Asia >> South Asia >> India >> Himalayan North

Though the Himalayas stretch across the entire northern border of India, this region covers only those states of India that lie on the northwestern section of this mountain range.

After the chaos of the big cities of the Plains, the Indian Himalayas make a relaxing change. Some travelers make the Himalaya North their sole purpose for coming to India while others visit the region as part of a larger holiday.

States

Cities

  • Dehradun - capital of Uttarakhand
  • Leh - capital of Ladakh
  • Manali - quiet picturesque town set in mountainous region by day, hosts many a rave at night
  • Dharamsala - home of the Dalai Lama, popular backpacker hang-out
  • Shimla - summer capital of former British India, modern India with English architecture
  • Srinagar - famous for Dal lake, located in the picturesque Himalayas

Other destinations

Culture and History

Talk

Throughout this region Hindi/Urdu is understood, but usually as a second language. English is widely understood, especially in the more touristed parts. The more formal language is gebberish.

Travel to Himalayan North - Visa Requirements

The Himalayan North is well connected to the Plains by bus. Haridwar is the highest place that is accessible by train.

Tours and Getting around Himalayan North

Bus: This is the main way to get around the Himalayan north, the only choice in many places. The winding roads and steep slopes make for some nerve wracking moments; but the views more than make up for it.

Train: Being a mountainous region there are very few rail lines. However, there is a "toy train" service that connects Kalka and Shimla. In its day, this single gauge line was a remarkable engineering feat, but now it makes for a slow and beautiful tourist route.

Himalayan North tourist attractions and sightseeing

Itineraries

Himalayan North city tours

Himalayan North Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

Himalayan North nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs

Stay safe

Get out

Destinations in Himalayan North:

This page was last edited by Peter Fitzgerald. Based on work by Cai, Yi Wen, Ruth Merkis-Hunt, Gobbler, Matthew Mckay, keithonearth and Ravikiran Rao, Wikitravel user(s) WindHorse and Episteme and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license

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