General Information
Start/ End: Paro/ Paro
Duration: 11 days/ 10 nights
Tour route: Paro – Thimphu – Punakha – Trongsa – Bumthang – Jakar – Punakha – Paro
Tour Customizable: Definitely! (Tell us your specific requirements in the inquiry form)
Guides: Local Guide (English Speaking Guide, Other Languages depends on your Request)
Transportation: Private first-class air-conditioned vehicles
Accommodation: Listed below or equivalent. Rooms with private bath or shower, hotel taxes, porterage, tips, and service charges.
Brief Itinerary
Day 01: Paro Arrival
Day 02: Paro Hiking & Sightseeing
Day 03: Paro – Tiger’s Nest Monastery & Village Home
Day 04: Paro – Thimphu Local Sightseeing
Day 05: Thimphu – Punakha
Day 06: Punakha – Trongsa
Day 07: Trongsa – Bumthang – Jakar
Day 08: Bumthang Valley Sightseeing & Walking in Jakar
Day 09: Bumthang – Punakha
Day 10: Punakha – Paro en route visit Fertility Temple
Day 11: Paro Departure
Full Itinerary
Day 1: Paro Arrival
On your arrival at Paro Airport, you will proceed for Visa Formalities and our company guide will meet you and transfer to the hotel. After hotel check-in formalities, the rest of the day is at leisure. In the evening you will go to a small Paro town with a guide for orientation with the place and local people. Overnight in Paro
Day 2: Paro Hiking & Sightseeing (B)
After breakfast, travel to Chele La pass at an altitude of approximately 3900m. At this point, one side is the Paro City and on the other side is Haa valley. The trekking of this morning begins from a short descent below the pass. It is about a half-hour uphill and shorter coming downhill. It brings us to clusters of shelters built on sheer cliffs, under the rock cave and a temple that houses some 50 or so nuns.
While you are coming back to Paro, do the trekking to a monastery called Dzongdrakha which looks similar to the famous Tiger- Nest monastery but it is situated at a shorter hill walking distance. Then visit the agricultural land where the local people do the farming and very easy, another second half will be an uphill climb and when both versions of hikes are summed up it will take less than 1 hour to reach the top where the monastery stands.
On reaching the site of the monastery, one would enjoy the view of the fertile Paro valley below. Your guide will assist you to take you inside the main temple of the monastery, spend some time there and same way walk down to transport meeting point and drive to Paro Town and later on visit Bhutan national museum, a fascinating place housed in an old watchtower above the huge Paro Dzong. You will also visit Rinphung Dzong a fortress-monastery. Overnight in Paro.
Day 3: Paro – Tiger’s Nest Monastery & Village Home (B)
After breakfast, trek to the site of Taktsang Monastery meaning Tiger nest, tragically wrecked in a fire of early 1998. The monastery, which has now been rebuilt, is perched some 2,000ft up on a sheer rock face overlooking the valley and was said to be where the famous Indian saint, Guru Padmasambhava flying from Tibet on the back of a tiger to defeat five demons, who were not willing to the spread of Buddhism in Bhutan. The hike is about 1 hour 30 minutes to the teahouse, from where you may either opt to go further uphill to the monastery for about 1 hour.
Lunch is served at the tea house with the majestic views of Taktsang above and the Paro valley at the bottom. The return trek to the road head is downhill and takes about a little more the time it has taken you to come up. In the afternoon, visit a typical Bhutanese village home. This visit will certainly provide you an insight into the living style of Bhutanese villagers. A certain cooking demonstration will be performed for you to get an idea of how Bhutanese delicacies like butter tea and ema datsi are prepared. Drive back to your hotel in the evening. Overnight in Paro
Day 4: Paro – Thimphu Local Sightseeing (B)
After breakfast, drive to another beautiful city of Bhutan, Thimphu it is just a 2-hour drive from Paro. On arrival in Thimphu, you will check-in to your hotel and proceed to Thimphu for sightseeing after lunch. Your sightseeing starts with Nunnery which is then located on the outskirts of Thimphu Town and then you will visit the School of Arts and Crafts or “painting school”, where Bhutanese children can follow an eight-year program in traditional arts, such as drawing, painting, woodcarving, and sculpture.
Later, visit Textile Museum, the Heritage Museum, Changgangkha Lhakhang temple, National Library and see how paper is made from the plant with cosmos flower petals and other plants. At the end of the day, pay a visit to the great Tashichho Dzong, the seat of Bhutan administrative and religious center. Overnight in Thimphu.
Day 5: Thimphu – Punakha (B)
After breakfast, drive to Punakha, which is known as the old winter capital of Bhutan. It is also one of the beautiful towns in Bhutan. On the way, take a halt at Dochu La Pass to behold the eastern Himalayas, including Bhutan utmost mountain, Gangkar Puensum.
In the afternoon, you will take a short trek to see the Crown Prince Chorten and close by villages where you can chat with local people and know about the culture and tradition. You will return by a different route through the village to Sonagasa the King- Winter residence and through to Punakha Dzong, following the Mo Chu river. You reach to transport point where your vehicle is parked and then drive to see huge impressive Punakha Dzong. Evening free at leisure or you can explore the local market. Overnight in Punakha.
Day 6: Punakha – Trongsa (B)
After breakfast, drive down the valley to the town of Wangdiphodrang, here again, there is a very large fortress built in the shape of a sleeping bull. Our road gradually winds its way up towards the Pele La Pass where we take a stop for views of the snow-clad peaks, including that of Bhutan – sacred peak Mt. Chomolhari. Possibly, your picnic lunch is planned at Chendebji Chorten Stupa patterned after Swayambhunath in Kathmandu. It is a popular picnic lunch and pilgrimage for Bhutanese driving east-west road.
In the afternoon, we arrive in the town of Trongsa after 6 hours of driving. Trongsa is a very popular place with the largest Dzong in Bhutan and certainly one of the most impressive ones. It was from here that the present royal family emerged as the most powerful force at the beginning of this century. You may love to wander around Trongsa Township. On arrival, check-in to the hotel and have your dinner. Overnight in Trongsa.
Day 7: Trongsa – Bumthang – Jakar (B)
After breakfast, proceed to Trongsa for local sightseeing. You will visit the inner courtyard of historical Trongsa Dzong followed by a watchtower above the main Dzong. Watchtower Ta Dzong has a fine temple at the top containing original Mongol Armour and a large prayer wheel outside.
After lunch, you drive across the Yotong La and descend eventually into the valley of Chumey, the first of four Bumthang valleys. Here we will visit the Palace used primary by the second King as his summer residence, and hike for about 15 minutes that brings us to the Prakar monastery, followed by a visit to Yathra Weaving centers a Colorful wool weaving.
Then drive onto the Jakar the center of Bumthang valley. Bumthang valley is one of the most sacred in the kingdom and innumerable legends surround the area. It is here that the kings were cremated and the present royal families trace their ancestry back to a famous saint called Pemalingpa, who was also a smith in Jakar Township.
Day 8: Bumthang Valley Sightseeing & Walking in Jakar (B)
After breakfast, start the walk from the hotel to Jambay Lhakang Lhakhang means the temple and continue to Kurjey Lhakang. After Kurjey, cross the suspension bridge over to Tamshing Lhakang. Continue walking to the Swiss farm and then on to the main town area.
The vehicle will meet you at this point and drive you to visit other sites in and around Jakar which may include homeopathic hospital, the cheese factory, the castle of the White Bird, perhaps one or two local temples and a walk around to visit woodcraft workshop, dying workshop, and the five water wheels behind Wangdicholing Old Palace. Overnight in Bumthang
Day 9: Bumthang – Punakha (B)
After breakfast, drive to Punakha. From the township of Jakar, you first climb out of the Bumthang valleys on the twisting mountain road towards the Yotong La. Near the pass is an area of wild cane bamboos that is a well-known habitat for Red Panda. The road then descends to Tongsa but instead of stopping here for the night you will drive on, past Chendebji Stupa, over the Pele La Pass and start the descent until you reach your hotel located on the bank of the river. Overnight at hotel in Punakha
Day 10: Punakha – Paro en route visit Fertility Temple (B)
After breakfast, you will drive back to Paro Today’s Sights over Wandgue town and Dzong along the east-west high way. On reaching a junction called Lobeysa, you will take a diversion and drive towards the valley of Punakha to visit a temple of fertility & Chimi Lhakhang which was built by Lama Drukpa Kunley in 1499. He subdued the demons of the Dochu la with his thunderbolt of wisdom. A wooden effigy of the Lama- thunderbolt is preserved in the Lhakhang, and childless women go to the temple to receive a Wang blessing from the saint.
Then spend 20 minutes walking across the rice fields from the road at Sopsokha to the temple. The trail leads across rice fields to the tiny settlement of Pana. There are very few monks at the temple, which is surrounded by a row of prayer wheels and some very beautiful slate carvings.
Walk back to meet your transport and continue to drive towards Thimphu along Dochu La pass where to make a short stop once again to view the Eastern Himalayas. Descend from the pass brings you the village of Hongtsho, a Tibetan settlement and then onto Thimphu. After lunch in Thimphu, drive in the evening to Paro. Overnight stay.
Day 11: Paro Departure
After breakfast, your guide and driver will transfer you to the airport in time for your homecoming flight. Trip ends.
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