Where the road finally stops, a temple painted in colours no mountain should permit — and behind it, nothing but Tibet.
Badrinath sits in a valley so bare it looks scoured. There are no trees at this altitude and very little colour — and then, around a bend in the road, a temple facade painted in gold and scarlet and blue, as loud as the landscape is quiet.
It is one of the four Char Dham — the four abodes, a circuit of shrines at the compass points of India that devout Hindus attempt at least once. Badrinath is the northern one. Beyond it the road runs three more miles to Mana, the last village in India, and then it stops, because the next thing is Tibet.
What makes this journey different from Kedarnath is that it asks nothing physical of you. The road goes all the way. That makes it the shrine we recommend to travellers who want the Himalaya and the pilgrimage without the ten-mile walk — and it pairs naturally with Kedarnath for those who want both.
We stay two nights, which is one more than most people manage, and it is the second night that matters: the valley empties, the temperature drops, and the mountain behind the temple turns pink for about four minutes at dawn.
What you will see
The painted facade The painted facade
Kedarnath is grey stone and restraint. Badrinath is the opposite — a temple front in gold, scarlet and blue, startling against a brown valley and the white pyramid of Neelkanth behind it.
Mana village Mana village
Two miles up the road, the last inhabited village in India before the Tibetan border. Wool is spun in doorways. A signpost marks the final Indian tea shop and means it.
Tapt Kund Tapt Kund
Sulphur springs at 130°F rising directly out of the rock beneath the temple, where pilgrims bathe before entering. The water is scalding, the air is near freezing, and the contrast is the point.
Where you stay
2 places, chosen one at a time.
Property to be confirmed Riverside hotel
Badrinath
Property to be confirmed.
2 nights
Property to be confirmed Mountain lodge
Joshimath
Property to be confirmed.
1 night
What is included
Return international flights are included.
We book them with the journey, from your nearest major airport. Travellers who would rather use their own miles, or fly from somewhere we don’t serve well, can simply opt out and we adjust the rate.
Included
- Return international flights, in the cabin of your choosing
- All transfers from your door — car to your home airport included
- Private guiding throughout, and a Shunyaway lead on every journey
- All accommodation, and all meals taken together as a party
- Permits, entry fees and internal travel
- 24-hour contact with the person who designed your journey
Not included
- Visas — we prepare the paperwork, you make the application
- Travel insurance, which we require you to hold
- Personal spending, and anything bought for yourself
Practical
- Duration
- 4 days
- Access
- By road — no walking required
- Altitude
- 10,279 ft / 3,133 m
- Open
- May – November
- Pace
- Gentle; suitable at any level of fitness
- Party
- Twelve travellers maximum
Rates on request
A door-to-door journey cannot be quoted until we know which door, and which cabin. Design yours and we will price it, or simply write to us.