Bhutan
Bhutan by air or by road, valley by valley
Private journeys into Bhutan for Indian and foreign passports alike, each with a licensed Bhutanese guide, houses chosen valley by valley, and the right weeks for festivals, cranes or long walks.
- 10private journeys
In short
What is the best Bhutan itinerary from India or from abroad?
Bhutan: The Western Valleys, for a first visit. It flies both ways from Bagdogra, never sleeps higher than Thimphu at 2,320 m, and leaves the Tiger's Nest to the sixth day, after your lungs have twice crossed Dochu La. Choose From the Hills into Bhutan to arrive by road, Into the Heart to reach Bumthang, and the Cranes or Masked Dances when your dates fall in their season.
Start with the way in, because it sets your dates. The Drukair flight from Bagdogra to Paro runs on set days, so a flying journey begins on one of them. The road enters at Phuentsholing, where immigration works Monday to Friday, so the crossing falls on a weekday and costs a night at the border. Fly if your leave is short or hill roads unsettle anyone in the party. Drive if you are already in Darjeeling, Kalimpong or Gangtok, or want to watch the country climb from the plains to the passes.
Then match the depth to your nights. A week covers Paro, Thimphu and Punakha without hurry. Phobjikha asks for two or three nights more, and Bumthang is only sensible with the small plane back to Paro at the end.
Let the season settle the rest. Winter dates point to the cranes, and March or April dates to the Paro Tshechu. If anyone is over seventy or under ten, read the highest bed in the table below the journeys before you decide: only the Phobjikha valley sleeps near 3,000 m, and from November it is frosty at dawn.
Indian nationals travel on a passport or an original voter ID, never Aadhaar, and pay the Indian rate of the nightly fee, which every price here includes; our Permits and visas guide has the rest. Other passports pay the dollar rate instead and add a visa, and that table totals both for each journey.
Three Bhutans
Festival, frost and a quiet valley
The same country, by month and by valley.
A tshechu is a day out for the whole valley, everyone in their best gho and kiraNoor din / Pexels 
Gangtey Goenpa above the Phobjikha valley, where the cranes roost on the marsh in winterKarma Chhophel / Pexels 
Farmhouses and cut autumn fields in Bhutan. Haa lies beyond Chele La, the highest pass on the road journeyHarsh Suthar / Pexels
Choose by
10 journeys, side by side
| Starts in | Best months | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Two Kingdoms: Sikkim to Bhutan by Road | 11 | Gangtok | About 7 h | October to December, March to May | ₹5,30,000 |
| Bhutan: The Western Valleys | 6 | Thimphu | About 4.5 h | October to December, March to May | ₹4,55,000 |
| Bhutan: Into the Heart | 9 | Paro | About 6 h | October to November, March to May | ₹9,50,000 |
| From the Hills into Bhutan | 8 | Kalimpong | About 5.5 h | October to December, March to May | ₹3,25,000 |
| A Bhutan Honeymoon | 7 | Paro | About 6 h | October to early December, March to May | ₹7,15,000 |
| The Masked Dances of Paro | 7 | Thimphu | About 4.5 h | March or April; in 2027 the festival is listed for 18 to 22 March | ₹5,15,000 |
| The Cranes of Phobjikha | 7 | Paro | About 4.5 h | November to mid February | ₹8,25,000 |
| Walking Western Bhutan | 7 | Paro | About 4.5 h | October and November, and March to May | ₹4,85,000 |
| Three Kingdoms | 14 | Kathmandu | About 7 h | October to mid December, March to April | ₹5,70,000 |
| Two Himalayan Capitals | 8 | Kathmandu | About 4 h | October to December, March to May | ₹3,80,000 |
Signature expedition
11 nights
Two Kingdoms: Sikkim to Bhutan by Road
Gangtok3Phuentsholing1Thimphu2Punakha2Paro3
Sikkim's royal past, then Bhutan's royal present: eleven nights by road, ending on the cliff at Taktsang.
Signature journey
6 nights
Bhutan: The Western Valleys
Thimphu2Punakha2Paro2
Fly in from Bagdogra, cross Dochu La to Punakha, and end the week at the Tiger's Nest.
Grand journey
9 nights
Bhutan: Into the Heart
Paro2Thimphu1Punakha2Gangtey (Phobjikha valley)2Bumthang (Jakar)2
Five valleys from west to east, Taktsang to Bumthang's oldest temples, and a small plane back to Paro.
By road, the old way
8 nights
From the Hills into Bhutan
Kalimpong2Phuentsholing1Thimphu2Paro3
From the Kalimpong house where Bhutan once met the world, down through the Dooars and up to Paro by road.
Honeymoon
7 nights
A Bhutan Honeymoon
Paro2Punakha2Gangtey (Phobjikha valley)2Paro1
Four houses, one climb, a picnic by the river and the silence of Phobjikha: Bhutan for the two of you.
Festival journey
7 nights
The Masked Dances of Paro
Thimphu2Punakha2Paro3
The last three days of the Paro Tshechu and the great thongdrel at 03:00, with Thimphu and Punakha first.
Winter wildlife journey
7 nights
The Cranes of Phobjikha
Paro1Thimphu1Gangtey (Phobjikha valley)3Punakha2
Winter with the black-necked cranes: frosty dawns above the Phobjikha roost, then warm Punakha to finish.
Walking journey
7 nights
Walking Western Bhutan
Paro3Thimphu2Punakha2
Six day walks between real beds: Taktsang, Chele La at 3,988 m, Cheri and Tango, Lungchutse, the Mo Chhu.
Grand journey
14 nights
Three Kingdoms
Kathmandu3Darjeeling3Gangtok2Phuentsholing1Thimphu2Paro3
Kathmandu to the Tiger's Nest by way of Darjeeling and Gangtok: three old kingdoms, three borders, one team.
Culture journey, by air
8 nights
Two Himalayan Capitals
Kathmandu3Thimphu2Punakha1Paro2
Kathmandu's royal squares and Bhutan's dzongs, joined by an hour's flight with Everest off the left wing.
Who each journey is for
Which Bhutan journey suits whom
Every from-price here includes Bhutan's nightly fee at the Indian rate, ₹1,200. On any other passport it is US$100 a night instead, about US$88 a night more, plus a US$40 visa applied online: nothing under 6 and half from 6 to 11. What it costs sets the fee out age by age.
| Journey | Way in | Highest bed | Suits | Other passports pay instead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bhutan: The Western Valleys | Drukair from Bagdogra, both ways, in the price | 2,320 m, Thimphu | A first visit; children over 10; grandparents who walk an hour | US$600 for 6 nights, plus the visa |
| From the Hills into Bhutan | By road from Kalimpong through Phuentsholing; the seat home from Paro is in the price | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Families with children over 10 who prefer the road to the air | US$600 for 6 nights, plus the visa |
| A Bhutan Honeymoon | Fly to Paro; flights extra | About 3,000 m, Gangtey | Two only; one good walk a day | US$700 for 7 nights, plus the visa |
| Walking Western Bhutan | Fly to Paro; flights extra | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Fit walkers and teenagers who walk; a proper bed every night | US$700 for 7 nights, plus the visa |
| The Masked Dances of Paro | Fly to Paro; flights extra | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Ritual first, long lenses; children over 10 | US$700 for 7 nights, plus the visa |
| The Cranes of Phobjikha | Fly to Paro; flights extra | About 2,900 m, Gangtey | Birders; children over 10 who can sit still at dawn | US$700 for 7 nights, plus the visa |
| Bhutan: Into the Heart | Fly to Paro, back from Bumthang by air; flights extra | About 2,900 m, Gangtey | Second visits, Buddhist history; children over 12 | US$900 for 9 nights, plus the visa |
| Two Himalayan Capitals | Drukair from Kathmandu, in the price | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Old cities and living ritual; children over 10 | US$500 for 5 nights, plus the visa and Nepal's US$30 on arrival |
| Two Kingdoms | By road from Gangtok through Phuentsholing; the seat home from Paro is in the price | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Friends who enjoy a long road; children over 12 | US$800 for 8 nights, plus the visa |
| Three Kingdoms | By road from Gangtok, after Kathmandu and Darjeeling | 2,320 m, Thimphu | Two weeks, three countries; children over 12 | US$600 for 6 nights, plus the visa and Nepal's US$30 on arrival |
Which day you can fly shapes the week more than anything else. Bagdogra goes up on Tuesdays and Saturdays and comes back on Mondays and Fridays, so a round trip from there comes to six nights or nine, never exactly seven; Delhi flies both ways daily, which is why a guest who wants one night more usually goes home through Delhi or Guwahati. If the Tiger's Nest worries anyone, ask us about Dzongdrakha above Bondey, the mini Taktsang: about 350 m of climb instead of the full one. And if you are choosing the road, the border night at Phuentsholing, 293 m and warm, is the price of the crossing; the Bhutan you came for starts on the climb the next morning.
A Darjeeling Trips designer
Questions
Three questions about bhutan journeys
Which Bhutan journey suits parents over 70?
Bhutan: The Western Valleys in most cases: it flies in, and ponies are booked to the Taktsang cafeteria, where the monastery faces you across the gorge. Anyone who would rather not climb at all has Kyichu Lhakhang, founded in 659, on the same route. Two Himalayan Capitals is as gentle, starting from Kathmandu. Avoid the two road journeys with a seven-hour day through the Dooars, and at the Masked Dances everyone sits on the ground for up to six hours, with cushions and umbrellas from us.
Which Bhutan journeys work in December, January or February?
The Cranes of Phobjikha is made for them, with frosty dawns above the roost until mid February. From the Hills, Two Kingdoms, Two Himalayan Capitals and the Western Valleys all run into December, when Thimphu nights fall towards freezing, and Three Kingdoms runs to mid December before snow reaches the Tsomgo road. Avoid Into the Heart from December, when Bumthang freezes and its flights drop to two a week, Walking Western Bhutan in January and February, when snow can close Chele La, and the Honeymoon in January.
Which Bhutan journeys include the Tiger's Nest, and on which day?
Nine of the ten. A Bhutan Honeymoon, Into the Heart and the winter Cranes climb early, on day two, from a first night in Paro, and Walking Western Bhutan climbs on day three after a warm-up walk. The Western Valleys, From the Hills, Two Himalayan Capitals, Two Kingdoms and Three Kingdoms save it for the last Paro days, with the height already in your legs. The Masked Dances of Paro leaves it out unless you add a fourth Paro night.
Plan my journey
Which of these 10 fits your dates?
Four lines are enough to start: when, who, how to reach you, and the trip you picture.
- Journeys
- 10
- Length
- 6 to 14 nights
- From
- ₹3,25,000 per person