India Guide
Himachal Pradesh
The Kullu Valley
The majestic KULLU VALLEY is Himachal at its most idyllic, with roaring rivers, pretty mountain villages, orchards and terraced fields, thick pine forests and snow-flecked ridges. Known in ancient Hindu scriptures as Kulanthapitha, or "End of the Habitable World", it extends 80km north from the mouth of the steep and narrow Larji Gorge, near Mandi, to the foot of the Rohtang Pass – gateway to Lahaul and Ladakh. For centuries, it formed a major trade corridor between Central Asia and the Gangetic plains, and local rulers, based first at Jagatsukh and later at Naggar and Sultanpur (now Kullu), raked off handsome profits.
In spite of the changes wrought by roads, immigration and, more recently, mass tourism, the Kullu Valley's way of life is maintained in countless timber and stone villages. Known as paharis ("hill people"), the locals – high-caste landowning Thakurs, and their (low-caste) sharecropping tenant farmers – still sport the distinctive Kullu cap, or topi. The women, meanwhile, wear colourful headscarves and puttoos fastened with silver pins and chains. Venture into the lush meadows above the tree line and you'll cross paths with nomadic Gaddi shepherds.
Most tourists make a beeline for Manali after a gruelling bus ride from either Leh or Delhi. With its vast choice of hotels and restaurants, there is something here for everyone. Still an evergreen hippy hangout, it's India's number-one honeymoon spot too, and is also popular with outdoors enthusiasts taking advantage of the fine trekking opportunities – everything from day-hikes up the River Beas's side valleys (or nalas) to challenging long hauls over high-altitude passes and glaciers. Few travellers actually stay in Kullu town and the only real attraction is the annual Dussehra festival in October. Flights from Delhi to Bhuntur, just south of Kullu, offer a welcome but weather-dependent alternative to the long overnight bus journeys. To the north, Naggar's castle, ancient temples and relaxed guesthouses make a pleasant change from the claustrophobic concrete of modern Manali, as do Manikaran's sacred hot springs, up the spectacular Parvati Valley.