Spring break
March to May is the hills' second season: first flush tea, rhododendron forest and mild days, with more haze than autumn. If your spring break falls in March or April, this is what the hills will be doing that week.
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Your dates
There is no single national date, so start from your own school or college calendar. Our guide treats March and April as the sweet spot of spring; from May, Indian school holidays fill Darjeeling and Gangtok.
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Tea
From March into April the first pluck gives light, floral teas with a pale gold cup. Factories start early in the day, and tasting the new leaf beside last autumn's shows why Darjeeling makes such a fuss of it.
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Flowers
Tree rhododendrons open from mid-March at Barsey on the Singalila ridge and usually peak there by late April. The forest behind Dochu La in Bhutan turns red and pink in April, and the Yumthang road in North Sikkim flowers into May.
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Bhutan
Paro Tshechu brings five days of masked dances to Rinpung Dzong, ending before dawn on the last day with the great thongdrel raised. Dates for 2027 are published as March 18 to 22, though operators disagree, so we confirm with the district.
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The trade-off
Spring is for flowers, walks and tea more than views. Haze builds from February, and by May it often hides the range by breakfast. Plan your mountain dawns early in the trip and keep the afternoons for gardens and factories.
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Packing
Expect Darjeeling at about 6 to 19 °C (43 to 66 °F) and Kalimpong up to 25 °C (77 °F), with haze and afternoon showers. Pack light layers, a fleece, a packable rain shell and walking shoes, plus a warm layer for Barsey and the Pelling dawns.
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Next step
Send the week your school or college gives you and who is coming. We will say honestly whether it suits tea, flowers or the mountain, and plan the dawns for the clearest mornings of that week.
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