From the capital New Delhi, we catch a morning flight to Leh, the main city in Ladakh. Leh has a distinctly Tibetan feel, and there are a number of monuments to explore, including the Leh Palace, which resembles the Potala Palace in Lhasa, and the Tsemo Gompa.

For the next few days we drive west on the Srinagar-Leh Highway towards the historic town and monastery of Lamayuru, visiting many of the highlights of this area including Rizong and Phayang Gompas and the palaces of Alchi.

After spending another night in Leh, we then visit the famous Hemis Gompa, via a Stok Palace and the monks of the Thiksey Gompa. We spend a night camped in Hemis, where we can enjoy stunning views of the surrounding are, and the following day explore the monastery, with it's famous museum, packed with Buddhist artifacts.

From Hemis we head out to the remote Tso Moriri Lake - the largest in the region, and rare bird and mammal life can sometimes be seen here. Our visit is timed for the Korzok Gustor festival, where will should witness many pilgrims and monks carrying out their traditional masked dancing.

This is a fantastic opportunity to see a traditional festival, and as we are camping at the lake we will be able to truly soak up the atmosphere of this festival, the monastery and also the haunting beauty of this lake.

After the festival we continue along the Leh-Manali Highway to Manali,over nighting in Serchu. The highway is one of the highest motorable roads in the world and we cross a number of high passes, including the Rohtang Pass. To me, this a man-made wonder, cutting through some of the most spectacular scenery in the country. It needs permenant maintenace from snowfall and landslides, and travelling it is an adventure.

When we arrive at Manali in Himachal Pradesh we spend a welcome two nights at a comfortable hotel! Manali is a pretty town, with a different feel to Leh, set in a deep valley amidst picturesque apple orchards. We have a whole day to explore it's alpine charm.

On our penultimate day we drive to the nearby Joginder Nagar Railway Station and catch one of India's famous Toy Trains to Pathankot, where we board a night train to Delhi where the tour ends.