Manali is the last town of any size before the road climbs to the Rohtang Pass (3,978m) and the high Himalayan desert of Lahaul and Spiti beyond. It is a place with a particular energy — the convergence of adventure tourism (trekking, rafting, paragliding, skiing), Tibetan Buddhist culture (the Tibetan colony above the town is substantial), and the apple orchards and pine forests of the Kullu Valley that give it a gentler, Himalayan hill-station character in its lower reaches.
At this altitude, in this cold, the chai is physiological necessity before it is cultural preference.
The Mountain Chai
Manali's chai is the most ginger-forward in Himachal Pradesh — exceeding even Shimla's robust winter blend. At 2,000 metres in October, with the temperature dropping to near freezing at night, the ginger ratio adjusts accordingly. The standard roadside chai here uses roughly double the ginger of a Delhi cup, half-thumb coins, bruised heavily, simmered hard.
Black pepper appears in most roadside chai here — not just the speciality blends but the everyday cup. The piperine's thermogenic effect is the practical reason; the flavour it adds (a dry, mild heat that lingers differently from ginger's immediate warmth) is the pleasure.
The milk is often buffalo milk in Himachal Pradesh — richer, more full-fat than the commercial cow milk of the plains. The chai it produces is noticeably thicker and more satisfying. If you find a stall that still uses fresh local buffalo milk, you will taste the difference.
Old Manali and the Traveller Cafes
The original village of Old Manali (2km uphill from the main bus stand area) has a different atmosphere from the commercial Manali below — smaller, quieter, surrounded by apple orchards, with a concentration of backpacker cafes, guesthouses, and the Manu temple that gives the area its sacred character.
The chai cafes of Old Manali tend toward the eclectic: alongside the standard mountain chai, you will find Tibetan butter tea (po cha — salted, rancid yak butter, tea, and milk, an acquired taste that requires genuine cold to appreciate), herbal infusions from local plants, and an increasing number of specialty tea offerings as the area's tourist profile has shifted upmarket.
The best chai in Old Manali is from a small, unnamed stall opposite the Hadimba Devi Temple — open from 7am, serving only chai and aloo paratha (potato stuffed flatbread), to a clientele of local workers, pilgrims, and the small number of visitors who find it before the main tourist day begins.
Rohtang Pass and the Highest Cup
In summer (June–August), the Rohtang Pass road is open and the chai stalls that operate at the summit — 3,978 metres — serve what is, technically, among the highest cups of chai regularly available in India (excluding military and expedition tea).
The chai at this altitude tastes different not merely because of the lower brewing temperature but because of the context — you are drinking it looking at a landscape of permanent snow and descending cloud, with the plains of India invisible somewhere 4,000 metres below. The cup is warm; everything else is not. The contrast is complete.
“📍 North IndiaIn Manali, chai is not a pleasure. It is a partnership. The mountain provides the cold. The cup provides the answer. This is the original purpose of every cup ever made.