Kaza, the headquarters of Spiti valley nestles at a height of 3,800 meters on the left bank of Spiti river about 197 kms. from Keylong. It serves as a base for visiting the nearby monasteries.
Around Kaza:
Kye (Ki) Monastery (12 kms.)
Kye, the oldest and biggest monastery of Spiti valley is set in a picture-postcard setting. It houses rare ‘thangka’ paintings, ancient musical instruments and manuscripts.
Kibber (8 kms.)
Kye village is perched at a height of 4205 meters and is perhaps the highest settlement in the world with a motorable road and electricity.
Tabo Monastery (50 kms.)
This famous gompa was founded in 996 A.D. and is regarded as the Ajanta of Himalayas’, due to its exquisite wall paintings and stucco statues. It is the second most important gompa after the Tholing Gompa in Tibet and has been declared as a ‘World Heritage Site’ by UNESCO. This large monastic complex has nine temples, ’23 chorten’, a monks’ chamber, and a nuns’ chamber besides several caves and contemporary structures. It houses a large collection of scriptures, wall paintings, and murals.
