Shimla to Spiti Valley Tour Package 2026, Kinnaur Circuit 8 Days & 7 Nights

8 Days / 7 Nights . Shimla to Spiti via the all-season Kinnaur road . Private vehicle for the full circuit . Customisable dates and group size . Rohtang permit included . Free cancellation window (see policy below)

This Shimla to Spiti Valley tour package runs the 8 day, 7 night Kinnaur circuit, the route that keeps Spiti reachable for the longest stretch of the year. You leave Shimla, climb the old Hindustan-Tibet road through Sarahan, Sangla and Chitkul, cross into the high desert at Nako and Tabo, base two nights in Kaza for the highest villages, then camp at Chandratal and exit over Rohtang to Manali. Because the Kinnaur side opens weeks before the Manali-Kunzum road and climbs gradually, this is the safer, better-acclimatising way into the valley. Every stay, breakfast and dinner, all mountain transfers and the Rohtang permit are handled, and the trip is fully customisable for couples, families and small groups.

Why Start the Spiti Circuit From Shimla

There are two ways into Spiti, and the choice of gateway decides how safe and how long your window is. The Manali side crosses Rohtang and Kunzum in one steep jump and only clears for a few months around high summer. The Shimla side, the route this package follows, runs up the Kinnaur valley on the Hindustan-Tibet Highway, which is kept open far longer and gains height slowly over several days.

That gradual climb from Sarahan at about 2,200 m to Kaza at about 3,800 m is the real reason to start from Shimla. Your body has days to adjust before you hit real altitude, so mountain sickness is much less likely than on the abrupt Manali approach. You also see two landscapes in one trip: the green apple country and pine gorges of Kinnaur first, then the bare high desert of Spiti. Ending over Rohtang into Manali means you never drive the same road twice.

8-Day Shimla to Spiti Valley Itinerary

The route climbs the Kinnaur valley to Spiti and exits the Manali way, so you cross the region end to end and never double back. Each overnight below matches the stays listed further down.

Day 1: Shimla to Sarahan via Narkanda

Leave Shimla and drive up the Hindustan-Tibet road through Theog, Narkanda and the apple orchards above the Sutlej to Sarahan, a quiet hill town at about 2,200 m. Sarahan is known for the Bhimakali temple, a slate-and-timber shrine in the local wooden style that dates back centuries. This gentle first day of altitude sets up the slow climb ahead. Dinner and overnight in Sarahan.

Day 2: Sarahan to Sangla and Chitkul

After breakfast, drive into the Baspa (Sangla) valley, one of the greenest stretches of the whole trip, with the river running past pine slopes and terraced fields. Continue up to Chitkul, the last inhabited village on the old Indo-Tibet trade road at about 3,450 m, where the Baspa runs clear and cold and the views open right up. Return to Sangla for the night, with time to walk the old Kamru fort. Dinner and overnight in Sangla.

Day 3: Sangla to Kalpa

Drive to Kalpa, a village facing the Kinner Kailash range across the Sutlej gorge. Kinner Kailash is held sacred as an abode of Shiva, and the late-afternoon light on the peaks from Kalpa is the reason many travellers rate this their favourite stop of the tour. The short day also keeps the acclimatisation gradual. Dinner and overnight in Kalpa.

Day 4: Kalpa to Nako via Reckong Peo

Today the land changes from green Kinnaur to the folded brown rock of Spiti. Drive past Reckong Peo and along the Sutlej, with a stop at the Gue village to see the naturally preserved 500-year-old monk mummy, then climb to Nako, a high village at about 3,600 m built around a small lake and ringed by willow and poplar. Dinner and overnight in Nako.

Day 5: Nako to Tabo and Dhankar, on to Kaza

Drive to Tabo, home to a monastery over 1,000 years old whose wall paintings have it called the Ajanta of the Himalayas, with meditation caves in the cliffs above. Carry on to Dhankar, an old fort-monastery clinging to a spur above the meeting of the Spiti and Pin rivers, with a short walk up to Dhankar Lake for those who want it. Pin Valley National Park, home to the snow leopard and ibex, branches off nearby. Reach Kaza, the main town of Spiti at about 3,800 m and your base for two nights. Dinner and overnight in Kaza.

Day 6: Kaza and the high villages

A full day around the highest inhabited plateau in the valley. Visit Key Monastery, the largest gompa in Spiti, stacked above the river like a fort, and Kibber, long counted among the highest villages reached by a motorable road. Cross the Chicham Bridge, the highest bridge in Asia, then take in Langza with its hilltop Buddha statue and fossil fields, Komic, one of the highest villages on earth with a road, and Hikkim, home to the world's highest post office where you can post a card home. Return to Kaza. Dinner and overnight in Kaza.

Day 7: Kaza to Chandratal over Kunzum Pass

Drive out of Spiti over Kunzum Pass at about 4,590 m, the high gateway between Spiti and Lahaul, with a pause at the Kunzum Devi temple that travellers circle for a safe crossing. A rough side track then leads to Chandratal, the crescent Lake of the Moon at about 4,300 m below the Chandrabhaga range. Overnight at the Chandratal camp under some of the clearest night skies in the country.

Day 8: Chandratal to Manali over Rohtang, trip ends

After breakfast and a last look at the lake, drive down through Batal and Gramphu and over Rohtang Pass into the green Kullu valley, reaching Manali by evening. Your Spiti Valley tour ends here. From Manali you can board an overnight coach back towards the plains or extend your stay, and our team can arrange either.

How to Reach Spiti Valley From Shimla

Spiti sits deep in the mountains with no airport or railhead of its own, so reaching it from Shimla means a steady road climb up the Kinnaur valley. This package drives the whole circuit for you, but here is how the route breaks down so you know the distances and drive times involved.

The two headline routes from Shimla are the Lahaul approach and the Kinnaur approach. Shimla to Keylong in Lahaul is about 375 km and around 18 hours of driving, while Shimla to Reckong Peo on the Kinnaur road is about 412 km and around 20 hours. This tour takes the Kinnaur road, broken into short, scenic legs over several days rather than one long haul. For the full picture of trains, flights and the road route, see our guide on how to reach Spiti Valley.

Distances and drive times, leg by leg

Distances and times are approximate and vary with road and weather conditions on the high passes.

Best Time to Visit Spiti From Shimla

Spiti's roads only open for part of the year, so timing matters more than for a normal hill trip. The Kinnaur road out of Shimla usually clears by May, well before the Manali-Kunzum road, and Kunzum Pass and the Chandratal camp open around June and stay driveable into September or early October. So May to October is the window, with June, September and early October giving the best mix of open passes and clear mountain skies.

July and August bring the monsoon to the lower Shimla and Kinnaur hills and can set off landslides on the approach roads, though Spiti itself sits in a rain shadow and stays largely dry. From November to April the high passes close and Spiti becomes a specialist winter trip reachable only as far as Kaza, which is not what this package covers. Book two to three months ahead, because the good-weather stretch is short and the best stays and the Chandratal camp fill first. For a fuller seasonal read, see Spiti Valley in June and the Himachal travel guide.

Cost and the Shimla vs Manali Route Comparison

A full 8 day Spiti circuit from Shimla with good properties, all meals bar lunch, a private vehicle and permits runs in the Rs 40,000 to 45,000 range per person on twin sharing. Budget trips that use shared transport, basic guesthouses and a shorter loop can start lower, so the price you see reflects the standard of stay and the private vehicle, not just the number of days. This package is priced at Rs 44,213 per person, and the rate flexes with your travel month, group size and the stays you choose.

On route, the two gateways trade off against each other. The Shimla-Kinnaur road is longer in kilometres and hours but opens earlier, closes later and climbs gently, which makes it the safer, all-season choice and the better one for altitude. The Manali side is shorter and quicker when it is open, but it crosses two high passes almost at once and has a much narrower season. Running Shimla in and Manali out, as this tour does, gives you the gentle climb on the way up and the short exit on the way down, and you never drive the same stretch twice.

Inclusions and Exclusions

Cancellation Policy

Plans change, so the cancellation terms are set out clearly before you pay. The standard windows for this trip work as follows, and your exact terms are confirmed in writing on your booking voucher.

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  Cancel 30 or more days before departure: most of the package cost is refundable.



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  Cancel 15 to 29 days before departure: a part of the cost is retained to cover confirmed stays and permits.



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  Cancel 7 to 14 days before departure: a larger share is retained as camps, hotels and transport are locked in.



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  Cancel under 7 days before departure: the booking is largely non-refundable.

High-season Chandratal camp and hotel bookings can carry stricter supplier terms, so always check the exact percentages on your voucher. Where the trip is cut short or a pass closes for reasons outside anyone's control, refunds follow what the ground suppliers can recover.

Why Book This Circuit With TravelTriangle

On a SERP full of one-off operator microsites, this is the route booked through a verified agent network with real customisation and human support before and during the trip. You are not locked into a fixed coach seat: the whole Kinnaur-Spiti circuit runs in a private vehicle, so you set the pace and the stops, and the itinerary flexes around your dates and group.

"On the Shimla side, start early from Sangla and reach Kaza a day before the high-village run, so you have a full night at altitude before Komic and Chicham." It is the kind of pacing call that keeps the altitude comfortable and is built into this itinerary.

Fares, permits and stay standards on this page are checked by our Spiti desk against current supplier rates for the 2026 season.

Related Spiti Valley Packages

Prefer to start from your own city or a different gateway? Compare the Spiti Valley tour from Delhi, the tour from Chandigarh, or the Spiti tour from Manali, or browse the full Spiti Valley tour packages range.

Ready to lock your dates? Customise this Shimla to Spiti Valley tour and our experts will build the trip around you.

Edited by TravelTriangle