Bhutan Map & highlights
Don’t expect any Bhutan itinerary to be a whirlwind; the only way to take in its splendour is slowly, by road or foot. The roads aren’t in great condition and most of your schedule will be determined along the country’s Lateral Road – Bhutan’s primary east-west gateway and a 3.5m wide stretch of tarmac that starts at Phuentsholing in the southwest and winds its way east, up and down mountains, across wobbly bridges, besides sheer cliffs and over high altitude mountains passes. Gulp. If you’re visiting in December or January, take some good books and Travel Monopoly – snow can easily block the roads. Otherwise, sit back and await the worthwhile magnificence of where you’ll end up next.
Our Bhutan Vacations
Cultural vacation to Bhutan
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9 days
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Bhutan vacations, cultural tours
Discover Bhutan for a once in a lifetime experience
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11 days
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Buddhism cultural vacation in Bhutan
Buddhism trip in Bhutan, journey to your inner self
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9 days
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Western Bhutan walking vacation
Panoramic mountain views, local villages and temples.
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8 days
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Bhutan highlights tour, 7 days
A Festival & Photographic journey in the Happiness Kingdom!
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7 days
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Bhutan vacations, tailor made
Get beneath the skin of this mystical Himalayan kingdom
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15 days
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Jambay Lakhang Festival vacation in Bhutan
Experience the colourful Jambay Lakhang festival
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13 days
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Himalayan cultural tour, Bhutan and Nepal
Discover Bhutan, the land of the Thunder Dragon
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13 days
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Bhutan, Nepal and Sikkim tour
A Journey to the mystical lands of Nepal, Sikkim & Bhutan
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17 days
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Bhutan small group tours
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12 days
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Bhutan vacation, Land of the thunder dragon
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Bhutan biking vacation
Bicycles and Bhutan are a perfect fit
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14 days
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Bhutan cultural tour
Splendor Journey in the Land of Kingdom's Tranquility.
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11 days
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Bhutan small group tour
Chance to explore one of the world’s most remote countries
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Bhutan trekking tour
Bhutan hiking and walking tour through Himalayan Kingdom
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11 days
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Nepal and Bhutan express tour
Become one with culture and nature in Bhutan and Nepal tour
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7 days
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Druk Path Trekking vacation in Bhutan
A trekking to a remote land often far from civilization.
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8 days
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Small group tour to Bhutan,
Discover Bhutan's beauty, history and adventures
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7 days
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Bhutan small group tours, best of Bhutan
Travel the breadth of Bhutan
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15 days
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Bhutan walking and wildlife vacation
Hike the hills and forests of Bhutan looking for wildlife
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11 days
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Bhutan walking vacations
Camping trek to Bumdra monastery in the high Himalayas.
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8 days
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Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet Tour
A cultural extravaganza in landlocked South Asian countries
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21 days
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Bhutan festivals small group vacation
Visit Black Crane, Paro or Thimpu festivals
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13 days
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Bengal and Bhutan tour, 15 days
From West Bengal to the mystical kingdom of Bhutan
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£3520 to £3640
15 days
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1. Bumthang
2. Jakar
3. Jigme Dorji National Park
4. Paro
5. Phobjikha
6. Punakha
7. Taktsang Palphug
8. Talo
9. Thimphu
10. Trongsa
11. Ura
12. Wangdue Phodrang
2. Jakar
3. Jigme Dorji National Park
4. Paro
5. Phobjikha
6. Punakha
7. Taktsang Palphug
8. Talo
9. Thimphu
10. Trongsa
11. Ura
12. Wangdue Phodrang
Bumthang
1. Bumthang
A major producer of apples, Bumthang offers a bit more of a cultural bite than its quieter neighbour, Ura. Shrouded in religious legend of mystery illness and miracle cures, Bumthang is home to some of the country’s oldest temples, monasteries and landmarks. The ‘Burning Lake’ is a sacred site of pilgrimage where it’s said the sin-free amongst us are able to distinguish an extraordinary sight.
Jakar
2. Jakar
Jakar is only a one-street town, but it’s the Chamkhar Valley’s trading center and it shows: simple shacks selling vegetables are replaced here with shops marked by hand painted signage identifying ‘general store’ from ‘restaurant’ and even ‘internet café’. Nonetheless, it’s a great base for easy day trekking to nearby monasteries and is recognised for its distinctive, brightly coloured wool items called yethra.
Jigme Dorji National Park
3. Jigme Dorji National Park
This vast national park sprawls across three climate zones, and provides habitat to many species of endangered or threatened animals, including Bengal tigers, snow leopards, red pandas and Himalayan black bears. Dotted with sparkling glacial lakes and sacred mountains, no surprises then that many of Bhutan’s most sought-after trekking routes are to be found in Jigme Dorji National Park.
Paro
4. Paro
Home of red rice, the National Museum and the country’s only airport, Paro is ideal to explore on foot. It’s biggest draw? The Rinpung Dzong, a distinctive fortress characterised by huge buttressed walls that peer over the town and are visible throughout the valley. Paro’s ‘high street’ was only built in 1985 and is a concrete-free blend of brightly decorated independent restaurants and shops… for now.
Phobjikha
5. Phobjikha
Phobjikha, known also as Gangtey, is a glacial valley that’s snowbound during the winter months when most of its residents up sticks and head to warmer Wangdue. In their place come hundreds of black-necked cranes that, if you’re lucky, come so close that they circle you in the sky. The whole area is a hugely important wildlife preserve, home to muntjacs, wild boar, sambar, Himalayan black bears and leopards, too.
Punakha
6. Punakha
Bhutan’s winter capital, Punakha is lower and warmer than Thimpu and is marked proudly by Punakha Dzong, the second largest, but doubtless most impressive dzong in the country. The dzong sits at the confluence of the Pho Chuu and Mo Chuu rivers and is testament to Bhutan’s commitment to traditional skills having been rebuilt sympathetically after much of it was destroyed by fire in 1998.
Taktsang Palphug
7. Taktsang Palphug
It’s said that Guru Rinpoche, the founder of Buddhism in Bhutan, arrived at the Taktsang Palphug monastery on the back of a winged tigress and meditated there for three months straight, hence its more pronounceable moniker, Tiger’s Nest. Skipping this is like forgetting to see the Taj Mahal in Agra; whether you thrive on culture, or get your kicks from climbing, you simply have to go.
Talo
8. Talo
Scattered along a sloping ridge, the village of Talo sits above the Punakha Valley at an altitude of 2,800m and is revered for its cleanliness and also for the beauty of its women. The surrounding hills offer plenty of walking routes through fields of corn and sweetpeas and the locals are happy to open their doors to anyone wanting to experience a real day in the life of rural Himalaya.
Thimphu
9. Thimphu
Thimphu is a contradiction: it upholds Bhutan’s overriding sense of purity – it’s the only world capital without traffic lights, a modern trapping removed because residents thought them impersonal – but it also has a challenging exuberance that’s seen a few nightclubs spring up. Temples, dzongs, museums and parks – Thimphu has it all, a vibrant introduction to the most advanced and the most remote parts of the kingdom.
Trongsa
10. Trongsa
The Trongsa passes are reached via an ancient route along which monks and mules once trod their weary way through conifer forests. Its central location meant Trongsa served as a strategic stronghold for warfare and trade in centuries past, and the red-roofed dzong here was formerly the ancestral home of the ruling Wangchuk dynasty. Trongsa is easily walkable, and if traveling between Thimphu and Jakar you will more than likely stop here for lunch.
Ura
11. Ura
A visit to Ura is like opening the door to the past and then some. It has grown in prosperity since the country’s East-West highway finally reached it in the 1990s, but the village is almost medieval in its makeup: think narrow stone roads and houses with wooden shingle roofs. Don’t expect gastronomic greatness, the land is less than fertile and the locals live on a staple diet of potatoes and yak meat.
Wangdue Phodrang
12. Wangdue Phodrang
A windswept market town in one of Bhutan’s biggest and most climatically varied districts, Wangdue Phodrang is known for its bamboo products, slate and stone carvings. Since fire destroyed its dzong in June 2012, attention on the town has turned towards its local famers’ market: a long line of well-kept wooden shacks, their corrugated roofs secured by stones, selling baskets of brilliantly-coloured local produce.
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Cultural tour of Bhutan
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Tailor made:
This trip can be tailor made throughout the year to suit your requirements
This trip can be tailor made throughout the year to suit your requirements
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Bhutan or need help finding a vacation to suit you we're very happy to help.
Bhutan sample itineraries
All about culture
Paro > Thimphu > Punakha > Wangdue Phodrang > Punakha > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Kathmandu
Trekking & culture combined
Kathmandu > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Jangchu Laka > Labana > Thimphu > Paro > Kathmandu
Trekking in central Bhutan
Kathmandu > Paro > Thimphu > Punakha > Bumthang > Takung Valley > Gamling > Bumthang > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Kathmandu
Paro > Thimphu > Punakha > Wangdue Phodrang > Punakha > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Kathmandu
Trekking & culture combined
Kathmandu > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Jangchu Laka > Labana > Thimphu > Paro > Kathmandu
Trekking in central Bhutan
Kathmandu > Paro > Thimphu > Punakha > Bumthang > Takung Valley > Gamling > Bumthang > Paro > Taktsang Monastery > Kathmandu
Bhutan travel times
The following times give you a rough idea of the driving times between the main attractions in Bhutan.
More about Bhutan
We've packed almost as much into our Bhutan travel guide as the country itself and all you have to do to unlock the secrets of the dzongs, the Dagala Thousand Lakes and the colourful Buddhist festivals is read on and prepare for peace and a whole lot more besides.
Check out our temperature and rainfall chart that gives some indication as to the best time to visit Bhutan as well as a handy month by month guide and expert recommendations from our friends on the ground.
Bhutan is quite rightly regarded as hiking heaven however, if you're looking for more things to do in Bhutan then read on as we can help you untangle your Zen from your dzongs and your tshechus as you put your best foot forwards and enter one of the world's leading biodiversity hot spots.
Tours of Bhutan will inevitably feature Buddhism and monks which is why this article sets out to explain some of the principles of Buddhism in Bhutan and the etiquette associated with visiting a monastery, dzong, temple or meeting monks in Bhutan.
Vacations in Bhutan are one thing but why not fly over the Himalayas to visit Nepal, Tibet or India as part of the same trip? Find out more about how you can incorporate three of South Asia's most fascinating countries in one amazing trip to Bhutan.
Experiencing a Buddhist festival in Bhutan is the best way to understand the meaning and symbolism that features throughout an event that can last anything up to four days.
Soaring Himalayan scenery, local life and beautiful cultural sites, all compactly contained within a short and spectacular route – the Druk Path is one of Bhutan’s best and most accessible trails.
Bhutan’s main issue with homosexuality seems to be that it is ‘non Bhutanese’. But times are changing, lamas and politicians are calling for acceptance, and anyone taking an LGBT vacation in Bhutan should not face discrimination or harassment.
Traveling with kids in Bhutan isn't going to be a walk in the park, but it's certainly an experience worth considering.
Find out what Rajat Kumar, Sunita Subba and Ralph Foulds have to say when it comes to Bhutan travel advice because between them they've been there, done that and got the yak hair t-shirt.
If you're hoping to travel right and learn more about responsible tourism in Bhutan then we've compiled the following information and practical tips to help you learn how to travel like a local and ensure your experience is beneficial for both yourself and Bhutan, as a whole.
protection
Photo credits: [Page banner: Jonathan Choe] [Bumthang: Richard Mortel]
[Jakar: Jakar]
[Jigme Dorji National Park: A. J. T. Johnsingh, WWF-India and NCF]
[Paro: pxhere]
[Phobjikha: Koshy Koshy]
[Punakha: Bernard Gagnon]
[Taktsang Palphug: Arian Zwegers]
[Talo: Steve Evans]
[Thimphu: Christopher J. Fynn]
[Trongsa: Cfynn]
[Ura: Christopher J. Fynn]
[Wangdue Phodrang: David Broad]
[Bhutan travel times: Prateek Katyal]
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