This 5-day Himachal tour package takes you from Delhi to Shimla for two nights, over to Manali for two nights, and back to Delhi in one private car with the same chauffeur throughout. The route covers roughly 1,265 km. The car is priced per kilometre by vehicle class; hotels and meals are quoted separately by our travel desk.
Is five days really enough for Shimla and Manali?
It is enough if you know what you are trading. Five days gives you a proper evening and a full day in each hill town, which covers the Ridge, Jakhu, Kufri, the Hadimba temple and an afternoon at Solang. What it does not give you is slack. Two of the five days are long drives, and the last one, Manali back to Delhi, is the kind of day you sit through rather than enjoy.
This length suits people with a fixed week off who want both famous names on one trip, couples who are happy to start early and nap in the back seat, and anyone flying out of Chandigarh, where the final leg shrinks to about 305 km. It suits less well if you are travelling with small children, grandparents who tire on bends, or anyone prone to motion sickness.
If that is you, look at the 6-day Himachal package, which spends a night in Chandigarh on the way home, or the 7-day version, which swings west through the Kangra valley to Dharamshala and McLeod Ganj. And if you only want the hills without the loop, a straight Delhi to Manali taxi or Delhi to Shimla cab may fit better.
The two long drives, hour by hour
Delhi to Shimla. Leaving Delhi before 6:00 matters more than any other decision on this trip. It puts you through the Singhu and Sonipat stretch before the trucks, lets you breakfast on stuffed parathas at Murthal, and gets you past Zirakpur's junctions before midday. The hill section starts at Parwanoo, where Himachal's entry barrier sits; the four-lane road now runs most of the way to Solan, and then the older, narrower road winds through Kandaghat and Shoghi into Shimla. Expect seven to eight hours door to hotel.
Shimla to Manali. This is a road day in the true sense, with no motorway anywhere on it. The descent from Shimla to the Sutlej is steep and twisting, and the drive to Mandi joins the busy main highway where the Chandigarh traffic comes up. From Mandi the Beas gorge is spectacular: the river is on your left, then the Pandoh dam, then the Aut tunnel, then the broad Kullu valley opens with orchards on both banks. Your chauffeur will want to leave around 7:00 so the last hour into Manali is not in the dark.
Manali to Delhi. About 540 km. From Manali the valley road runs down to Mandi, then Sundernagar, Bilaspur and the newer four-lane section to Kiratpur, where the hills end. From there it is Ropar, Chandigarh's outskirts and NH 44 south. Eleven to thirteen hours with breaks is honest. Drivers on RutzIndia.com hill trips take a proper rest stop every two to three hours, and by law and by our own rule they do not push through the night; if the day runs long, the desk will suggest breaking at Chandigarh instead.
Your chauffeur plans fuel before the hills, not in them. Pumps are frequent on NH 44 and around Mandi, but sparse on the Shimla-Mandi link. Expect a top-up at Parwanoo or Solan on day one and again near Mandi on day three.
What day four can hold: Solang, Rohtang or the Atal Tunnel
Most visitors think of Manali as one place; for planning it is three. The town and its old quarter take a morning. Solang, about 13 km up the valley, is open all year with no paperwork: a ropeway, paragliding in stable weather, skiing and snow play in winter, and a lot of ponies and photographers. It suits a half day and it is where most "snow point" trips actually end up.
Rohtang Pass, at close to 3,980 m, is another matter. It is usually open to tourist traffic only from late May or June until the first heavy snow in October or November, and vehicles need an online permit that is issued in limited daily numbers. The pass is closed one day a week for road work and on any day the weather turns. Your chauffeur applies once your dates are firm, but a permit is never guaranteed, so treat Rohtang as a bonus rather than the point of the trip. The extra kilometres (roughly 100 km for the round trip) are billed at your class rate.
The third choice is the Atal Tunnel, which runs about 9 km under the Pir Panjal and comes out at Sissu in Lahaul. The drive through is an experience in itself, and the far side is a different landscape: bare, high and dry. Our Sissu and Atal Tunnel road guide explains what to expect beyond the north portal.
Choosing a car for mountain roads
On a hill circuit the right car is about comfort on bends and room for luggage, not only seat count.
- Two travellers: a compact sedan (Swift Dzire, Honda Amaze) at Rs 72/km is perfectly adequate on these roads, which are paved all the way to Solang. If you want more legroom and a smoother ride on the Shimla-Mandi section, step up to an Ertiga or Carens at Rs 84/km.
- Three to five: the Innova Crysta at Rs 114/km is the default choice for Himachal. Its high seating and soft suspension reduce motion sickness, and it takes suitcases for five without a roof carrier.
- Snow or a bit more presence: a Fortuner on rent at Rs 168/km gives ground clearance and four-wheel-drive variants for a winter Solang day, when the last stretch can be slushy.
- Groups of eight or more: a Tempo Traveller at Rs 156/km, or the Force Urbania at Rs 204/km for a quieter, more modern cabin. The fleet page at /fleet/ shows each class side by side.
All cars on RutzIndia.com are within four model years, and the chauffeurs placed on hill work are drivers who regularly run the Shimla and Manali routes.
When to go: a Himachal season calendar
- March to June: the main season. Apple blossom in Shimla and Kullu in April, pleasant days, cool nights. Late May and June bring Indian school holidays and traffic jams at Manali and Solang, so hotels fill early.
- July and August: monsoon. Landslides on the Mandi-Kullu road and on the Shimla side are common; we do not recommend this circuit in heavy rain weeks.
- September to November: clear air, the best mountain views and far fewer crowds. Kullu Dussehra, a week of processions of village deities, begins on Vijayadashami in October and fills Kullu's hotels.
- December to February: snow in Manali and often in Shimla and Kufri. Christmas and New Year are packed. Roads above Manali may close for days, and Solang becomes a snow playground. Chains or a four-wheel-drive car may be needed on some mornings.
Where to stay in Shimla and Manali
In Shimla, the choice is between staying on or near the Mall, which means walking to everything but carrying luggage from a drop point, and staying on Cart Road or the Chotta Shimla side with a road to the door. Heritage hotels in old colonial buildings, mid-size business hotels, and quieter properties out at Mashobra or Kufri are all options. In Manali, the town centre is busy but convenient; Old Manali and the Log Huts area are greener and quieter; the left-bank road towards Naggar has orchard cottages and small resorts; and the Solang road has newer properties with snow views. The travel desk can hold rooms in any of these categories and quote them in writing with the car.
How the car fare is worked out
The fare table on this page is calculated, not estimated. We take the larger of the actual distance (about 1,265 km for this plan) and a minimum of 250 km for every calendar day, which for five days is 1,250 km, and multiply by the per-km rate of the class you pick. On top come the driver's night allowance of Rs 3,000 per night, state entry taxes and permits, tolls and parking at actual cost, and 5% GST. If you add Rohtang or a Chandigarh airport drop, the kilometres change and so does the fare.
Booking this Shimla-Manali trip
- Pick your car class and dates in the online booker. You pay by card or UPI and receive a GST invoice.
- If you also want hotels and meals, ask the travel desk for an all-inclusive quote; it comes back in writing.
- Check the cancellation policy: free more than 72 hours before pickup, 10% within 72 hours, 50% within 48 hours, and 100% within 24 hours or for a no-show.
For single-city help, see our Shimla taxi service and Manali taxi service pages, or the wider Himachal taxi service overview.
