Laitlum is a less explored wonder in East Khasi Hills, near Shillong, India. The lush green Laitlum Canyon viewpoint appears at the steep end of the plane land. Often the black clouds happily rest on the mountain top to offer you a splendid view. But after disappearance of the floating clouds when the shined sun falls on the prominent curves you must feel more than a dreamland.

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Laitlum: A Must Visit Place for A Nature Lover

When we arrived at Laitlum after 1.5 hours of non-stop drive from Shillong, we saw only 15-20 visitors were enjoying nature. This place is relatively unknown to most of the commercial tourists. Rather, they cover the other sides of Meghalaya which are strictly commercial and full of crowd. Probably they don’t like to waste time for a place where limited people visit. On the other hand, local travel operators are also less interested to experience the beauty of Laitlum. I don’t know the exact reason!

For people like me, it’s great to meet such a beautiful place with too little crowds. It’s true the accumulation of unnecessary crowd will destroy the beauty and the cleanness of Laitlum. Rather, I’d suggest only the nature lovers visit this wonderful place and spend 2-3 silent hours there with the mountains, winds, and clouds. It’s amazing!

Strange life at the edge of the world

The literal meaning of Laitlum is “end of the world”, this is because Laitlum canyon viewpoint appears at the edge of the land. It is 180-degree steep down far below, where you can reach by covering 3000 steps.

Standing at the edge you’ll see a village far below and a stream flowing through the middle of the canyon. There is a rope rope-way from the top to the village, which supplies the urgent needs to the village. Besides, 3000 stone made stair steps connect the real humans of the village to the edge of the world (Laitlum viewpoint). If you are interested you can try a trek.

Are you afraid to trek far below? – Then you must know a strange thing.

People of that village come to the top every day by covering that 3000 steps for their daily jobs. More strange news is, little children also come to the top every day for their schooling. I must admit this is very unfortunate to deal with such a difficult life, and some essential action is required for them.

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Let’s explore the beautiful Laitlum

When you stop your car first you’ll see a valley covered by green grass in front of you. It gently grows upward and from the car parking, you’ll see only the green border at the end below the clouds. Pretty sight!

Now follow the mud road to reach the edge of the world. Standing at the edge, you’ll see the vast mountain covered by lush green. The prominent curves look amazing even under cloudy conditions. But when the sunlight falls on the full valley you’ll just be stunned with the splendid view. This is really not possible to explain the beauty in a written version but the images can explain it partially.

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Caution:

1. Don’t go much close to the edge, it is very steep.
2. Hold your children always, never release them unless you are in a safe distance from the edge.

At the left side, you can see the stair to reach the village far below and also the rope rope-way to supply materials in the village from the top.

You get a wide range view of Laitlum Canyon from the edge of the green valley. You can spend hours sitting on the green grasses while you’ll be enjoying the floating clouds and the blowing winds. Rain can come anytime, even just after the sunny weather. Meghalaya is the wettest state in the world, while the world’s maximum rainfall occurs in Cherrapunji, located at the southern region of Meghalaya. So it is advised to keep your umbrella always with you.

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How to Reach Laitlum Canyon

You have to reach Laitlum directly from Shillong. In fact when you’ll plan a trip to Shillong or full Meghalaya you should keep Laitlum in your list.

You’ll get a few flights to reach directly to Shillong. But due to bad weather, it may be canceled or delayed. Alternatively, reach Guwahati by flight or by train. It takes 3 hours to reach Shillong from Guwahati by road.

After reaching Shillong you should check in to your prebooked hotel there and start your trip[p to Laitlum any day then after, I mean don’t take a risk to visit Laitlum on the day of reaching Shillong, because it’s a time taking matter.

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You must visit Laitlum in the first half of the day. Because chances of rainfall are relatively less in the day time (though it is uncertain), and you can enjoy as much time as you want in Laitlum. Remember Laitlum entry gets closed after 5 PM, so you must reach there before time. It takes around 1.5 hours to reach Laitlum from Shillong by car.

Best time to visit Laitlum

To be honest, there is no best time to visit Meghalaya, because if you like to see all the waterfalls, monsoon is the best time; if you go for a trek or enjoy adventures in crystal clear water, winter is the best option; even in summer, you’ll get comfortable weather. After all, you’ll be visiting Laitlum Canyon, when you plan a Meghalaya trip.

But for particularly Laitlum, I’d say early winter to late winter is the best time. In winter the rate of rainfall remains relatively low. So, you can enjoy the clear view of Laitlum Canyon. Additionally, you’ll get a sunny day which will offer you a splendid view of the canyon. Still, the mist is uncertain.

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Where to Stay?

Shillong is the nearest city to Laitlum Canion. So, you have check in to a nice hotel or homestay in Shillong. You may check a list of 10 best hotel in Shillong.

You can check the above link for your most comfortable stay in Shillong.

Conclusive Remarks

Only one thing I’d say, Don’t miss Laitlum in your Meghalaya trip if you are a nature lover. Enjoy the splendid view of the Laitlum canyon, enjoy the winds and the cloud sitting on the green valley, spend beautiful hours.

Generally, foreign and Indian adventure travelers don’t miss Laitlum Canyon, because they plan their travel by themselves and do in-depth research on a place. But many other people miss it out because travel operators often don’t include it in the travel plan.

That’s all about Laitlum. How do you think?

Do you have any further queries? Just post your question in the comment box below. I’ll be more than happy to help you out. If you find the article helpful, social sharing will be highly appreciating.

Happy trip.

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Suvankar Das

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Dr. Suvankar Das is a scientific advisor by profession, associated with a CRO organization. He pursued his doctoral degree in Chemistry in 2015. Later, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher & scientist in a couple of institutes/companies.

Besides his scientific journey, Dr. Das is also a passionate traveler and travel blogger. He loves to share all his travel experiences with other travelers so that everyone can enjoy hassle-free holidays with their own tour plans.

He believes, the most beautiful thing in this world is the WORLD itself. so there is no way to live like a clock; rather live it like a compass!

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