My team and me tend to take pride in ourselves as an expert at the region. We have been planning memorable trips for people from past three years and more. I am sharing my experiences below. You might get something out of my it.
I will try to be as descriptive as possible, though if you are looking my anything specific, you can probably ask me directly. Leh-ladakh is a very sensitive area. People who try to organize trips by themselves(which is a very possibility) are prone to do some mistakes.
Most articles I have stumbled on internet says that best time to visit Ladakh would be April-June. Though they are not entirely wrong(only partially wrong!!), the best time would be anywhere between April-Sept. And there is a distinct possibility of Visiting the place till Mid-October(but you will need to bit insensitive towards the harsh weather).
There are two major road routes to reach the destination. One starting from Srinagar and other from Manali. The roads are open and accessible to general public after May end. Thus the Major time to visit the place by road would be cut-short by one more month and essentially limiting to May-end/June-September-end.
How to reach:
There are three ways to reach Ladakh. Two major road routes, Starting from Manali and Srinagar respectively. By road there are frequent road vehicles going to and fro from both the places. But I would suggest you to go for them when you are not on a strict timeline.
There is a bus facility also started by Himachal Roadways from Manali but I am so sure about the frequency of the bus, neither I know a traveler who has travelled from it.
And other would be by Air. All the major flight providers depart from Delhi and other cities(mostly connected via Delhi|) to Leh airport.
All the flights to and fro, depart in Morning hours(Just throwing in some extra details).
A typical itinerary would be:
Day 1: Leh
Day 2: Leh Local
Day 3: Leh-Nubra
Day 4: Nubra-Pangong
Day 5: Pangong-Leh
Day 6: Departure
You can play with more permutations and combinations in this. People who are coming by road should in probability add around 3–4 days more.
Other places to visit and what to cover:
· Turtuk: Last village on this side of border, will offer something special. Its avoidable if you are traveling on Budget. Its accessible from Nubra.
· Tso-moriri: A close cousin to Pangong. Offers a distinct view because the lack of basic commodities in the area.
· Hanle
Places in and near Leh:
· MAGNETIC HILL
· GURDWARA SHRI PATTHAR SAHIB
· CONFLUENCE OF THE ZANSKAR & INDUS
· SPITUK GOMPA
· LADAKH HALL OF FAME
Places to visit in and near Nubra:
· Khardungla pass
· Deskit Gompa
· Hundar village
Places to visit in and near Pangong:
· THE PANGONG LAKE
· SHEY GOMPA
· THIKSEY GOMPA
· RANCHO SCHOOL
There are other places as well, and all worth exploring but I would push you to do it after covering the above points.
How to get around:
The biggest problem me when I am connected to the clients when I am planning there is trip to Ladakh is why the basic cost of the packages is so high. The biggest reason is to get around in Ladakh, you have to take SUV. It increases the cost significantly compared to other travel destinations if you are not traveling in group.
