Tsomgo Lake: Shared, Private or Foreign Nationals’ Day?
Three days go to Tsomgo Lake from Gangtok: a shared seat with Nathula in the plan, your own car with Nathula as an add-on, and a private day for foreign nationals with a guide.
The short answer
Pick by passport and group: the shared day for a seat with Nathula, the private day for your own car, or the foreign nationals’ day with its registered guide.
A. Pick the shared day if you are Indian travellers who want Nathula, Baba Mandir and Tsomgo Lake in one day and are happy to share a vehicle with 8 to 10 people.
Shared Trip to Nathula Pass, Tsomgo and Baba MandirFull day · from $13 per personB. Pick the private day if your family or group wants its own car from the hotel, with Nathula as an add-on you can choose or skip.
Tsomgo Lake & Baba Mandir Day trip with Optional Nathula PassFull day · from $43 per vehicleC. Pick the foreign nationals’ day if anyone holds a foreign passport or an OCI card: it goes to Tsomgo Lake only, with a registered guide, for two or more.
Tsomgo (Changu) Lake Day Trip for Foreigners with GuideFull day · from $70Nathula is closed on Mondays and open to Indian nationals only. Tsomgo Lake is open all week, to foreign nationals too.
How do the three Tsomgo Lake days compare?
All three go to Tsomgo Lake; they differ in who can book, how you travel and how far up the road you go. Rows marked come straight from the listings.
| The trips |  A. Shared Trip to Nathula Pass, Tsomgo and Baba Mandirfrom $13 per person |  B. Tsomgo Lake & Baba Mandir Day trip with Optional Nathula Passfrom $43 per vehicle |  C. Tsomgo (Changu) Lake Day Trip for Foreigners with Guidefrom $70 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Indian travellers who want Nathula for the price of a seat | Indian families and groups who want their own car | Foreign passport and OCI card holders, two or more |
| Who can book | Indian nationals only | Indian nationals only | Foreign nationals and OCI card holders, at least 2 |
| How you travel | Shared Sumo, Bolero or similar, usually 8–10 people | Private Wagon-R (up to 3) or Innova (up to 6) | Private Wagon-R (up to 3) or Innova (up to 5), with a registered guide |
| Nathula Pass | In the plan; closed Mondays | Add-on at checkout; closed Mondays | Not open to foreign nationals |
| Baba Mandir | Included | Included | Not open to foreign nationals |
| Where it starts | A meeting point, confirmed the day before | Your hotel | Your hotel |
| Times | Starts 07:30 · ends 14:30 | Pickup 08:00–08:30 · back by 15:00 | Pickup 08:00–08:30 · back by 15:00 |
| Stops | Nathula Pass · New Baba Mandir · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake) | New Baba Mandir · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake) | 3 Rd Mile Checkpost · Pine tree View point · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake) |
| Price | from $13 per person | from $43 per vehicle | from $70 |
| Refundable | Full refund up to 48 hours before | Full refund up to 24 hours before | Full refund up to 24 hours before |
| Next available | Tue 10 Nov | Tue 10 Nov | Tue 10 Nov |
| See this trip: Shared Trip to Nathula Pass, Tsomgo and Baba Mandir | See this trip: Tsomgo Lake & Baba Mandir Day trip with Optional Nathula Pass | See this trip: Tsomgo (Changu) Lake Day Trip for Foreigners with Guide |
A. Shared Trip to Nathula Pass, Tsomgo and Baba Mandir
from $13 per person
Best for: indian travellers who want Nathula for the price of a seat
- Who can book
- Indian nationals only
- How you travel
- Shared Sumo, Bolero or similar, usually 8–10 people
- Nathula Pass
- In the plan; closed Mondays
- Baba Mandir
- Included
- Where it starts
- A meeting point, confirmed the day before
- Times
- Starts 07:30 · ends 14:30
- Stops
- Nathula Pass · New Baba Mandir · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake)
- Refundable
- Full refund up to 48 hours before
- Next available
- Tue 10 Nov
B. Tsomgo Lake & Baba Mandir Day trip with Optional Nathula Pass
from $43 per vehicle
Best for: indian families and groups who want their own car
- Who can book
- Indian nationals only
- How you travel
- Private Wagon-R (up to 3) or Innova (up to 6)
- Nathula Pass
- Add-on at checkout; closed Mondays
- Baba Mandir
- Included
- Where it starts
- Your hotel
- Times
- Pickup 08:00–08:30 · back by 15:00
- Stops
- New Baba Mandir · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake)
- Refundable
- Full refund up to 24 hours before
- Next available
- Tue 10 Nov
C. Tsomgo (Changu) Lake Day Trip for Foreigners with Guide
from $70
Best for: foreign passport and OCI card holders, two or more
- Who can book
- Foreign nationals and OCI card holders, at least 2
- How you travel
- Private Wagon-R (up to 3) or Innova (up to 5), with a registered guide
- Nathula Pass
- Not open to foreign nationals
- Baba Mandir
- Not open to foreign nationals
- Where it starts
- Your hotel
- Times
- Pickup 08:00–08:30 · back by 15:00
- Stops
- 3 Rd Mile Checkpost · Pine tree View point · Tsomgo Lake (Changu Lake)
- Refundable
- Full refund up to 24 hours before
- Next available
- Tue 10 Nov
From the trip’s listing, always current. Other rows written by Day Trio.
The shared price is per seat; the two private prices are for the whole car. For a couple, compare two seats with the car; for a family of five, divide the car’s price by five.
When is the shared day the right pick?
When you are Indian travellers who want Nathula, Baba Mandir and Tsomgo Lake in one day, and are happy to share a vehicle with other guests.
There are usually 8 to 10 people in one vehicle, a Sumo, Bolero or similar, and seats can’t be chosen. The listing gives the meeting time and place, and the exact pickup point is confirmed the day before.
The day goes up to Nathula first, then stops at Baba Mandir and Tsomgo Lake on the way back down. Operators say it runs even when only a few people have booked.
If only Nathula is shut on the day, the shared day still goes to Tsomgo Lake and Baba Mandir. Nathula closes every Monday, and the shared day doesn’t run on Mondays at all, operators say.
The shared Nathula, Tsomgo and Baba Mandir day suits couples and solo travellers best: you pay for your seats, not a whole car. Open days and papers for the pass are in the Nathula permit guide.
When is the private day the right pick?
When your family or group wants its own car from the hotel, or wants Tsomgo Lake and Baba Mandir without going on up to Nathula.
The private day is Tsomgo Lake and Baba Mandir in a Wagon-R for up to 3 or an Innova for up to 6, priced per car, with pickup and drop at your hotel.
Nathula is an add-on you choose at checkout, for Indian nationals, on any day but a Monday. Adding it keeps the same pickup time and brings you back about one to two hours later.
Leaving Nathula out keeps the day lower and shorter: the lake is at 12,313 ft (3,753 m) and the pass at 14,140 ft (4,310 m). People with heart conditions, high blood pressure, asthma or breathing problems should not go up to Nathula.
The private Tsomgo Lake and Baba Mandir day includes the protected-area permit and the lake’s conservation fee in its price.
A trip you can book
Gangtok, SikkimTsomgo Lake & Baba Mandir Day trip with Optional Nathula PassFull dayHotel pickupFull refund up to 24 hours beforefrom $43per vehicleSee the trip →When is the foreign nationals’ day the right pick?
Whenever anyone in your group holds a foreign passport or an OCI card. It is a private day to Tsomgo Lake only, with a registered guide, for at least two travellers.
Foreign nationals can go as far as Tsomgo Lake on this road, but not on to Baba Mandir or Nathula, and OCI card holders count as foreign nationals. A lone foreign traveller can’t get the lake permit: it needs a group of two or more.
Before you come, apply online for Sikkim’s entry permit (RAP), at least 15 days ahead. After you book, send a passport copy, your visa or OCI card, a passport-size photo and the entry permit by the cut-off the day before, and carry the originals on the day.
An English-speaking registered guide is with you all day, and the price includes the permits and the conservation fee. Food, gear hire and yak rides at the lake are paid in cash on the spot.
The Tsomgo Lake day for foreign nationals takes travellers aged 2 to 80, in a Wagon-R for up to 3 or an Innova for up to 5. How to get the entry permit is in the Sikkim permits guide.
A trip you can book
Gangtok, SikkimTsomgo (Changu) Lake Day Trip for Foreigners with GuideFull dayHotel pickupFull refund up to 24 hours beforefrom $70See the trip →Travelling with Indian family or friends?
Operators say Indian travellers can share the car with foreign friends, as long as at least two foreign nationals travel in it with a registered guide. The whole car then stops at Tsomgo Lake.
Which day suits children, older parents or the altitude?
The private day without Nathula is the gentlest: your own car, pickup at the hotel, and a day that turns back at Baba Mandir, below the pass.
Tsomgo Lake is at 12,313 ft (3,753 m). All three listings say they aren’t suitable for pregnant women or people with heart conditions, and the shared and foreign nationals’ days aren’t wheelchair accessible.
Operators report taking babies from about six months old, and travellers over 60, up this road. For babies and toddlers, the warmer months are kinder than peak winter. Check with your doctor before you book.
On the private day, children must stay with an adult; the foreign nationals’ day takes children from the age of 2.
Portable oxygen cans, at shops on the way up: about ₹500 each (operators) · checked Oct 2026
What will you pay for on the spot?
Warm gear if you hire it, food and tea, and anything you do at the lake, such as a yak ride. None of the three days includes them, so carry cash.
At 17th Mile, on the road up, shops hire out snow boots, gloves and jackets, and small eateries serve tea and food.
Snow boots, gloves or a jacket at 17th Mile: about ₹300–500 per item, depending on the shop, the material and the size (operators) · checked Oct 2026
What is the same on every day?
The lake, the permit and the weather. Every day includes the protected-area permit, and its operator applies for it the day before, from the details you add after booking.
Indian travellers add each person’s name, date of birth and ID number by the cut-off on the day’s page, usually the afternoon before, and carry the same ID on the day. A Voter ID, passport or driving licence works; Aadhaar is not accepted.
Snow can close the road above Gangtok for a day or two, most often from January to March; each listing’s terms cover a day that can’t run. When to expect snow is in the snow guide.
Each day is run by a verified local operator. For the same choice on other trips, see Shared or private taxi in Sikkim, or every day on the Gangtok page.
Questions travellers ask
Can I visit Tsomgo Lake on a Monday?
Can I book a Tsomgo Lake day for tomorrow?
Is Baba Mandir on the foreign nationals’ day?
Which day gives the most time at the lake?
Is the price per person or per car?
Sources & checks
- Tsomgo Lake at 12,313 feet — Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India · checked Oct 2026
- Nathula: closed on Mondays; altitude 4,310 m — Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India · checked Oct 2026
- Tsomgo Lake open throughout the week; foreign nationals in a group of at least two, and not beyond Tsomgo Lake — Gangtok district administration, Government of Sikkim · checked Oct 2026
- The entry permit for foreign nationals issued online through e-FRRO; apply at least 15 days ahead if already in India — Embassy of India, Bogotá · checked Oct 2026
- Who can book each day, vehicles and seats, where each starts, the stop order, the Nathula add-on, what each price includes and leaves out, ages, the documents foreign nationals send, and who each day does not suit — The days' own listings on Day Trio · checked Oct 2026
- Nathula closed on Mondays only (re-checked); the cut-off and IDs, Aadhaar refused; OCI card holders counted as foreign nationals; the registered guide; mixed groups; the shared day running with few people; the add-on’s timing; a day when only Nathula is shut; who should skip Nathula; babies and older travellers; gear hire and oxygen cans; snow months — First-hand: the author and the local operators who run these days · checked Oct 2026
