Leh, Ladakh's capital and largest town, sits at over 3,500 metres in a high-desert valley along the Indus, its old town of mud-brick houses climbing the hillside beneath the ruined Leh Palace. Once a significant Silk Road trading post connecting Central Asia, Tibet and the Indian plains, the town retains a distinct Tibetan Buddhist character in its markets, monasteries and prayer-flag-draped rooftops, quite unlike anywhere else in India.
Modern Leh functions as the essential logistics hub for the wider region, where most visitors acclimatise for a day or two before heading out to Pangong, Nubra or Zanskar, and its bazaar, army cantonment and growing cafe scene reflect a town that has adapted rapidly to tourism while still retaining genuine Ladakhi character in its older quarters.
Leh served as the capital of the Namgyal dynasty's Ladakh kingdom from the 17th century, and its position on Trans-Himalayan trade routes made it a significant stop for caravans moving between Kashmir, Tibet and Central Asia for centuries before the kingdom's eventual absorption into India.
May to September; the town is largely cut off by snow in winter, though a small resident population and some winter tourism continue.
Leh has its own airport (Kushok Bakula Rimpochee) with flights from Delhi; road access via Manali or Srinagar is seasonal.
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