Ladakh

Ladakh sits at the western end of the Tibetan Plateau between the Karakoram and Himalayan ranges, with most of its landscape lying above 3,000 metres. Called 'The Land of High Passes,' it was long one of India's most isolated regions - the road from Manali to Leh, the 479-km Manali–Leh Highway, crosses five mountain passes including the Baralacha La at 4,890 m and was historically closed for 8 months a year by snow. The sparse, arid landscape of sand-coloured mountains streaked with mineral hues, ancient monasteries clinging to cliff faces, and perfectly still turquoise lakes at impossible altitudes creates one of earth's most dramatic environments.

Pangong Tso, the lake that became iconic after Bollywood's 3 Idiots was filmed on its shores, stretches 134 km across the India-China border and sits at 4,350 m. Its colour shifts through the day from turquoise to deep blue to silver. Nubra Valley, accessed over the world's highest motorable road at the Khardung La pass (5,359 m), offers double-humped Bactrian camels against a backdrop of white sand dunes surrounded by snow peaks - a sight that genuinely dislocates the mind. The Hemis Monastery complex, the wealthiest in the region, houses rare thangka paintings and hosts the vibrant Hemis Festival with masked Cham dances each June.