Step into the fairy tale mountain trail from Manali to Lahaul!!!

It's for nothing that Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are considered to be the treasure pots for Himalayan treks. Hampta Pass trek can be considered as the most spectacular trek in the Kullu region of Himachal Pradesh. Hampta Pass is another of the dramatic treks in India and I can guarantee that no one will return empty handed from this trek. All I want to say is that at 14,000 ft Hampta Pass, you will actually know that life cannot be better than this.

Now the best part of this crossover trek is that when you will start from Kullu side – the landscape will full of lush green meadows, deep forests, and colourful wild flowers blooming everywhere. And then when you finally reach on the Lahaul side of the trek – you will be amazed by its stark landscape with arid lands, barren snow-capped mountains, and sparse to almost no vegetation at all. One trek with two contrast worlds is something worth exploring and you can only find in the crossover treks in this region. Its like when you stand on top of the pass, you can literally feel each and every word written over here.

There are also other crossover treks in Himachal Pradesh that will blow your mind but its only Hampta Pass that you can call as ‘Valley of Flowers’ of Himachal Pradesh. This picturesque beauty has a lot of similarity with VOF with lush green narrow valley amidst snow-capped mountains all around – but when you will actually be on the Hampta Pass trail you will realise that here nature has more to offer than just lush green valleys.

This trek will give you the similar feeling of crossing Attal tunnel in winter months. When you strat from the Manali side, its all green everywhere and when you reach the other end – you know you have entered the locales of Game of Thrones with snow covered everywhere. Similar landscape is in Hampta Pass as well when you enter the Spiti and Lahaul region with rugged terrain and never seen before crystal clear skies.

Now the icing on the cake in this trek is when you actually climb to Hampta Pass. It's full of adventure with a complete adrenaline rush and a bucket full of thrills and thrilling challenges that every trekker will love to overcome. Hampta Pass is mainly considered as a bridge between the two valleys in Himachal Pradesh – Kullu and Lahaul. And at the highest point of the pass which is at 14, 065 ft, the views of snow-capped Himalayan mountains are breathtaking which is worth the climb and only a true mountain would understand.

Not only does the Hampta Pass trek offer spectacular scenery to delight your eyes, but it is also connected to rich history and culture. Though the trek is not a very old one but the route has ancient connections and was actually the trade route that was used to connect traders from Kullu, Lahual, and Spiti regions. The pass was intensively used to transport huge quantities of silk, wool, spices, and tea by the traders since a long time back. Even the name of the pass is named after a beautiful small hamlet – named Hampta that is located in the Kullu valley. Not only has this route been quite common by the traders but also the shepherds from the lower Himalayan villages take their flocks to the higher Himalayan meadows through the pass.

Not only this, Hampta Pass also has deep roots in Indian mythology as well. As per the great Indian epic Mahabharata, when the Pandavas traveled for their quest to heaven, they used the route to Chandratal from Hampta Pass. This is the reason, this renowned route is quite popular with the name ‘staircase to heaven’. It is also believed that the pass was named Hampta after the name of the rishi, Hampta Maharishi who used to meditate here. So the place is not only brimming with natural beauty but it is full of rich Indian mythology and culture and has deep routes with history.

During the Hampta Pass trek along with getting spectacular views of mountain glaciers and meadows, you will also get breathtaking views of the mountain peaks – Deo Tibba and Indrasan. Not only this, if you want to transform yourself as a seasoned trekker, Hampta Pass should definitely be the best option for you to upgrade from easy to moderate-level treks.

The journey of Hampta Pass treks with Altitude Adventure Holidays starts from Manali. So we request that you reach Manali one day before the trek starts. On day 1, our team will pick you up around 8 am and will start our journey. And on the last day, we will drop you at Manali at around 7-8 pm. So we suggest making your further plans the next day.

May and September

The best time to conduct this trek is during May and September. You can also do this trek from June to August. However, we prefer May so that you can see snow over the mountains and September for wildflowers blooming all over the valley and the Pass. During the daytime, the temperature goes around 5°C to 15 °C which is considered to be quite favourable while walking, and during the night, the temperature falls down to 3 °C to 05 °C which is also great. You can see a considerable amount of snow from Balu Ka Ghera during May and June.

Suitable Age Group: The suitable age group to do Hampta Pass trek is from 13 years to 60 years. However, you must be absolutely fit both physically and mentally and also have sufficient stamina to walk for long hours in uneven terrain. If you are below 18 years of age, please make sure you are accompanied by your parents or a guardian. For those who are above 55 years of age, we recommend that you go for a doctor checkup before going for the trek.

There will be absolutely no mobile network connectivity during this trek. In fact, mobile signals will be completely lost from the moment you cross Prini. Hence we suggest calling your family members from Manali and informing them that there will be no connectivity for the next 5 days.