The Shyok River meets the Nubra or Siachan River to form a large valley that separates the Ladakh and Karakoram Ranges. The Shyok river is a tributary of the Indus river. The access route to this valley is to travel over the Khardung La pass from Leh town.

The route passes through the KHARDUNG LA pass (39 kms from Leh) which is one of the most sought attraction for its so called claim of being the “Highest Motorable Road in the World” at an height of 18,380 feet. You can find an army camp housing a souvenir shop at the highest point & Sign boards to click photographs. The Khardungla Top has two stretches of 15 kms each on either sides. Just 25 kms after Leh, you reach at a spot called as “SOUTH PULLU”, where tourists are required to register themselves & ascend the next 15 kms to the KHARDUNGLA top. From the top, begins the descend of another 15 kms to the army base called as NORTH PULLU. This stretch of 30 kms is equally divided on both sides of the KHARDUNGLA top and is more of an offroad ride with some snow covered sections of the top. However, the slope is gradual and mostly doable on any vehicle. During May end OR early June, there would be snow & slush on the roads at the top. One has to be very careful while driving. As you descend, 19 kms further to North Pullu is the beautiful village of KHARDUNG. KHALSAR is further 24 kms from KHARDUNG & a point where the road branches. The left side of the road goes to

SECTION 1

LEH – 39 kms – KHARDUNGLA – 33 kms – KHARDUNG – 24 kms – KHALSAR  – 21 kms -DISKIT – 7 kms – HUNDER – 19 kms – THOISE  – 64 kms – TURTUK :- TOTAL 207 kms

SECTION 2

LEH – 39 kms – KHARDUNGLA – 33 kms – KHARDUNG – 24 kms – KHALSAR – 24 kms – SUMUR – 23 kms – PANAMIK – 35 kms – YARMA GOMPA – 5 kms – WARSHI :-TOTAL 183 kms

KHALSAR is the point at which the NUBRA valley is bisected into two valleys by a “Y” intersection. One valley continues along the SHYOK river till TURTUK, while the other side continues along with the NUBRA or SIACHEN river passing through SUMUR, PANAMIK till WARSHI villages. Till a few years ago, the NUBRA VALLEY was limited to Diskit & Hunder on one side & SUMUR, PANANAMIK on the other side of the “Y” intersection. Offlate, this has been extended till TURTUK on the DISKIT side & upto WARSHI on the PANAMIK  side. A visit beyond WARSHI upto the SIACHEN base camp still remains limited to the Indian Army.

DO I REQUIRE INNER LINE PERMITS FOR NUBRA VALLEY

Since 1^st April 2017 Indian citizens are also required to get an Inner Line Permit to visit the valley. Foreign nationals are required to get a Protected area permit to visit the Nubra Valley (Refer to the ILP section for details to apply)

WHERE DO I STAY IN THE NUBRA VALLEY

Well, I am certainly not of the opinion to do any hotel pre-booking, since Hotel tariffs are negotiable & would depend on demand / supply conditions. If you try to pre-book them, there is very less scope for negotiations.

However, if you are travelling with a larger sized family OR a group, it may be a little inconvenient to keep others stranded till you identify the right place. It also depends on the kind of members travelling with you. In case you are travelling with very small children (of course below 4 years, I would not recommend) & aged parents, then certainly it may be discreet to pre-book at least the Ist day of the stay. Secondly, if you are very particular about the facilities & the quality of the accommodation, stay etc. & budget is not a constraint, then you should pre-book it.

However, the best option would be to start EARLY & reach EARLY (say by 03:00 pm – 04:00 pm) to your destination & directly approach the Hotels / Guest Houses / Homestays.  If you reach early, the Hotel staff would be more inclined to close the deal of unsold rooms. If you arrive late, they would sense your urgency & may not be as responsive to your bargaining, especially if you are with your family. They can very well sense that a person with a family will not hip hop at hotels. In an online / direct pre-booking, you may not be assured of a specific room.  Mostly, those who have pre-booked take the privilege to reach as per their convenience & end up with left over rooms (of course from the same category). The good rooms (i.e. with good views, location) are sold to those who reach directly & negotiate.

Of course, it’s not a rocket science which I am telling you, but it’s a psychology which I have experienced during my travels.