Things to do in Tabo — 5 stops, and which need a car
How this list is built
Sorted by distance from Tabo, because that is how a day here gets planned: what is a walk, what needs a car. The minutes are our own road routing. Each entry links to its own page and sits inside one of our copyable itineraries.
Photos: DebSnap09 (CC BY-SA 4.0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.
In Tabo
1. Tabo Monastery
Founded in 996 CE and described as the oldest continuously operating Buddhist enclave in India and the Himalayas, with wall paintings and texts on almost every wall. No photography inside. Tabo Monastery.
2. The cave retreats
Caves cut into the cliff above the monastery and used by monks for meditation, with faded paintings on the rock. Tabo caves.
Up the valley
3. Dhankar
A village and monastery on a cliff above the valley, 48 minutes from Tabo. Dhankar.
4. Lhalung Gompa
A monastery in a side valley, 67 minutes from Tabo. Lhalung Gompa.
The long trip
5. Gue
A village monastery close to the border that keeps the mummy of the monk Sangha Tenzin, 76 minutes from Tabo. Gue Monastery.
Putting it together
The one-day plan covers stops 1 to 3. The two-day plan adds Gue. For arrival see how to reach Tabo, and for timing when to visit Tabo.
Questions people ask
What are the best things to do in Tabo?
Tabo Monastery, founded in 996 CE, is the reason to come, with its frescoes and wall texts. The cave retreats above it take half an hour. Dhankar, 48 minutes away, and Lhalung, 67 minutes, are the next great monastery sites, and Gue is the long day trip.
What can you do in Tabo for free?
Walk the village and its mud chortens, look at the cliff and the cave openings from below and watch the light on the valley. None of it has a fixed fee that we know of. The costs are the taxi to Dhankar, Lhalung or Gue, so budget for a car.
How many days do you need in Tabo?
One day covers the monastery, the caves and Dhankar. A second day adds Gue. Many visitors stay a single night between Kaza and Kalpa, which is enough for the monastery in the morning but not for the valley's other monasteries.