Of recent Time’s magazine has nominated Ladakh as one among 50 must visit destination in the world besides another destination of our country. The mode of transport being so efficient it is very easy to ply around the world yet Covid being a shadow constraints for many?
This is a great compliment for the people of the region and it seems that tourism has come of age and it has become the only modern industry of the region.
Gya valley peak summer
The people of Ladakh needs to celebrate this as they have been been able to manage the foreign visitors in the past and now our own visitors from various regions of our country. The entire infrastructure of tourism sector has got upgraded during the last one decade and more and the visitor’s itinary too have changed a lot.
The foreign tourist were more interested in the local culture and tradition and they had to manage themselves when basic facilities were minimal?
Remote Changthang
They were interested to visit the monasteries in large numbers of groups and there was a great demand for monastic guides then; many of these foreign tourists were also going on treks to various routes such as Markha trek, Lamayuru-Padum trek, Ursi-Tar trek and Gya-Tsomoriri trek etc.
The present domestic tourists are looking for comfort and standard staying facilities. They don’t mind paying well as long as they get home comfort and peaceful environment. They are also travelling via cars to remote sort out destinations for which they have already done the advance booking.
So now it seems that preference for culture is slowly taking a back seat while car safaris are becoming more prevalent? Which has its own cost in terms of impacting the Ladakh’s fragile eco-system and environment?
Basgo fort
Already, civil societies such as ‘Snowleapord Conservancy’, ‘Nature Conservation’ and others have carried out such studies providing datas in this regard. Which helped in curtailing the numbers of mortor bikes into Ladakh under the banner such as ‘Raid the Earth’ etc in the past which are very annoying besides harmful too?
Monastic guides have become few and there is a great need in training young guides into this sector so as to promote monastic visits.
There are also young software engineers from Bengaluru who are very fond of taking up the ‘Chadar Trek’ or frozen river trek to Zangla, Zangskar during late January early February of each year!
Nomads of Ladakh Changthang, Rubsho
The potential young people from the plains could explore trekking in Ladakh which could be very exiliarating and challenging too. Summer brings its own charm in the remote valleys and trails there is so much to experience and learn on a trek in Ladakh!
Adventurous tourism too is picking up especially of hiring mountain bicycles and attempting cycling aound scenic valleys in Ladakh. One could also enjoy river rafting on mighty Indus and Suru rivers. In winter one could ice skate on frozen Pangoon and Tomoriri lakes!
Some youngsters are also exploring hang gliding especially in the Changla valley of Sakti village. The Rimo Company of Leh organizes various lengths of marathons during summer which has now acquired prominence amongst the runners across the world.
So the list is endless Ladakh has now matured over the last four decades or more in providing visitors with all kinds of exotic experiences, rich folk culture and monastaries providing spiritual experiences lastly of course the adventure tourism! Bye for now.