Bhutan Glimpse Tour

A scenic flight with views of the Himalayas and the famous Jumolhari and Jichu Drake Mountains will take us to the only airport in Bhutan at Paro. After arriving at Paro, you will be greeted by our representative and then taken to the hotel in the capital city of Bhutan- Thimpu where we will stay in the hotel.

Our tour begins early in the second morning. Our first visit will be to Pangri Zampa Monastery which exists just beyond Dechencholing Palace (5 km from Thimphu). This temple was the first residence of Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal when he arrived in Bhutan in 1616 AD and it was built during the first quarter of the 16th century by Ngawang Chogyel who is the great ancestor of the Shabdrung. Later afternoon, we will visit the Memorial Chorten which is the huge stupa built in the loving memory of the third King who reigned from 1952 to 1972. Further, we will stop by the National Library where ancient manuscripts are preserved. En route, we will enter the painting School where students are taught to paint thankas. Visiting Handicrafts Emporium is an equally attractive idea as we can buy Bhutanese textiles and other arts and crafts in this market. We will finally pass by the Tashichho Dzong- the administrative building of the king before returning back to the hotel.

Our tour on the third day begins early in the morning. We will leave the hotel and take a ride to the north of Thimpu for about an hour to get back to Paro. From Paro, we will take a short trek to Taktsang which is popular among locals as the Tiger’s Nest Monastery. Three hours of climbing through the hotels will be sufficient to arrive at the vantage point which offers the first view of the Tiger’s Nest Monastery. After a brief rest, we will have a gentle descent through the ridge and then we will move along the waterfall to the monastery. Taktsang monastery is located above the Paro Valley and stands by facing the 1,000 m cliff. There is a popular myth associated with this. According to the myth, this cliff was the exact place where Guru Rinpoche landed on the back of a flying tigress and brought Buddhism to Bhutan from Tibet in the eighth century. After the morning visit to Taktsang Monastery, we will next drive to Drukgyel Dzong which was built in the seventeenth century to celebrate the victory of Bhutanese over the Tibetan invasion. Drukgyel Dzong was used to control the trade route to the south. This Dzong is now ruined as it became the victim of a fire in the year 1951. From the Dzong, we will drive back to the hotel to stay overnight.

4th day is the last day of the Bhutan Glimpse Tour. We will take breakfast in the hotel and then hurry back to the airport at Paro. Boarding a flight, we will return back to Kathmandu via Druk Airlines.