Chhitkul - village in Kinnaur district, Himachal Pradesh, India

Chhitkul (Chitkul) is a village in Eastern Himachal Pradesh, India.

Understand

Chhitkul is a green, lush, tiny, beautiful, traditional and remote mountain village, high above Sangla in the Sangla Valley. It has little in the way of tourist infrastructure, but has a handful of basic accommodation, restaurants and minimally stocked shops.

Some people also visit on a daytrip from Sangla.

Get in

• Chhitkul is accessed by bus and 4wd from Sangla. It is the highest reachable village in the Sangla Valley.

Get around

• Chhitkul is a tiny village and walking is the best and only way to get around.

See

• There are a few great day walks to be done, either up the valley to the military base (the furthest reachable point as a foreigner), or in the surrounding mountains. Get local advice on the walks before starting out as some of them are considered moderately dangerous due to altitude and the possibility of rapid weather changes.

Do

Buy

• Locally made Kinnauri hats.

Eat

• Eat at your guesthouse or one of the few small restaurants. The new one near the bus stand that is high up with lots of windows has the best food, and a friendly owner that can give information on the area and on the hikes. Try the egg sandwich.

Drink

Sleep

• Amar Guesthouse. Run by a lovely family (Amir Singh, Ajit Negi, Ganga, Pinky and Ambika) that rents out 3 rooms in their house towards the top of the village. Ask around as it's well-known and you won't likely find it by yourself. Meals are available and recommended. ₹150-₹400.

• Panchali Resort, 31.35114°, 78.43809°. A modern hotel opposite Thakur Guest House. It is operated by Gitanjali Tours and Travels of Howrah.

• Raj Guesthouse. 100 meters to the right of Amar Guest house, rents rooms in a wooden house.

• Rani Guesthouse. Very near to the entrance of the village. Rents out rooms to visitors.

• Shanenshah Resort. A modern hotel opposite Thakur Guest House. The second property that is operated by Gitanjali Tours and Travels of Howrah.

• Thakur Guesthouse. It's at the entrance of the village and easiest to find. Its run by Nehra Thakur of the village and is the oldest accommodation in Chitkul. It has eight rooms. Some of the rooms have been upgraded with attached toilets and geysers in toilets. Remaining rooms come with a shared toilet in the ground floor. Rent varies from ₹200-500, depending on the time of the year and the type of room. Food is available.

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