At an elevation of 13,054 ft, Rohtang Pass serves as the gateway to Lahaul and Spiti valleys in Himachal Pradesh. About 53 km from Manali, it connects Kullu valley with Lahaul and Spiti which in turn provide access to Leh. Besides Lahaul and Spiti, Rohtang Pass also serves as the gateway to Pangi and the valley of Leh. Like the Zojila Pass, Rohtang also serves as the gateway to Ladakh.

A drive on Rohtang Pass offers wonderful views of surrounding peaks, glaciers, Chandra River, and Lahaul Valley, along with twin peaks of Geypan. Self-drive on this road is quite challenging due to its meandering curves and thin stretch. Other options are local cab or tourist bus.

Rohtang Pass is open between June and October as during the remaining months, it is covered with a snow, making it inaccessible. During the peak season, the pass is jam-packed and thus to avoid delay, one must leave quite early. It is quite popular amid adventure junkies and features in the list of must-visit places of Manali.

Tourists can enjoy various kinds of adventure activities at Snow Point such as sledge ride, mountain biking, snow scooter, ski ride, tyre drop and skiing. Equipment are available on rent. Enjoy making igloos with snow. There are no accommodation options here. Nearest stay is in Manali. As far as food is concerned, you can either carry your own food or can enjoy food at roadside eateries and dhabas. On the way, there are clothes selling sticks, snow clothes etc.

Another attraction here is the Rahala waterfall that is 16 km from Manali, on the way to Rohtang Pass. The scenery here is breathtaking. Do not forget to click memorable photographs. Popular track ‘Yeh Ishq Haaye’ of Bollywood blockbuster ‘Jab We Met’ was shot at Rohtang Pass. Nehru Kund, Kothi, Gulaba and Marhi are other attractions near the pass.

Rohtang Pass Tourist Permit
There are two types of permits available for Rohtang Pass. One is for people visiting Rohtang from Manali which is known as the tourist permit. With this permit, you will only be allowed to travel to Rohtang and then will have to return to Manali on same day. You cannot go all the way to Rohtang top or cross it over towards Keylong. For this permit, you will need to pay a sum of Rs. 500 as permit fee and Rs. 50 congestion charge, so a total of Rs. 550 per vehicle. Heavy motor vehicles like buses, trucks and tempo travelers will have to pay Rs. 100 for congestion charge so a total of Rs. 600 per permit. The farthest you can go with this permit is Snow point on Rohtang Road.

This is the permit which is limited in number; only 1200 per day; is issued on first come first serve basis; and is becoming hard to get these days.

Beyond Rohtang Pass Permit
Second permit is called Beyond Rohtang Permit. This permit is issued for people who want to cross Rohtang over and then travel towards Ladakh, Spiti or Lahaul Valley. Using this permit, you will have to cross over Rohtang and cannot come back to Manali the same day. If you try to come back, you will be stopped at the check post and fined for it. For this permit, you will only have to pay a congestion charge of Rs. 50. Permit of Rs. 500 is not applicable for this permit. This is the permit which is not limited in number and is comparatively easier to get.

In both the cases, There will no refund if you do not use or try to cancel your permit.