Dharamkot: the Himalayas' hippie village, explained
Just above McLeod Ganj, Dharamkot is where the cedar forest, the yoga scene and the slow-travel crowd meet. What it's really like, and how to do it well.
A twenty-minute climb above McLeod Ganj, Dharamkot is a different pace entirely — a forested village of guesthouses, yoga shalas, slow cafés and long-stay travellers who came for a week and stayed for a season. If McLeod Ganj is the busy spiritual capital, Dharamkot is its quiet, barefoot cousin.
Dharamkot sits at the trailhead of the whole upper Dhauladhar. The gentlest option is the shaded forest walk to the Guna Devi temple through old deodar cedar — easy enough for families and a lovely morning.
It's one of our favourite easy days out: see the Guna Devi forest day hike. From the same trailhead you can continue up to Triund and Laka Glacier.
Dharamkot and neighbouring Bhagsu are one of the world's great hubs for yoga and meditation — from drop-in morning classes to full teacher trainings, plus the Tushita and Vipassana centres just up the hill. Quality varies a lot, so it pays to be pointed at the genuine schools.
We help with exactly that — see our yoga & meditation concierge.
The café culture is the daily rhythm here: German bakeries, Israeli food, sunrise points and bookshops. Pair a lazy Dharamkot morning with a Tibetan cooking class down in McLeod Ganj for a proper taste of the place.
Try the Tibetan cooking class or a quiet thangka painting workshop near Norbulingka.
← All blog postsA slow-travel village above McLeod Ganj — yoga schools, Vipassana at Dhamma Sikhara, long-stay cafés and the trailheads for Triund and the Guna Devi forest walk.
It is a 20–30 minute uphill walk from McLeod Ganj main square, or a 10-minute taxi/scooter ride. The lanes are too narrow for big cars, which is much of the charm.
For quiet, greenery and a longer stay, yes. For monastery access, transport connections and evening bustle, McLeod Ganj wins — they are close enough to enjoy both.