5D/4NHampta Pass Trek
Manali → Jobra → Balu → Chatru · Himachal Pradesh
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- Meals
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₹18,500/ person
3–7 Oct 20265 seats left
Meghalaya Caves & Living Root Bridges
Shillong → Sohra → Nongriat → Guwahati
Overview
Meghalaya rewards a short, physical itinerary. From Shillong the plateau runs south for fifty kilometres and then falls away, and everything worth doing is on that edge: the waterfalls that pour off it, the caves cut into the sandstone behind it, and the villages in the gorge below reached only on foot.
The centrepiece is Nongriat. From the road at Tyrna it is roughly three thousand stone steps down and two wire suspension bridges across to a footbridge that the Khasi have trained from living *Ficus elastica* roots over several generations — two spans, one above the other, still growing. Groups that want more continue an hour further to Rainbow Falls. The climb back out takes most people between ninety minutes and two and a half hours and is the reason this trip is graded moderate rather than easy.
The last full day drops off the plateau to the Umngot at Dawki, where the water in the dry season is clear enough to see a boat's shadow on the riverbed, and to Mawlynnong, a Khasi village that keeps itself immaculately and charges for the privilege of seeing it. Groups are capped at twelve.
Runs in: October, November, December, January, February, March, April. Outside that window we do not sell the trip rather than run it badly.
Day by day
5 days, in the order you will walk or drive them.
1Guwahati to Shillong (1,500 m)Day 1
Meet at Guwahati airport and drive three hours south onto the plateau, stopping at Umiam Lake where the road first opens onto water and pine. Afternoon in Shillong — Ward's Lake, the Don Bosco museum if the weather turns, and Police Bazaar in the evening.2Shillong to Sohra — the escarpment and the cavesDay 2
South to Sohra, still widely called Cherrapunji, with a stop at the Mawkdok viewpoint where the gorge opens under the road. Nohkalikai falls, at roughly 340 m the tallest plunge fall in India, then the Arwah and Mawsmai limestone caves — low, wet and lit, with fossils in the Arwah ceiling. Night at Sohra.3Nongriat — the double-decker root bridgeDay 3
An early start for Tyrna and the descent: about 3,000 steps and two steel-cable suspension bridges over the Umshiang, roughly two hours down. Time at the double-decker bridge and the natural pools, with the option of continuing to Rainbow Falls. The climb back out is the hardest hour of the trip. Back at Sohra by evening.4Dawki, Shnongpdeng and MawlynnongDay 4
Down off the plateau to the Umngot river at Shnongpdeng, above Dawki, for an hour in a boat on water that is genuinely transparent in the dry season. Lunch, then Mawlynnong village and its single-span root bridge at Riwai, and the view over the Bangladesh plain from the sky walk. Return to Shillong for the night.5Shillong to GuwahatiDay 5
A slow morning and the Mawphlang sacred grove on the way out if timing allows — an old Khasi forest where nothing may be removed, not even a fallen leaf. Three hours to Guwahati airport. Trip ends; afternoon flights only.
Dates and prices
Seat counts are live. A date leaves sale the moment it fills — we do not overbook and sort it out later.
- 5 seats left· filling up
24–28 Oct 2026
Sat start · 5 days
₹22,500
Talk it through first
A planner calls you back, no obligation.
What is included
What the price covers
- Four nights — hotels in Shillong (two) and Sohra (two)
- Daily breakfast and dinner
- Private vehicle with driver, including both Guwahati transfers
- Local Khasi guide for the Nongriat descent and the cave days
- Entries: Nohkalikai, Arwah and Mawsmai caves, Mawlynnong, the Riwai bridge
- Boat hire on the Umngot at Shnongpdeng
What it does not
- Flights and long-distance train fare to the start point
- Personal expenses, tips and anything of a personal nature
- Travel insurance (strongly recommended, we can arrange it)
- Meals not listed in the inclusions
- Costs arising from weather, roadblocks or events beyond our control
- Rainbow Falls extension guide fee, if taken
- Zip line and kayaking at Shnongpdeng
- Camera charges at village viewpoints
Questions about this trip
Answered from this departure's own numbers. Anything not here, the desk will tell you straight.
How hard is this trip, and who is it for?
We grade it Moderate, on a four-step scale of Easy, Moderate, Challenging and Strenuous. That single word is a summary, not the answer — the answer is the 5-day plan above, which says what each day actually asks of you. Read it before you book, and if you are unsure whether it suits you, call the desk and describe your last comparable trip rather than guessing.
How many people will be on it?
Between 4 and 12. 4 is the minimum for a departure to run and 12 is the hard cap — we do not add seats to a date that is selling well. The seat counts on the dates table are live and come straight from the booking system.
When does it run, and why not the rest of the year?
October, November, December, January, February, March and April, and the next date open for booking is 24 Oct 2026. Outside that window we do not sell the trip rather than run it badly — passes under snow, a monsoon crossing or a shut ferry are reasons to move your dates, not to take your money.
Can I hold seats before I pay?
Yes. Pick a date, enter who is travelling, and the seats come off the live count for 15 minutes while you decide. Nothing is charged during the hold, and if you walk away it releases itself and the seats go back on sale.
How do I pay, and what happens after?
Online at the end of the booking flow, or over the phone with the trips desk during working hours if you would rather not pay on the web. Either way you get a booking reference, and the joining pack for your departure follows from the desk.
What if I have to cancel?
There is no blanket policy printed here, because permits, mountain lodges and internal flights are paid forward at different points on different departures — and quoting a single number would be a promise we could not keep on every date. The terms that apply to your departure are in your joining pack, and the desk will put them in writing before you pay if you ask.
3 reviews
Each one is linked to a booking on one of the departures above.
Nobody hides this from you and I still underestimated it. The climb back out of Nongriat took me two hours twenty with three stops, and I am reasonably fit. Worth every step. The caves the day before are wetter and lower than expected — wear something you do not mind ruining.
GCGaurav ChandakVerified booking I assumed the clear-water photographs from Dawki were edited. They are not, at least not in February — you can see the boat's shadow on the riverbed in four metres of water. Shnongpdeng rather than Dawki town itself was a good choice by the team; far fewer boats.
IMIpsita MohantyVerified booking The root bridge photographs do not prepare you for standing on something a village grew over sixty years. Our Khasi guide had family in Nongriat and the descent turned into a slow morning of stopping to talk to people rather than a march. Do the extra hour to Rainbow Falls if your knees are willing.
BNBhaskar NathVerified booking
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