The ancient town of Uttarkashi is much like Kashi of the plains and the district headquarters of Uttarkashi district. The town is located on the banks of the Bhagirathi at an altitude of 1,165mts above sea level. Bhagirathi River is also known as Ganga before the confluence of Devprayag. Uttarkashi is home of a variety of flora and fauna. One can find rich varieties of fur, pine, deodar and also various kinds of medicinal herbs and shrubs in Uttarkashi. Uttarkashi is one of the most picturesque town of Garhwal region of Uttarakhand state.

The district of Uttarkashi was formed in 1960 with the parganas of Rawain and Uttarkashi of Rawain tehsil of the former Tehri Garhwal district. It is a rugged terrain surrounded by Himachal Pradesh and Tibet on the north and the district of Chamoli to the east.

Uttarkashi has various ashrams and dharamshalas which are most of the time occupied by the thousands of tourists visiting this place. Some of the important dharamsalas are Gangotri Mandir Dharamshala, Birla Dharamshala, Kali Kamli Daramshala, Kailash Dharamshala, Shivanand Dharamshala. People who visit Uttarkashi make it a point to visit Gangotri which is 99kms from Uttarkashi.

In Uttarkashi town, there are various places of interest like the Nehru Institute of mountaineering which offers training in mountaineering. Maneri has developed as an important tourist attraction. Situated at a distance of 13kms from Uttarkashi, Maneri attracts tousrists mainly because of the development of a dam across the Bhagirathi River. About 37kms from Maneri is a hot water spring called Gangani. Dodi Tal and Dayara Bugyal are also getting popular as a trekking excursion from Uttarkashi.