Some valleys you visit. Zanskar you enter — slowly, over passes, into a world that still runs on monastery bells and river ice.

This is our deepest journey: two weeks in India's remotest inhabited valley, travelling as a circle of four to six. The centrepiece is the walk to Phugtal — a monastery grown out of a cliff face, reached by gorge trails and twig suspension bridges — bracketed by village homestays, glacier-valley camps, a rafting stretch on the Zanskar river, and the kind of silence phones can't reach. Every stage is hosted with Zanskari families and guides.

RegionZanskar · Ladakh

Duration14 days

Altitude3,500 – 4,800 m

Difficulty●●●●○ DifficultDifficult — For regular trekkers — long, steep, remote days at altitude. Multi-year trekking experience recommended. Every level still asks for basic fitness.

SeasonJune – September

Group4 – 6 travellers

StayCamps · homestays · monastery

MealsAll included

Phugtal monasteryTwig suspension bridgesGlacier valleysRiver raftingVillage homestaysExpedition cookingTwo weeks off-grid

The journey

Days 1–2

Leh — arrive & acclimatise

Gentle days at 3,500 m: old-town walks, monasteries, the first Ladakhi meals. Altitude is respected, never rushed.

Days 3–4

The road into Zanskar

One of the Himalaya's great drives — over the passes and into the valley the roads barely reach.

Days 5–9

Phugtal & the monastery trail

The heart of the journey: trekking the gorge to Phugtal monastery, crossing twig bridges, sleeping in villages and monastery guesthouses.

Days 10–12

Glacier valleys & the river

Wild camps beneath the ice, a rafting stretch on the Zanskar, and the slowest, emptiest landscapes of the trip.

Days 13–14

Return to Leh — farewell

Back over the passes with a day spare for Leh's bazaars, and every phone full of another world.

*A day-by-day route card is shared on the planning call — weather and river levels shape the final line.

Moments from this journey

Phugtal, from the airA monastery grown out of the cliff

The turquoise lakeStill water at 4,000 metres

The twig bridgeCenturies-old engineering, still crossing

Into the glacier valley

Monks at playFootball at the monastery

Expedition kitchenDinner made at altitude

The scale of Zanskar

On the trail

Village Zanskar

Where the valleys meet

1 / 10

What your contribution holds

Everything that's taken care of

Everything on the ground

All transport in Ladakh, permits, camps, homestays and monastery stays

All meals

From Leh breakfast on Day 1 to Leh dinner on Day 14

Expedition leadership

EcoHikes lead + Zanskari guides and horsemen

Full camping & safety kit

Tents, mats, oxygen, first aid

Not included

Flights to Leh · personal gear · insurance · anything unlisted

What people say

5.0★★★★★49 reviews · Tripadvisor & Google