How to Go from Kaza to Leh

There are no direct bus from Kaza to Leh. We had an option to either go to Keylong and catch a connecting bus to Leh or go to Manali and take a shared taxi or bus to Leh.

From Kaza there were no bus yet to Manali when we were there (June 2012). We were told that the bus would probably start resuming it’s services by the end of the month. The reason behind it was that the roads are in bad condition due to snow and ice. The road was said to be only open during summer (June and July). The only option that time was the shared taxi from Kaza to Manali which cost 800 Rupees per head.

Kaza

We’re initially thinking of just going to Keylong and just catch a bus to Leh but we’re told that there might be a chance that most buses that will pass thru Keylong might be full already since it’s the peak season. But we opted to take the shared taxi instead to Manali to make sure that we can get a seat up to Leh.

The trip to Manali from Kaza was said to be just 10 hours but we travelled for about 13 hours including the stops. The shared taxi left Kaza at around 6:30AM and we arrived at Manali Bus Station at around 7PM.

The road to Manali from Kaza is spectacular and really mind blowingly beautiful. Here are some pictures of the journey:

Our vehicle broke down after two hours

We saw this while waiting for the jeep to get fixed. They’re on the nearby hills. I’m not sure if these are the Himalayan Tahrs or Ibexes but we felt very lucky to see these endangered and magnificent animals in the wild.

Passing through a flock of domestic sheeps and goats

Temple along the road

Icy Roads

One of the many waterfalls we saw along the way

Small Pond

Just a few kilometers from Rohtang Pass

Rohtang Pass: Where we got stuck in a traffic jam for a couple of hours due to the numerous tourist vehicles that blocked the road.

We arrived at Manali at 7PM and started looking for a shared taxi service to Leh. we booked our seats with one agency who offered it to us for 1900 Rupees per head. The departure time though was 1AM and we waited at the bus station until that time.

Due to fatigue and exhaustion I slept the entire night on the jeep. Luckily the have very comfortable seats, really worth every penny that we paid for.

Here are some pictures of our journey from Manali to Leh:

Not your usual bus stop

One of the tires of our vehicles got punctured after more than 12 hours on the road

No roads in some areas, you just have to drive on the sandy landscape

Leh, finally after almost of two full days of travelling!

Here are some tips that I’d like to share if you’re gonna take a trip from Kaza to Leh:

1. Bring water and food. The journey is quite long and luckily there are stops where you could buy some food and water.

2. Don’t eat something that might upset your stomach. You don’t want to end up looking for toilet in the middle of nowhere. Bring an Imodium with you (just in case).

3. Don’t put your camera in your backpack. There are so many nice things to see along the way. You could ask the driver to stop (if you take the shared taxi) along the way so you could take nice pictures.

4. don’t sit at the back. It’s more comfortable sitting in front especially if you easily get dizzy in long road trips.

5. Wear warm clothing. It gets really really cold at night.

6. There’s a checkpoint before you enter Leh and you’ll be asked to register and show them your passport.

7. It might help if you book Leh hotels before you arrive as we had a hard time finding one when we arrived at night.

8. Enjoy the trip!

Safe Travels!