Cultural
Paro and Thimphu in 4 Days
A long weekend in the two western valleys: the capital's sights, Paro's fortress and museum, and the walk to the Tiger's Nest.
Price on request
Western Bhutan
Thimphu
A capital of about one valley's width, where government, monastery and market share the same streets and a policeman still directs the main junction by hand.
- Altitude
- 2,334 m
- How long to stay
- Two nights
- Region
- Western Bhutan
Thimphu is the seat of Bhutan's government and its largest town, yet it has no traffic lights and can be crossed on foot in half an hour. It is the best place to see how the country lives now: office workers in gho and kira, and archers shooting across a field at the edge of town.
The sights are close together. A morning can take in the Memorial Chorten, where townspeople circle with prayer beads from first light, and the great seated Buddha on the hill above. An afternoon might be the school where the thirteen traditional crafts are taught, the Textile Museum, and Tashichho Dzong when its offices close and visitors are let in.
The Druk Path trek from Paro ends on the ridge above the town, and the monasteries of Tango and Cheri at the head of the valley make a good half-day walk.
What to see and do in Thimphu
- Tashichho Dzong
- The fortress that houses the king's offices and the central monastic body, and the setting for the Thimphu Tshechu.
- Buddha Dordenma
- A seated bronze Buddha 51.5 m high on a hill south of the town, with a view down the whole valley.
- National Memorial Chorten
- Built in 1974 in memory of the third king. People come all day to walk around it and turn its prayer wheels.
- Changangkha Lhakhang
- A twelfth-century temple on a ridge above the town, where parents bring newborn children to be blessed.
- School of the thirteen arts and crafts
- Students learn painting, woodcarving, embroidery and the other traditional crafts, the Zorig Chusum. The Textile Museum and the craft bazaar are nearby.
- Takin Preserve
- A forested enclosure for the takin, Bhutan's national animal, at the upper edge of the town.
- Changlimithang archery ground
- Archery is the national sport. On most weekends there is a match here, with singing and dancing for every hit.
Planning your visit
- Best time to visit
Pleasant from March to May and from September to November. The Thimphu Tshechu fills the town in autumn (10 to 12 October 2027 on the official tentative list). Winter is cold in the mornings and evenings but usually dry and sunny.
- Getting there
About an hour by road from Paro airport, 54 km. Punakha is 76 km further on, two to three hours over Dochu La.
Tours and treks
Trips that visit Thimphu
Cultural
Three Valleys in 5 Days
Paro, Thimphu and Punakha, with the crossing of Dochu La and an afternoon at Punakha Dzong before the Tiger's Nest.
Price on request
Cultural
Thimphu, Punakha and Paro in 6 Days
The three western valleys with a full day in the capital, a night beside Punakha Dzong and the Tiger's Nest to finish.
Price on request
Festival
Black-Necked Crane Festival Tour
A week timed for 11 November, when Phobjikha welcomes its cranes back from Tibet with a festival in the courtyard of Gangtey Goenpa.
Price on request
Trekking
Bumdra Trek
Two days and one night in camp on the ridge above the Tiger's Nest, walking down to the monastery from above.
Price on request
Festival
Punakha Drubchen and Tshechu Tour
A winter journey to Punakha Dzong for the Drubchen, when local men in warriors' dress re-enact a seventeenth-century battle.
Price on request
Cultural
Western Bhutan in 7 Days
Four valleys in a week: the capital, the warm rice terraces of Punakha, the crane valley of Phobjikha, and Paro for the walk to the Tiger's Nest.
Price on request
Trekking
Gangtey Trek
Three days of village-to-village walking from the crane valley of Phobjikha, over forested passes that stay below about 3,500 m.
Price on request
Festival
Paro Tshechu Festival Tour
Eight days built around Paro's spring festival, ending with the dawn unveiling of the great thongdrel on the last morning.
Price on request
Festival
Thimphu Tshechu Festival Tour
The capital's great autumn festival at Tashichho Dzong, with the Tiger's Nest before it and the warm valley of Punakha after.
Price on request
Cultural
Western Bhutan with Haa in 8 Days
Five western valleys, two high passes and a day in quiet Haa, at a pace that leaves room to walk as well as drive.
Price on request
Cultural
Western Bhutan Unhurried, in 9 Days
Two nights each in Thimphu, Phobjikha, Punakha and Paro, so that every valley has a day with no packing in it.
Price on request
Trekking
Dagala Thousand Lakes Trek
Five days through high yak pasture south of Thimphu, among the small lakes that give the trek its name.
Price on request
Trekking
Druk Path Trek
Six days along the ridge between Paro and Thimphu, past a ruined dzong and a chain of high lakes, with Jomolhari on the skyline in clear weather.
Price on request
Festival
Jambay Lhakhang Drup Festival Tour
Ten days to Bumthang for the festival of fire at one of Bhutan's oldest temples, with cranes in Phobjikha on the way.
Price on request
Cultural
To Bumthang and Back in 10 Days
West to the centre by road through Trongsa, three nights among Bumthang's temples, and a flight back over the mountains to Paro.
Price on request
Cultural
Bumthang and the Haa Valley in 11 Days
By road to the temples of Bumthang and back, then over Chele La for a night in quiet Haa before the Tiger's Nest.
Price on request
Trekking
Jomolhari Trek
Seven days on foot to the base of Jomolhari and over two passes close to 5,000 m, coming down a different valley to Thimphu.
Price on request
Cultural
Across Bhutan, West to East
The whole width of the country in two weeks, from the Tiger's Nest to the weaving villages of the far east, leaving by road into India.
Price on request
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