Maximum Altitude
3,120m/10,240 ft
Meals
Full board (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
Best season
March to May and September to November
Accomodation
Government approved 3 stars and Above
Transportation
Private car, van or bus (Depends on group size)
Activities
Small Group Tours in Bhutan

Bhutan 5 Nights and 6 Days Group Tour Package is the perfect itinerary to visit the major places in Bhutan. These includes the colorful city of Paro, Thimphu – the tiny capital, Punakha – the old capital, Phobijikha Valley at Gangtey – one of the beautiful valleys in Bhutan and the ever popular hike to the Taktsang Monastery ‘Tiger’s Nest’ at the elevation of 3,120 meters just outskirts of Paro town. Bhutan tour 5 Nights & 6 days is a short and sweet program that mainly highlights the cultural, historical and untouched natural beauty of the land of the thunder dragon. There’s plenty of various landmarks which the tour covers such as Paro Ringpung Dzong, Punakha Dzong – arguably one of the beautiful monasteries in Bhutan, Dochula pass (3050m) with 108 chortens en-route Thimphu to Punakha which offers spectacular Himalayan views of the eastern mountains, Chimi Lhakhang ‘the temple of fertility’ dedicated to Drukpa Kunley where childless couples visit to get blessing. Sightseeing in Thimphu covers places like King Memorial Chorten, Farmer’s Cenetary Marktet, Bouddh’s point located a hilltop with large Buddha’s statue overlooking the beautiful Thimphu Valley. Gangtey Monastery at Gangtey and just below the monastery one can start a short Gangtey Nature Trail hike that leads to the Phobijikha Valley. Phobijikha Valley is also famed for Black Necked Cranes which migrates from the Tibetan plateau during the winter season. Overall Bhutan tour 5 Nights & 6 days is what the best Bhutan has to offer and to witness the unique culture and traditions of the country tucked high up in the Himalayas.

Highlights

Witness spectacular bird’s eye view of the Himalayas while flying in/out from Paro.
Explore Paro exploding with colors and tradition.
Guided city tour of the tiny capital Thimphu.
Hike to Taktsang Monastery ‘Tiger’s Nest’ (3120 meters).
Punakha Dzong – the most beautiful monastery in Bhutan.
Explore the Phobjikha Valley in Gangtey, the most beautiful valleys in Bhutan.
Kyichu Lhakhang – the oldest & most sacred shrine in Paro.
Witness unique culture, tradition and lifestyles of Bhutan.

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What to expect:
The typical itinerary for this tour basically visits the following locations/landmarks

Day 01: Arrival Paro & transfer to Thimphu- Meet at the airport & transfer to Paro town for lunch/check-in hotel then drive to Thimphu. Sightseeing at Thimphu visiting Buddha Terrance, Takin Preserve to see Takin- Bhutan’s national animal, Tashichoe Dzong, Memorial Chorten, Centenary Farmers Market, the new authentic craft bazaar, National Institute of Traditional Medicine, Folk Heritage Museum.

Day 02: Thimphu – Punakha (1310m) – Drive Thimphu to Punakha. En-route pass along Dochula pass (3050m) from where great Himalayan view can be seen in a clear day. Take a short hike to Chimi Lhakang ‘the temple of fertility’ dedicated to Drukpa Kunley. Visit Punakha Dzong arguably the most beautiful dzong in Bhutan located at the confluence of Po Chu and Mo Chu Rivers and drive to Paro.

Day 03: Punakha – Gangtey (2320m) – Drive from Punakha to Gangtey. Visit Gangtey monastery & start off the Gangtey Nature trail hike just below the monastery.

Day 04: Gangtey – Paro (2250m) – Retrace the same route from Gangtey to Paro & today’s it’s a bit longer drive about 4-5 hours. Again pass along Dochula pass and one more time to witness the spectacular Himalayan panorama.

Day 05: In Paro ‘Taktsang Monastery aka Tiger’s Nest Hike – Early in the morning, hike to Taktsang Monastery ‘Tiger’s Nest’ (3120m). Then visit Kyichu Lhakhang & Paro Ringpung Dzong.

Day 06: Paro Depart- Transfer the airport for the onward flight.

Day 01 :

Arrive Paro (2250m) & transfer to Thimphu (2350m)

Arrive Paro by the Bhutanese National Carrier flying over the world’s highest mountains including Mt. Everest. As you step down from the plane, a cool and clean fresh air greets the visitor, the first gift of Bhutan. After clearing customs and visa formalities, meet the representatives and the Bhutanese guide, head out to Paro town for lunch.

Then drive to Thimphu (1 hour drive) & sightseeing round Thimphu visiting many landmarks like Buddha Terrance, Takin Preserve to see Takin – Bhutan’s national animal, Tashichoe Dzong, Memorial Chorten – a monument erected in memory of Bhutan’s third king H.M. Jigme Dorji Wangchu, Centenary Farmers Market, the new authentic craft bazaar, National Institute of Traditional Medicine, Folk Heritage Museum – a 300 year old traditional house converted into a museum. Overnight at Hotel in Thimphu (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner included)

Day 02 :

Thimphu – Punakha (1310m

After breakfast, drive to Punakha from Thimphu for about 2-3 hours. After steeply climbing through the pine & cedar forests come Dochula pass (3,050 m). The pass commands panoramic Himalayan views of the eastern mountains in a clear day. After stopping here for tea and witnessing spectacular Himalayan panorama, the road descends along a series of hairpin bends to the fertile valley of Punakha. En-route Punakha, take a short hike to Chimi Lhakhang ‘the fertility temple’ built in 1499 dedicated to Drukpa Kunley. Today mostly visited by the women who couldn’t bear Children, thus also known as the temple of fertility. In Punakha, visit Punakha Dzong crossing the bridge. It’s the ancient capital of Bhutan connecting the Mo Chu & Pho Chu Rivers. It is also the winter capital for the monks and the Je Khenpo (chief abbot) Overnight at Hotel in Punakha (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner included)

Day 03 :

Punakha – Gangtey (2320m)

After breakfast, drive to Gangtey via Wangdue. The drive is through winding mountain road passing along oak and rhododendron forests, over the high pass and down to the Phobijikha Valley considered one of the most beautiful glacial valleys in Bhutan. Phobijikha Valley is also the chosen home for the black necked cranes that migrate from Tibetan plateau during winter. Visit the Gangtey Monastery and just down below the monastery, go for the Gangtey nature trail hike for about 1 & half hour through the jungle before emerging to the valley floor. Overnight at Hotel in Gangtey (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner included)

Day 04 :

Gangtey – Paro (2250m)

Drive back to Paro retracing the same route for about 5 hours’ overland drive. Ascend back to the pass from Phobijikha Valley rejoin the main east-west highway just beneath the Pele La pass. Then descend to Wangdu town with changing vegetation and continue west again climbing up to Dochula pass with another opportunity to witness the spectacular eastern Himalayas and finally descend to the Thimphu Valley. Overnight at Hotel in Paro (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner included)

Day 05 :

Paro – Hike to Taktsang Monastery ‘Tiger’s Nest’ (3120m)

Early in the morning, drive to the base of Taktsang for the hike up to the monastery. Start the hike up until reaching the cafeteria which takes about 2 hours. From here enjoy spectacular view of the Taktsang Monastery. Further hike from the cafeteria (the half-way point) will reach the monastery where it’s believed that Guru Padmasambhava landed on the back of a tigress in 8th century.

After breakfast drive towards the base camp of Taktsang for the hike up to the Taktsang Monastery-Tiger’s Nest. It’s about two hours hike up the cafeteria. From this point, enjoy the spectacular view of the monastery, where Guru Padmasambhava landed on the back of a tigress in 8th century. Then visit the Taktsang Monastery and hike back to the road point then drive to Kyichu Lhakhang, one of the oldest and most sacred shrines in Bhutan. Visit the Paro Rignpung Dzong in 1646 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the first spiritual and temporal ruler of Bhutan. Afterwards, back to hotel. Overnight at Hotel in Paro (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner included)

Day 06 :

Paro – depart

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your onward flight. Bid farewell to the remote and legendary Dragon Kingdom disappearing again behind its guardian mountains. (Breakfast only)

Note

Visas to Bhutan
All citizens except India, Bangladesh and Maldives require visa to enter Bhutan. It requires a readable color copy of your passport and the passport should have at least six months of validity from your Bhutan exit date. Visa fee is US$40 per person. Tour’s full payment must be made before your arrival in Bhutan as per the tourism council of Bhutan – TCB.

Visa procedures
To apply for the visa, you need to send a clear copies of your passports to your travel agent in JPEG or PDF formats via mail. Upon full tour payment receipt, the tourism council of Bhutan then issues the visa clearance letter to your travel agent which in turn will send it to you. Please bring this letter and show at the Paro International Airport in order to get your passport stamped with the actual Bhutan visa. Please note that the VISA service is not offered in Bhutan, travelers have to buy full service package from the local tour operator. Printed copy of visa letter also needs to be shown during the check-in at the Druk Air counter. Entering Bhutan overland via Phuentsholing or Samdrup Jokhar, one needs to produce the visa letter at the immigration office.

Accommodation
There’s a wide selection of hotels in Bhutan from 3 star to world-class 5 star hotels at the prominent places like Paro, Thimphu, Punakha, Gangtey etc. 3-5 star hotel are officially government approved hotels. Besides, there’s hundreds of standard and budget hotel scattered throughout Bhutan including homestays, farm house stays. Travelers daily cost includes stays at the 3 star hotels and using 4 star or 5 star will require additional premium. Top 5 star hotels in Bhutan include Le-meridian, Taj Tashi, Como Uma etc.

Meals
During Bhutan stay all meals are included from breakfast to lunch and dinner. Breakfast and dinners will be at the hotels where travelers are staying and lunch might be at the restaurant during the sightseeing tour. However, on the last day of the tour the travel agent are oblige to provide breakfast only and any lunch/dinner will be traveler’s on own. Meals in Bhutan include mix of Indian, continental including Bhutan special cuisines such as Ema Datshi, Momos etc.

Transportation
Traveling in Bhutan is easy nowadays with Bhutan rapidly developing it’s infrastructures on it’s road-system. Until 1961 traveling in Bhutan was quite difficult with no proper means of transportation in the country. One has to travel either on foot or on mule/horse back. After 1961 modern road construction began with most of the districts and towns getting interconnected via roadways. Nowadays comfortable ground transports and public vehicles are accessible in major cities. Different luxurious cars, SUVs, buses and coaster buses are available for tourists.

Guides
Every guide in Bhutan must complete a training course so that visitors get high quality professional service. Over 1000 licensed active tours guides are working in the country. Guides specialize either in cultural or adventure tours. All Bhutanese guides are helpful and friendly and proficient in English. Many guides have also learnt other languages like German, Japanes, Thai or others for better communication with travelers from these countries. All tour operators must employ only registered and certified guides.

How to get Bhutan
There are two options to get into Bhutan by air or by land. One can fly to Bhutan and land at the only international airport of Bhutan – the Paro International Airport. Alternatively, by land one can enter Bhutan via Phuentsholing from west connecting with Bagdogra Airport, Siliguri-West Bengal or Kakarbhitta-Nepal. Gelephu is the entry point if you are travelling from the central region and Samdrup Jongkhar from the east. Exiting through Samdrup Jongkhar in southeast Bhutan is to connect with Guwahati of India. From Guwahati, you may fly into other Indian cities like Delhi, Bombay or Kolkata. Even though Bhutan shares its border with Tibet, there are not treaties established yet to open the border crossing between these two countries.

Flights to Bhutan
Only two airlines connect Bhutan with the rest of the world, Druk Air (the national flag carrier) & Bhutan Airlines (Privately owned air). These airlines fly into the Paro International Airport in Paro – the only international airport in Bhutan. They too flies from certain cities only like Kathmandu, Delhi, Singapore, Bangkok, Kolkata, Bagdogra. Airlines flight schedules changes by season but there are several flights per week from Kathmandu, New Delhi, Singapore and Bangkok, either direct or via Dhaka, Kolkata or Bagdogra. Flights into Paro are dependent upon the weather conditions due to geographical location of Paro airport, so flight timings are subject to change. Therefore, all passengers are advised to maintain a minimum of 24 hours connection time to avoid disconnection.

Best time to visit Bhutan
Best time to visit Bhutan is spring (March-May) and Autumn/fall (September-November). Weather mostly remains clear during spring during when mystifying beauty of nature can be witnessed and varieties of flowers and plants bloom. June-August is the summer season and monsoon starts from June. Fall (Sep-Nov) is the another high season after spring during when tourist arrives Bhutan for festivals like Thimphu tshechu, Gangtey tshechu, Jambay Lhakhang drup. Winter season (Dec-Feb) isn’t crowded during when temperature level goes down (even below freezing point) and Bhutan may see snow fall. Trekking won’t be possible at high elevations in winter due to snow.