Ladakh - 'The land of high passes'

Ladakh is sandwiched between a couple of the highest mountain ranges in the world. These are the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges. The terrain of the entire area is made up of these magnificent mountains. The altitude of Ladakh varies between nine thousand and fourteen thousand feet above mean sea level. Opened up to tourism in 1974, Ladakh has been variously described as 'the Moonland', 'Little Tibet' and even ' the last Shangri La '. Whatever the description, it's one of the most remote, regions of India.

The high culture of Ladakh is Buddhist, having close cultural and trading connection with Tibet. This is particularly evident in the most populated region of Leh and the Indus valley, with its many whitewashed Gompas ( monasteries ) and forts perched on top of sugaloaf mountains.

Ladakh offers some of the most fascinating experiences to all those who make the effort to visit it. These experiences could be due to the landscape, the people, the animals, the culture or even it's strategic location along the border of India and Pakistan.