Ela Tripo - Offbeat on Point
A kayaker on turquoise water between the moss-covered walls of the Wari Chora gorge
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Private tour · Meghalaya

Meghalaya Offbeat

The same state, walked and paddled instead of driven — Wari Chora, Krem Chympe, Wei Sawdong and Laitlum Canyon, none of which a coach tour reaches.

See the route
Duration
From 5 days
length to suit you
Starts from
Guwahati
Highest point
5,906 ft
Mawphlang
Best season
October – April

When to go

October – April

Tour type
Private tour
Starts from
Guwahati
Permit
None required
Difficulty
Challenging

On the trip

What you’ll come home talking about

  1. Wari Chora, a gorge in the Garo hills you paddle into

  2. Krem Chympe, one of the longest river caves in the country

  3. Wei Sawdong, the three-tier fall below Sohra

  4. Laitlum Canyon at first light

  5. Double Decker root bridge and a night at Nongriat

  6. Rainbow Falls, a further hour beyond the bridge

  7. Mawphlang sacred grove with a Khasi guide

Altitude along the road

Highest point Mawphlang, 5,906 ft

  1. Guwahati
  2. Shillong
  3. Mawphlang
  4. Nongriat
  5. Jowai
  6. Shnongpdeng

The route

Where the road takes you

The stops this trip is built around, in order. Your day-by-day plan, stays and pace come with your free quote.

  1. Guwahati

    Start · 180 ft · Kamrup

    The gateway to the whole region and worth a day of its own. Kamakhya sits on Nilachal hill above the city, one of the most important Shakta temples in India; Umananda occupies a small island in the Brahmaputra reached by ferry.

    The red domes and courtyard of the Kamakhya temple in Guwahati, with people crossing the flagstones
    The Kamakhya temple courtyard, Guwahati

  2. Shillong

    4,908 ft · East Khasi Hills

    The state capital and the region's music town, where a café on Laitumkhrah is as likely to have a live set as a coffee menu. Ward's Lake and the Don Bosco museum sit in the centre; Umiam Lake spreads out on the drive in from Guwahati.

    Shillong seen from the air, its coloured roofs packed across a bowl of green ridges with hills beyond
    Shillong, spread across its hills

  3. Mawphlang

    5,906 ft · East Khasi Hills

    A forest the Khasi have protected for centuries under customary law — nothing may be removed from it, not even a fallen leaf. Monoliths stand at the entrance where clan rituals were held. Go with a local guide; the forest is dense with meaning that is invisible otherwise.

    The stone marker and sign at the entrance to the Mawphlang sacred forest, open grassland rolling away behind it
    The entrance to the Lawkyntang grove at Mawphlang

  4. Nongriat

    1,969 ft · Below Tyrna, East Khasi Hills

    The Double Decker root bridge is roughly 3,500 steps down from Tyrna, and the same back up. Staying the night is what makes it worthwhile: Rainbow Falls is another hour beyond the bridge, and the day trippers are gone by four.

    The double-decker living root bridge at Nongriat, two woven spans crossing the stream under dense forest
    The double-decker root bridge at Nongriat

  5. Jowai

    4,528 ft

  6. Shnongpdeng

    295 ft · West Jaintia Hills, upstream of Dawki

    The same clear river as Dawki with tents on the bank instead of a queue at the jetty. Kayaking, snorkelling, cliff jumping and zip lines are all run by the community, and the night sky over the gorge is worth staying up for.

    Two boats of paddlers in life jackets on clear green water at Shnongpdeng, pale boulders rising around them
    Boats on the clear water at Shnongpdeng

Reviews

In their own words

Written to us by travellers after their trips. Each card names where they went.

  • Ashwini and Pushkar below a tiered waterfall in Meghalaya

    Ashwini & Pushkar

    Meghalaya

    “We didn't have to worry about the itinerary or food or anything. Everything was taken care of. We could travel without any worries and could enjoy seamlessly due to the efforts of the team.”
    • A traveller standing in the shallows with both arms flung wide below a wide, three-tiered waterfall and a green pool
    • A couple in life jackets sitting in a plunge pool below a tall, narrow waterfall, boulders in the foreground
    • A couple standing together on the rock shelf below a tiered waterfall, the pool turquoise behind them
    • A traveller crossing a living root bridge through dense green forest, a second traveller following behind
    • A couple at a railing looking across at a tall single-drop waterfall falling past a large pale boulder
  • Mr. Yatin Dahanukar

    Mr. Yatin Dahanukar

    Meghalaya

    “Akash is a fantastic guide who manages tours with incredible ease. Things were arranged in time. Trip started in time and was well managed.”

  • + many more

    happy, satisfied travellers.

    These are the ones who sat down and wrote it out for us.

Good to know

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