Bhutan — The Last Himalayan Kingdom — 9 Days

The Journey

Nine Days in the Kingdom of Happiness

Bhutan does not open itself to everyone. The last Buddhist kingdom of the Himalayas limits its visitors, measures its success in Gross National Happiness, and keeps its valleys much as they were centuries ago — dzong fortresses above rushing rivers, prayer flags strung across pine ridges, monasteries clinging to cliffs a thousand metres above the valley floor.

This journey moves gently through four sacred valleys — Thimphu, Gangtey, Punakha and Paro — ending with the climb every traveller dreams of: the Tiger’s Nest. Along the way you will meditate with monks, receive a private reading from a monk-astrologer, draw a bamboo bow in traditional dress, and light 108 butter lamps in one of the kingdom’s oldest temples. An extension to your India journey, or a pilgrimage all of its own.

The Kingdom Trail

Day by Day Itinerary

Day 1 · Arrival

Paro to Thimphu

Into the Kingdom

Few arrivals on Earth compare: your aircraft banks between forested ridges and drops into the Paro Valley, prayer flags flickering below the wingtips. Drive the river road to Thimphu, the world’s most soft-spoken capital — no traffic lights, no hurry. In the late afternoon, join the gentle tide of locals circling the National Memorial Chorten, prayer wheels turning, and feel the rhythm of the kingdom settle over you.

One of the world’s great landing approaches, into the Paro Valley
River road to Thimphu through pine forests
Evening kora around the National Memorial Chorten

Day 2 · Thimphu

Thimphu

The Celestial Reading

Stand beneath the Buddha Dordenma, a golden colossus gazing over the whole valley, then learn how the kingdom heals itself with herbs at the Traditional Institute of Medicine. The heart of the day is Pangrizampa, Bhutan’s school of monastic astrology: meditate with the monks, then sit with a monk-astrologer for a private reading drawn from centuries-old texts — an audience few travellers ever receive. End at Tashichho Dzong, seat of throne and state.

Buddha Dordenma — a golden giant above the valley
Private reading with a monk-astrologer at Pangrizampa
Tashichho Dzong — fortress of the glorious religion

Day 3 · To Gangtey

Gangtey

Over the Dochula Pass

Climb to the Dochula Pass, where 108 memorial chortens stand against a horizon of seven-thousand-metre peaks — on a clear morning, the whole eastern Himalaya attends. Descend into the glacial Phobjikha Valley and Gangtey Monastery, the greatest seat of the Nyingma school. Then Bhutan’s national obsession: archery. Dress in traditional gho or kira, take up a bamboo bow, and discover how hard it is — and how much the Bhutanese laugh.

108 chortens on the Dochula Pass, facing the high Himalaya
Gangtey Monastery — heart of the Nyingma school
Archery with bamboo bows, dressed in gho and kira

Day 4 · Gangtey

Gangtey

A Day Among Monks

Rise before the sun to join the monks of the shedra for morning prayers — butter lamps, low chanting, the valley still dark outside. Witness a tara ceremony and sit in guided meditation, then walk with one of the monks on his morning rounds. The afternoon belongs to the Phobjikha Valley: a hike through pine forest and bamboo groves, and the Black-Necked Crane Centre, winter refuge of one of the rarest birds on Earth. Return for a final meditation on compassion as the light fades.

Dawn prayers and a tara ceremony with the monks
Hike the pine ridges of the Phobjikha Valley
Black-necked cranes in their glacial winter refuge

Day 5 · To Punakha

Punakha

The Divine Madman

Wind down from the mountains into the subtropical warmth of Punakha, the kingdom’s ancient capital, where rice terraces staircase the hillsides. Walk the field paths to Chimi Lhakhang, temple of Lama Drukpa Kunley — the “Divine Madman” whose scandalous wisdom still makes Bhutan smile five centuries on. Cross a prayer-flag-wrapped suspension bridge as the river rushes glacial-green below.

Descent into the rice terraces of the Punakha Valley
Chimi Lhakhang — temple of the Divine Madman
Prayer-flag suspension bridge over the Mo Chhu

Day 6 · Punakha

Punakha

Palace of Great Happiness

Punakha Dzong rises where two rivers meet — the mother river and the father river — and for three centuries it governed the kingdom. Jacaranda trees against whitewashed walls, courtyards of carved timber, the finest fortress in the Himalayas. In the afternoon, hike (or drive) to Chorten Nyingpo, a hilltop temple with the whole valley at its feet, where the resident monks may pour you butter tea.

Punakha Dzong at the meeting of two rivers
Courtyards, murals and the whispers of the old capital
Hilltop hike to Chorten Nyingpo temple

Day 7 · To Paro

Paro

Return to the West

Recross the Dochula — the mountains showing a different face in the morning light — and follow the Wang Chhu and Paro Chhu rivers west. In Paro, the National Museum holds the kingdom’s treasures: thangka paintings, ritual masks, natural wonders. Below it spreads Rinpung Dzong, the “Fortress of the Heap of Jewels”, and the old town’s wooden shopfronts, perfect for a slow evening stroll.

The Dochula Pass, westbound in morning light
Paro National Museum — thangkas, masks and treasures
Rinpung Dzong and the old town at dusk

Day 8 · Paro

Paro

The Tiger’s Nest

The day the whole journey has been climbing towards. Set out at dawn for Taktsang — the Tiger’s Nest — the monastery pinned impossibly to a cliff 900 metres above the valley, where Guru Rinpoche is said to have arrived on the back of a flying tigress. The trail rises through blue pines and prayer flags; the reward defies description. Celebrate with a Champagne picnic and a cultural performance, then end quietly at Kyichu Lhakhang, one of Bhutan’s oldest temples, offering 108 butter lamps — one for every chorten on the Dochula.

Dawn climb to the Tiger’s Nest monastery
Champagne picnic with a cultural performance
108 butter lamps at seventh-century Kyichu Lhakhang

Day 9 · Departure

Paro

Farewell to the Kingdom

A final Bhutanese breakfast as the sun reaches the valley floor, and a private transfer to Paro airport. The aircraft lifts between the ridges and the kingdom folds itself away behind you — but something of its stillness travels home in your luggage. Onward to Delhi, Kathmandu or Bangkok; many of our travellers continue seamlessly into an India journey.

Private transfer and departure assistance at Paro
Seamless connection to your India journey, should you continue

Where You’ll Stay

Lodges of the Kingdom

Eight nights across four hand-picked lodges — every room the best in the house.

Thimphu · Days 1–2

Six Senses Thimphu

Luxury

They call it the “Palace in the Sky” — a serene lodge of stone, blond wood and glass above the capital, its reflecting ponds mirroring apple orchards and pine forest. Spa, meditation pavilion, and a chef who turns Bhutanese red rice and local produce into quiet art.

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Gangtey · Days 3–4

Gangtey Lodge

Luxury

A farmhouse-style lodge with just twelve suites gazing over the Phobjikha Valley and Gangtey Monastery. Deep baths positioned for the view, fires lit at dusk, and traditional hot-stone baths after a day of hiking. One of the Himalayas’ most beloved small lodges.

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Punakha · Days 5–6

Six Senses Punakha

Luxury

A “flying farmhouse” of rammed earth and timber set among the rice terraces, with a cantilevered bridge-house bar and a pool overlooking the valley. Subtropically warm, impossibly green, and utterly restful after the mountain passes.

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Paro · Days 7–8

COMO Uma Paro

Luxury

A discreet hillside estate above Paro town, its shedra-style main house ringed by pine forest. Renowned holistic spa, superb Bhutanese and international kitchens, and the perfect staging post for the dawn climb to the Tiger’s Nest.

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Bhutan — The Last Himalayan Kingdom

Nine Days in the Kingdom of Happiness

Four Valleys, One Kingdom

Thimphu

Gangtey

Punakha

Paro

Day by Day Itinerary

Paro to Thimphu

Thimphu

Gangtey

Gangtey

Punakha

Punakha

Paro

Paro

Paro

Lodges of the Kingdom

Six Senses Thimphu

Gangtey Lodge

Six Senses Punakha

COMO Uma Paro

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Bhutan — The Last Himalayan Kingdom

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