Valley of Flowers is an Indian National Park which is situated North of Chamoli and Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand and is specially known for the variety of flora and fauna found here. Valley of Flowers acts as a transition zone between the Zanskar mountain range and the Himalayas .
Valley of Flowers is a UNESCO world heritage site. Valley of Flowers is 8 km long and 2 km wide and is spread at an area of 87.50 km sq.
In 1931, three British mountaineers Frank S Smythe, Eric Shipton, and R L Holdsworth were returning from a successful expedition from Mt. Kamet and they lost their way back and came across a valley full of flowers, they were so much attracted by the beauty of this valley that they named it Valley of Flowers. Later Frank S. Smythe wrote a book and named it “Valley of Flowers”.
Best season to visit Valley of Flowers
Valley of Flowers is open only from June to October. However, the best time to visit is between July and early September because the valley is filled with flowers.
How to reach?
The Last Point till the cars go is Govindghat and there is adequate connectivity from Dehradun, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Joshimath. You can go to any of these centres and either book a taxi till Govindghat or you can go by bus till Govindghat. After Govindghat one has to go in a cab for 4 kms and then trek for 11 kms and you will reach Ghangaria. You can reach Ghangaria directly by helicopter. There are accommodation facilities available in Ghangaria. Ghangaria is a place where the roads separate the Valley of Flowers and Hemkund Sahib. You will have to take permission from the Forest department at Ghangaria to trek in Valley of Flowers and you will only be allowed to travel during day time.
Level of difficulty
Level of difficulty for the Valley of Flowers trek is moderate because there is a lot of walking at high altitude so it would be better if you are physically active and exercise regularly.
Taxi Hire Rates
If you are planning for a small car maybe a hatchback like Swift Dzire, Toyota Etios, then 4 people can accommodate in one car excluding driver, and it will cost you around Rs 11 per km (rates from Delhi NCR)
If you are planning for maybe a big car like an SUV (Innova, Xylo), that will cost you around Rs 13-14 per km (rates from Delhi NCR)
If you are planning to book a Tempo traveller, it will cost you around Rs 22-32 depending on the passenger count.
Distance
- Distance from Delhi to Valley of Flowers- 518 kms
- Distance from Chandigarh to Valley of Flowers- 493 kms
- Distance from Shimla to Valley of Flowers- 554 kms
- Distance from Joshimath to Valley of Flowers- 34.7 kms
Some facts about the Valley of Flowers
- When Professor Chandra Prakash Kala did a research study of the Valley of Flowers, he found that more than 520 alpine plants grow there .
- The Colour of the Valley of Flowers changes every 15 days
- Snow-capped mountains are visible while trekking inside the Valley of Flowers.
- There are numerous waterfalls, streams, and Green meadows inside this valley.
- Valley of Flowers is a most preferred location for nature lovers, botanists, trekkers, international tourists, bird watchers, and animal lovers
- There are many species of flowers that are only found in the Valley of Flowers.
- There are Traces of Snow Leopards, Brown Bears in the snowy season
- There are about 114 species of birds found in this Valley
- There are many traces of reptiles as well but no such damage is done to any tourist
- To conserve the natural beauty of this valley, grazing has been banned since 1983.
- Places like Himalayan Abode, Nanda Inn Homestay, Grand Ishwari Narayani Hotel, Sri Nanda LokPal palace are considered as a nice place to stay while you are at the Valley of Flowers.