Mandip Singh Soin FRGS
Mandip Singh Soin is the Founder & Managing Director of Ibex Expeditions, established in 1979 and amongst India’s early adventure and luxury travel companies. Ibex Expeditions has been recognized with several National and International awards as well as been rated by National Geographic as one of the “Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth”.
In the last five decades, Mandip has travelled across seven continents and undertaken expeditions, climbs, hiking, skiing and explorations earning him several international awards. He is the only Indian to receive the Ness Award from the Royal Geographical Society, UK and the Citation of Merit from the Explorers Club, USA.
In the last five decades, Mandip has travelled across seven continents and undertaken expeditions, climbs, hiking, skiing and explorations earning him several international awards. He is the only Indian to receive the Ness Award from the Royal Geographical Society, UK and the Citation of Merit from the Explorers Club, USA.
A Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Mandip is also the recipient of the highest civilian award in India for adventure by the President of India – the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for Lifetime Achievement.
His mountaineering expeditions began in 1973 with the Indian Public School Boys expedition to Black Peak in the Garhwal Himalaya (6400 metres) and he made the first ascent of Z1 in Zanskar (6400 metres); the ascent of Mt Kun (7077 metres) and the first ascent of Mt Meru North (6450 metres).
He led the first winter Himalayan Eco tourism expedition over the frozen River Zanskar in 1994 and participated in the UN environmental expeditions to the Canadian Arctic in 1989 to study the ozone hole and the Indo-Pakistan Friendship expedition in 2002 in the Swiss Alps. In 2002, he also undertook an Eco-Tourism expedition into the remote Andaman & Nicobar Islands to study and map the potential of future tourism in this fragile region.
Mandip has been an active rock climber with several first ascents and wrote a column on rock climbing for Indian Mountaineer magazine for the Indian Mountaineering Foundation for several years.
He was the first Manager for the Sport Climbing team from India in Japan.
After University in India, he was an Instructor at the Plas y Brenin in North Wales and at the Loch Eil Outward Bound in Scotland in 1979. He has been on diverse adventure expeditions from Elephant expeditions to Camel Safaris; and to the Arctic and Antarctic, across all 7 Continents.
Mandip was involved in the Project of Mountain Rescue and established the Himalayan Evacuation & Lifesaving Project (HELP) for the Indian Himalayas with Sir Edmund Hillary as its Patron.
He is also the Honorary Founding President of the Responsible Tourism Society of India and is a Board member of the global Adventure Travel Conservation Fund.
He is also a member of the (CII) Confederation of Industry’s National Tourism Committee and serves on the National Boards of Sustainable Tourism and Adventure Tourism.
He has been a member of the jury of the Pacific Asia Travel Association and WWF India for their tiger awards and was a judge for the Tourism for Tomorrow Award for the World Tourism and Travel Council for over 15 years.
Mandip lectures worldwide and is on the Governing Council of the Responsible Tourism Society of India which has an MOU with the Government of India and the UNEP. Mandip loves the gentle pastoral Symphony of Beethoven as well as the vibrancy of Pavarotti. His wife Anita is the co-owner of Ibex Expeditions, and they have two children, named after the Himalaya, Himali and Himraj.
He led the first winter Himalayan Eco tourism expedition over the frozen River Zanskar in 1994 and participated in the UN environmental expeditions to the Canadian Arctic in 1989 to study the ozone hole and the Indo-Pakistan Friendship expedition in 2002 in the Swiss Alps. In 2002, he also undertook an Eco-Tourism expedition into the remote Andaman & Nicobar Islands to study and map the potential of future tourism in this fragile region.
Mandip has been an active rock climber with several first ascents and wrote a column on rock climbing for Indian Mountaineer magazine for the Indian Mountaineering Foundation for several years.
He was the first Manager for the Sport Climbing team from India in Japan.
After University in India, he was an Instructor at the Plas y Brenin in North Wales and at the Loch Eil Outward Bound in Scotland in 1979. He has been on diverse adventure expeditions from Elephant expeditions to Camel Safaris; and to the Arctic and Antarctic, across all 7 Continents.
Mandip was involved in the Project of Mountain Rescue and established the Himalayan Evacuation & Lifesaving Project (HELP) for the Indian Himalayas with Sir Edmund Hillary as its Patron.
He is also the Honorary Founding President of the Responsible Tourism Society of India and is a Board member of the global Adventure Travel Conservation Fund.
He is also a member of the (CII) Confederation of Industry’s National Tourism Committee and serves on the National Boards of Sustainable Tourism and Adventure Tourism.
He has been a member of the jury of the Pacific Asia Travel Association and WWF India for their tiger awards and was a judge for the Tourism for Tomorrow Award for the World Tourism and Travel Council for over 15 years.
Mandip lectures worldwide and is on the Governing Council of the Responsible Tourism Society of India which has an MOU with the Government of India and the UNEP. Mandip loves the gentle pastoral Symphony of Beethoven as well as the vibrancy of Pavarotti. His wife Anita is the co-owner of Ibex Expeditions, and they have two children, named after the Himalaya, Himali and Himraj.