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If you are planning to visit Himachal in the near future (of course with the pandemic not around the corner) or have already booked the tickets to visit Himachal, this blog will be helpful to get a proper Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary.

In this blog we will talk about how we planned our trip, which places we wanted to cover in Himachal this time around, how you should plan your journey, places to stay, things to see and last but not the least how you can manage the entire trip within a proper budget.

Himachal Pradesh lies in the Northern part of India and has been a major center of tourist attraction since decades. Off late the state has gained major popularity with backpackers exploring the smallest corner of the state, which not only offers the most majestic views of the Himalayas but also provides the gush of fresh air, peace & tranquility which people coming from bustling cities actually craves.

Tourism is one of the main sources of income for the locals with farming and agriculture topping the charts. The state depends heavily on tourism which has actually increased the per capita income of the locals to quite some extent. Himachal is very popular for tourists mainly coming from Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh which constitute the major bulk. Few popular places to visit are Shimla, Manali, Kasol, Kalpa, Kinnaur, Lahaul, Spiti, Dharamsala, Dalhousie etc.

While discussing with the locals, we got to know that there are 3 major routes by which one can explore Himachal. One which starts from Pathankot and continues to Dharamsala, Dalhousie & Khajjiar, the other one covers Shimla, Kullu, Manali & Rohtang Pass and last but not the least the other route covers Kalpa, Kinnaur, Kaza, Lahaul & Spiti. Tourists coming from distant places ideally chooses one out of these three routes to cover their journey. If you want to merge two routes or all three of them, you definitely can but it all depends on how many days you have with you and in which season you are planning your trip.

Coming back to our first visit to Himachal, we had the year end holidays up on our sleeves with 6 nights and 7 days in total to explore.  Lets find out how we planned our tour and give you a proper Kullu Manali Kasol Itinerary.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 1 – December 25, 2021

As mentioned earlier, amongst the three routes to explore Himachal we decided and chose the one which leads to Shimla, Kullu, Manali & Rohtang Pass. After going through many reviews, videos and talking to the locals we decided to skip Shimla this time as everyone advised against it, wth Shimla being too touristy and crowded during year end holidays.

We booked our train tickets from Howrah to Kalka 3 months back knowing there will be huge rush during this season. The Kalka mail has been renamed to Netaji Express Special (12311) which departed from Howrah on December 25th at 21:55 PM and would reach Kalka on December 27th at 3:00 AM. Kalka is the nearest station to Shimla if you are planning to cover Shimla as well. However as we wanted to skip Shimla we opted to get down at Chandigarh and head towards Manali directly.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 2 – December 26, 2021

The train crosses important stations like Asansol, Mughal Sarai, Allahabad, Kanpur, Ghaziabad, Delhi, Ambala etc. on its way. If you are travelling in AC coaches, IRCTC will not allow vendors to enter in the train apart from their own pantry staff. So you will get very minimal food options and the food offered by them are of very poor quality. Try ordering from IRCTC online catering where they will provide you food from various local vendors at specified stations and the quality is much better. (PS – Don’t try their Biryani).

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 3 – December 27, 2021

With Kalka carrying a huge reputation of delay, we finally reached Chandigarh at 3AM with a 2 hour delay. As we had booked our cab as an entire package for the full trip from Chandigarh to Chandigarh, we found it waiting outside the railway station only as soon as we got down. (Tip – Try to avoid booking a cab for the entire package in Himachal, reason will share in details in a separate blog)

The journey from Chandigarh to Manali is absolutely mesmerizing. If you are planning to go directly to Manali always start early from Chandigarh as the traffic situation in Himachal is worse. A normal journey from Chandigarh to Manali would take 10 – 12 hours considering you stop for two halts on the way for breakfast and lunch with a total distance close to 310 KM. Now if you get stuck in traffic this can go up to 15-16 hours as well which could be quite tiresome. If you want to come to Manali via bus you can also opt for Volvo bus services from Delhi and Chandigarh as well which could save a lot of bucks. Himachal have their own Interstate buses as well which you can opt. I will keep the interstate buses the last option considering the fact the distance , condition of the roads and level of comfort.

The cab package generally varies from season to season. If you are coming in peak season they would generally charge Rs 4000 per day and during off season it can come down to 2500-2800 depending on the type of vehicle. We opted for a 6 seater Innova from Chandigarh to Chandigarh pickup and drop for Rs 30,000 for the entire trip which would cover Manali, Kasol and Manikaran.

We reached Manali at around 3 PM and checked in to our hotel, Hotel Greenfields. Our hotel is situated near the Hadimba Devi temple in Old Manali which is one of the best places we would suggest for travelers. If you are coming to Manali stay in Old Manali, rather than staying near the Mall road. Old Manali has the best vibe and scenic beauty and people over here are mostly quite chilled in terms of hospitality. On the contrary the Mall road area is filled with heavy traffic and flocking with tourists which you surely would want to avoid if you want a peaceful and memorable vacation. In one word try to stay as far away from the Mall Road as possible.  Our hotel had one of the best views of the snow capped mountains from the terrace with a calm and peaceful environment all around. Upon checking in, we took rest for the remaining part of the day.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 4 – December 28, 2021

Today we planned to visit nearby places of Kullu and Naggar. We set of for our sightseeing at around 9 AM. On the way we stopped for our breakfast near the bank of the Beas river. The river bank was beautiful with snow capped mountains covered on all sides and the gushing Beas river flowing in the middle of the valley. We stopped for sometime to click few pictures and had a sumptuous breakfast. If you are travelling this side, tell your cab driver to stop near the bridge and walk a little towards the river bank to get the best view of the mountains and the river

Manali is one of the top spot for River rafting and Paragliding. We did not do the Paragliding as we had other plans and as far as river rafting goes we already have done that in our trip to Rishikesh. Read our rafting experience of Rishikesh here. 

On our way we stopped at a local shawl factory to explore the different types of Kullu shawls and woolen clothes and materials. If you want you can also purchase from here.

We as a nature lover wanted to explore the raw beauty of nature and explore the villages of the Kullu valley. Our main aim was to avoid the touristy places and explore the locale more. We stopped near the Baishno Devi Temple as one of the point of attraction. Its a multistory temple which houses most of the Hindu gods and deities with a beautiful interior architecture comprising of wood and stones.

Our next stop was Jana waterfall and the road leading to it was beautiful. Our car was passing by small village paths and local markets of the Kullu district and we could spot the simple livelihood of the people residing there which was quite a pleasant experience.

The path to the Jana waterfall is a quick 5 minute hike from the roadways, do definitely try to reach the source of the waterfall.

From there we went to visit the famous Naggar castle which has witnessed quite a lot of Bollywood movie shootings inside it, most popular among them are Jab We Met, Maachis, Roza, Barsaat etc. The castle is made up of rock and wood and was constructed in the 14th century. The famous castle of  Raja Sidh Singh was later converted to a heritage hotel in 1978 by the Government. The view of the Kullu valley from the castle is something to die for. Keep this as a part of your sight seeing plan definitely if you are planning for Manali.

Just outside the Naggar Castle there is this little cafe Naggar Delight Cafe which everyone should definitely visit. We had one of the best homemade Bakery items. Do try this one.

We enjoyed the rest of the evening near the Mall road. The mall road features many small cafes, shops and restaurants where tourists visit. The price of anything in the mall road is exorbitantly high. So avoid shopping from the Mall road, try to visit their local market at the back end of the mall road. You would get autos to and fro from mall road to your hotels as well.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 5 – December 29, 2021

We started early once again today at around 8 AM to visit the famous Solang Valley and Atal Tunnel. But to our surprise with the huge rush of tourist coming in Manali this week, we could not even cover 1/3 rd of the path also and got stuck near a place in Manali in the huge traffic. The traffic was standstill for 3 hours with hardly any movement. The distance from Manali to Solang Valley is only 16 km, which ideally should take 1 hour to reach, but during this time we heard from tourists that it takes 10 – 12 hours as well to go up and come down from there due to the crazy traffic. The Rohtang Pass and Atal Tunnel was closed for that day due to heavy snowfall. The traffic situation in Himachal is for real and we have witnessed it first hand. The Government should immediately look into this on an urgent basis as it will get worse day by day. We also noticed that the main reason behind the traffic is caused by the cars which are coming from the other states forming 2,3 lanes unnecessarily.

With Solang being too touristy and adding to it this huge traffic jam, we changed our mind and we opted to visit the Hampta Valley instead, by paying the cab driver a little something extra as the road leading to the valley is quite steep and dangerous. This was the best decision we ever took. The roads and the view of the Hampta Valley is far better than what we have seen in videos of Solang Valley and Atal Tunnel. (which is a little overrated we found). We took an U turn and started off for Hampta Valley and Sethan Village.

If you are planning for Hampta Valley , make sure you have a local Himachal driver with you and the car has to be a 4*4 vehicle. Due to snowfall the road gets quite slippery and its not safe for small vehicle and definitely not for the bikers. (Do not hire a bike or a scooty to go to Hampta Valley). We were lucky that we had a local driver with us who managed to wrap the tires of the car with chains like the army people do, which could easily cut down snow and lay a solid grip in the slippery road. We noticed a lot of cars whose tyres were slippery and instead they opted to park 4,5 km ahead of the valley and let the tourists walk those extra kms due to unavoidable circumstances as the roads are quite scary and steep. Luckily our cab went down till the end.

The valley was covered with snow all around. Also there were small road side stalls to eat over there as well. Tourists were also enjoying activities like Skiing and zip lining as well. Do definitely bargain for the activities.

Upon coming down we stopped in the nearby Sethan village which looked like a postcard picture. The village had mud & wooden houses, pine trees, small local shops with snow capped mountains on all sides with the sun shining right down on it. We did not get a chance to interact with the locals but next time if we come, we will plan to stay in a homestay near the village for sure.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 6 – December 30, 2021

We started the day by visiting the famous Hadimba Devi Temple. Hadimba Devi is the wife of Bhima, one of the Pandavas from the famous Mahabharata. The temple stands amidst a dense Pine and Cedar forest which was built by Maharaja Bahadur Singh in 1553. The local devotees believes that this is the temple where Hindu deity Hadimba (Hidimba) meditated. This is perhaps the only temple we have seen dedicated to a demoness. Nearby the temple there is a tree temple of her son Ghatothkach as well.

From there we went to the Bana Bihar and Zoo which had nothing except tall Pine and Cedar trees where you can roam around and click some nice pictures of the beautiful canopy formation at the top.

The rest of the day we kept for ourselves to explore Old Manali. If you are visiting Manali, try to spend as much time as possible in exploring Old Manali local areas & market rather than spending time on the Mall Road. You will get a vibe of the actual Himachali people and their daily life. The Club house is also nearby which you can explore. Old Manali is less crowded, ambience is chilled, have some of the best bakeries and cafes and the prices of goods are also reasonable. This is an area which are being mostly visited by the foreigners. Smoking and drinking is quite open in this part of Manali and everyone is quite chilled with this. It has a similar resemblance to Kasol. We spent the rest of the evening in a cafe called Mount Walkers. The ambience and the food was fantastic and it has live music as well. Do definitely try this one.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 7 – December 31, 2021

We checked out early and we headed towards Kasol and Manikaran. Kasol is a hamlet in the Kullu valley beside the Parvati river between Bhuntar and Manikaran. The place has gained a lot of popularity from young travelers due to its chilled ambience and very few restrictions all around. It is situated 75km from Manali. We wanted to cover Manikaran first and then check in to our home stay in Kasol. The road to Kasol from Bhuntar is picturesque with huge mountains on all sides and the beautiful Parvati river accompanying us through out the journey. Manikaran is situated around 6 km from Kasol and is famous for the Manikaran Sahib Gurdwara situated there.

Manikaran Sahib Gurudwara – Its is a famous pilgrimage spot for Hindus and Sikhs and this place is mentioned in the Twelfth Khalsa written by Giani Gian Sikh. This place has been often visited by the Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak Ji. The hot boiling spring in the Gurudwara is used by locals and tourists. This place receives thousands of tourists all year around.

We also attended their Langar and were offered Kara Prasad as well. The road to Manikaran being single often encounters huge traffic. We took 1,5 hours to cover 5 kms, so you can imagine the level of traffic.

Upon our return we noticed many camps on the river bank for which Kasol is famous for, so if you are travelling to Kasol, do definitely try out their river camps which could be quite some experience. We opted for a homestay as Kasol rather than a camp because at night the temperature falls to -4°C as well. Being December 31st, the place was filled with tourists and there were huge traffic, but luckily again we chose a property which is a little away from the Main Kasol market (around 4kms) called Colonel’s Dacha. Its a beautiful homestay situated on the banks of the Parvati river beside the famous Kabila Camps. We enjoyed the rest of the evening in leisure.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 8 – January 01, 2022

We kept this day for a trek to a small village called Chalal which is situated at a distance of 3 km from Kasol . There are lot of places you can explore from Kasol like Malana, Tosh, Kalga & Pulga, Kheerganga trek etc but as we had very limited time we only opted to visit Chalal. If you are in Kasol definitely go for this trek as its a quite easy one for beginners and you will remember the scenic beauty of the mountains which you will witness along the way forever. Through out the way you will get plenty of cafes to sit and relax as well if you get tired along the way and the beautiful Parvati river will be accompanying you through out the journey.

Chalal is situated at a height of 5300 ft and has managed to retain its old-world mountain village rustic charm. The beautiful houses, the simple livelihood of the people, the animals in the farm and the simple local people will surely attract you to come to this place again. If you are planning to lose yourself to the mountains Chalal is the perfect hamlet for you.

Upon coming back we visited the Kasol local market and spent the remaining day at leisure. Do try the Israeli cuisine and bakeries in Kasol with a view of the Parvati valley. We will cover in depth of the trek to Chalal on a separate blog.

Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary Day 9 – January 02, 2022

This is the last day of our trip. Try to check out and leave for Chandigarh as early as possible as you never know you can get stuck in a terrible traffic jam near Mandi. We took 12 hours to get down from Kasol to Chandigarh and finally boarded our train.

Conclusion – There are a lot of things we witnessed and lot to share, so it will be very difficult to cover all nitty gritty in one blog. Do keep checking our website for future blog. We have never witnessed this beauty of the Himalayas like this, what we saw in Manali and Kasol but there are a lot of negative things as well worth mentioning which we encountered during our trip. We will cover as much as possible so that you don’t encounter them and give you a proper Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary.

Tips for you to plan during Kullu Manali Kasol itinerary :

• Try not to book a cab for the entire package, then you will have very less flexibility. The entire trip will be operated on the whims of the driver and the tour operator. We were lucky to have a good driver with us, but not everyone will be lucky. The commitment the operator or the hotel make with you during booking will change with due course of time. For example Atal Tunnel and Rohtang Pass was included in the package as instructed by our hotel, but upon arriving we were told that its not included. Luckily it was closed. For two days the cab was almost sitting idle as we covered most of the places already and they denied travelling to any other important or beautiful places on our request neither they compensated for that.
• Almost all the cab drivers have connections with vendors for paragliding and rafting from where they get commission. If you don’t want to do any activities tell them upfront.
• We met mostly nice people on our journey, but we also noticed that people are a little bit outspoken and a little rude even if its a petty issue.
• Carry a lot of warm clothes with you if you are travelling in the months of December-February. Chances of snowfall depends on weather, so no one can predict upfront. Kasol river bank camps do not receive direct sunlight, hence the place gets very cold at night. We opted for Jackets, hiking shoes, fleece, gloves, socks from Decathlon and Wildcraft.
• Plan your day early for sight seeing. The traffic is worse and if you get stuck at any point it will consume half of your day.
• The cost of food in Manali is quite high, try to avoid the restaurants, cafes in Mall road. If you are booking a hotel add your breakfast as complimentary. In that way you can have your lunch on a roadside dhaba, restaurant, cafe at a cheaper price and dinner at the hotel (good if you can include dinner as well).
• Do not have the pantry car food inside the train, the quality is very bad, order online from IRCTC Food booking you will get good food at a reasonable price on your selected station and on time.
• Kasol and Old Manali is quite open for drinking, smoking pot and joint. If you are travelling with family you can definitely avoid these places, camps, cafes etc.
• If you are a Bong, there are plenty of restaurants offering Bengali cuisine near the local market at the backend of the mall road.
• If you are visiting Himachal do not litter. Please carry all the plastic along with you and dump in a dustbin. We witnessed lot of tourists carelessly throwing plastics on the road, in the snow, near the river, please be responsible while travelling.
• It takes almost 10-12 hours to reach Manali, so you can definitely add Shimla on your trip which is like 4 hours from Chandigarh and 3 hours from Kalka Railway station. After spending two days, climb to Manali in that way travelling time will be less.
• If you are coming by flight Chandigarh is the nearest airport. There is another airport in Kullu called the Bhuntar airport but flights to Bhuntar are very expensive and not frequent as well.

Also do read our Delhi and Nainital blog to plan journey to another hill station as well.

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