A twelve-storey Gelugpa monastery nineteen kilometres from Leh, stacked up a hillside and home to a fifteen-metre Maitreya Buddha.
3,600 m2 hoursBest: May–Oct
MonasteryHeritage
Ladakh · Leh
Hemis Monastery
Ladakh's wealthiest monastery and its biggest festival
- Monastery
- Heritage
- Altitude
- 3,600 m
- Ideal stay
- Half day
- From Srinagar
- 463 km
- From Jammu
- 729 km
- Best months
- May–Oct
Overview
About Hemis Monastery
Hemis is the largest and richest monastery in Ladakh, re-established in 1672 under royal patronage and belonging to the Drukpa lineage. It is tucked into a gorge about forty-five kilometres south of Leh, invisible from the main road — a location that reportedly saved its treasures from several historical raids.
Its museum holds an exceptional collection of thangkas, gold statues and ritual objects, and the monastery owns the largest thangka in Ladakh, unrolled only once every twelve years. The copper-gilt Padmasambhava statue in the main hall is among the finest in the region.
The Hemis Tsechu, held in June or July, is the biggest festival in Ladakh: two days of masked cham dancing in the main courtyard, attended by monks and villagers from across the region.
Also known as: Hemis Gompa
Why people come here
Hemis Tsechu
Ladakh's largest monastic festival, with two days of masked cham dancing each June or July.
Monastery museum
An outstanding collection of thangkas, gold statues and ritual objects.
Padmasambhava statue
A large copper-gilt image of Guru Rinpoche in the main assembly hall.
Hemis National Park
India's largest national park, above the monastery, and the best snow leopard habitat in the country.
Things to do in Hemis Monastery
Time your visit for the Tsechu
Dates follow the Tibetan calendar and shift each year — we confirm them for clients planning around it.
Spend time in the museum
Genuinely one of the best monastic collections in the Himalaya.
Walk up the gorge
A path continues above the monastery into Hemis National Park.
Combine with Thiksey and Shey
All three are on the same southern circuit from Leh.
Photographs
Hemis Monastery across the seasons
Open-licence photography so you can see what the place actually looks like at different times of year — not a retouched brochure.
Spring and summer
The festival falls in June or July on the Tibetan calendar and fills the courtyard for two days.
Season by season
What Hemis Monastery is like through the year
Including the months when it is genuinely closed — because knowing that in advance saves a wasted trip.
Spring · Mar–May
OpenQuiet and green in the gorge
May is calm, with the approach valley coming into leaf.
2°C to 18°C
- Monastery visit
- Museum
- Gorge walk
Summer · Jun–Aug
OpenHemis Tsechu festival
The festival falls in June or July on the Tibetan calendar and fills the courtyard for two days.
11°C to 27°C
- Hemis Tsechu
- Cham dances
- Museum
- Hemis National Park
Autumn · Sep–Nov
OpenClear and uncrowded
September and October are excellent for a quiet visit and for walking in the upper gorge.
-3°C to 17°C
- Monastery visit
- Photography
- Walks
Winter · Dec–Feb
OpenSnow leopard country
Hemis National Park above the monastery is one of the best places in the world for winter snow leopard sightings.
-16°C to -2°C
- Snow leopard expeditions
- Monastery visit
Getting there
How to reach Hemis Monastery
By air
Leh Airport (IXL) is 49 km away, about an hour.
By rail
Jammu Tawi (729 km) is the nearest railhead.
By road
45 km south of Leh off the Leh–Manali highway, around one hour.
Nearby
Combine Hemis Monastery with
Places close enough to fold into the same itinerary without adding long drives.
The old Silk Route capital of Ladakh, built below a nine-storey palace in a high desert valley on the Indus — and the base for everything in the region.
3,500 m2–3 daysBest: May–Sep
HeritageHigh-altitude desertMonastery
Ladakh
Pangong Tso
A 4,350-metre endorheic lake stretching from Ladakh into Tibet, famous for water that shifts through every shade of blue and green across a single day.
4,350 m1–2 daysBest: May–Sep
LakeHigh-altitude desert
Ladakh
Tso Moriri
A 4,522-metre high-altitude lake in the Changthang plateau, a Ramsar wetland with breeding black-necked cranes and almost no tourist traffic.
4,522 m1–2 daysBest: Jun–Sep
LakeHigh-altitude desertWildlife
Questions
Hemis Monastery FAQs
Something not covered? Ask us directly — we answer every message personally.
When is the Hemis Festival?
In June or July, on dates set by the Tibetan lunar calendar, so they shift each year. It runs for two days in the monastery courtyard.
How far is Hemis from Leh?
About 45 km south, roughly an hour by road off the Leh–Manali highway.
Can you see snow leopards at Hemis?
Hemis National Park above the monastery is the world's best-known snow leopard habitat. Sightings require a specialist winter expedition between January and March.
Start planning
Planning a trip to Hemis Monastery?
Tell us your dates and who is travelling. We will put Hemis Monastery into a full itinerary with the right stops around it, and tell you honestly whether your chosen month works.
A reply within hours
A planner in Srinagar reads your enquiry and responds personally, usually the same working day.
An itinerary, not a brochure
You get a day-by-day plan written for your dates, group and pace — then we refine it together.
One clear quote
Every inclusion listed in writing before you pay anything. No surprise charges on the ground.
Prefer to talk? +91 88991 23434 · Every day, 09:00-21:00