Ladakh has a large variety of places to stay and offers something for every taste – from luxury resorts to camping and homestays.
We are always looking for interaction with local people, to see how do they live their everyday life – that’s why most of the time we spent in Ladakh, we chose homestays and guesthouses. And despite the fact that we traveled off season and a lot of facilities were already closed, we stayed in some amazing places to stay.
These were the places we really loved to stay at because of the hospitality of the owners, great views and loveliness of the place:
1. Choskor Guesthouse, Alchi
The Choskor guesthouse was the first place we visited on our arrival in Ladakh. This is the place we were acclimatising to high altitude and relaxing from the long flight. And we couldn’t think of a better one – the house is situated right in the middle of the village, but peaceful with a lovely garden, plenty of space and a terrace with great view. But as always people are those who make you feel good. The family who runs this place was just preparing for the wedding of their son and had really a lot of things to do, but they all took time for us, they were preparing best food we had in Ladakh and took really good care of us.
The rooms are simple, but clean and nice. You can get all meals there, the owners pick the freshest vegetables from the beautiful vegetable garden to prepare food. And wi-fi here was one of the best in whole Ladakh.
2. Makspon Guesthouse, Dha, Aryan Valley
There are only two accommodation options in the small village of Dha. We chose Makspon Guesthouse – it’s the best option and has better location as you don’t have to walk trough the long village and carry your baggage. The hotel is small and lovely, it has nice, clean rooms and shared bathroom.
3. Moonland hotel, Lamayuru
For us this was the best option in Lamayuru. The hotel has a great view over Lamayuru monastery, a beautiful garden and very nice, comfortable rooms. The restaurant has a large terrace with superb views, good food and very kind staff.
4. Tukchu Homestay, Leh
This was by far our favourite accommodation in whole Ladakh. Rooms are large, clean and cosy, the dining area and living room are placed on the sunny side of the house and are very warm. But the best part of this lovely homestay is the family who owns it. So kind, warm and helpful – they make you feel like you were on a visit to your relatives. They cook also gorgeous meals and fresh mint tea right from the garden. Don’t be discouraged by the distance of the old city centre – it’s just 10 min walk and the hospitality and loveliness of the place will reward you. We felt so good here that Jaka didn’t want to leave at the end. Just faboulous.
5. Galaxy Guesthouse, Hunder, Nubra Valley
This lovely guesthouse in Hunder, Nubra valley was a true comfort after our sleepless previous night in Pangong Tso. Excellent spacious rooms, a beautiful garden and very nice owners make your stay here relaxing and pleasant.
6. Maha Guesthouse, Turtuk, Nubra Valley
Despite the limited options of accommodation in Turtuk (almost everything was already closed for winter), this guesthouse was a true gem. This was the first guesthouse that opened when the village was opened for tourists in 2010. The staff is very helpful, it has nice rooms with great view and restaurant with a paradise-like garden.
7. Kangloma Retreat, Diskit, Nubra Valley
Kangloma retreat is a brand new guesthouse, built in 2016 and already a popular one. We were there off season and the place was full! No wonder – it has large, nice and very clean rooms, a spacious dining area and excellent food. The owners are very friendly and ready to help you.
The choice of places to stay at Tso Moriri, Tso Kar and Pagong Tso was very limited due to our off season visit and they were not so nice. They were really basic, with no hot water, but clean. The ones that we described above were above all expectations and we really enjoyed them.
Read more about how to avoid altitude sickness in Ladakh here.
