Bhutan Cultural Tour

The Bhutan Cultural Tour is an easy 7-day private tour of Paro, Thimphu and Haa, built around the hike up to Tiger's Nest. It runs from Paro airport and back to it.

You land in Paro, at about 2,200 m, and take the first day gently, with a quiet evening to settle in. Then the road runs 65 km to Thimphu, Bhutan's capital, for two nights: the National Memorial Chorten, the great seated Buddha above the city, the Folk Heritage Museum, the arts school and the Takin Preserve. Back in Paro, the museum, the Rinpung Dzong and a short walk down to the old cantilever bridge fill the afternoon.

The next day is the one the trip leans on: the hike to Taktsang, the monastery hanging on a cliff, and on to Drugyel Dzong. The last full day crosses Chele La into the Haa valley and back to Paro. Every night is in a hotel, and the hike is the only long day on foot.

• Duration: 7 days, 6 nights, Paro to Paro
• Grade: Easy, with one long walking day
• Season: open all year
• Group: private, just your own group

Flights into Paro land only in daylight and good visibility, so keep a spare day before any onward international flight.

• Tiger's Nest (Taktsang): a full day on foot to the monastery on the cliff, an 8th-century site that is part of Bhutanese life today. It is the heart of the trip.
• Drugyel Dzong: the Tiger's Nest day continues to this dzong and ends back in Paro.
• National Memorial Chorten, Thimphu: built in memory of the third King. People walk around it all day, turning the prayer wheels.
• The seated Buddha above Thimphu: 167 feet of bronze looking over the valley, with a good view of the city lights after dark.
• Folk Heritage Museum and Zorig Chusum: a traditional farmhouse museum, then the school where the 13 traditional arts and crafts are still taught.
• Motithang Takin Preserve: a forested preserve for the takin, Bhutan's national animal.
• Paro Rinpung Dzong and the cantilever bridge: a 17th-century fortress, and a short walk down to one of Bhutan's finest roofed bridges.
• Haa over Chele La: a quiet day out of Paro across the pass into the Haa valley.
• Autumn colour and local food: maples colour the forest in autumn, and Bhutanese food is rich with cheese.

The Tiger's Nest day is the reason most people choose this tour. Taktsang is the monastery hanging on a cliff above the Paro valley, an 8th-century site that is still tied into Bhutanese life. On this tour it has a day of its own, day 5, with nothing else planned around it.

How the day runs

We drive from Paro to the base of the Taktsang trail, to a village of the same name, and start the hike early. The monastery shows itself on the way up, and most people find the climb easier once it is in view. We visit the monastery and spend real time there before walking on to Drugyel Dzong, and the day ends back in Paro. Allow about 8 to 9 hours for the whole day, including the visit.

How we place it

This is the one long walk of the trip, so it does not come on arrival day. You spend time in Paro and Thimphu first, at 2,200 m to 2,320 m, and reach Taktsang after the Thimphu days and a Paro afternoon. Day 6 is a road day, so tired legs get a break.

What to keep in the daypack

Water, a rain layer, a warm layer for the monastery and your camera. Walk slowly and steadily; the pace of the group follows the slowest walker.

The hike is the main effort of the tour, and it is what makes this an easy trip with one proper day on foot. If you want more walking in Bhutan, see the Druk Path Trek.

Paro is where the tour begins and ends, and the airport is only about 3.5 km from the town, a 10 to 15 minute drive. The valley floor lies at about 2,200 m, and the first day is kept easy.

Rinpung Dzong

The name means Fortress of a Heap of Jewels. It dates to the 17th century, and it is still the centre of district administration and religious activity. It looks over the valley, and the annual festival, the Tsechu, starts here, with the dances in the courtyard outside.

The National Museum

The museum began as the watchtower for the dzong below. Its design is said to be conch-like, and you can see how the corridors spiral down to the other entrance. An earthquake damaged the old structure, and the artefacts, which tell the story of Bhutan's history, were moved to a newer building just above.

The cantilever bridge

A short walk down a moderate slope leads to a cantilever bridge over the Paro Chu, one of the finest in Bhutan, with a shingled roof and a guard-house at each end. We spend the rest of the afternoon by the river.

Paro on the way in and out

Paro shows up twice on this tour: after landing, and again between Thimphu and the Tiger's Nest day. The afternoon of day 4 is when the dzong, museum and bridge are visited, after the drive back from Thimphu. On the last day we drop you at the airport.

Tell us your flight times and we will fit the days around them.

Thimphu is a short drive from Paro, about 65 km and 1.5 hours on a curvy road, and the tour spends two nights there. Thimphu lies at about 2,320 m, close to Paro, so the days stay easy.

Evening of arrival

The National Memorial Chorten was built to honour the third King, Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. People circle it throughout the day, turn the large red prayer wheels and pray in the adjacent shrine. Early morning is the quietest time, with elderly people walking and children passing on the way to school.

The seated Buddha above the city, Kuensel Phodrang, is 167 feet high, in bronze, with a temple inside. It is about 15 minutes from the centre by road, with a view over the Thimphu valley, and a good place to see the city lights after dark.

The full day

The Folk Heritage Museum sits in a replica of a traditional Bhutanese house and shows how rural families lived and still live. The National Institute of Zorig Chusum trains young people in the 13 traditional arts and crafts, including painting, embroidery, calligraphy, sculpture and woodcarving. The National Library holds traditional texts in an eight-cornered building that looks like the central tower of a dzong.

The Jungshi factory makes handmade paper from the daphne plant without destroying it, and the paper makes a good gift. The Motithang Takin Preserve is a forested enclosure for the takin; the animals stayed in the area when the old zoo was closed, and the preserve grew from that. The day can end on the BBS tower ridge, where prayer flags flutter above the valley.

If you prefer fewer stops, say so and we will shorten the list.

This tour runs from Paro airport and back to it. Pickup and drop are part of the service, so the main planning is the flight and the entry papers.

Flights

Paro International Airport is Bhutan's main international airport, and only Drukair and Bhutan Airlines fly here. From India, Delhi and Kolkata have flights on most days; Drukair also flies from Guwahati five days a week and from Bagdogra twice a week, with seasonal winter flights from Gaya. Mumbai is not on either airline's current timetable, so connect through Delhi or Kolkata. Flights land only in daylight and good visibility, so the schedule can change, especially in the monsoon from June to September. Keep a spare day between your Paro flight and any onward international connection.

Entry

Indian nationals are issued their entry permit at the airport on arrival, with a passport or voter ID. Most other nationalities need a visa approved before they fly. Tell us your nationality early and we will tell you what to prepare.

By road, if Paro seats are scarce

Bagdogra, the airport for Siliguri, has far more flights. From there, the road crosses the Dooars tea country to Jaigaon, about 150 to 165 km and 4 to 5.5 hours, and you enter Bhutan at Phuentsholing. Phuentsholing to Paro is about 140 km, 4.5 to 6 hours. The climb passes the Rinchending checkpoint, Gedu and Chhuzom, where the Paro and Thimphu rivers meet. The road is prone to slides between May and October, and the Gedu stretch is known for fog, so we avoid driving it after dark.

The nearest railhead is Hasimara, about 18 km from Phuentsholing. Bhutan itself has no railway.

If you plan to come in by road, tell us and we will plan the extra time.

The Bhutan Cultural Tour is a private tour of just your own group. We shape the pace around the people who are on it.

What the week looks like

Seven days, six nights, Paro to Paro. Day 1 is arrival and a gentle evening in Paro. Days 2 and 3 are Thimphu, day 4 is the drive back to Paro with the museum, dzong and bridge, day 5 is Tiger's Nest and Drugyel Dzong, day 6 is the road over Chele La to Haa and back, and day 7 is the drop at the airport. We sleep in hotels throughout.

Why the order works

Sleeping altitudes stay between 2,200 m and 2,320 m, so there is nothing to acclimatise to. The one long walk comes after two easy days in the capital and an afternoon in Paro, and the day after it is a road day. That is the pacing we hold to: space, unhurried days and enough time at each place.

The Haa day

The day goes by road from Paro over Chele La and back, so it can be slow and short on walking. Take a warm layer for the pass.

Who it suits

Anyone who wants Bhutan's culture and one proper hike, without a multi-day trek. Autumn colour comes in the forests, and the tour is open all year; the road gets slower in the monsoon and in winter, so we keep time in hand.

If you want more

For a longer tour, see the extensive Bhutan Cultural Tour. For multi-day walking, the Druk Path Trek and the Chomolhari Base Camp Trek start in the same Paro valley.

Tell us your dates, your flight options and how you like to travel, and we will shape the days.