When to travel

Best places to visit in May

May means escape the heat. Ladakh roads open mid-month, the Northeast is lush, and the Western Ghats hill towns are at their best.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Manali

Manali is really two places, and knowing which one you booked matters more than anything else about the trip. Mall Road Manali is a busy Indian hill-station town — traffic, hotels, shops selling the same shawls. Old Manali, up the hill across the river, is quieter, low-rise and where most people actually want to be. Vashisht, on the other side, has the hot springs and a similar feel. Hadimba temple, in the deodar forest above town, is four hundred years old with a tiered wooden roof and is worth the twenty minutes. Solang and Rohtang are the standard day trips and both are congested in season; Rohtang needs a permit, which is capped daily and must be arranged in advance. The Atal Tunnel changed the geography here. Lahaul, which used to be a full expedition, is now well under an hour away, and going through it for the day gives you a completely different landscape. May and June are the peak and are crowded. October and November are clear, cold and quiet. Do not expect snow in town below about December, whatever the photographs suggest.

Warm comfortable days with bright clear sunny skies.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Khajjiar

Khajjiar is a high plateau meadow at an elevation of 1,920 metres inside the Kalatop Khajjiar Sanctuary perimeter. Celebrated widely for its striking topological resemblance to Swiss landscapes, it comprises a vast, saucer-shaped emerald glade enveloped by ancient, towering deodar and pine forests. At the heart of this green meadow lies the small, natural Khajjiar Lake, featuring a unique floating island of tangled grass roots. It suits families and anyone wanting an hour of quiet away from the bigger hill stations.

Cool refreshing daytimes with bright emerald green landscapes.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Dalhousie

Dalhousie is a peaceful colonial-era hill station built across five distinct hills of the Dhauladhar mountain range, sitting at an altitude of 1,970 metres. Established in the mid-19th century under the British Raj, the town has systematically preserved its old-world charm, characterized by wide pine-fringed walking loops, traditional stone mansions, and vintage Scottish architecture. Tourism in Dalhousie centers around the historic public squares of Gandhi Chowk and Subhash Chowk, linked by wooded walking paths like Garam Sadak. The town is the quiet alternative to the commercial hill stations, with views of the winding Ravi River and the distant snow-covered peaks of the inner Himalayas.

Pleasantly cool daytimes with refreshing pine forest breezes.

Moderate crowds

Himachal Pradesh

Great Himalayan National Park

The Great Himalayan National Park was listed by UNESCO in 2014, and what makes it worth the effort is what it does not have: no road crosses it, nothing is sold inside it, and there is no signal past the boundary. Entry is on a permit, issued at Sai Ropa or Gushaini. Past the gate you walk. The standard trips run two to five days up the Tirthan, Sainj or Jiwa valleys with a local guide and a porter, and the community booking system means the money stays in the villages at the edge. Himalayan brown bear, musk deer and western tragopan all live in here and you will probably see none of them — this is dense forest, not grassland. What you get instead is four days without meeting anyone. The ecozone villages outside the boundary — Gushaini, Ropa, Shangarh — are where you sleep before and after, and each is worth a night either side. Mid-May to the end of June, and mid-September to the end of October. The higher passes hold snow outside that, and the monsoon closes the trails.

Pleasant daytimes with lush green forests and clear rivers.

Busy

Jammu & Kashmir

Pahalgam

Pahalgam is a valley settlement at 2,130 metres in the Anantnag district of Kashmir. Positioned at the scenic junction of the fast-flowing Lidder River and the Sheshnag stream, it stands surrounded by steep hills carpeted with dense, old-growth pine and cedar forests. It suits anglers, walkers and people who camp. The commercial heart of the valley transitions smoothly into alpine glades like Baisaran, popularly nicknamed 'Mini Switzerland' due to its vast undulating pine-ringed meadows. Pahalgam serves as a paramount transit launchpad for the annual holy pilgrimage of the Amarnath Yatra, with the traditional tracking route commencing directly from Chandanwari village upstream.

Refreshing crisp days with clear blue riverside horizons.

Moderate crowds

Jammu & Kashmir

Sonamarg

Sonamarg is eighty kilometres up from Srinagar and the last town before Zoji La and Ladakh. The road in is shut by snow from roughly December to April, so this is a summer place whether you like it or not. Thajiwas glacier is four kilometres up the side valley, on foot or by pony. It has been retreating for years, so the walk to the ice is longer than older guidebooks suggest, and the pony rates are officially fixed and routinely ignored — settle the price and the route before you mount. It is also the start of two serious walks: the Amarnath yatra from Baltal, and the Kashmir Great Lakes trek, which takes a week and is among the best in the country. Come as a day trip from Srinagar if you only want the meadow. Stay if you are walking.

Cool pleasant daytimes with new snow fields melting along ridges.

Busy

Jammu & Kashmir

Patnitop

Patnitop is a plateau at 2,024 metres above the Chenab on the Jammu–Srinagar highway, and almost everyone who stops there was on the way somewhere else. As a stop it works well. Deodar forest, open meadows and easy walking — this is not a trekking destination and does not pretend to be. The Skyview gondola at Sanasar runs 2.8 kilometres across the gorge and is the one thing here worth a detour on its own. Snow falls for a few weeks in January and February and the place fills up for it. The rest of winter it is cold and empty. March to June and September to November. Avoid the monsoon, when the highway below is prone to landslides and closures.

Pleasantly cool daytimes with refreshing pine-scented breezes.

Low crowds

Jammu & Kashmir

Doodhpathri

Doodhpathri is a meadow about forty kilometres out of Srinagar in Budgam district, with almost nothing built on it — no hotels, a handful of stalls. That is the whole appeal, and it also makes this a day trip rather than a stay. The Shaliganga runs through it fast enough over the boulders to churn white, which is where the name comes from: milk meadow. Go on a weekday. At weekends Srinagar families fill it and the single road in becomes the problem. Carry food; what is sold up there is limited. Open roughly April to October, and snowed shut in winter.

Delightfully refreshing daytimes with deep green turf.

Busy

Tamil Nadu

Ooty (Udhagamandalam)

Ooty sits at 2,240 metres and was built by the British as a hot-weather escape, which is still exactly what it is used for — and why April and May are the months to avoid, when the plains empty into it. The Nilgiri Mountain Railway is the best thing in the district. It climbs from Mettupalayam on a rack-and-pinion section, takes about five hours, and is UNESCO-listed. Book ahead in season or take the ordinary carriage, which is fine. Doddabetta, the highest point in the Nilgiris, is ten kilometres out and usually inside cloud by afternoon. The Botanical Garden dates from 1848 and has a fossil trunk around twenty million years old in it. The lake is man-made and rented out by the hour. Tea here is grown for volume rather than for named estates, and the roadside shops sell a great deal of flavoured dust. Buy from an estate if you care about it. September to November, and January to March.

Cool refreshing daytimes with bright clear sunny skies.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Kasol

Kasol is a small riverside village in the Parvati Valley of Himachal Pradesh that has become the unofficial backpacking capital of North India. Set along the gushing Parvati River and ringed by pine-clad slopes, it draws a young, international crowd with its laid-back cafe culture, Israeli food, trekking trailheads and famously relaxed mountain vibe. Kasol functions as the base camp for the wider Parvati Valley circuit, with treks fanning out to Kheerganga, Tosh, Malana and Chalal. The main market is packed with cafes serving shakshuka and falafel, music hostels, gear-rental shops and bonfire-lit guesthouses.

Pleasant cool days, good for valley treks.

Moderate crowds

Himachal Pradesh

Tosh

Tosh is a tiny, car-free hamlet at the far end of the Parvati Valley, a steep climb above Barshaini. With sweeping views of snow peaks, terraced fields and waterfalls, it has become a cult favourite among young backpackers looking for an even quieter, more scenic alternative to Kasol. The village is a cluster of guesthouses and cafes built into the hillside, many with balconies that look straight onto the glaciated head of the valley. It doubles as a trailhead for the Kutla and Kheerganga hikes, and its slow pace, cheap stays and dramatic sunsets make it a magnet for digital nomads and long-stay travellers.

Clear warm days with snow on the peaks.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Old Manali

Old Manali is the laid-back, bohemian counterpart to Manali town — a riverside cluster of guesthouses, cafes and orchards above the Manalsu stream. While Manali proper is a busy hill-station hub, Old Manali draws backpackers and long-stay travellers with its slower pace, music cafes and mountain-village feel. It works as both a chilled base and an adventure springboard, with the Hampta Pass, Solang Valley and Jogini Falls within easy reach. Cobbled lanes lined with German bakeries, hostels and gear shops make it a favourite first stop for those heading deeper into Himachal or up to Spiti and Leh.

Warm pleasant days, lush orchards.

Moderate crowds

Leh & Ladakh

Magnetic Hill

Magnetic Hill is a famous gravity-defying road stretch on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway, roughly 30 kilometers outside the capital town of Leh. Positioned at a height of approximately 3,350 metres above sea level, the location is clearly marked by a prominent yellow informational billboard erected by the local administration. When a stationary vehicle is placed in neutral gear inside the specifically marked rectangular box on the asphalt road, it appears to move uphill on its own accord at speeds reaching up to 20 kilometers per hour. While popular regional folklore attributes this movement to deep magnetic forces embedded inside the rocky mountains, scientific testing confirms it is an extraordinary optical illusion. The specific layout of the surrounding horizon and slopes distorts human perspective, making a slight downhill slope appear like a steep rising hill.

Crisp clear weather with cool mountain breezes.

Moderate crowds

Himachal Pradesh

Kalpa (Kinnaur)

Kalpa is an offbeat mountain village on a high ridge at an elevation of 2,960 metres in the Kinnaur Valley. Positioned directly above the district hub of Reckong Peo, it looks down into the deep, thundering canyon of the Sutlej River. The settlement is known for its unique geographical position, with an uninterrupted view of the sacred Kinner Kailash massif. The architectural landscape of Kalpa features a beautiful indigenous blend of traditional wooden Hindu temples and Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, showcasing the rich syncretic culture of Kinnaur. The village pathways wind through dense pine forests and some of the finest high-altitude organic apple orchards in the country.

Cool pleasant days under open sun rays.

Busy

Jammu & Kashmir

Srinagar (Dal Lake)

Srinagar is a lake city, and the difference between a good stay and a mediocre one is which part of the lake you sleep on. Take a houseboat, but ask where it is moored. The boats near the Boulevard are convenient and noisy with traffic; the ones further out towards Nagin lake are quieter and give you the mornings the place is famous for. Shikara rides are priced by the hour and by negotiation — agree the route and the price before you get in, or you will be taken to a floating handicraft shop instead. The Mughal gardens — Shalimar, Nishat, Chashme Shahi — are terraced up the eastern hillside and are best in the first hour after opening. The vegetable market on the water at dawn is the real thing, and it means being up before five. Papier-mâché and Kashmiri walnut wood are genuine crafts here and worth buying properly rather than roadside. Check current advisories before you book, and do that close to your travel date rather than months out. April and May for the blossom, and June to August is the season most Indians come. Winter is cold, beautiful and quiet.

Pleasantly warm daytimes with cool mountain breezes.

Moderate crowds

Jammu & Kashmir

Gulmarg

Gulmarg is a bowl of meadow at 2,650 metres in the Pir Panjal, and it does two completely different jobs depending on the month. December to March it is the only serious ski resort in India. The Apharwat face has real off-piste terrain and the snow is dry enough to justify the trip. May to September the snow is gone and it is a meadow full of wildflowers with a golf course on it, one of the highest anywhere. The gondola climbs in two stages. The first, to Kongdoori, almost always runs. The second, up to just under four thousand metres on Apharwat, is frequently closed for wind and its tickets are capped daily — buy both stages early or accept that you may only get the first. If you are skiing off-piste, a guide is not optional. This is avalanche terrain and it has killed people.

Pleasant cool days with a colorful carpet of wild flowers.

Busy

Rajasthan

Mount Abu

Rajasthan's only hill station, at 1,220 metres on a granite plateau in the Aravallis, and it exists largely because Gujarati and Rajasthani families need somewhere cool in May. Dilwara is the reason to make the climb: five Jain temples, twelfth to sixteenth century, in white marble carved thin enough in the ceilings that light comes through. No cameras inside, and non-Jains are admitted only from midday — plan the day around that, because most people get it wrong and lose a morning. Nakki Lake in the middle of town is pedal boats and crowds. Guru Shikhar, the highest point in the Aravallis, is a short drive and a flight of steps. Sunset Point is exactly as busy as it sounds. November to February is cool and can drop below freezing at night — the only place in Rajasthan where that happens. Busiest in May and June, and over Diwali.

Pleasantly cool daytimes with refreshing mountain breezes.

Moderate crowds

Himachal Pradesh

Tirthan Valley

Tirthan Valley is a quiet, offbeat river valley on the edge of the Great Himalayan National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) in Himachal Pradesh. Named after the crystal-clear Tirthan River, it has emerged as a slow-travel and workation favourite for those seeking pine forests, trout streams and riverside homestays far from the tourist crowds. With no big hotels and a strong eco-tourism ethic, the valley centres on activities like trout fishing, river crossing, forest treks and lazy days by the water. It suits people who want to sit by a river for a week rather than tick off viewpoints.

Pleasant warm days by the river.

Moderate crowds

Himachal Pradesh

Jibhi

Jibhi is a quiet wooden-cottage village in the Banjar (Tirthan) region of Himachal, increasingly loved by young travellers for its forested calm, waterfalls and aesthetic cafe-stays. Less developed than Manali or Kasol, it has a cosy, Instagram-favourite slow-travel base in the Kullu hills. Set among deodar forests and apple orchards, Jibhi pairs gentle hikes — to Jibhi Falls, the Serolsar Lake and the Jalori Pass — with riverside cottages and a laid-back cafe scene. Its scenic, unhurried character makes it a top pick for workations, couples and friend groups.

Pleasant warm forest days.

Busy

Jammu & Kashmir

Hazratbal Shrine (Srinagar)

The Hazratbal Shrine, set on the western shore of Srinagar's Dal Lake, is Kashmir's holiest Muslim shrine, revered for housing a relic believed to be a hair of Prophet Muhammad. Its gleaming white marble dome against the lake and mountains makes it both a sacred site and a scenic landmark.

Open mountain pilgrimage season.

Busy

Uttarakhand

Devprayag (Panch Prayag)

Devprayag is the most sacred of the Panch Prayag — the five holy confluences of Uttarakhand — where the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi rivers merge to form the Ganga itself. A small temple town clinging to the hillsides above the turquoise waters, it marks the very birth of the holy river.

Open mountain pilgrimage season.

Busy

Himachal Pradesh

Kullu

Kullu is the valley Manali sits at the top of, and the town itself is an administrative centre with a bus stand rather than a resort. Most people are through it in an hour. Two things are worth stopping for. Bijli Mahadev, on the ridge above, is an hour's climb from the road: a tall wooden staff there is said to draw lightning, and the lingam beneath it is broken by the strike and reset with butter. And the weaving — Kullu shawls carry a GI tag, and the co-operative showrooms on the highway sell at fixed prices, which the roadside stalls do not. The one time Kullu itself is the destination is Dussehra in October. It starts on the day the rest of India's ends, runs about a week, and brings the village deities down into the maidan on palanquins. Rafting on the Beas runs from Pirdi, roughly March to June and again once the monsoon has passed.

Warm sun-drenched afternoons good for river activities.

Moderate crowds

Rajasthan

Ranthambore National Park

Ranthambore National Park is one of the preeminent and largest wildlife conservation sanctuaries in Northern India, known for its thriving population of the endangered Royal Bengal Tiger. It lies in the Sawai Madhopur district, where the ancient Vindhya and Aravalli mountain ranges converge, the landscape comprises rugged rocky cliffs, dry deciduous forests, and interconnected lakes. The park's unique visual identity is defined by the massive 10th-century Ranthambore Fort, which sits inside the forest lines. Tigers are frequently observed hunting in broad daylight across the historic stone ruins, palace pavilions, and lake fronts, creating an unmatched wild landscape profile. The national park operates under strict environmental regulations, split systematically into ten specific safari zones to manage safari vehicles and preserve the sensitive ecological core slots.

Intensely hot and dry desert waves with minimal foliage cover.

Busy

Sikkim

Tsomgo Lake & Nathula Pass

Tsomgo Lake, written as Changu Lake, is a high-altitude glacial lake at an astounding elevation of 3,753 metres in the rugged East Sikkim district, inside a steep oval valley just kilometers from the international border, the crystal-clear waters are known for their unique ability to reflect changing shades, shifting from deep blue in summer to turquoise and solid white as winter freezes lock the surface into thick ice sheets. Driving further up the same high-security mountain corridor highway pass leads directly to the monumental Nathula Pass checkpoint, at a daunting altitude of 4,310 metres on the ancient Silk Road route, cutting directly through heavy military wire barricades separating India and China.

Cool refreshing daytimes with snow walls melting along the highway tracks.