Immerse in the Ladakhi communal culture and gain a deep understanding of the Buddhist culture and traditions of this stunning region! Through our Learn, Serve & Immerse travel pillars, we have designed a journey of culturally immersive experiences that dive deep into Ladakhi culture at centuries-old monasteries, heritage homes, traditional markets and crafts workshops.
We will also support our long-time non-profit partner, the Siddhartha School Partnership, that provides quality education to local children while preserving and enhancing the local culture.
Learning themes unique to this tour include:
Ladakhi cultural traditions, including revitalizing artisanal crafts
Tibetan Buddhist culture and history
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS are below, click on ITINERARY to see all the details.
At Global Family Travels we believe that the most powerful way to learn is through the first-hand experience. We let the country and its people be your teachers and supplement your experiences with reading lists, informal discussions, and a pre-trip orientation which includes information on the culture and history of your host country, helpful words, and phrases, and cultural “do’s and don’ts”.
Learning themes unique to this tour include:
As part of the commitment to this trip, we encourage a donation to support the Siddhartha School Partnership, to help support the education of Ladakhi youth while preserving their culture and heritage.. A donation link can be found here.
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We have designed a journey of culturally immersive experiences that dive deep into Ladakhi culture at centuries-old monasteries, heritage homes, traditional markets, and crafts workshops. Personal connections with Ladakhis are facilitated by the strong relationships with our community hosts, non-profit partners, and local we engage with. During your time in the Ladakh, you will become familiar with the rhythm of daily life in the peaceful village of Stok and with friends from the Siddhartha School community, and gain a deep understanding of the Buddhist culture and traditions of this stunning region.
Laura Kozaitis is passionate about Himalayan art and heritage. She’s studied with a master Ladakhi Buddhist icon painter, wrote Harvard’s Peabody Museum Guide to their collection of Himalayan objects, and has a master’s degree from Harvard Divinity School in South and Central Asian religions. She is thrilled to share Himalayan culture and the beauty of Ladakh with visitors and looks forward to taking this group to sites she’s been visiting since 1989. She is a co-founder and advisory board member of the Siddhartha School Project (SSP).
Laura is honored to partner with GFT and local, Ladakhi travel professionals to create meaningful, culturally sensitive trips to Ladakh for SSP sponsors and prospective donors. She is now the founder and CEO of Silk Road Spaceship (SRS), a women-powered enterprise and e-commerce company in New York City. SRS collaborates with artisans along the ancient Silk Road trade routes and the contemporary diaspora to design and deliver unique, small-batch, organic, and ecologically sensitive textile products.
A cultural anthropologist at heart, Jennifer Spatz is Founder and CEO of Seattle-area Global Family Travels, a global tour operator whose mission is to “Learn, Serve and Immerse,” offering community-based travel experiences as a means to foster cross-cultural understanding. Since she launched Global Family Travels in 2010, Jennifer’s vision has been to unite humanity and inspire travelers to take responsibility for the challenges and opportunities facing our increasingly inter-connected planet through sustainable tourism experiences that support destination stewardship and local communities.
Since 20210, Jennifer has led several group trips to Ladakh and has helped facilitate cross-cultural school exchanges for SSP and Seattle area schools. She serves on the advisory council of the SSP board, and she and her family have been long time supporters of the Siddhartha School Partnership, sponsoring the education of several SSP students.
The Siddhartha School was founded in 1995 by Khen Rinpoche Lobzang Tsetan, a Ladakhi Buddhist monk and educator, in his remote home village of Stok, Ladakh. What started in a one-room shed is now an exemplary private school with over 400 students from nursery age through Grade 10 and the school is one-of-a-kind in its efforts to preserve and enhance the local culture. Unique to Ladakh, it is the only private school in Ladakh that accepts students regardless of their ability to pay tuition and no child is denied admission to Siddhartha School on the basis of need.
The U.S. non-profit, the Siddhartha School Partnership is dedicated to providing the youth of Ladakh, India, with a modern, well-rounded education that recognizes the importance of culture and heritage.
Once an independent Buddhist kingdom at the crossroads of vital trade routes between China and the Middle East, Ladakh, often called “Little Tibet” or “Land of the Broken Moon,” is one of the last places in the world where the Buddhist way of life is unrepressed. Its unique geographical location in one of the northernmost regions in India makes Ladakh rich with extraordinary trekking trails for all expertise levels. Ladakh became a new territory state of India in 2019.
Much more than a traditional tour operator, Global Family Travels’ mission is to “Learn, Serve and Immerse” through community-based travel programs. In partnership with non-profit organizations and schools, we offer family-friendly and sustainable travel experiences in support of education, gender equality, access to clean water, preservation of local cultures, conservation and economic growth, all of which foster cross-cultural understanding and global citizens.
Our trips include a unique mix of cultural and educational activities, homestays and participation in local service projects aimed at improving the lives of people in the communities we visit.
Expect to expand your family circle when you embark on a Global Family Travels trip! Visit our website for more information: Global Family Travels
About the Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation (LAMO) is a public charitable trust established to articulate an alternative vision for the arts and media in Ladakh. The organization set up the LAMO Centre in Leh, the main town of the region, to provide a space for the understanding and development of the arts. The complex on which the Centre is located comprises two historical houses below the 17th century Lechen Pelkhar (Leh Palace). The houses were restored by LAMO and converted to an arts space with galleries, offices, a library and reading room, screening room, conference room, and open-air performance site. The Centre is designed to conduct outreach programs, lectures, film screenings, research and documentation projects, workshops and exhibitions that showcase Ladakh’s material and visual culture, performing arts and literature.
With the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19), the health and safety of Global Family Travels’ travelers, community partners, colleagues and guides are of paramount importance to us. Our COVID-19 Safety Protocols, which can be found under Tasks section, outlines our commitment to mitigate and manage the risks associated with COVID-19 when you travel with us. You can find more detailed information on our website COVID-19 and Travel, and please also refer to the tasks which has specific details for your activity and destination.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about these protocols or your tour. Thank you for helping to keep yourself and fellow travelers and guides safe!
Before the festivities, we are offering an opportunity to visit Hemis Monastery,. one the largest Monastery in Ladakh. Positioned inside a gorge, the monastery was built in the 17th century under the patronage of King Singey Namgyal and it holds the distinction of being the biggest and wealthiest monastery of Ladakh. Belonging to the Drukpa Order (sometimes called either Drugpa or "Red Hat sect”), it stands on the western bank of the Indus River. The monastery also boasts of a very rich collection of ancient relics.
After a leisurely breakfast, we will explore the beauty of Nubra Valley and visit to Disket monastery. Diskit Monastery also known as Deskit Gompa or Diskit Gompa, is the oldest and largest Buddhist monastery in the Nubra Valley of Ladakh, Northern India. It belongs to the Gelugpa sect of Tibetan Buddhism and was founded by Changzem Tserab Zangpo, a disciple of Tsong Khapa, founder of Gelugpa, in the 14th century.
We will enjoy lunch after our visit and return to Organic Valley Retreat to relax and have dinner.
Overnight in camp at Nubra Organic Retreat Camp (B, L, D)
India 
from $3250.00
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