Activities of interest

Adventure Sports

Paragliding or Parasailing: Soar high in the sky and enjoy the splendid beauty of Himachal. Its exciting fun and thrill attract thousands of tourists every year.

-Location: Kangra valley, Bundla Dhar near Bilaspur

Skiing: This is the best sport for those who love speed. The experience of speeding over the white snow is incredible and breathtaking.

-Location: Kufri, Solang Nallah, Patalsu, Kothi, Marhi

River Rafting: The many untamed rivers originating from Himalayas provide the best destination of river rafting in the world. The river’s rocky banks, crashes into rocks, crevices and breaking into white water rapids, foaming, swirling, and falling in a thunderous din provide the extreme thrill and adventure.

-Location: Chandrabhaga in Lahaul, The Sutlej near Shimla, the Ravi near Chamba and the Beas near Kullu

Balloon Ride: Enjoy the beautiful Himachal countryside dotted with orchards, snow clad mountains, lush valleys and dense forests on the enthralling Balloon ride.

-Location: Dharamshala

Bungee Jumping: There is nothing more adventurous than getting a free fall from a height of 120-700ft. With professional organizations upholding the event one can be sure of almost zero risk.

-Location: Manali, Bilaspur & Billing

River Crossing: This is another popular adventurer sport common among the tourists. This could be a risk sport if not done under professional supervision.

-Location: Bhang and Aleo

Sky Diving: The divers jump down from an airplane while it is flying and parachute to the ground. Skydiving can be done individually and with other people. Training is required to go solo. Style and accuracy are the two major competitions which draws large crowd. In Style competitions the divers performs tricks and turns. In Accuracy competition, the landing has to be extremely precise - the skydiver has to touch a coin-sized electronic pad with one heel.

-Location: Bir and Billing in Kangra

Terrain Jeep Ride: An exciting or thrilling adventure activity, Jeep Safari, where one can drive through the highest mountain highways, into deep valleys and explore the area. You can take a drive into the interior of villages or towns. The Himalayan region is famous for Jeep Safari.

-Location: Lahaul to Leh & Spiti

Kayaking: Learning to Kayak is difficult but once mastered it is worth the effort. Kayaking is an exotic and exciting adventure activity. Nothing can be more enthralling than enjoying the serene beauty of the hill ranges while floating on the water.

-Location: Bhaga, Chenab, Zanskari, Parvati, Sutlej and Spiti

Trekking: With four mountain ranges running almost parallel to one another in Himachal Pradesh and thus creating charming and beautiful valleys and passes suitable for trekking, Himachal is rightly said to be the trekkers paradise. There are about two dozen passes on the Dhauladhar, a dozen over the Pir-panjal range and 8-10 such passes over the Great Himalayan range to cross over to the Zanskar valley. Himachal offers a virtual bonanza for trekkers.

-Location: Lahaul Spiti and Manali Leh road

Mountaineering and Rock Climbing: Himalayan ranges provide an ultimate destination for a mountain climbing, offering everything from short and easy excursions to the long challenges of the snowy peaks, invoking visions of the spectacular Himalayas, the lush meadows, green woodland and fragrant orchards.

-Location: Manali and Dharamshala

Horse Riding: Shimla is the place for enjoying horse riding. Hotels on request make arrangements for horse riding. Enjoying the rolling hills and soothing lush greenery of Shimla is a popular tourist activity.

-Location: Narkanda, Solang Nullah, Kufri Shimla

Mountain Cycling: Mountain cycling can be a one day affair or a group trip planned around a few weeks. It is considered to the best way to explore the natural beauty of Himachal Pradesh. It is also considered to be one of the most popular adventure activities in the state.

-Location: Kangra, Una, Hamirpur and Bilaspur

Passes

Rohtang Pass: Rohtang Pass is situated at an altitude of 3,978m (13,000ft). It is around 51 km from Manali and lies in the eastern Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas. The pass connects the Kullu Valley with the Lahaul and Spiti Valleys.  The History Channel's program ‘Ice Road Trucker’s series has shot here many episodes showcasing IRT Deadliest Roads which dealt with truckers crossing the Rohtang Pass.

KunZun Pass: KunZun Pass is a high pass located at an altitude of 4,590 m (15,060 ft). It lies on eastern Kunzum Range of the Himalayas and is some 122 km from Manali. This pass connects the Kullu Valley and Lahul Valley with the Spiti Valley.  The road to this pass provides the wonderful view of the second longest glacier in the world, the Bara- Sigri. Instead of returning to Manali, you can also plan a visit to Leh via the beautiful hill town of Keylong. You can also visit some of the nearby tourist destinations on the trip to this pass.


Pin Parbati Pass: The Pin Parbati Pass is situated at an altitude of 5300m (17384 ft). The pass encompasses one of the most spectacular treks in the region that takes one from the lush green Parvati valley in Kullu to the stark and barren Pin valley in Spiti. On the way to the pass is the beautiful high-altitude Maltalai lake and it borders the Pin Valley National Park and the Great Himalayan National Park that is famous for sightings of rare Himalayan birds like the Western Tragopan.


Baralacha Pass: Baralacha Pass is located at an altitude of 4,890m (16,040 ft) above sea level. It lies in the Zanskar range and connects the Lahaul district in Himachal Pradesh to Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir.  This pass is popularly known as the pass where many roads meet. This pass lies at the meeting point of the cross road from Spiti, Ladakh, Zanskar and Lahaul. During the ancient time this pass lied on an important trade route.  The Bhaga River lies on the North West  while the Chandra river flows on the South East. Near below the Baralacha-la a beautiful emerald lake the Suraj tal also called Sun lake, the source of the river Bhaga.

Shopping

Bhuttico: Known for traditional and modern Loi or Chaddar, Bhuttico Shawls, Angora shawls and Pashmina shawls. BHUTTICO handlooms & handicrafts cooperative society is one of the prominent organization in the entire valley setting standards and excellence. It has been credited with class A status for its unprecedented growth and welfare of its artisans members.

Chaughan Market: Known for its colorful Minjar Mela for celebrating the harvest.


Himachal Handloom: Known for Bhuttico Handlooms & Handicrafts.


Kangra Tea Factory: Known for its production of black and green tea. During the british rule black teas were manufactured by the Britishers only while the green tea by the native proprietors because the green tea manufacturing required very less machinery.


Khadi Gram Udyog: Famous for the hand spun and hand woven khadi wear.  Khadi was brought in to recognition in India by Mahatama Gandhi. He urged people to  weave their garments themselves and say no to imported clothes to show case the unity of India during the freedom struggle against the British rule. Today Khadi shares an important part of every Indians live and is a very important element in present trend.


Kotwali Bazaar: Famous for its miniatures, arts, crafts, sculptures, pottery, and anthropological items. The array of shops, little cafes and eating outlets makes it an attraction in its own.


Lakkad Bazaar: It is a colorful market famous for the wondrous wood made articles like the wooden boxes, jewelry, images, fruit bowls and many more. There are a number of hotels and restaurants in the market. The market if known for its cheap items.


Mcleodganj Market: The market is famous for its Buddha temple and Tibetan handicraft centre. There are a number of residential buildings, restaurants, and antique and curio shops around the market. The Buddha temple is worth a visit. It is situated opposite to the present abode of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.


Mall Road: It is the main street of Shimla. Special precautions were taken to make sure that the road does not get adversely affected.  Except for the emergency vehicles, normal automobiles are not allowed on this road and therefor the locals and tourists are often found strolling on this road in the evenings. The road is also referred to the lifeline of Himachal Pradesh and is seen by every visitor. There are a number of showrooms, department stores, shops, hotels, restaurants and cafes on this road. The Mall Road was constructed by the British and so it has many colonial structures situated across it.


Tibetan Bazaar: The Tibetan traders have unique variety of handicrafts and handlooms. Street-side stalls spring up in the evening offering variety and good bargain. The market is famous for its Kullu shawls, Himachal caps, Tibetan carpets, woolen clothes, pickles, local fruit jams and juices, Buddhist paintings on cloth, metal ware, silver and turquoise jewelry.


Tibetan Market: The main tourist attraction in the market area is the artistic beauty of the little Tibet, metal work, woolen Items. Some of the Himalayan handicrafts sold include prayer wheels, amulets, masks, musical instruments, rosaries and thangha. The Bodh Shawl Factory Shop situated here helps tourists to familiarize with the prices of goods.