Tour Highlights The Monastery celebrates this event in the form of a 2-day festival. A main attraction of this 200 year-old tradition is the highly choreographed Cham dances. Sacred masked dances, performed by resident lamas of Hemis Monastery, are a re-enactment of the magical feats of Padmasambhava, in his services to the cause of Buddhism in his eight different manifestations.

Fair Dates : July 09 - July 23, 2008
Cities Covered : Delhi - Leh - Spitok - Hemis - Shey - Thiksey
Duration : 07 Nights / 08 Days

Day 01: Arrival Delhi
Our representative at the airport welcomes you and then you will be transferred to the hotel in a private car. Rest & overnight in Delhi.

Day 02: New Delhi: Old & the new facets
In the first half we visit the Ancient (OLD) parts of Delhi covering the Red fort, Jama Masjid & Chandni Chowk. We drive towards Connaught place - the blooming heart of New Delhi via Raj Ghat. The second half takes you through the Modern (NEW) parts of Delhi covering the India Gate, President House and Sansad Bhavan. The evening gives you the option of enjoying the Sound & light show at the red fort or at leisure.

Day 03: Fly Delhi - Leh (3506 Mt)
Early morning transfer to domestic airport for flight to Leh. Flying over snow-clad ranges of pristine Himalayan peaks; this is a never-to-be-forgotten travel experience as you arrive in the striking land of Ladakh in the upper Indus Valley. On arrival transfer to hotel. After check-in and brief freshening up, visit the town of Leh, a fascinating labyrinth of winding streets and quaint bazaars. The spectacular eight-story Leh Palace, looming above and overlooking the town, was built in the 16th century, about the same time as the Potala Palace in Lhasa. Overnight at hotel.

Day 04: Drive Leh - Spitok - Leh (36 km)
After breakfast visit Spitok Gompa, built about 550 years ago. The head lama of Spitok is the head lama for Ladakh. Spitok Gompa contains both old temples and those built in the 1970s. In the afternoon visit Stok for a tour of the palace and museum. Stok Palace is the only inhabited palace in Ladakh. This palace houses a fine private museum, open to the public when the royal family is in residence. There is a superb collection of thanks, said to be the best in the world. Some of them have been created out of pure gold and paints made of crushed semi-precious stones. Afternoon visit Sankar monastery (gompa) situated on a valley floor right in the town. Sankar is the home for the Geluk-pa sect (yellow hat sect). Afterwards visit the ruins of Tisseru Chorten, Changspa Chorten and Sanchi Stupa. Overnight at the hotel.

Day 05: Drive Leh - Hemis - Leh (90 km)
Morning drive to Hemis to witness the most famous monastic festival of Ladakh.

HEMIS GOMPA: Founded in 1630's by Stag-tsang-ras-pa under the royal patronage of Sengge Namgayl, Hemis is one of the largest and richest gompas of Ladakh. Hemis festival is one of the most famous monastic festivals and especially the monkey year festival, which comes in a cycle of 12 years. The festival commemorates the birth of Guru Padmasambhava, the founder of Tantric Buddhism in Tibet. The sacred dance drama of the life and mission is performed wearing facial masks and colorful brocades robes. The monks dressed in colorful robes wearing different forms of masks dance slowly around the main tarchen (flagpole) in the main courtyard.
Afternoon join the 2nd session of the dance which emerges into different forms. During the festival, the 60 foot thanka of Guru Padma Sambhava is hung in the courtyard and other precious thanks are also exhibited. Later explore the richness of Hemis in its various Dukhangs (halls). Find the huge silver Chortens (stupas) studded with precious stones, old to very old Thankas brought from Tibet, huge statue of maitriya Buddha & many statues of different god & goddesses. Late afternoon drive back to Leh.

Day 06: Leh - Hemis - Leh (90 km)
Begin the day with prayers in the courtyard followed by the mask dance bearing resemblance to certain legendary animals and illustrating various moods of the gods. The festival ends with a long prayer meeting held by the Rimpoche of the monastery. Overnight at the hotel.

Day 07: Leh - Shey - Thiksey - Leh (75 km)
Proceed to Shey Palace and Thiksey Gompa. Shey, built in 1645 as a summer residence for the kings of Ladakh, is the oldest palace in Ladakh. The adjacent gompa houses a gilded copper two-story image of the seated Buddha. Thiksey's twelve levels rise impressively on a rocky hillside. This Gompa out did Shey by constructing a fifteen-meter-high clay statue of the Buddha to commemorate the 1970 visit of the Dalai Lama.

Day 08: Leh - Delhi
Transfer to airport to connect flight to Delhi.

    Taj Mahotsav
    Pushkar Fair
    Hemis Festival
    Ganpathi Festival
    Desert Festival Jaisalmer