A short, complete first taste of Bhutan — Thimphu, the Dochula Pass, the capital's craft quarter and a mountain blessing.
Highlights
Tashichho Dzong and the National Memorial Chorten
Dochula Pass and the 108 chortens
Weekend archery at Changlimithang
Thimphu craft studios and market
What is included
Licensed guide and private vehicle
Two nights in a Thimphu boutique hotel
All breakfasts, lunches and one dinner
All permits, SDF and entry fees
Weekend archery or a craft-studio visit
Airport transfers and a farewell blessing
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1 — Paro to Thimphu, the capital at dusk After clearing the valley, the drive east begins, crossing the Chhuzom pass where the road divides into the Thimphu, Punakha and Haa directions. Check in above the city and take the afternoon gently: the Buddha Dordenma on the hill above Norzin, then the Tashichho Dzong at the end of the day, when…
Day 2 — Dochula Pass and the craft quarter An early start for the road up to Dochula at 3,010 metres, one of the highest points on the Paro-Thimphu highway. On a clear morning you can see Gangkar Puensum, the 7,570-metre peak that gives Bhutan its old English name. Descending again, you spend the afternoon in the capital's craft quarter, wh…
Day 3 — Markets and a mountain blessing A morning at the weekend market or the moving shopfronts of the central bazaar, and at the National Museum, which holds the state regalia and the armour collection. Lunch is a set of traditional dishes — ema datshi, hogay, suja — chosen for a visitor's first day. A final blessing at a hilltop chort…