Singapore to Ladakh: Flights to Leh, Permits, Altitude and Best Months

In short

There is no direct flight from Singapore to Ladakh. The usual route is Changi to Delhi, a night there, then a morning flight of about an hour and a half to Leh. Singaporeans need an Indian visa, usually the e-Tourist Visa, applied for at least 4 days before arrival, and a Protected Area Permit for Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake. Leh is at about 3,500 metres, so plan to rest for the first two days and spend three nights there before crossing the high passes. June to September is the main season, and it includes the June school holidays. Allow 8 to 9 days. Our 9-day Ladakh Himalayan Escape starts from S$1,811 per person, without flights.

Flights: how to get to Ladakh from Singapore

Leh's airport, Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport (IXL), has no flights from Singapore. Delhi is the usual connection.

1. Changi to Delhi. On the November 2026 schedule, Singapore Airlines SQ402 leaves at 02:25 and lands at 05:40, and SQ406 lands at 20:00. Check the times for your dates.
2. A night in Delhi. Most Delhi to Leh flights leave in the morning. Afternoon winds are often given as the reason, and summer heat has also cancelled later flights. A same-day connection after an overnight flight is tiring and leaves little room for delay, so we plan a hotel night.
3. Delhi to Leh. IndiGo and Air India have flown this route, in about an hour and a half.

Book the Delhi to Leh flight early for June to September. Domestic baggage allowances can be lower than your Singapore ticket, often about 15 kg, so check yours. Weather can cancel Leh flights, so leave as much time as you can before your flight home. On our trip, the morning flight from Leh leaves the rest of the day free before your evening departure from Delhi.

India e-visa for Singaporeans

Singapore is on India's official e-Visa list. You apply online at least 4 days before you arrive, with a passport page and a photo, and you receive an authorisation by email. Delhi is an approved e-Visa airport, but Leh is not on the list, so complete immigration in Delhi. Print your authorisation for the desk. The same page says you can complete an e-Arrival card online within 72 hours before you arrive, and that an e-Visa is not valid for protected areas without prior permission, which is why you also need the permit below. Options run from 30 days to 5 years, and the fee appears in the application. Use only the government site, because India warns about unofficial agents.

Altitude in Ladakh: what matters most

The altitude is the main reason a Ladakh trip goes well or badly. The CDC Yellow Book advises against reaching a sleeping height of 2,750 metres in a single day, which any flight to Leh cannot avoid, and advises only gentle exercise for the first 48 hours. So the first days must be slow.

Heights are approximate and published figures differ. The Leh district site gives 5,602 m for Khardung La, while other sources give about 5,359 m. Checked on 5 November 2026.

• See your doctor in Singapore first, especially with a heart or lung condition, high blood pressure or sleep apnoea. Ask whether acetazolamide (Diamox) suits you.
• Do not count on fitness. Fit people get altitude sickness too.
• Avoid alcohol for 48 hours, and do not go higher to sleep while you have symptoms.
• Know the danger signs. Confusion, unsteady walking or breathlessness at rest are an emergency. Go down at once. Medical care outside Leh is limited.
• Be careful with Pangong in your first days. It is much higher than Leh, and the Leh administration says all tourists must spend at least 48 hours in Leh before going to places such as Khardung La and Pangong. The CDC also advises gaining no more than 500 metres of sleeping height a night above 3,000 metres. A night at Pangong goes well beyond that from Nubra, so on our trip it comes only after four nights at height, and you return to Leh the next day.

Our altitude sickness guide for Tibet explains the symptoms and medicine in more detail, and the same medical advice applies here.

Ladakh permits for Singaporeans

Travel guides do not list Leh town or its nearby monasteries as needing a special permit. Foreign visitors, including Singaporeans, need a Protected Area Permit for areas such as Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake. Checkpoints along the roads verify it, so carry your permit, your passport and spare copies. Travel guides give different figures for the fee, the validity and whether a solo traveller can apply, so ask a registered agent in Leh for the current position.

Rules may change soon. The Ladakh administration reviewed the permit system on 24 August 2026, with a focus on a possible single permit for all of Ladakh, fewer checkpoints and possible registration desks at the airport. When we checked on 5 November 2026, we found no notice of a new rule. On our trip, the permits are included and we arrange them for you.

Which monasteries should you see around Leh?

Most are day trips from Leh, so you can sleep at the same height each night. Distances are by road and approximate.

• Spituk, about 8 km: the closest, and an easy first outing once you feel well.
• Shey, about 15 km: on the way to Thiksey. Our trip sees the two on the same day.
• Thiksey, about 19 km: a large monastery in tiers up its hillside, often compared with the Potala in Lhasa.
• Hemis, about 45 km: the furthest stop on our day with Thiksey and Shey.
• Likir, about 52 km: known for its large outdoor Maitreya Buddha.
• Alchi, about 65 km: a short drive on from Likir, and at about 3,100 metres it is lower than Leh.
• Lamayuru, 115 km: the Leh district lists it at 3,510 metres. It makes a long day and is not on our 9-day trip, so ask us if you want to add it.

Is Tso Moriri worth adding to your trip?

Tso Moriri is a high lake on the Changthang plateau, about 240 km from Leh by road. The Leh district estimates a drive of 6 to 7 hours, and travel guides often say 7 to 8. Its height is usually given as about 4,522 metres, although figures differ. The monastery at Korzok on its shore is listed at 4,530 metres.

It does not work as a day trip. The drive there and back takes 12 hours or more, so you need at least one night, and that night is higher than our stop at Pangong on most published figures. Sleeping at Korzok means gaining about 1,000 metres in a day from Leh, double the 500 metres a night that the CDC advises above 3,000 metres.

With 8 or 9 days, we would see Nubra and Pangong and save Tso Moriri for a longer trip. It is not on our 9-day trip, so tell us if you have more days. Travel guides say foreign visitors need a Protected Area Permit for it, but we could not find an official page that names the lake, so ask a registered agent. Guides also report that places to stay shut from about late October to April, so check before you plan outside the summer.

Is Ladakh safe? Read the MFA advice

On 23 July 2026, the MFA advised Singaporeans to defer non-essential travel to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and to Manipur. Its notice does not name Ladakh, which is a separate union territory. However, the road between Srinagar and Leh passes through Jammu and Kashmir, so we recommend flying to Leh through Delhi. Ladakh also has sensitive border areas where access can change, so stay within your permit.

Read the notice again before you book, and ask your insurer how it treats your route. Your policy should also cover medical evacuation at altitude.

When do the roads to Leh open?

If you fly, as we recommend, you do not need either road. Their dates still matter if you are comparing routes, and they change every year.

• Manali to Leh: it reopened on 13 May 2025. In 2026, the Border Roads Organisation restored it on 12 May, with traffic allowed only after a joint assessment. In late 2025, a closure order in November was followed by a reopening with restricted hours until 7 December. Summer is not always clear either: a flash flood at Jispa stranded about 1,000 vehicles in June 2026.
• Srinagar to Leh: it reopened on 19 March in 2022 and on 1 April in 2025, and a report from March 2026 said it had closed for only four days that winter. An open road does not change the safety advice above, because it passes through Jammu and Kashmir.

Best months to visit Ladakh from Singapore

When Singapore is hot in June, midday in Leh is pleasant in strong sun, but nights can be cold, especially at Pangong. Bring layers, sunscreen and sunglasses all year.

How many days do you need in Ladakh?

Plan on 8 to 9 days from Singapore. Delhi takes a day each way, and Leh gets three nights to adjust, longer than the 48-hour minimum set by the Leh administration. Nubra and Pangong then add three days on the road. With 5 or 6 days, stay around Leh and its monasteries rather than rushing to the lake. Here is the shape of our trip:

• Days 1 to 2: Changi to Delhi, then a morning flight to Leh and rest.
• Days 3 to 4: gentle sightseeing in Leh, then Thiksey, Shey and Hemis.
• Days 5 to 7: Khardung La to Nubra and the Hunder Sand Dunes, on to Pangong, and back over Chang La.
• Days 8 to 9: Likir and Alchi, then home through Delhi.

Ladakh in winter and the Chadar trek

Winter here is a different trip. Leh averages a high of about 2°C and a low of about minus 13°C in January, and it is colder away from town. Ladakh's tourism advisory asks visitors from October to March to carry cold-weather gear and thermal wear. Pangong freezes completely, snow can cancel flights, and many hotels are reported to close from November to March, so check what is open before you book.

The Chadar trek follows the frozen Zanskar River and normally runs in January and February. It depends on each winter's ice, so do not build a trip around it. In 2025, the route was cut to nearly 20 km because of road construction. In January 2026, it was suspended by official order after a survey found the river unsafe. When we checked on 5 November 2026, we found no official dates for 2027. It suits fit, experienced trekkers who can cope with extreme cold and can change their dates. It is not part of our 9-day trip.

What does a Ladakh trip cost from Singapore?

Our 9-day trip was from S$1,811 per person on 5 November 2026, twin share, based on the 9 June 2027 departure. It covers hotels, Ladakh breakfasts and dinners, the vehicle, guide and permits. Flights, insurance, lunches and monastery tickets are extra. Compare fares for your dates before you decide.

What to pack for Ladakh from Singapore

Singapore's daily highs are about 31 to 32°C, and it rarely feels cool at night. Leh is dry and swings much more between day and night. On long-term averages, Leh has a high of about 24°C and a low of about 11°C in June, 28°C and 16°C in July, and 23°C and 9°C in September. In October, the average low is about 0°C. Pangong and the high passes are colder than these figures. There is no official packing list, so this is our suggestion.

• Layers: a thermal top, a fleece and a windproof jacket, even in July, for evenings and the passes.
• Sun protection: sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat. The WHO says ultraviolet levels rise by about 10% with every 1,000 metres, and thin cloud gives little protection.
• For the dry air: lip balm, moisturiser and a water bottle. Humidity in Leh in June averages about 26%, far below what you are used to in Singapore.
• Medicine: your usual prescriptions, and anything your doctor advises for altitude.
• Papers and cash: your e-Visa authorisation, your passport and spare copies, and Indian rupees for the valleys.
• A light bag: domestic allowances can be about 15 kg, so wear your heaviest layers on the flight.

Practical tips before you go

• Phone: travel guides report that many foreign SIMs and Indian prepaid SIMs from outside Ladakh do not work there, so ask your provider before you fly. Guides also report weak or no signal in much of Nubra and Pangong, so tell your family.
• Cash: ATMs are in Leh. Carry Indian rupees before you leave for the valleys.
• Food: tell us early about vegetarian or halal needs, so we can check each stop on the route.
• Children and older travellers: children can be affected as much as adults and may not explain how they feel, so ask your paediatrician first. Many healthy older travellers do well with a medical check and a slow start.
• Add the rest of India: pair it with a Delhi stop or see our Golden Triangle guide.