Glimpses of Bhutan

Day 01| Arrival at Paro – Thimphu

The FLIGHT to Paro is one of the most spectacular of all mountain flights. The first gift from Bhutan will be the cool, clean fresh air as you step out of the aircraft. On arrival in Paro international airport Keys to Bhutan representative will receive you and transfer by coach an hour twenty minutes ride to Thimphu, capital city of Bhutan. On arrival we will check in the hotel, relax and freshen up for the early lunch. We will start city sightseeing, visit to Buddha point, the best Thimphu viewpoint, Tashichho Dzong (the Fortress of the glorious religion), which houses the throne room of His Majesty the King and is the summer residence of the venerated monastic community. The current Dzong is the impressive result of a redesign of the original medieval structure sanctioned by the Third King, His Majesty King Jigme Dorji Wangchuk, when he moved the capital to Thimphu from Punakha. Evening explore the city on your own.

Note: If we cannot cover day01 sightseeing because of flight timing than we will cover on day02.

Overnight: Hotel Thimphu| Altitude 2200m.

Day02 | Thimphu Sightseeing

Morning visit the happening weekend market (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) where the locals from the surrounding villages come to sell their produce. They sell their goods and in return they buy their basic necessities. In olden days, bata system was practiced by everyone. Visit the School of Arts and Crafts where students learn 13 different arts used predominantly in Bhutan. Visit Folk Heritage Museum which explains how a traditional house used to be like in the olden days. Later visit the National Library which houses the collection of Bhutanese rich religious text and the contemporary Buddhism teachings from masters all around the world. Drive further up to visit the Dechenphodrang monastic school and meet the young monks. Later continue to Zilukha nunnery to meet the nuns and interact with them. After lunch you have two options for some nice hikes. If you prefer a short and a easy one could go for Wangditse temple hike: It’s a short easy hike (1 Hr) with beautiful view (1 Hr). You have to drive to the BBS tower where the road ends and starts your nice and easy hike through the pine forest overlooking Thimphu valley, especially the Thimphu Dzong and the parliament house. This is one of the very few hikes in Bhutan where almost no climbing is required. Visit the temple of Wangdise and enjoy the view of Thimphu and walk back to your car. Or, if you prefer a longer hike, could go for Cheri temple hike:

Drive to the north end of the valley through the little town of Taba and Dechenchholing. The road ends right in the Jigme Dorji National park.  Start for a beautiful hike (1.5 Hrs) to the temple of Tango/Cheri in the wilderness offering a beautiful view of the thick forest and valley. The hike is all uphill through a small trail and finally opens up once you reach the temple. It’s a very quite and beautiful hike. There are many retreat centers above the temple. Later in the afternoon back to the hotel. If you have the energy walk around the happening town, the largest and the most crowded town in Bhutan.

Overnight: Hotel Thimphu | Altitude 2200m.

Day 03| Thimphu – Paro

After breakfast drive to Paro which will take a little more than an hour and we visit the Paro valley, site of the famous Tiger’s Nest, the Taktshang Monastery where the legendary Guru Padmasambhava is believed to have flown from Tibet on the back of a tiger to defeat the demons who were opposing the spread of Buddhism in Bhutan. The walk is long, and can be steep in places, but the views are stunning.

Overnight: Paro| Altitude 2300m.

Day 04| Departure

Departure flight from Paro, Transfer to airport for your departure flight