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
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Ladakh
Glorious Thiksey Gompa is one of Ladakh’s biggest and most recognisable monasteries, photogenically cascading down a raised rocky promontory. At its heart…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Ladakh
Spectacularly viewed across barley fields and buckthorn bushes, Chemrey village is dominated by the beautifully proportioned Thekchhok Gompa covering a…
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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…
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Ladakh
Predating Hemis Monastery by several centuries, Gotsang is a hillside hermitage with two attractive main temple buildings. The main shrine is the mountain…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Ladakh
Perched on a impressive ridge above the village, this little-visited gompa commands stupendous valley views. Ladakh's only major Sakya Buddhist monastery,…
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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…
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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…
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Ladakh
Little visited, Chiktan's shattered palace ruins are a startlingly dramatic sight. Originally the 16th-century palace of the Chiktan royals, the structure…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Ladakh
Originally King Dragpa-Bum's 15th-century fortress, Timishgan's three-storey palace site has an obvious defensive strength commanding the confluence of…
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Leh
For a charming wander, follow canal streams in the captivating yet relatively accessible area around little Sankar Gompa and the one-room geological…
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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…
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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…
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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).
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Leh
This large 9th-century whitewashed stupa rises in concentric serrated layers flanked by numerous chortens. The charming, shady setting retains a…
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Ladakh
Tso Moriri is a giant high-altitude lake whose crystal-clear waters reflect majestic cloudscapes and snow-topped peaks. The views are best seen from a…
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Leh
Two rooms of this extensive, well-presented museum look at Ladakhi history and culture. But mostly it commemorates the Indian Army's role in Ladakh, from…
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Leh
In the heart of Leh's market area, the first mosque on this site was built in 1666–67, sealing a political agreement between Ladakh's then ruler Deldan…
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Ladakh
Mulbekh's foremost sight is a 1000-year-old Maitreya Buddha relief, carved into an 8m fang of rock. It's right by the roadside, rising through the middle…
