By road
~48-53 km from Imphal
Northeast India · Manipur
Loktak Lake, Manipur
Floating islands and the dancing deer · ~48-53 km from Imphal
Getting there
By rail
No functional railway within Manipur reaches this area; Dimapur, Nagaland (~215-240 km) is the practical nearest station
By air
Bir Tikendrajit International Airport, Imphal, ~28-53 km
Best time to visit
October to March — clear skies over the phumdis
Don't miss
Keibul Lamjao (the floating national park)
Sendra Island viewpoint
INA Museum at Moirang
Things to do
Canoe rides among floating rings
Keibul Lamjao safaris
Fishing-village visits
Where to eat
Sources: wikimedia, Photo: Sudiptorana · CC BY-SA 4.0
What to pack
Layers, binoculars, homestay bookings ahead (limited options)
A quieter corner
A night in a phumdi hut, the floating ring drifting under you
About Loktak Lake
- Lakeside
Where it is
Loktak Lake lies in the Manipur valley south of Imphal, beside the town of Moirang in Bishnupur district, and is the largest freshwater lake in north-east India.
History
Loktak has long been central to Meitei life and legend, and lakeside Moirang, with its ancient shrine of Ibudhou Thangjing, is the setting of the Khamba and Thoibi love story. At Moirang the Indian National Army raised the tricolour on 14 April 1944, and the lake was designated a Ramsar wetland of international importance in 1990.
People
Fishing families live around and even on the lake, some in huts built on the floating phumdis, and they fish in circular enclosures made from the same vegetation. Meiteilon (Manipuri) is the language, and Moirang is famed for its Lai Haraoba festival of ritual dance.
Known for
- Phumdis, the floating islands of vegetation
- Keibul Lamjao, the floating national park
- The sangai, Manipur's dancing deer
- Views from Sendra Island
- The INA Memorial at Moirang
Did you know?
Keibul Lamjao National Park, on Loktak's southern side, is the only floating national park in the world and the last natural home of the sangai deer.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.