk and travel to Spiti. There are numerous other places in India that are far more beautiful than Spiti Valley and that is where you should go.

In terms of kids as well, If your baby was born premature or has a heart or lung condition, it is highly advised that you do not bring them along on the journey or at least consult a doctor before you do so.

Carry some Basic Medicines Along

You should bring some basic medicines along like for headache, upset stomach, body ache, fever, flu, common cold, etc. A few band-aids, anti-septic lotion, nasal drops, and pain relief spray can be of huge help. Lip Balm, cold cream and moisturizer will be required as well.

Prepare for the Cold

No matter what time of the year you are planning your trip Spiti Family Trip in, you must prepare for cold weather during your trip. During the winter season, the temperature here drops down to -35 degrees Celsius. This should give you an idea of how cold things can get here.

The weather of Spiti is very unpredictable and the temperature can drop significantly without warning. I have seen snowfall in Spiti in late September as well and was stuck at Chandratal in 4 ft of snow for 3 days before we were able to move out.

During summer, days will be very warm and nights very cold and your packing should be sufficient to handle both kinds of weather. If traveling early or late in the season, you should prepare yourself to handle temperatures close to 0. For more details, please read What kind of Clothes to Pack for Spiti Valley.

Prepare for the Sun

The sun in Spiti is very harsh and can give some very serious sunburns. Find a sunblock lotion of the highest SPF and apply it regularly. Keep yourself covered and protect against the sun. This will apply both in the winter and summer seasons. Do not also forget to pack a good and light pair of sunglasses (especially in the winter season).

Start from Shimla

The importance of this cannot be stressed upon enough. You must start your trip from Shimla and end at Manali. Do not do it the other way around. By starting from Shimla, you are bringing down the chances of Acute Mountain Sickness to almost 0. The increase in altitude in this manner will be gradual and spread evenly over a few days.

On the other hand, if you went via Manali, then the increase is very sudden and too much for your body to handle. It is highly possible that your first day of the trip will be a very unpleasant one as your body tries to acclimatize. AMS is a condition that if turned serious can actually even be fatal so this is not a matter that should be taken lightly.

Take the Journey Slow

By this, I mean allowing your body time to acclimatize and not rushing anywhere in the journey. Do not go by distance and assume that you will be able to cover 400-500 kilometers in a day easily. The mountain roads take double the time to cover a distance than the plains. Keep your average distance between 100-150 kilometers per day; no more than that. Your average speed will come out to be no more than 20 kilometers per hour so plan our day and hours accordingly.

Do not stay at Chandratal

If possible, do not stat overnight at Chandratal and make cover it on a day’s journey from either Kaza or visit while on your way to Manali. Chandratal is a camping site and there is absolutely nothing here. It is also at a very high altitude and the temperature here drops down to 0 at night even in the months of May, June and July. If something was to go wrong here at night, you will be stuck with the nearest help at either Kaza or Manali.

Eating Habits

Drink lots of water and keep sweet biscuits or chocolates to munch on while traveling. Avoid salties like chips as they tend to dehydrate your body. Eat a lot of fresh fruits and light food. Don’t overeat, especially before long drives.

Keep your child in Check

Exhaustion is one of the primary triggers of acute mountain sickness. If your kid was running and jumping around all the time, they will tire themselves, will run short of breath and may suffer from altitude sickness. Keep them under check and do not allow running around all the time.

Also, keep an eye for any symptoms of AMS in your kid. If your child suddenly starts acting up, complains of body pain, headache, throws up, refuses to eat or drink, you know they are suffering from altitude sickness.

Also Read: Which is the Best Car for Spiti Valley?

Washrooms

Do carry toilet rolls and Pee Safe (for ladies) while visiting Spiti Valley with family as it is not easy to get clean toilets always.

Bookings

I am not really an advocate for booking hotels in advance. I would rather like to reach the destination, find a hotel per my liking, negotiate an on the spot deal and check-in. This, however, is better suited for a solo trip or with friends. When traveling with family, the last thing you want is to hop from one hotel to another after traveling the entire day. Do some research, read some reviews and see if you can book your hotel in advance.

Seek a Travel Agent

This is another thing that I usually do not recommend. In my opinion, It is always better to manage your trip on your own. But it doesn’t apply to everyone every time. If you aren’t too sure of the region, don’t have time to do research or feel that you may miss out a few things if you went on your own, then it wouldn’t hurt to contact a local travel agent and book him for your Spiti Family Trip. But yes, do a thorough search and book a reliable agent. You do not want to book just any random guy and have him ruin your trip.

Also Read: How to Prepare your Car for Spiti Valley?

Watch out for Shooting Stones

One of the things that happens a lot when you are traveling with family is to stop at every scenic spot and click pictures. While driving on the Spiti Circuit, take a look around; and make sure you are not stopping in a shooting stone area.

What is a shooting stone? In very simple words, it is a stone that falls from the mountain above on the road below. If anyone happens to be on the spot it fell, it will kill the person. In Spiti, there are a lot of shooting stone areas but fortunately, Army have them marked as such. If you read a board warning you of shooting stones, do not stop and continue driving.

Spiti Valley with Family – Conclusion

I hope the tips above on planning a safe trip to Spiti Valley with family were of help. If you have any questions; or need any other details; please feel free to ask in the comments section below; or at our Community Forum; and I will be glad to answer.

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25 comments

Digambar March 13, 2024 - 9:24 am

We are 5 family Age 54 to 62 Planning spiti tour from shimla side and from kaza Back to shimla Tour will start on 2 nd April from chandigarh and will end on 10 april at chandigarh Can these days it is perfect time and good for our age group

Reply
Vargis.Khan March 13, 2024 - 1:22 pm

It is going to be very cold at that time so better to pack acccordingly

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Esha July 20, 2023 - 6:04 pm

Hi Vargis! I am planning a trip to Spiti with my daughter who is 5 years old. I am planning for May 2024 and also want to spend about 10 days at a nunnery near Kaza. Can you suggest what time in May will be the best from weather perspective? It’s only me(mother) and my daughter so wanted to check if it is safe for women? Also if I am travelling from Chandigarh to Kaza, how many days does it take and do we need to stopover very often? Another concern is food (specially for my daughter ), do we get all kinds of food there or is it limited to the local cuisine? Many thanks

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Susan Basak Mukherjee May 1, 2022 - 12:37 pm

Hi I am Susan from Kolkata, I am planning a program to complete the circuit from Shimla to Manali ( sarahan, chitkul, kalpa, tabo, kaza) via chandratal in 10 days. My daughter is 13years and son is 8 years old, my father is 70. We are planning our journey from 2 October, because it will be Puja Vacation at that time.please suggests weather the time will be recommended or not to visit Spiti covering chandratal? Please guide us..

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Vargis.Khan May 5, 2022 - 8:11 am

Hi Susan – 2nd October is fine. Most of the Bengali families plan a trip to Kinnaur at this time only. Just make sure that you are not delaying it any further than October 10th.

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Sachin Sontakke January 25, 2022 - 10:16 am

Hello Vargis,
I have gone through most of your blogs and they are very informative.
I want to plan a trip to Spiti (Complete Circuit) starting from Shima, ending at Manali. I am coming from Mumbai with my Family (myself, wife and 11 years old son). I will flying to Chandigarh and hire a local taxi (Innova) for next 10 days.

We already did Ladakh in 2016 including a stay at Pangong. I want to know the best time to visit Spiti and Chandrataal (for Star Gazing at night) and need clear blue skies. Please advise the best time for the same.

My initial plan was for first week of June 2022. Please guide me through. Thank you.

Reply
Vargis.Khan January 25, 2022 - 6:40 pm

Hi Sachin – June will be the best time for this circuit. Plan around 10-15th of June.

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Ruchi Khemka November 23, 2021 - 1:48 pm

hi.can we plan to visit spiti in december with our 5 yr old son.

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Vargis.Khan November 26, 2021 - 12:15 am

not in December, no. It is way too cold for a 5 yrs old kid.

Reply
Vijay kumar March 16, 2021 - 9:31 am

Hello. I am planning for spiti trip in last week of March with a kid of 13 yrs. Can you guide me for stay in route and any other precaution?

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Ganesh Tendulkar March 13, 2021 - 5:14 pm

Hello,we wish to travel cover Lahaul-Spiti area at leisure.We can spare 10-12 days.Shall fly from Mumbai to Chandigarh.Will try to relax fora day or two at Shimla-Narkanda & then on to
extensive,but slow journey to Manali.We wish to fly out from Bhuntar after spending a few days in Manali.
How should we plan,can U guide?

Reply
Ganesh Tendulkar March 13, 2021 - 5:17 pm

We area a family of 4(2+2,kids above 14 yrs) & one more family from US might join us who would like to have a slow paced journey.Can we get a caravan for this journey & is it advisable?

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Vishwajeet Jayawant Patil March 1, 2020 - 4:21 pm

Hi, We want travel to spiti valley in late may with 1.5 years old kid, we r travelling via Shimla and will come back to shimla from kaza. Is it going to be risky for kid?

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Vargis.Khan March 2, 2020 - 1:48 am

I would not recommend the trip with a 1.5 year old Baby. Give it at least another year and plan in 2021 to be on a safer side.

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Rishi January 29, 2020 - 12:41 pm

Sorry for the delayed reply.
Yes, we will fly to Chandigarh from Mumbai and then hire a taxi for the circuit.

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Vargis.Khan January 29, 2020 - 7:24 pm

You are OK to go then. Since your child is 5 years almost, even staying at Chandratal should not be a problem. But determine that on how he was in Kaza. If he was fine in Kaza and looked all happy and cheered up, the you can play a stay at Chandratal. If he complained of uneasiness in Kaza, go straight to Manali. Keep him well covered at Chandratal and do not let him run around coz that may trigger AMS if he exhausted himself.

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Rishi January 27, 2020 - 2:36 pm

We wish to visit Spiti & Lahaul Valley (including Chandratal) and would appreciate your guidance.
1.. We plan to start on 21st August and have around 10 days to return to Mumbai.
2.. We will be travelling with our 4.5yr old son.

Need your expertise
~ if the route is doable and safe during that time to travel with a child? (Landslides, weather, etc)

~ if you feel that we should avoid Chandratal, then we can do the Spiti Valley anytime from mid-April to mid-June. Your views?

Reply
Vargis.Khan January 27, 2020 - 2:48 pm

How are you planning to travel locally? Are you flying in from Mumbai?

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Rishi January 29, 2020 - 12:42 pm

Sorry for the delayed reply.
Yes, we will fly to Chandigarh from Mumbai and then hire a taxi for the circuit.

Reply
Vargis.Khan January 29, 2020 - 7:24 pm

You are OK to go then. Since your child is 5 years almost, even staying at Chandratal should not be a problem. But determine that on how he was in Kaza. If he was fine in Kaza and looked all happy and cheered up, the you can play a stay at Chandratal. If he complained of uneasiness in Kaza, go straight to Manali. Keep him well covered at Chandratal and do not let him run around coz that may trigger AMS if he exhausted himself.

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Rishi January 30, 2020 - 9:01 am

Thanks. How will the weather be? Do we have to worry about landslides due to monsoons?

Vargis.Khan January 30, 2020 - 8:16 pm

Hard to tell that right now, entirely depends on how the weather will trend this year.

Rishi January 31, 2020 - 4:27 am

Ok. When is a good time to start planning for August since we will need to prebook accommodations considering we have a child?

Vargis.Khan January 31, 2020 - 8:56 pm

Wait until July to see how the monsoon was affecting.

Supriya June 10, 2022 - 11:25 am

Hi Vargis,
Thanks for your details about Spiti. We are planning for Spiti in last week of june. We will go in our own car via Shimla route. We will be accompanied with our 7.5 yrs old daughter. Would like to stay at Chandratal. Could you please suggest if it is safe to stay at night there.
TIA

Reply

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