Malari is a picturesque village situated in Chamoli district in Uttarakhand. Chamoli district has many captivating scenic spots which attract tourists in thousands every year. Malari is a beautiful village near the Tibetan border and is a part of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve. The Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Park here is famous for its stunning natural beauty and was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO. This ecological area also preserves rare and endangered species of flora and fauna. The other villages next to Malari are Kurkuti and Kamsali. Usually the tourists are allowed only up to Malari or Kamsali. To access places after that, you will need to get an ILP or inner line permit which can be received at Joshimath, another beautiful place in Chamoli. 40km away from Joshimath lies the Thapovan town which is famous for its natural hot spring. The water in this spring remains hot even during extreme cold. Once you leave Thapovan, there is no place to access food or fuel. People are rarely seen on the way. Mobile phones do not work here.
There are a few guest houses available at Malari. The government has also provided satellite phones in every village so that they can contact the authority in case of any emergency. Malari lies 62km away from Joshimath at a height of 3048m above sea-level. Before reaching Malari, you get to see the magnificent Dronagiri mountain ranges. The population in Malari is only 650. We can see the lovely sight of full bloomed apple trees on the way during July to September. The clear blue sky, clean fresh air and the exotic landscape of Malari just makes you intoxicated. This region had trade with China and Tibet through the silk route during the olden days. Niti pass is also a mountain pass to reach Manasarovar in Tibet. The Tibet-Chinese Border is just 26km away from here. Earlier there were around 250 families living here but now there are only 50 families. The difficult weather had forced most of them to settle down in other places. The people here belong to the Indo-Mongolian community. Every year, people leave their homes during winter season and stay in places where the snow fall is comparatively low. The snow is too dense to live here during winter which lasts from October to April. Since this place is spread over a region which is 9000 feet to 19000 feet above sea-level, there is a high chance of getting symptoms of mountain sickness due to lack of oxygen. The visitors will have to carry emergency medicines with them since the villages here do not have any medical facilities.
