Day 01: Arrival at Paro (2250 m) from Kathmandu and transfer to Thimphu.

After your flight lands in Paro. You will meet our representative at the airport and will be driven to Thimphu. Check-in hotel. Later if time permits visit the Tashicheo dzong.

Day 02: Sightseeing in Thimphu(2350m) and after lunch drive to Punakha.

Memorial Chorten, where the older people continuously circumambulated, murmuring mantras and spinning their prayer wheels. Construction of this landmark was the idea of Bhutan’s 3rd king, His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuk (“the father of modern Bhutan”) who wished to erect a monument to world peace and prosperity. Completed in 1974 after his untimely death, it serves both as a memorial to the Late King and as a monument to peace.

Zorig Chusum (commonly known as the Painting School) where students undergo a 6-year training course in Bhutan’s 13 traditional arts and crafts. Later visit the Folk Heritage Museum, a fascinating testimony of the Bhutanese material culture and living traditions.

Phelchey Toenkhyim (Folk Heritage Museum), is dedicated to connecting people to the Bhutanese rural past through exhibits, demonstrations, educational programs, and documentation of rural life. The principal exhibit in the museum is a restored three-story traditional building, rammed with mud and timber, which dates back to mid 19th century. To present a typical Bhutanese rural setting flavor, paddy, wheat, and millet fields, a traditional watermill (with millstones that dates back more than 150 years), traditional style kitchen gardens with vegetables that were grown and consumed over 100 years, and the famous hot stone bath complement the museum building and exhibition within. Takin, the national animal of Bhutan is said to be created by Lam Drukpa Kinley, you will visit his monastery tomorrow.

Buddha Point: The Kuensel Phodrang or the Buddha Point is the world’s largest sitting Buddha statue, the statue is 167 feet high. The statue is situated on top of a hill overlooking the city of Thimphu, it can be accessed by road and is about 15 minutes away from the city’s center. The word Kuensel means everything is clear and from this place, you will surely enjoy a great view of the Thimphu Valley on both sides. The statute will house a temple inside it, the statue, and its adjoining car park and recreational center.

After lunch drive to Punakha(driving hour 2.30hrs), the old capital of Bhutan. Drive over a pass (Dochu-la 3150m) La in Bhutanese means pass. There are 108 Chorten called “Druk Wangyel Chorten” with colorful prayer flags surrounding the area, which makes you fresh and feel at peace. Visit the Druk Wangyel monastery.

If the sky is clear this provides the best place to see and take photos of Himalayan snow-capped mountain ranges which border Tibet(China), the following are the names of the peaks which can be seen from this pass (left to right): Masagang (7,158m), Tsendagang (6,960m), Terigang (7,060m), Jejegangphugang (7,158 m ), Kangphugang (7,170 m ), Zongphugang (7, 060 m ), a table mountain that dominates the isolated region of Lunana - finally Gangkar plenum, the highest peak in Bhutan at 7,497m. After that, we drive down the hill till we feel the warm air of Punakha Valley. Overnight in Punakha.

Day 03: Sightseeing in Punakha (1350 m) and after lunch drive to Paro.
After breakfast visit: 

Punakha Dzong: The Dzong was built in 1637 by the unifier Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal and it was named Pungthang Dechen Phodrang (Palace of Great Happiness). The Dzong is beautifully located in between the two rivers called Pho (male) and Mo (female) Chhu (river). The Dzong is surrounded by stories and myths, and you just have to ask your guide or local people they will have some great stories of the past. It was the capital of Bhutan till 1955. The establishment of the Wangchuck dynasty on 17th December 1907 took place here and the first National Assembly was also held in the Dzong in 1953. Punakha Dzong continues to be the winter residence of the Je Khenpo (Chief Abbot) and the central monk body. The war materials captured during the Tibetan invasion can be found in the dzong.

Chimi Lhakhang is a small 15th-century temple famous for its fertility endowments/rites due to the blessings of Lam Drukpa Kuenley is west known as Devine Mad Man. The temple sits on a hillock shape, as only Drukpa Kuenley could describe it “like a woman’s breast”. The word ‘Chimi’translates as “No Dog” and is traced to the story of how Drukpa Kuenley subdued the demons of Dochula. Lam Drukpa Kuenley had followed the demons of Dochula down to the valley of Punakha and Wangdue. It is believed that the demons had disguised herself in a form of a dog. He then subdued the dog and buried it under a mound of earth, marking the place with a stupa and making a prophecy that a temple would be built on the spot in the future.

The temple houses the Lam’s iron bow and arrow, a small altar Chorten made by the Lam himself, and some of his personal effects scriptures. A wooden effigy of Drukpa Kuenley’s male organ is used to bless pilgrims, particularly childless couples or those who have suffered miscarriages or early deaths of their children. Children born under such circumstances under the patronage of Drukpa Kuenley are often named Kuenley or Chimi in honor of the saint and the place. After visiting Chimi Lhakhang you will have lunch in a restaurant facing the Lhakhang. After lunch drive to Paro.                

Day 04: Day excursion to Haa Valley (2,670 m). 

Haa Valley: The ancestral home of the Royal Grandmother and the Dorji family, the Haa district is undoubtedly one of the most picturesque districts in the country. The district adjoins the districts of Paro, Chhukha, and Samtse, covering an area of 1706 sq. Km. It is one of the smallest districts in the country. Legend says that the Haa Valley, before the 8th century, was wrapped up in animist tradition. Still, some elements of this belief system exist in the form of festivals and rituals. The tantric master Padmasambhava visited the valley in the 8th century and transformed some blood-sacrificing animist beliefs into peaceful Buddhist traditions. Ap Chundu and several other deities, once hostile animist forces, were subdued and made the guardians of the land. Visit the Lhakhang Karpo and Nagpo, Explore the two great temples namely the White (Lhakhang Karpo) and the Black (Lhakhang Nagpo). The temples are both located in the tiny village of Dumchoe. Lhakhang Karpo can be distinguished by its sparkling white walls while Lhakhang Nagpo is easily distinguished by its grayish-black wall.  The temples are both located in the foothills of the three towering identical mountains venerated as Rigsum Gonpo. Mesmerize yourself with the stories of how the temples and the mountains were formed. They represent the essence of Wisdom, Knowledge, and Subjugation. Maybe you can draw your parables here. The people of Haa have a tradition of going on pilgrimage to the temples and you can join the pilgrims on foot. Later visit the monastery of the local deity, Ap Chundu, and drive back to Paro. Overnight in Paro. 

Day 05: Visit Taktshang (3,120 m)“The Tiger’s Nest”

Taktshang: After an early breakfast visit the Tiger’s Nest (Taktshang) Hike up to the famous cliff hermitage called Taktsang, the “Tiger’s Nest.” This monastic retreat is built into a sheer cliff face, high above the Paro Valley. The Buddhist saint Padmasambhava flew across the Himalayas on the back of a tiger and landed here, bringing Buddhism to Bhutan. The trail to the monastery climbs through a beautiful pine forest and an occasional grove of fluttering prayer flags. Taktsang was damaged severely by fire in 1998 and restored a new one which looks like the old one but is more elegant looking. Have lunch at the Cafeteria when you walk back from the Taktshang.

Rinpung Dzong: Built in 1646 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the “fortress of the heap of jewels“ stands on a hill above Paro Township. The approach to the Dzong is through a traditional covered bridge (called the Nemi Zam) and then up a paved stone path running alongside the imposing outer walls. The valley’s annual springtime religious festival, the Paro Tsechu, takes place in the courtyard of the Dzong and on the dance ground on the hillside above the Dzong.

Kyichu Lhakhang: This Lhakhang(monastery), built in the 7th century, is one of the two oldest and most sacred shrines in Bhutan (the other being Jambey Lhakhang in Bumthang). Kyichu Lhakhang is composed of twin temples. The first temple was built by the Tibetan king, Songtsen Gampo in the 7th century. In 1968, H.M. Ashi Kesang, the Queen Mother of Bhutan, arranged for a second temple to be built alongside the first one, in the same style. Later in the evening take a stroll in Paro town. Later in the afternoon take some rest and you can do some shopping in Paro town. Overnight in Paro.

Day 06: Fly back to your onward destination.

After breakfast, drive to the airport for your onward destination. Our representative will help you with exit formalities and bid you farewell.