Markha, Sham or Kang Yatse: choosing your first Ladakh trek
Three trips for three different people. How the height, days, effort and nights compare, and how to pick the right one.
Where the ₹38,500 for a Markha trek goes
Ponies, guides, cooks, food carried up the valley, permits and the winter wages of our team. An open breakdown of one trekker’s price.
Our eight-day Markha Valley trek costs ₹38,500 per person from Leh. Trekkers sometimes compare it with cheaper offers and ask what the difference is. Here is roughly how the price breaks down for one person in a group of eight.
The largest share goes to people. Each group has a lead guide, an assistant guide, a cook, a kitchen helper and two pony men, all from villages in Markha and around Leh. Their wages for the trip, along with the retainer we pay our core team through the winter, come to about ₹11,000 per trekker. Ponies, one for every two trekkers plus the kitchen and tents, cost about ₹6,500 per trekker for the eight days, including fodder carried for the higher camps.
Food is next. Fresh vegetables, flour, rice, dal, eggs, cheese, fruit and kerosene for eight days, bought in Leh and carried in, come to about ₹5,200 a person. Wildlife and environment fees, the Hemis National Park entry and camping charges add about ₹2,400. Shared vehicles to the trailhead and back from Shang Sumdo cost ₹2,100.
Tents, sleeping bags, mats, the dining tent, toilet tents, oxygen and the first-aid kit wear out and must be replaced, which comes to about ₹3,300 per trekker. Office costs in Leh, insurance for our staff and GST make up most of the rest. Cheaper treks usually save money on staff numbers, pony loads and food. We would rather not.
