Paro Festival Tour

Day 1: Arrival Paro, Paro to Thimphu

Arrive Paro by Druk Air, the only national carrier. The flight offers you a view of mountains and landscapes. Upon arriving in the Paro Valley and after completing visa formalities, you will be met by Gawaling Tours & Treks’ representative at the airport. Drive to Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan. The journey would take us one and half hours.

Visit # Memorial Chorten: Built in the memory of the 3rd King of Bhutan, in 1974 by Queen mother Ashi Phuntsho Choden. # Buddha Point: where you can see 169 Feet Tall Statue of Buddha Dordema. # Thimphu Tashichho Dzong: seats of people’s king of Bhutan. Overnight stay in a hotel.

Day 2: Thimphu to Punakha

Drive over the DochuLa pass in the morning. On clear weather, we can see around 200 miles of Himalayan summits bordering northern Bhutan. As we descend from the pass, we will notice that the vegetation changes from sub-alpine to sub-tropical. At the lower elevation, we can see banana plants, cactus, and other semi-tropical plants, and the green terraced rice fields of Punakha.

We begin our explorations of Punakha valley with a visit to Punakha Dzong, located between two rivers. It serves as the winter residence for the central monastic body. Next, take a hike to Chimi Lhakhang, the monastery dedicated to Lama Drukpa Kunley's” Divine Madman” known for his outrageous behavior. Overnight stay at hotel.

Day 3: Punakha to Paro via Thimphu

After breakfast Drive towards Paro via Thimphu. Visit, # Traditional handmade Paper Factory: where you can see the traditional way of making paper, which is still preserved. Then drive to Paro to witness the Paro festival. Dinner at Farm House. Overnight stay at Hotel.

Day 4: Hike to Tiger's Nest

Witness Paro Festival or hike to Tiger’s Nest, Paro is a valley of religion and myth. The most famous landmark, the Taktsang Monastery (Tiger’s Nest), stands on a granite cliff about 800m above the valley. Legend has it that Guru Rinpoche, a famous Buddhist saint, flew to Paro on a tigress and meditated at Taktsang. The monastery is considered a national treasure of Bhutan.

The hike to Taktsang would take us around two and half hours. To reach a cafeteria, a point from where one can enjoy a great view of the monastery is more than an hour's walk from the road-head uphill. Those interested can walk further 45 minutes uphill to get a closer view of the monastery and return to the cafeteria for lunch. The journey downward to the road-head would take us less than one and half hours.

Day 5: Departure

After breakfast in the hotel, drive to the airport for departure.