Chandratal Lake in 5 Days – Most Common Itinerary

Chandratal Lake is growing its popularity among the youth in India with each passing summers. Now, families with kids have also started showing interest in making a trip to this pristine lake in Spiti Valley. And why not, as the distance from Delhi looks like Chandratal lake is just a couple of days away only.

However, like someone said, “not everything that glitters is gold” and so is the trip to Chandratal lake. All these novice travelers or adventure lovers forget that Chandratal lake is located at an altitude of 14000 feet in Himachal Pradesh tribal belt.

This much altitude is more than enough to make you sick of acute mountain sickness. Even the road to Chandratal lake from Manali is one of the worst roads you will ever come across in your life. It feels as if you are driving on a river bed and dodging the furious water crossings every few kilometers.

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Itinerary for Chandratal Lake from Manali for 5 Days

In this article today, I am going to share the most popular itinerary for Chandratal lake. This itinerary keeps a distance to travel in a day balanced and, to an extent, also considers acute mountain sickness issues. You might have read my detailed travel guide of Chandratal lake at the link Delhi to Chandratal – Travel Guide.

If not, then please read this travel guide to know more in detail about Chandratal lake. You must be aware of details about the regions and what it offers on any adventure trip. It helps you prepare for the unknown in such remote locations of Himalayas.

Traveling to Chandratal from Kinnaur side?

If you are coming to Chandratal lake from Kinnaur side, there isn’t much to worry about AMS as your body will be acclimatized. In this article, I am talking about making a trip to Chandratal lake from Manali side because of less number of days at hand.

This plan does not cover Spiti Valley and is limited to a visit to Chandratal lake only. In case you are interested in making a trip to Spiti Valley, then better refer to my article on planning a Spiti trip from Manali side.

Before going on a trip to any high altitude region in the Himalayas, I always urge everyone to read the article on Acute Mountain Sickness and Importance of Acclimatization. Please keep in mind that in case you are planning the trip from Manali side, you can never avoid AMS issues.

Day 1 | Delhi – Manali – Solang Valley

• Reach Manali by overnight Volvo and stay overnight at Solang Valley as preferred for acclimatization
• If there is time then explore Manali
• Manali Local sightseeing which includes Hadimba Temple, Manu Temple, Mall Road, Local Monastery, Old Manali, Vashisth Hot Water Springs (never found it interesting) etc.
• About 12-14 Hrs drive, depending upon the breaks you take in between
• Overnight at Solang Valley or Manali

Day 2 | Manali – Rohtang Pass – Khoksar / Batal

• Head early morning towards Chandratal via Rohtang Pass
• Drive through Batal – Chattru – Gramphu towards Batal Chandratal is out of the world with one of the worst roads you will ever ride/drive
• You can either stay at Khoksar PWD Rest House to acclimatize more or if you are comfortable with dhabha night stay or PWD rest house stay without light, then stay at Batal
• The reason to sleep at Khoksar or Batal is just to acclimatize more
• About 3-4 Hrs to Khoksar and 6-7 Hrs to Batal
• Overnight at Khoksar or Batal

Day 3 | Khoksar / Battal – Chandratal Lake / Battal

• Head early morning to Chandratal lake to get the reflections in the lake.
• Spend the time up there at the lake, explore the region around and have lunch at the lake.
• Drive through Batal – Chattru – Gramphu towards Batal Chandratal lake is out of the world.
• Camps are about 1-1.5 KMs from the Chandratal lake. You can either stay there if you felt good the previous night or be back to Batal (preferred) where there is a PWD rest house now though without electricity. Unless you want to stay in a guest house with electricity, better stay at Batal and save time as well as energy for the next day.
• Private camping is not allowed at the banks of lake.
• About 1-1.5 Hrs drive
• Overnight at Chandratal Lake or Batal.

Day 4 | Chandratal – Batal – Gramphu – Rohtang Pass – Manali

• Drive through the same Batal – Chattru – Gramphu route
• Head back to Manali via Rohtang Pass
• About 7 – 8 Hrs drive easily if you do not get messed up Rohtang Pass
• You may take the overnight Volvo to save a day but to make hectic 😉
• Overnight at Manali

Day 5 | Manali – Mandi – Jahu – Bhota – Una – Delhi

• If not taking Volvo and driving self to Delhi, you can try a different route
• Take a longer but different route to Delhi from Jahu – Bhota – Una side
• The route is pretty scenic, excellent roads and offer good views
• About 14-15 Hrs, as it is about 55 KMs longer route but devoid of bad roads and truck traffic
• Sweet home

Day 6 | Buffer day to be kept in case of road closure due to landslides or snowfall or perhaps you want to enjoy more 🙂

Stay options at Chandratal Lake

Thankfully there are no concrete buildings near Chandratal lake and only a few temporary camps run in season time at a designated camping site near the parking lot. You can get in touch with Bishan Thakur – Parasol Camps & Retreats at 09418845817, 09459910098, Nawang: 09459073908, 01906-200204. You can also write to them at parasolcamps@gmail.com, info@parasolcamps.com. These camps are more spacious, have mattresses, quilts, and decent comfort. He does have a dining area & covered washrooms if required. There are a couple of other camps too nowadays.

Well, at Battal you can stay at Chandra Dhabha run by Dorje Uncle. It has a shed-like room for 7-8 people. Workers and the Dhaba family itself occupy most of the space where food is served, so if you are lucky, you may get space to sleep there as well. They charge Rs 125-150 per person for a night stay and provide quilts as well. You can take as many quilts as available with them and if not in use by anyone. Best is to have your own sleeping bag.

There is a PWD Rest House as well now at Batal but without any electricity. You can take rooms there and eat at Chandra Dhabha with Dorje Uncle and Aunty Ji. 08991722020 is the contact number of satellite phones at Batal, and you can inquire from Dorje’s uncle if he can book a PWD Rest House room for you or a couple of igloo type huts just in front of his dhabha that can save you from cold winds in the evening or night.

Dorje Uncle’s son Tenzin now also set up camps at Chandratal, you can reach him at Tenzing Camp – +91-8991722020. Else call up the satellite phone and ask Dorje uncle to do the bookings for his son’s camps.

Can I make a trip to Chandratal in 4-5 days from Delhi?

Well, as we read in this article that it is possible to make a trip to Chandratal lake in 5 days from Delhi. It will give you enough time to relax and enjoy this beautiful wonder of nature in the remote corner of Himachal Pradesh.

Taxis to Chandratal Lake from Manali

You can get connected directly to some taxi drivers in Spiti Valley or Manali at the link: List of Taxi Drivers for Spiti Valley & Kinnaur Valley. The rates of the taxis are about Rs 11000-12000 depending on the number of days you plan to travel.

Otherwise, taxis, in general, are also available on the spot from Shimla or Manali from respective taxi stands to most parts of the Himachal.

Can I make a Delhi to Chandratal trip in 3 days or extended weekend?

At a minimum, you will need at least four days to visit Chandratal lake from Delhi. In case you are going to follow some insane AMS prone plan of taking the overnight Volvo from Delhi to Manali and then on the next morning of Day 1 reach Chandratal lake and rest up there. On Day 2, you can travel back from Chandratal to Manali and rest. Finally, on Day 3, you return home from Manali to Delhi.

Or you can do the other way round by reach Manali on Day 1 and rest for the day. On Day 2 reach Chandratal and sleep overnight at Batal or Chandratal and Day 3 reach Manali and take the overnight Volvo to reach home by Day 4 morning.

If you ask me, I will highly suggest against both these travel plans for Chandratal. Still, if you want me to force, I will put my bet on the second plan where you sleep at Batal on Day 2 after visiting Chandratal.

Conclusion

I am sure that the above itinerary may not help you 100% with planning a trip to Chandratal lake but will certainly act as a starting point for it. Do share your valuable thoughts or any questions or any doubts you may have in the comments section of the article. We can discuss more on your upcoming travel plans for Chandratal lake or any other parts of Spiti Valley 🙂

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If you know your friends or family are planning a trip to Chandratal Lake in 5 days, do share this article with them to help them make a memorable Spiti or Chandratal trip.