Manali is a high-altitude Himalayan resort town in India’s northern Himachal Pradesh state.It has a reputation as a backpacking center and honeymoon destination. Set on the BeasRiver,it’s a gateway for skiing in the Solang Valley and trekking in Parvati Valley. It's also a jumping-off point for paragliding, rafting and mountaineering in the Pir Panjal mountains, home to 4,000m-high Rohtang Pass.
Quick Facts
Quick Facts about manali |
How to Explore:
There
are plenty of places to explore in Manali. You can explore Manali in
different way of transport, depends on your budget you can select any of
the below mentioned transport
Here is itinerary for 5 days of visit
If you have limited days and wanted to skip some plan from above, here is suggestion
Day 2 and Day 3 are almost the same , where you will see snow points and some snow activities. You can do any one of them.
If you don't want any rest on Day 1, you can execute Day 5 Plan on Day 1 itself by renting a vehicle.
If you visit Manali to see only snow, you can skip Day 4 plan.
Day 1: Day of Arrival
On the day of arrival, you can take a rest to adjust your body with the cold temperature and start exploring Manali Mall road shops and food.
Day 2: Solang Valley, Anjani MahaDev Temple
Depending on your budget you can choose private or public or shared group transport or rented vehicle.
1) Solang Valley
Solang
Valley is a must visit place in Manali. Even if you plan for just a one
day trip, everyone suggests that you visit Solang Valley. This is 13 km
away from Manali. Here you can do a variety of activities. If you come
to enjoy the snow, this is the first place you should keep in your list
List of activities that you can do in Solang Valley,
Most of the activities , you can do for 150 to 200 rupees per activities. For paragliding, there are two type. Low height will be 1000 rupees per ride, high height paragliding will be 3200 rupees per ride
- Paragliding,
- snowboarding & zorbing,
- camping under the stars,
- and the gondola
- the Solang Ropeway
- River Crossing
- Zip Line
- Yak Riding
- Skiing
- Tube Sliding
- Mountain Biking
2) Anjani MahaDev Temple Trekking
In order to reach this place you may need to do a trekking of 1.5 km to 2 km to reach the top. When there is no snow at Solang Valley, the next immediate place that you can go nearby is Anjani MahaDev Temple. Mountain Bikes or Horses are available to reach the top of this place. For Mountain bikes they charge around 500 one way for one bike(2 adults & 2 childs). For horse riding they charge around 200 per horse(Maximum one person can ride on horse). My personal choice is that you should visit Anjani Mahadev instead of Solang Valley. The reason is, the view from the top is really rewarding for your trekking. The amount of snow is also huge as it is on the mountain. You can also see the ShivLinga which is formed by the frozen water from December to February. You can spend 5 to 6 hours here.
Day 3: Snow point And Atal Tunnel
Depending on your budget you can choose private or public or shared group transport.
1) Sissu
Sissu is one of the mesmerizing snow points in manali. It is located around 40 km from Manali. It is a lovely picnic spot. It also have many snow activities and you can see a big mountain fully covered with snow. You can see the snow even in summer times also. So, people try to come here if they don't find snow in Solang Valley. In order to reach this place, you will pass through Atal Tunnel which is again a different experience for you. You can spend around 3 to 4 hours of time here.
2) Gulaba
Gulaba is another snow point in Manali which is located around 25 km from Manali. Gulaba has been famous for skiing and other adventure sports. Besides skiing, one can also get involved in exploring the beauty of the region through Paragliding. Gulaba has numerous high peaks from where one can have a full view of the scenic location. During the end of February or early March, the Manali-Rohtang road opens till Gulaba.
3) Rohtang Pass
Rohtang
Pass is one of the highest snow points. This won't be open until summer
starts. In order to reach here, you may need to get a permit for your
rented vehicle or private cab. So, Make sure that you have a permit
before you visit here. However, if you go on a shared group trip , you
don't need to get it as they will get it.
4) Atal Tunnel
Atal
Tunnel is the highest and longest tunnel in India. It is 9km. It
connects Manali valley with Lahaul valley. You can go to Many of the
snow points from Manali through this. It will give you a goose bump
experience when you enter and leave the tunnel.
Day 4 : Kullu, Vaishno Devi Temple, River Rafting Point, Kasol and Mani Karan
1) Kullu, Vaishno Devi Temple, River Rafting Point
Kullu is known as “Valley of Gods”. You can find many shops to purchase and shawl industry and Vaishno Devi Temple. If you are an adventure lover, you can also try out River Rafting.
2) Kasol
Kasol is one of the amazing travel destinations from Kullu. It is located around 25 km from Kullu. Kasol is the Himalayan hotspot for backpackers and a base for treks to Malana and Kheerganga.
3) Manikaran
If
you are a religious person, you will like this place. Manikaran is a
pilgrimage center for Hindus and Sikhs. The Hindus believe that Manu
recreated human life in Manikaran after the flood, making it a sacred
area. It has many temples and a Gurudwara. There are temples of the
Hindu deities Rama, Krishna, and Vishnu.
Day 5: Local Sightseeing at Manali
In this day, you can relax and see some of the local sight seeing such as Hadimba temple, Manu temple, club house and shopping at Manali Mall Road before you leave
Hadimba Temple
Club house river crossing
Manu Temple
Club House activity price
Stay
The recommended place to stay is near Mall Road Manali. You will get all the things nearby. You can also stay at Old Manali if you are willing to walk 2 km from Mall Road. But Old Manali offers you beautiful scenery. If you have your own vehicle, you can stay as you wish. If you want everything accessible with walkable distance, then Manali Mall road is good place
Room price starts at minimum: 300 rupees for a hotel and 600 rupees for one room which can occupy 2 adults.
Food:
You will find a good variety of food options at Manali Mall Road. The swiggy and zomato services are not available at Manali. Whenever you go for sightseeing mostly you will get Maggi, bread omelet, Momos which will cost around 50 rupees each.
Some Itineraries to cover Manali and other places
Some contact Details
Please note that all below contacts are not promotion. These all I have collected before and during my trip. Some of them I have personally used too. Please do your own research before booking from these
1) Shared group trip bus:
You can book the Himachal Tourism Shared bus services either at website of directly at their office. Personal suggestion is that you go to office one day before and book your travel
- Himachal tourism website booking link: http://www.booking.hptdc.in/
Travel agencies at Manali Mall road: You can go to their office one day before to book the group trip or private cab(Swagatam Travels offers both shared group bus trip as well as taxi services)
Himachal Tourism contact
2) Rental Bike Service:
I have taken a rental bike from Manali Mall Road(Shop Name : Biker Point Manali). The owner was responsible and there were so many good reviews on google. You can also check it out
Search in Google maps: Biker Point Manali / Bike On Rent in Manali / Bike On Hire in Manali / Bike Rental in Manali
3) Public Transport Bus Timings
4) Travel Agencies
I haven't used any travel agencies so far. But when i was making my plan i found few travel agency contact with good google review. Please make sure reliability of your travel agency that you are planning to book
Personal tips:
- Create a google sheet to track your budget and actual expenses . It can also be shared with all people with whom you are traveling.
- Create the travel checklist in google sheet not to forget the things required
- Take winter gears before you visit.
- Plan your visit during the non-season period, because it will be less crowdy and everything will be less expensive.
- Check local holidays of Manali (Because you may not find much restaurant or travels opened for ex: Holi or Diwali)
- Try to keep enough buffer between one travel to another travel just to avoiding missing bus,train or flight
- Note down all emergency number in shared google sheet
- Create whatsapp group and keep add all important docs, itinerary planning sheet, emergency contact
- Bargain as much as you can, especially when you do snow activities. When i went they asked me for 4000 rupees to do 5 activities. But I did all those with 800 rupees after bargaining a lot.
- When you take a snow jacket, you take a waterproof snow jacket which they will charge 250 per set with snow jacket and boot. But you can again bargain to get around 150 rupees. Get the snow jacket only if you are going to do snow activities otherwise just get a snow boot which will be 100 rupees.
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