India Travel Guide >Himachal Pradesh Travel Guide

 

Manali, at the northern end of the Kullu Valley in Himachal Pradesh, is a hill station situated at a height of 2050 m (6398 ft) in the Himalayas. Situated on the Beas river (and near its source), it is a popular tourist spot for Indians in summer and a magical, snow-covered place in winter. A staging point for a number of treks (Beas Kund, Chandrakhani Pass) and sports such as white-water rafting, Manali is also on the road to Ladakh via the valley of Lahaul and Spiti.

If you happen to be a naturelovera nd have not yet been to the beautiful hill resort of Manli in Himachal Pradesh, then you are really missing something. Imagine snow-capped mountains in the backdrop, hillsides covered with green pine trees and vast green lawns and fragrant fruit orchards. This is exactly how Manali looks. A perfect hill resort along the Beas river that not only offers such natural beauty to its visitors but also a chance to try out certain adventurous sports and visit many old and culturally rich heritage sites. 

 

Shimla (Hindi:िशमला) or Simla is the capital of the state of Himachal Pradesh in India. It is a very popular holiday-retreat during the summer months and is well-known for its Victorian architecture, which is reflected in certain areas of the Mall and The Ridge.

There are quite a few theories regarding the origin of the word Shimla. Locals insist that the name originates from Shyamali Devi, a re-incarnation of the fearsome Goddess Kali.

Shimla is one of the most popular hill stations in India. The hill station was referred to as the 'Queen of Hill Stations' during the Raj era. Shimla is the favourite haunt of honeymooners, families and youngsters who escape to sylvan heights to spend some time in the lap of hills. Come and tour Shimla with Hill Resorts in India.

Lahaul and Spiti are two remote Himalayan Valleys of H.P. lying on the Indo-Tibet border. Strange, exciting, primitive, these valleys are unsurpassed in mountain scape, in the rugged beauty of their rocky escapements and the splendor of their snow covered peaks.

Lahaul is marked by a central mass of uniformly high mountains and massive glaciers. The two rivers, Chandra and Bhaga which rise on either side of the Baralacha La, flow through the narrow Chandra and Bhaga valleys. Lahaul is a land of fascinating Buddhist art and culture. The monasteries of Lahaul-Spiti are rich repositories of ancient murals, thankas, wood carving and golden images of Padmasambhava. The valley lies at a height of 2745 metres above sea level. Summer in this valley is cool and pleasant with green grass and alpine flowers. There are little monsoon in both these valleys and this enables climbers & trekkers to enjoy a long and unbroken season in perpetual sunshine to explore the wilderness and grandeur of the inner Himalaya. This unique feature makes Lahul-Spiti as an ideal destination for tourists and trekkers in the month of July, August and September. Keylong is 115 kms. from Manali and is the District Headquarters of Lahul-Spiti District.

Spiti is the sub division of Lahaul & Spiti district with its hqrs. at Kaza. It is called "Little Tibet" because it has almost the same terrain, vegetation & climate . Spiti also means "Middle Country". It lies between Tibet, Ladakh, Kinnaur, Lahaul & Kulu. From Shimla via Kinnaur there is a motorable road which remains open upto Kaza for 8 to 9 months. About 10kms. ahead of Pooh, satluj enters India near Shipki la & Spiti river joins it at Khab. The road then goes to Sumdo via Hangrang valley. From Sumdo Spiti valley starts. The Spiti river flows fast through deep gorges at some places. The valley is not wide but there are villages and some fields where people grow barley, buck- wheat, peas & vegetables. It has an area of 4800 sq. kms. Some inhabitants have adopted Budhism as there faith and Bhoti is the spoken language. The people are simple and honest. The main Spiti valley is split into eastern and western valleys. They are connected with Ladakh & Tibet on eastern side & Kinnaur and Kulu on western side through high passes.

 

Chail hill station of Himachal Pradesh acts as a honeymooners paradise. Chail lies at a height of 2,250 metres above the sea level.Bhupinder Singh, Maharaja of Patiala, when was facing an exiled from Shimla, he decided to create his own summer capital, which was Chail.

  Nature is at her exuberant best and words like pollution and deforestation is no where in mind of the citizens of Chail.The unmatched natural greenary with soundless calm beauty adds to the immortal memories of the tourists. 

 

A Small town having abundance of scenic beauty and ancient temples. Chamba is 56 km from Dalhousie. The Lakshminarayan temple complex in the Chamba district is well known for its five main temples of Radha Krishna, Gaurishankara, Lakshmi Damodara, Tryambakeshwara, Chandra Shekhar Mahadeva. The Chaurasi Temples of Bharmaur, built in the 9th century are one of the most important early Hindu temples in the valley. Another famed temple is that of the Chattrari temple dedicated to Shakti with exquisite wood carvings. 

 

The Tibetan Buddhist roots of Dharamsala stretch back into the 8th century, although most of the local population long since reverted to (and remains) Hindu. "Dharamsala" literally means an "inn attached to a temple", and it was so until the district headquarters in Kangra became too crowded and the British moved 2 of their regiments in the late 1840s to what is now Dharamsala. This over the years grew to be district headquarters of Kangra, and the very location is now known as the Police Lines.

haramsala was mooted to be the summer capital of India, but it was not to be, as much of the town was destroyed in the 7.8 magnitude earthquake of 4th April 1905, which killed over 10,000 people in this sparsely populated area.

fter falling into obscurity in the early days of Indian independence, Dharamsala regained some social standing in 1959 with the arrival of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in Exile [1]. Currently, it is a very popular hang-out for foreigners and students of Buddhism.

The town is divided into two distinct areas that are separated by a ten minute (9 km.) bus/jeep ride (7 rupees): Dharamsala itself (or Lower Dharamsala), a typical small Indian town that, other than for the bus station, is of little interest to tourists, and Upper Dharamsala, known more commonly as McLeod Ganj (thus named after David McLeod, once the British Lieutenant Governor of Punjab). It is this upper district that is home to the Tibetan community and the center of tourist activity. Unless specifically stated, all listings in this article refer to McLeod Ganj.
Other villages near McLeod Ganj include Forsyth Ganj, a short hike away on the way up from Lower Dharamsala, Bhagsu (2 km north), already a commercialized warren of concrete, and Dharamkot, the flavour of the month. For a really quiet (and basic) experience, try Naddi (3 km) or Talnu (11 km).

ower Dharamsala consists of most of the government offices, Schools, Zonal Hospital, and commercial areas. It also has a few tea gardens. One in the area of Chilgari and another just beyond Dari. One can enjoy the view while driving through. 

 

77-km from Shimla and 35-km from Kalka, at 1,927m, Kasauli is a quaint little town that seems to exist in a time wrap of an era that reminds one of the 19th century. Its colonial ambience is reinforced by cobbled paths, quaint shops, gabled houses with charming facades and scores of neat little gardens and orchards. Mixed forests of chir-pine, Himalayan oak and huge horse chestnuts surround Kasauli. Its narrow road slither up and down the hillsides and offer some magnificent vistas.

asauli is one of the small towns developed by the British during the 'hey day' of the empire, and reached by a branch road from the Kalka-Shimla road. The quite beautiful hill-station of Kasauli has a Pastur Institute that produces the anti-rabies vaccine against mad dog-bite and, at the same time, treats victims who have fallen prey to the dead disease, Hydrophobia. The institute in Kasauli set up in 1900, is the oldest in India, taking care of pet, police and army dogs as well as their masters.

ide by side another institute produces other vaccines, this is the Central Research Institute affording immunity from Typhoid, small-pox, cholera and snake-bite. The Shimla Hills stand on water - parting between the Sutlej and the Giri, a tributary of the Yamuna.

South of Shimla is the Panchmunda ridge, which is crossed by a railway through a tunnel, the longest in the Kalka-Shimla run at Barog, where a series of fissure to springs occur at its flank. The first ridge above Kalka rises abruptly to pine-clad Kasauli at a height of 1,927m and is joined by a 12-km bridle path. The distance by road, however, from Kalka is 36.5-km.

Kasauli, unlike other popular hill stations such as Shimla and kullu, is a quiet town. It is ideal for people who want to spend a holiday in the midst of green hills and untouched natural beauty. If you are a solitude lover or an artist, it has everything you could want, scenic beauty, serenity and warm, friendly people. If you wish to take a tour to this enchanting hill station then you can inquire more about the hill station and the cost of traveling to Kasauli, from Hill Resorts in India, which is a major Tour Operator in the country. 

 

This ancient town of Kangra lies overlooking the gushing torrents of the Banganga River, a tributary of the Beas rising from the southern slopes of the milky Dhauladhars. But saying simply that Kangra is an ancient town is not enough; it has the distinction of being the site of the oldest recorded war in human history. It even finds a mention in Alexander’s (around 326 BC) war records. The great Indian epic Mahabharata cites Kangra as Trigarta. Today Kangra is also known as Bhawan or Nagarkot. Bhawan because of the Bajreshwari Devi Temple, and Nagarkot because of the fort Nagarkot.

  Once known as an important seat of administration, Kangra the capital city of Chand dynasty tells a story of glory, which has faded into history. One of the most picturesque valley of lower Himalayas, the valley, sheltered by the sublime Dhauladhar hills, is green and luxuriant.