Luxury bus service between Manali and Leh reopens
July 2nd, 2011 - 3:19 pm ICT by IANSManali, July 2 (IANS) The luxury bus service linking this Himachal Pradesh town with Leh in Jammu and Kashmir has been restored, more than six months after it was halted, an official said Saturday.
“The bus service between Manali and Leh restarted Friday. The bus will leave Manali at 11 a.m. on every alternate day and will reach Leh next day in the evening after covering 475 km,” Yogesh Behl, Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) general manager, told IANS.
The bus will halt overnight at Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district. From there, it will depart at 4 a.m.
One-way fare, including a night’s stay at Keylong, dinner and breakfast, is Rs.2,000.
“For the night stay, a special camping site has been developed at Keylong for the passengers,” he said.
The HPTDC is running the luxury bus service to promote tourism in the state.
Besides this service, the state-run Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) is daily operating an ordinary bus service between Manali and Leh these days.
The strategic Manali-Leh road reopened for vehicular traffic June 1 after remaining closed for over six months due to heavy snowfall.
The non-stop journey in a four-wheeler between Manali and Leh takes 16-18 hours.
The highway crosses four high mountain passes in the cold desert - Rohtang Pass (13,050 ft), Baralacha Pass (16,020 ft), Lachungla Pass (16,620 ft) and Tanglangla Pass (17,480 ft).
Backpackers descend in Manali from August to September every year. Most of them prefer to drive down the Manali-Leh highway.
- Manali-Leh highway partially reopened - Jun 01, 2011
- Manali-Leh highway reopens for traffic - Jun 07, 2010
- Avoid Manali-Leh highway, snowfall likely - Oct 23, 2011
- Permit must for Manali-Leh travel by non-Himachal vehicles - Jun 26, 2011
- Time for pulsating action on Himachal highway - Jun 09, 2011
- Manali-Leh highway likely to reopen Saturday - Jun 04, 2010
- Don't travel on Manali-Leh highway after October - Oct 07, 2010
- Manali-Leh highway to be closed from Oct 31 - Oct 14, 2009
- Manali-Leh road link may be used round-the-year - Jun 26, 2010
- Himachal shivers, Shimla has season's coldest night - Jan 06, 2012
- Mercury dips, Himachal lakes begin to freeze - Nov 12, 2011
- Rohtang tunnel work in Himachal to begin June - May 05, 2010
- Bus services on Manali-Leh route resume - Jul 14, 2010
- Himachal shivers, taps freeze in Shimla (Lead) - Jan 16, 2011
- Manali-Leh highway reopened, 282 people rescued (Lead) - Sep 04, 2009
Tags: backpackers, behl, bus service, camping site, cold desert, four wheeler, heavy snowfall, hptdc, hrtc, jammu and kashmir, journey, kashmir, lahaul and spiti district, luxury bus, manali, road transport, six months, tourism development corporation, transport corporation, vehicular traffic