BHUTAN ADVENTURE TOUR Overview

After arriving in Kathmandu you will be picked up from airport representative and transfer to hotel. Presentation of the staff, briefing with the guides and verification of the equipment. We will serve authentic nepalese cuisine with cultural show in the evening. Meals included: dinner. Overnight: hotel.

The first thing you will notice as you disembark is the transparent purity of air and the absence of noise. The Paro valley has kept its bucolic nature inspite of the airport and the existence of development projects. Fields, brown or green depending on the season, cover most of the valley floor, while hamlets and isolated farms dot the countryside. The houses of Paro valley are considered to be among the most beautiful in the country. Paro is believed to be one of the first valleys to have received the imprint of Buddhism.Check into Hotel. Afternoon: Visit the National Museum (Ta-Dzong). Once the watchtower for the Rinpung Dzong, it was converted into the National Museum in 1968. The museum stands on a promontory overlooking the Paro valley in all its glory. Visit the Paro Rinpung Dzong. A flagstone path rises gradually from a beautiful wooden bridge with shingle roofing and abutted by two guardhouses, to the Dzong. Today, the Dzong is the seat of the district administration as well as the home for the monastic school. The central tower (Utse) of the Dzong, with its superb woodwork, is one of the most beautiful in the nation. The Dzong was built in 1645 A.D. Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

Morning: Drive to Drugyal Dzong (a ruined fortress – 16 km away from Paro town). The Dzong, although in ruins, holds great historical significance. It was from this fortress that the Bhutanese repelled many Tibetan invasions. The name means the victorious Bhutanese. This spot offers a magnificent vista of Mount Chomolhari, “Mountain of Goddess” (7329 m). Visit a typical Bhutanese farmhouse on the way back. A short distance south of the road is Kyichu Lhakhang. This temple is said to have been built in 659 by King Songtsen Gampo of Tibet. It holds down the left foot of an ogress whose body is so large that it covers Bhutan and most of eastern Tibet. Evening: Tea at the hotel and drive for two hours (65 km) to reach the capital city of Thimphu. Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

Small and secluded the city is quiet and there are never the traffic jams familiar in other Asian Capitals. Thimphu's main shopping street is a delight not so much for what you can buy there, but for the picturesqueness of the architecture and national custom. Beautiful weaves in wool, silk and cotton, basketwork, silver jewellery, thangkas and other traditional crafts of the kingdom are available in various handicraft emporiums. In the morning: visit the memorial chorten, the national library, the painting school, the handicrafts emporium, the weekend market. In the afternoon: visit Semtokha Dzong, the oldest fortress in Bhutan, built in 1629 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the Tashichho Dzong, the Head Abbot, the Pangri Zampa monastery.  Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

After breakfast transfer to Wangdue. En-route stop at Dochula pass (3150m/10,334ft), for a break and enjoy a view of the eastern himalayan mountains. Wangdue Phodrang Dzong is perched on a spur at the confluence of 02 rivers. The main road climbs the length of the spur and on the left, across the river, comes the first glimpse of the picturesque village of Rinchengang whose inhabitants are celebrated stonemasons. After lunch in Lobesa, we'll visit the Punakha Dzong. This is the winter residence of Bhutan's spiritual leader, the Head Abbot, and the central monastic body. The Dzong is built between two rivers known as “Phochu” (male river) and “Mochu” (female river). Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

After breakfast drive to Metshina. On a hillock in the center of the valley below Metshina is Chimi Lhakhang (Fertility Monastery), built by lama Drukpa Kunley in 1499. He subdued the demoness of the Dochu la with his ‘magic thunderbolt of wisdom.’ A wooden effigy of the Lamas thunderbolt is preserved in the Lhakhang, and childless women go to the temple to receive a wang (blessing) from the saint. It’s a 20-minute walk across the rice fields from the road at Sopsokha to the temple. The trail leads across rice fields to the tiny settlement of Pana. There are very few monks at the temple which is surrounded by a row of prayer wheels and some very beautiful slate carvings. Continue drive to Thimphu across the Dochu la pass. Afternoon free for shopping. Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

Transfer to Paro to the Taktsang monastery. Taktsang is the most famous of all bhutanese monasteries. It is perched on the side of a cliff 900 m above the floor of the Paro valley, where the only sounds are the murmurs of the wind, and water and the chanting of the monks. The name Taktsang means "tigers nest"; the guru is said to have flown on the back of a tigress to the site of the monastery where he meditated in a cave for three months. The monastery itself is closed to tourists except by special permit. However the one-hour walk to the viewpoint, where there is a small wooden teahouse provides a close-up view of the monastery. It's also a good warm-up hike if you are going trekking. In the evening visit a farmhouse or free on your own. Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

We will transfer to Paro airport for the departure flight and pickup Kathmandu airport, after arriving hotel. This is the free day for you and you can enjoy yourself around the city. . Meals included: breakfast, dinner. Overnight: hotel.

After breakfast take an excursion visit. Today we will go for sightseeing Swyambhunath, Pasupatinath temple, Bouddhanath and Patan. World heritage site and freely shopping day. Evening there will be a typical nepali dinner organized for you in the typical nepali restaurant. Meals included: breakfast. Overnight: hotel.

You will have breakfast and you will be free until your departure. A representative will take you airport for your final departure. Meals included: breakfast.