Gelling is one of the oldest and most culturally significant villages of Upper Siang, Arunachal Pradesh, located close to India's frontier with Tibet. Here, the river that flows from Tibet enters India and is known as the Siang, continuing through Arunachal Pradesh before becoming the Brahmaputra in Assam.
The village sits within a dramatic Himalayan landscape of deep valleys, dense forests and powerful rivers, while the surrounding region is deeply connected with the Memba community and the sacred cultural landscape of Pemako. For travellers, Gelling offers a rare opportunity to experience a remote part of Arunachal where nature, spirituality, culture and frontier history come together.
Just a few kilometres from Gelling is Kepang La, a historically important mountain pass on the India–Tibet frontier. The Government of Arunachal Pradesh identifies Gelling–Kepang La as an India–China border-trade point; before the 1962 conflict, traditional barter trade took place through this route between local communities and Tibet.
The wider region is also associated with the McMahon Line, the historic boundary arrangement between Tibet and British India established through the 1914 Simla Convention. Today, the India–China boundary remains disputed, and the LAC has differing perceptions on the two sides.
With Hodophile Tour & Travel, Gelling can be experienced as a journey into the origins of the Siang, the sacred landscapes of Pemako, Memba culture and the extraordinary Himalayan frontier — far beyond conventional tourism.