The Apatanis of Ziro Valley
Five days in the Ziro valley with the Apatani — the tattooed elders, the rice-and-fish terraces, and nights with a family in Lempia. Our shortest cultural trip, and the easiest to add to another route.
A short trip into the Ziro valley, a quiet landscape tucked into the eastern Himalaya of Arunachal Pradesh. The valley is known worldwide for two things: the culture of the Apatani who live here, and the fish-and-rice farming they practice on its terraced fields. Isolated in the hills alongside much fiercer neighbors, the Apatani worked out genuinely clever ways of living well on very little — sustainable, efficient, and careful with every resource — and they have always been the friendlier people of the region. On this trip you meet the Apatani and spend real time with them. Staying in a family homestay is the best way to learn how they live. Many of the elders carry traditional facial tattoos, a reminder of the time before roads, when the tribes of these hills ruled on their own terms. Beyond the villages there are short walks through the Apatani bamboo and pine groves and up into the surrounding hills. It fits a long weekend: a hidden valley, easy walking, and a family who will feed you well and send you home with stories.
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At a Glance
The last tattooed generation
The older Apatani women still wear the facial tattoos and cane nose plugs that stopped with their daughters. This is the last chance to meet them.
Rice and fish in one field
Terraced paddies that raise fish between the rice, in a valley on UNESCO’s tentative World Heritage list for how it farms.
Four nights with one family
You stay with an Apatani family in Lempia, eat at their fire, and learn to weave a basket or throw a pot from people who do it every day.
Day by Day
Dibrugarh - Ziro
Arrive at Dibrugarh airport and drive up to Ziro (6-7 hours), crossing the Brahmaputra on the Bogibeel bridge and climbing into Arunachal Pradesh. Ziro is a wide Himalayan valley at about 5,000 feet, ringed by evergreen forest, terraced rice fields and misty hills. The Apatani, its native people, trace their origin to the ancestor Abotani and belong to the same Tani group as the neighboring Nyishi, Tagin, Adi and Galo — but their culture is distinct, and their farming is remarkably advanced for a hill tribe. The valley is on UNESCO’s tentative list for World Heritage status. You stay with an Apatani family and eat what they eat.
Dibrugarh - Ziro
Arrive at Dibrugarh airport and drive up to Ziro (6-7 hours), crossing the Brahmaputra on the Bogibeel bridge and climbing into Arunachal Pradesh. Ziro is a wide Himalayan valley at about 5,000 feet, ringed by evergreen forest, terraced rice fields and misty hills. The Apatani, its native people, trace their origin to the ancestor Abotani and belong to the same Tani group as the neighboring Nyishi, Tagin, Adi and Galo — but their culture is distinct, and their farming is remarkably advanced for a hill tribe. The valley is on UNESCO’s tentative list for World Heritage status. You stay with an Apatani family and eat what they eat.
Ziro
Two days in the Apatani villages — Hong, Hari, Bamin and Siiro. The houses still stand on stilts and are packed close together, a habit from the days when the Apatani were raided by their neighbors. At the center of each village is the lapang, a raised platform where everyone gathers, and tall babo totem poles stand in front of many houses. Walk through the bamboo and pine groves, and out onto the terraces to see how the wet-rice fields raise fish at the same time. Visit a shrine of Donyi-Polo, the Apatani’s own faith. Finish at the Hapoli market, and at the viewpoint above the town for the whole valley at once. Evenings at leisure.
Ziro
Two days in the Apatani villages — Hong, Hari, Bamin and Siiro. The houses still stand on stilts and are packed close together, a habit from the days when the Apatani were raided by their neighbors. At the center of each village is the lapang, a raised platform where everyone gathers, and tall babo totem poles stand in front of many houses. Walk through the bamboo and pine groves, and out onto the terraces to see how the wet-rice fields raise fish at the same time. Visit a shrine of Donyi-Polo, the Apatani’s own faith. Finish at the Hapoli market, and at the viewpoint above the town for the whole valley at once. Evenings at leisure.
Ziro - Dibrugarh
After breakfast, drive back down to the Assam plains and on to Dibrugarh (8 hours). If there is time, stop at a Mishing village along the river on the way. You stay on a tea estate outside town.
Ziro - Dibrugarh
After breakfast, drive back down to the Assam plains and on to Dibrugarh (8 hours). If there is time, stop at a Mishing village along the river on the way. You stay on a tea estate outside town.
Dibrugarh
After breakfast, transfer to Dibrugarh airport for your flight. End of tour.
Dibrugarh
After breakfast, transfer to Dibrugarh airport for your flight. End of tour.
Your Retreats
01Lempia Ude Homestay
Run by an Apatani family in Lempia, with a traditional fireplace in the rooms and a balcony over the valley. The kitchen cooks local — thukpa, bamboo shoot curry — and the family will teach you to weave a bamboo basket or throw Apatani pottery.
“Woodsmoke, and the valley waking up below.”
02Manohari The Tea Retreat
Bungalow rooms set in the gardens of the Manohari Tea Estate at Lahoal, a short drive from Dibrugarh airport. Standalone chang and RCC bungalows with outdoor seating, a restaurant and a pool.
“Tea bushes to the horizon on the last morning.”
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Experts in the Region
You are in the hands of a team who know and are passionate about Northeast India.
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