Motorcycle Tour Himalaya: Spiti Valley and Ladakh

Your Himalaya motorcycle tour begins, usually at night, with landing in Delhi. A transfer takes you directly to your hotel, where you can recover from the journey and prepare for the stages ahead.

You travel by train from Delhi to Chandigarh, where the Royal Enfields are already waiting for you. The Ladakh motorcycle tour officially begins here in the city at the foot of the Himalayas, the gateway to Punjab and Haryana.

After picking up the motorcycles you start the first stage of this India motorcycle tour. Bend by bend you climb to around 2,200 metres to Shimla, one of India's best-known hill stations with a car-free colonial quarter.

This guided India motorcycle tour continues today via Rampur with its impressive Padam Palace into the Spiti Valley. On the first unpaved stretch you reach Sarahan, known for the wooden Bhimakali temple.

Following the Sutlej River you continue into the Kinnaur area to Sangla at 2,680 metres. This off-road Himalaya motorcycle tour then leads on to the high-altitude village of Chitkul, surrounded by snow-capped peaks.

The route runs along the Tibetan border, over a pass at 4,550 metres – one of the highest pass stages on this motorcycle journey. Nako impresses with authentic Tibetan architecture, a monastery and numerous prayer flags.

From today this Spiti Valley motorcycle tour passes through the valley itself, whose lunar landscape is shaped by centuries-old, isolated monasteries. After a lunch stop in Tabo you reach Kaza in the evening, where you stay for two nights.

A relaxed day in Kaza or a day trip to the village of Kibber, once the highest settlement with a road connection. This Royal Enfield motorcycle tour passes the Key monastery to the high-altitude Komic Gompa.

One of the most adventurous stages: narrow tracks, steep slopes and the Kunzum Pass at 4,551 metres await on the way to the Chandra River – one of the highest motorcycle pass crossings on the entire route.

The return leads through the green, vegetated mountains of the Lahaul Valley. This Chandra Taal region motorcycle tour sits lower and is considerably wetter than the Spiti Valley, with more frequently flooded road sections as far as Keylong.

A quiet day in Keylong or an excursion to the Udaipur valley, where you can visit the Trilokh Nath temple and the Bima Harimba temple. This Royal Enfield motorcycle rest stage serves as recovery before the next passes.

From Keylong the route climbs steadily over the first pass at 4,880 metres, above the tree line. Just before Sarchu a fantastic view opens over a dry riverbed with sandcastle-like rock formations.

Across the Sarchu plateau and a second pass beyond 5,000 metres you reach the salt lake Tso Kar at 4,500 metres. This highest-pass motorcycle stage ends at a tent camp by the lake.

Across the Rupshu Plateau, also known as little Tibet, the route crosses Taglang La at 5,330 metres, the second-highest pass in India. Via Upshi you reach Leh in the evening, where vegetation and a milder climate return.

The old town of Leh has an almost medieval feel with its winding lanes. The royal palace at the foot of Tsenmo Hill, several temples and the nearby Sankar monastery define this restful day in Ladakh.

This Lamayuru motorcycle tour takes around four hours along the Indus and Zanskar rivers through a surreal lunar landscape. Rugged passes alternate with deep valleys; along the way you visit the ancient monastery at Alchi.

The return of the Lamayuru motorcycle tour along the same route is never tiresome, as the scenery along the Indus and Zanskar is just as impressive the second time. You reach your hotel in Leh in the afternoon.

The highlight of this Himalaya motorcycle tour: the Khardung La at 5,606 metres, the world's highest navigable pass. The required special permit was applied for on arrival in Leh, so nothing stands in the way of the day excursion.

In the morning you fly from Leh to Delhi on one of the world's finest flight routes with views of the highest Himalayan peaks. This Shimla to Leh motorcycle journey thus concludes with a scenic finale from the air.

Optionally you join this Taj Mahal extension to Agra, where Mughal emperor Shah Jahan had the white marble mausoleum built for his late wife. Alternatively, explore Delhi's palaces and bazaars.

The last day of your Royal Enfield motorcycle tour through the Himalayas ends with the return flight from Delhi. Route changes are always adapted to current conditions on the ground so the journey stays safe and flexible.