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The classic circuit

Shimla to Manali

Kinnaur first, Spiti in the middle, Manali at the end. The order that lets you climb in steps instead of in one proud, foolish day.

Shimla to Manali
Shimla
Manali
Kaza
Tabo
Key Monastery
Chandratal

1 / 7

Places covered in this tour

Reviews and ratings

★★★★★ 4.7 (3)

  • 5 stars ★by 2 people
  • 4 stars ★by 1 person
  • 3 stars ★by 0 people
  • 2 stars ★by 0 people
  • 1 star ★by 0 people

This plan, in short

The days, the nights, and the long one follow the length and the start you picked. Change those and this block changes with them.

8 days, 8 nightsOn this plan. 7 days are a real ride. 1 is quieter.
Shimla to ManaliWhere you join, and where it finishes.
May to OctoberWhen this route is actually open.
About 220 kmThe long day, Into the Baspa valley. A pass can still make it longer.

Where you sleep. Shimla · 1 night · Chitkul or Sangla · 1 night · Kalpa · 1 night · Tabo · 1 night · Kaza · 2 nights · Chandratal camp · 1 night · Manali · 1 night

SuitsRiders and small car groups who want the full summer circuit with the kinder climb.
Pick another route ifAnyone hoping to ‘do Spiti’ in a long weekend, or a winter plan — Kunzum is shut then.

What this route is for

  • Chitkul
  • Kalpa & Kinner Kailash
  • Tabo & Dhankar
  • Key, Kibber, Langza
  • Kunzum & Chandratal

Things to know

  • A shared seat does not need a licence. A private car still wants someone in the group who will drive it on a broken afternoon.
  • Guided means the backup, a mechanic, oxygen in that vehicle, the nights on this plan, breakfast and dinner. Lunch is yours. Fuel is extra on a bike. Monastery tickets are yours.
  • This route uses Kunzum, so we do not sell it from November to April. Winter stays on the Kinnaur road, both ways.
  • Kinnaur comes before Kaza on purpose. The height arrives in steps, not in one proud day.
  • Carry cash in small notes. A card machine in Kaza is a rumour on some evenings, and the phone thins out after Kinnaur.
  • The figure on this page is a plan. A person confirms it. Nothing is charged here.

Longer notes, if you want them: What we actually pack · The inner line, and why the order of the road matters · Bike or car, without the speech.

The days

Each day shows the road, the distance, and the night. The line under that is what the day is for. A blocked hour is still an hour.

  1. 1

    Shimla, and the yard

    Road
    Shimla
    Distance
    Arrival
    Night
    Shimla

    A quieter day

    The car is handed over at our Shimla yard, not in a hotel porch. Papers, a short brief, and an honest look at tomorrow’s road. If you land early, the Mall is a walk, not a plan.

  2. 2

    Into the Baspa valley

    Road
    Shimla → Sangla / Chitkul
    Distance
    About 220 km
    Night
    Chitkul or Sangla

    The day the hills change. Narkanda if the light is good, then the Sutlej, then Sangla. Chitkul — the last inhabited village up this valley — if the final stretch is open and the group isn’t already cooked.

  3. 3

    Sangla to Kalpa

    Road
    Sangla → Kalpa
    Distance
    About 90 km
    Night
    Kalpa

    A shorter drive on purpose. Reckong Peo, then up to Kalpa. Kinner Kailash sits in front of the rooms when the cloud allows. This is the night people start sleeping properly.

  4. 4

    Across the Ka loops

    Road
    Kalpa → Nako → Tabo
    Distance
    About 180 km
    Night
    Tabo

    The Sutlej falls away, the mountain goes brown, and Spiti starts before the sign says so. Nako’s lake is the lunch that matters. Tabo’s monastery is a thousand years old and still a working one — shoes off, voices down.

  5. 5

    Tabo to Kaza

    Road
    Tabo → Dhankar → Kaza
    Distance
    About 110 km
    Night
    Kaza

    Dhankar on the cliff if the spur road is behaving, then the open valley into Kaza. Fuel before you wander. The town is small, the sky is not.

  6. 6

    The high villages

    Road
    Key, Kibber, Chicham, Langza
    Distance
    About 70 km
    Night
    Kaza

    Key on its cliff, Kibber, the Chicham bridge if the wind is kind, then Hikkim and Komic — sold as the world’s highest, and either way very high. Langza’s Buddha if there’s light left. Back to Kaza before the cold sits down. We don’t stack a pass on top of this day.

  7. 7

    Kaza to Chandratal

    Road
    Kaza → Kunzum → Chandratal
    Distance
    About 90 km
    Night
    Chandratal camp

    Losar, then Kunzum La, then the lake road — narrow, slow, and worth the patience. Camps sit back from the water, as they should. It will be cold. The morning makes up for it.

  8. 8

    Lake to Manali

    Distance
    About 160 km
    Night
    Manali

    Batal, the water crossings if they’re up, Gramphu, then the Atal Tunnel and a different climate. Manali feels loud after Kaza. That’s how you know the valley worked.

On this selection

Guided, in a car, on the Tempo Traveller. Change guided, the keys, the bike, or the car, and these two columns change. The terms under them do not.

Guided, in a car, included

  • The car on your plan, for every day it shows in the price
  • A backup vehicle, even if you are the only guest
  • A crew that has done this road in a bad week, not just a good one
  • A mechanic, and the parts that actually fail up there
  • Oxygen and a basic medical kit in the backup
  • Help with permits and check-posts where the district still asks
  • Stays for every night in the day plan
  • Breakfast and dinner on those nights. Lunch is yours
  • Twin share in the first price. Single and triple are on the same page

Not included

  • Fuel
  • Lunch, chai, bottled water, snacks
  • Monastery tickets and camera fees
  • Flights. A Delhi Volvo is included only when the plan says Delhi
  • A single room, unless you picked one
  • Travel and medical insurance
  • Extra nights or extra vehicle days if a pass closes
  • Alcohol, tips, shopping
  • GST at 5% where it applies, on top of the figure

Terms

The same house rules on every route. Open one to read it.

An enquiry is not a booking

The figure on this site is indicative. Days, the machine, the month, the room, and how many of you there are all move it. We confirm a number in writing after we speak.

Nothing is held — a bike, a Thar, a Kaza room in August — until we say it is, and a token has arrived. The token is usually 30% of the confirmed plan, by UPI or bank transfer. This website does not take cards or wallets.

Licence, age, and honesty

The person riding needs a permanent driving licence with a motorcycle (gear) endorsement. We look at it at the yard. If it doesn’t match the bike, the bike stays here. That feels strict until you’ve seen the alternative.

Pillion riders need a government photo ID. Riders should be 18 or over. Tell us about anything that matters at altitude — asthma, a recent surgery, a pregnancy — before you pay a token, not on the morning of Kunzum.

The plan can move

Spiti is a Border Roads road in a high desert that also snows. Landslides, a closed pass, a local restriction, or a sick guest can change the order of days. On a guided trip we decide, and we explain. The spirit of the trip stays; the Tuesday night might not.

Chandratal nights happen only when the camp and the spur road are open. If they aren’t, you still see the villages, and the camp night becomes a night in Kaza or Manali.

If you cancel

More than 30 days before the start: the token moves to another date in the same season, or we return it minus anything already paid to a stay that won’t refund us.

15 to 30 days: half the confirmed plan is kept.

7 to 14 days: three quarters.

Inside 7 days, or a no-show at the yard: the plan is kept. We have already turned other people away for those bikes and those rooms.

If we cancel because we can’t run the departure safely, you get the money back for the days we didn’t operate. Getting yourself to Shimla is still your journey.

Insurance and conduct

Travel insurance with a high-altitude medical clause is your responsibility. We will remind you and we will not pretend to be the insurer.

Helmets stay on. Drinking and riding ends the trip. So does riding past the marshal into a closed section because the light was nice. We have hosted a lot of good guests. We don’t negotiate this part.

Prices

Quotes are in Indian rupees, before 5% GST where that tax applies. Fuel is extra on bikes. Lunch is extra. A single room is extra unless the plan already says single.

The numbers describe the current season’s way of working. A quote we confirm in writing is the quote, even if this page changes next month.

Your enquiry

The form builds a note and keeps a copy in your browser so you can send it. We don’t run a checkout, and we don’t sell the enquiry to a marketplace. When you message the desk, you get the desk.

Reviews

★★★★★ 4.7 (3)

★★★★★

Mountains was Calling and I couldn't stop.

What a Wonderful Tour Management Company. I thank you all for this wonderful Spiti ride experience. Everything was top, fresh rooms, well maintained bike, helped in permits and all. Thank You!

Seon · Amsterdam

★★★★★

Kinnaur first

Kinnaur first was the right order. The 411 was calm, and the mechanic was already in the group when a tube went.

Anika · Delhi · Verified guest

★★★★☆

Honest briefings

Long days, honest briefings. I would have liked one more rest in Kaza, and I said so. They did not argue.

Farhan · Pune · Verified guest

Rate this route

The desk reads it before the stars change. Give it a title, then a few words. Leave a mobile number or an email so we can tell you. A website link is refused.

Questions

Open a question. The first ones follow this route and the selection you have open.

When does Shimla to Manali actually run?

The open months are May to October. May and October are a conversation, not a promise. From November to April this is not the route we sell. That is the winter expedition.

What is included on the selection I have open?

Right now the list under the days is guided, in a car. Switch Guided or Just the keys, or the bike and the car, and both columns change with the plan. The terms under that list are the house rules, and they do not change with the machine.

Can this route be a car as well as a bike?

Yes. Pick the machine in the plan. A car changes the wording of the days and the included list. Two bikes and one car in the same week is a normal thing to write in the note.

What changes if I pick fewer days?

The day list, where you sleep, and the long day all follow the length you picked. A shorter plan is a harder week, not a hidden discount. The price moves with the days, the room, and the machine.

What if I have to cancel?

More than 30 days before the start: the token moves to another date in the same season, or we return it minus anything already paid to a stay that won’t refund us. 15 to 30 days: half the confirmed plan is kept. 7 to 14 days: three quarters. Inside 7 days, or a no-show at the yard: the plan is kept. We have already turned other people away for those bikes and those rooms. If we cancel because we can’t run the departure safely, you get the money back for the days we didn’t operate. Getting yourself to Shimla is still your journey.

When is any money taken?

Not on this page. We confirm a number in writing after we read the plan. A token is usually 30% of that confirmed figure, by UPI or bank transfer. Nothing is held until we say it is, and the token has arrived.

Which bike should I take?

A first Spiti ride is happiest on the Himalayan 411. The 450 is for people who already like a quicker bike in the hills. The Classic and Meteor are lovely on Kinnaur tarmac and less kind on a broken Kunzum day — we’ll say so before you commit.

Can two of us share one motorcycle?

Yes. A shared ride splits the bike line. The pillion needs a photo ID and a second helmet, not a licence. An odd number of people means one solo bike.

Do I need mountain experience?

You need a permanent gear licence and honest highway miles. This should not be your first fortnight on two wheels. In winter, first-timers sit in a car.

Why is there no payment button?

Because a Spiti week is not a hotel night. We read the plan, check the road and the bikes, then tell you the real number. A token — usually 30% — is collected by UPI or transfer after that, not on this page. You should be able to ask a question before money moves.

What’s the difference between guided, a fixed date, and just the bike?

Guided means our marshal, mechanic, backup, stays, and the permits paperwork. A fixed date is that same ride, leaving on a published morning so a solo guest can join other people. Independent means we hand you a checked bike or car in Shimla. You handle the beds, the food, and the pace. Roadside assistance can be added. It is not a disguised tour.

Can I start in Delhi?

Yes. The mountain plan doesn’t change. You add an overnight Volvo, or a flight plus a taxi, to Shimla, Manali, or Chandigarh — whichever city that route actually starts from. The Volvo pair is in the estimate. Flights stay yours to book, because prices move around more than the pass does.

Policies

Written from the same terms. A note from this page is not a booking, and this website does not take a payment.

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