The drive from Thimphu to Punakha is only 76 km, and it holds two of the sights people remember longest: a pass crowned with chortens, and a dzong at the meeting of two rivers. It takes two to three hours without stops, and deserves most of a day.
Dochu La
The road climbs out of Thimphu through forest to the pass, at 3,100 m. On the crest stand 108 small chortens in three tiers, with a temple on the rise above them.
On a clear day the Himalaya fills the northern horizon. The clearest months are from October to February, and early morning is the best time on any day. If you miss the view on the way out, you get a second chance on the way back.
Dress for it. The pass is about 750 m higher than Thimphu and always colder.
If you have time at the pass
- Walk to Lungchutse. A path climbs from the pass to a small temple on the ridge: 3 to 4 km, and two to four hours there and back.
- The botanical garden at Lamperi, a little below the pass, charges Nu. 300 and holds a rhododendron festival each spring, listed for 22 to 23 April in 2027.
- The Druk Wangyel Tshechu, a festival held at the pass itself, is listed for 13 December in 2027.
Down to Punakha
From the pass the road drops about 1,850 m to the Punakha valley, at 1,242 m. You go from cool forest to rice fields, and in winter you will be taking off the jacket you needed at the top.
Punakha Dzong
The dzong was built in 1637 on a tongue of land between two rivers, the Pho Chhu and the Mo Chhu. It is often called the most beautiful in Bhutan.
| Open | 9am to 5pm |
| Entry | Nu. 500 for adults, Nu. 250 for under-18s |
| Guide | Required to enter |
| Dress | Long sleeves, legs covered, no hat |
In February the dzong holds two festivals back to back, the Punakha Drubchen and the Punakha Tshechu: in 2027, on 13 to 15 and 16 to 18 February. See our Punakha festival tour.
Around the dzong
- The suspension bridge, about 160 m long, a short walk upstream.
- Chimi Lhakhang, a temple of 1499 reached by a walk through rice fields. Entry is Nu. 500.
- Khamsum Yulley Namgyal Chorten, on a hill up the valley, about an hour's climb through terraces. Entry is Nu. 100.
- The rivers. Both are rafted, from March to May and from September to December.
How to fit it in
With one night in Punakha you can see the pass and the dzong, and little else. Two nights give you the walk to the chorten and time on the river. Our 5-day tour is the shortest that includes this drive; the 7-day tour carries on east from Punakha to Phobjikha.
