Yes, we found Rohtang Pass open for the 2026 season when we checked on 12 November 2026. No winter closure order had been issued, and the official permit portal showed no closure notice. But you’re in the final weeks, and snow or black ice usually ends the season between mid and late November.
What most people get wrong is treating 15 November as a fixed shutdown date. Local reports describe it as the official cut-off beyond the Gulaba barrier, yet dry weather kept the road running until 26 November in 2023 and 30 November in 2024, while early snow closed it for a spell in October 2025.
So treat any plan for the second half of November as a maybe. Check that permits are still being issued, keep a spare day for the drive, and know your snow backups before you leave Manali. If you’re heading up tomorrow, our guide to planning a same-day Rohtang trip from Manali covers the morning checks.
Once the pass shuts, it stays shut until spring. If the usual pattern holds, your next real chance to find Rohtang Pass open after this winter comes around mid-May 2027, when the road reopens in stages.
Is Rohtang Pass Open for the Season Right Now?
As of 12 November 2026, the answer is yes. We checked the official permit portal that day and found it online, still listing its daily quota of 800 petrol and 400 diesel vehicles, with no winter closure notice. We also searched recent news for a Kullu district order closing the road and found none.
That portal is the best signal of whether the administration still has Rohtang Pass open. When the season ends, the administration shifts the police barrier down to Gulaba, about 22 km from Manali, and the permit website stops issuing permits. That’s what happened in 2024, when the road beyond Gulaba shut on 30 November.
Keeping Rohtang Pass open this late depends on dry weather, and one heavy snowfall can end the season overnight. In 2024, the closure order came straight after a joint inspection by the district administration, police and the Border Roads Organisation. For the day-by-day picture, see our latest update for tourist vehicles.
When Does the Rohtang Seasonal Closure Usually Happen?
The Rohtang seasonal closure usually lands somewhere between mid-November and the end of the month. Snow, sub-zero nights and black ice decide it, not the calendar. Dry autumns have kept Rohtang Pass open well past the official cut-off, while a wet one can shut it weeks early.
Here’s how the last few seasons went. In 2023, vehicles kept reaching the pass until 26 November. In 2024, the road beyond Gulaba closed on 30 November after black ice formed, and in October 2025 early snow forced a temporary closure, with the barrier moved down from Marhi to Gulaba.
Why 15 November Isn’t a Real Deadline
The date keeps turning up in older guides because the administration has long treated it as the standard cut-off. In practice, the administration keeps Rohtang Pass open while the road is safe and shuts it when it isn’t, so a trip planned for 14 November can fail while one on 25 November works fine.
We’d only plan a late-November Rohtang day if you’re happy to swap it for Solang or the Atal Tunnel at short notice. If the pass is the whole point of your trip, come back in late May or June instead.
How to Tell the Season Is Over Before You Leave Manali
The quickest test is the permit system itself. Open the official Rohtang permit portal run by the Kullu administration the evening before and check availability for your date. If it’s issuing permits for that day, you’ll most likely find Rohtang Pass open when you reach the barrier.
If the portal shows no availability for several days running, or carries a closure notice, don’t expect to find Rohtang Pass open again before spring. Even with a permit in hand, police can stop traffic on the morning itself after fresh snow, so a booking is never a guarantee.
Reading the Gulaba Check Post Update
Where the barrier stands tells you a lot. On days with Rohtang Pass open to tourists, permit holders drive past the Gulaba check post towards Marhi and the top. After heavy snow, the barrier often moves down, and in bad spells police stop vehicles even lower, near Kothi, about 13 km from Manali.
A Gulaba check post update from your hotel or taxi driver on the morning of travel is worth more than any blog post, including this one. Local drivers usually hear about a closure first.
Rohtang Pass Permit Rules for the Last Weeks of the Season
Every tourist vehicle going beyond Gulaba needs a Rohtang Pass permit, booked online. For a car, jeep or MUV, the portal lists a ₹500 permit fee plus a ₹50 congestion charge, so ₹550 in total. Buses and heavy vehicles pay the same permit fee with a ₹100 congestion charge.
Each permit covers one day, up and back. You can book only for the next two days, the vehicle must be no more than 10 years old, and you’ll need a photo ID, the registration details and a valid pollution certificate. The portal also says a printout is compulsory.
Permits release in two windows, at 10 am and 4 pm, each covering half the daily quota. Book the 10 am window two days before your trip, then print the permit that evening, because a missing printout can cost you the whole day.
Permits are only issued while the administration keeps Rohtang Pass open, which is why the portal works as a status check. One rule trips people up, though. Vehicles whose permit details don’t match their documents aren’t allowed past the barrier, so a permit someone “arranges” for you on another vehicle number is worthless.
Book it yourself, and only on the hp.gov.in site. Some older guides still link to the previous rohtangpermits.nic.in address, so check the web address before you pay.
Driving Up in November: Timing, Ice and Altitude
Leave Manali by 6 am. The drive to the top is about 51 km and slow, and in November you want to be heading down by 1 pm, before the temperature drops and wet patches turn to ice. A late start is the easiest way to waste a November permit.
Black ice is the real danger this late in the season, and it was the reason given for the 2024 closure. It’s hard to see, so hire a local driver who knows the road rather than self-driving a rental, and skip two-wheelers entirely once the first snow has fallen.
Pack for the summit, not for Manali. The pass sits at 3,978 metres on the eastern Pir Panjal range, as the pass’s Wikipedia entry notes, so bring gloves, a warm hat, sunglasses and water. Even with Rohtang Pass open, the weather at the top can turn within an hour.
Cold air and long taxi rides can also leave you with a sniffle, so read up on how to shake off winter bugs before you travel.
Altitude Sickness and When to Get Help
A mild headache at the top is common, but don’t push through it. If you feel dizzy, sick or short of breath, head down, because descending is the most reliable fix for altitude sickness.
See a doctor in Manali if symptoms get worse, last after you’re back down, or include confusion or breathlessness at rest. Anyone with heart or lung conditions should check with their own doctor first, and our health guides on symptoms and when to get care are a good place to start.
Where to Go When Rohtang Is Shut for Winter
You don’t need Rohtang Pass open to see snow near Manali. Solang Valley is the easy pick for families, and the snow points around Kothi and Gulaba draw visitors whenever the road up to them is safe.
The Atal Tunnel, opened in 2020, runs beneath the Rohtang massif and links Manali with the Lahaul valley without crossing the pass. It doesn’t need a Rohtang tourism permit, though traffic through it can be restricted after heavy snow, so check before you set off.
One popular plan we’d skip this late in the year is driving over the top of Rohtang to reach Lahaul. The tunnel route is shorter, lower and far more likely to be open.
Before you book a taxi, agree what you’ll pay if the barrier stops you at Gulaba. A full Rohtang day usually costs more than a Solang run, so don’t prepay a Rohtang package in late November without a fallback fare settled. If you’re splitting the trip with Shimla, our pick of places worth seeing in Shimla works in winter too.
What Is the Rohtang Pass Reopening Date for 2027?
There’s no official Rohtang Pass reopening date for 2027 yet, and there won’t be until the snow is cleared. The Border Roads Organisation clears the road first, then the Kullu administration inspects it and issues an order, often opening it in stages.
This year shows how that works. The road opened up to Marhi on 4 May 2026, and on 17 May tourist vehicles were allowed to km 46.35, just short of the top, while the last stretch was cleared. In 2025, Marhi opened earlier, on 21 April.
If you’re planning ahead, mid-May to June gives you the best chance of finding Rohtang Pass open with deep snow beside the road. September and October bring clearer skies and thinner crowds.
What We Tell Readers Planning a Late-Season Trip
Here’s what we tell readers who ask about Rohtang in November: plan two possible days for it, not one, and decide the night before. If both fail, Solang and the tunnel are close by.
Don’t build a whole Manali holiday around finding Rohtang Pass open in November. Treat the pass as a bonus, and turn back without arguing if the barrier is down, because a closed road means ice or snow the police have seen and you haven’t.
For more trip ideas across the state, browse more of our Himachal and India travel guides. This guide is for general travel information, and road status changes daily, so always follow the Kullu administration and local police on the day you travel.
