6 nights / 7 days · Kingdom of Bhutan

Bhutan with Two Nights in Punakha

The five-night route with the Punakha half opened out — the Khamsum Yuelley hike, the nunnery on the ridge, and Taktsang to finish.

Plan this trip See the day-by-day

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Duration: 6 nights / 7 days
Where you stay: Thimphu → Punakha → Paro
Style: Multi-city

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About this trip

Structurally the five-night programme with one more night in the middle valley. Everything else holds: two nights in Thimphu, the Dochula crossing, two nights in Paro, Taktsang on the penultimate day. What the extra night buys is one of the better walking days in the country.

Day four climbs two hours round trip to the Khamsum Yuelley Namgyel Chorten, built by the Queen Mother, which stands over the upper Punakha valley with the Mo Chhu below and the peaks above Gasa beyond. The afternoon goes to Sangchhen Dorji Lhuendrup Lhakhang, a nunnery on a pine ridge looking over two valleys, holding a fourteen-foot bronze Avalokiteshvara made entirely by Bhutanese artisans. Punakha Dzong moves to this day too.

What you go for

Khamsum Yuelley Namgyel Chorten, two hours on foot
Sangchhen Dorji Lhuendrup Lhakhang and its fourteen-foot Avalokiteshvara
Dochula pass and the 108 Druk Wangyal chortens
Taktsang Monastery, about five and a half hours return

The route

Day by day

Times are the operator's planned schedule. They shift with the season, the light and the traffic on the day.

Day 1
Arrive Paro, transfer to Thimphu
Overnight: Thimphu
Morning
The mountain approach
On a clear day one of the more remarkable arrivals in aviation, whether the leg runs along the range from Kathmandu or over the foothills from Kolkata. Our representative meets you after immigration and customs formalities.
Buddha Point (Kuensel Phodrang)
A short drive from the centre of Thimphu for the panoramic view down the valley — the Buddha Dordenma statue, Simthokha Dzong and the city below.
Evening
Check in at your hotel in Thimphu. Dinner at the hotel.
Day 2
Thimphu sightseeing
Overnight: Thimphu
Morning
Breakfast at the hotel.
Simply Bhutan
The recently commissioned museum of Bhutanese architecture and older ways of living, staged rather than glassed in.
Motithang Takin Preserve
A protected area for the takin, Bhutan’s national animal, made a preserve rather than a zoo so the animals move freely. Half an hour on the path is enough.
Afternoon
Textile Museum and the Craft Bazaar
After lunch, weaving set out by technique and by the styles of local dress, then the Craft Bazaar with hand-woven textiles and craft products from across the country.
Evening
Dinner and overnight in Thimphu.
Day 3
Over Dochula to Punakha
Overnight: Punakha
Morning
Breakfast, then the drive east over the pass.
Dochula Pass
The 108 Druk Wangyal chortens in tiers at the top of the climb, and the landscape opening out behind them.
Chimi Lhakhang
The temple of fertility on its hillock in the centre of the valley, reached on foot through the village and the fields.
Afternoon
The suspension bridge
Around 520 feet over the Tsang Chu, linking Punakha Dzong to Shengana, Samdingkha and Wangkha, hung end to end with prayer flags and steadier underfoot than it looks. The east bank is the trailhead for several multi-day treks.
Evening
Back to the hotel. Dinner and overnight in Punakha.
Day 4
A full day in Punakha
Overnight: Punakha
Morning
Breakfast at the hotel.
Khamsum Yuelley Namgyel Chorten
About two hours round trip on foot. The chorten was built by the Queen Mother to turn away negative forces and hold peace and stability in a changing world, and it commands the upper Punakha valley — the Mo Chhu below, the peaks above Gasa and beyond in the distance. There is a long suspension bridge on the walk.
Afternoon
Sangchhen Dorji Lhuendrup Lhakhang
A nunnery on a ridge among pine, looking over the Punakha and Wangduephodrang valleys. Inside is a fourteen-foot bronze Avalokiteshvara, one of the largest in the country and the work of Bhutanese artisans throughout.
Punakha Dzong
On the way back: the Palace of Great Happiness, built in 1637 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal at the junction of the Pho Chhu and Mo Chhu. Some 600 feet by 240, six storeys, a gold-domed tower, and courtyards that carry the weight of the place.
Evening
Dinner and overnight in Punakha.
Day 5
Punakha to Paro
Overnight: Paro
Morning
Breakfast, then the drive west.
Tamchog Lhakhang
A stop at the old bridge below the temple, which is the photograph everyone takes on this road.
Afternoon
Ta Dzong and Rinpung Dzong
The watchtower that now holds the National Museum, then Rinpung Dzong below it.
Evening
Dinner and rest at the hotel in Paro.
Day 6
Taktsang, then Paro town
Overnight: Paro
Morning
Breakfast at the hotel.
Full day
The climb to the Tiger’s Nest
About five and a half hours on foot, to a monastery on the side of a cliff 900 metres above the Paro valley floor. Guru Rinpoche is said to have arrived on the back of a tigress and meditated here.
Evening
Paro town
The handicraft shops on the main street, which are the best-stocked of the trip.
Day 7
Departure
Morning
Early breakfast, then the drive to Paro airport for your onward flight. Our representative runs through the exit formalities.

Where you stay

Hotel options

Pick a line and the whole trip is costed against it, so you can see what the difference actually buys.

3★ Deluxe
- Thimphu — Lhayuel Hotel or Cholay Khangzang, 2 nights
- Punakha — White Dragon or Punakha Boutique, 2 nights
- Paro — Taktshang Village Lodge or Dorjiling, 2 nights
Quoted on enquiry
4★ Deluxe
- Thimphu — Capital Hotel or Overland Thimphu, 2 nights
- Punakha — RKPO Green Resort or Lobesa Boutique, 2 nights
- Paro — Tashi Namgay Resort or Resort Thim Dorji, 2 nights
Quoted on enquiry
5★ Deluxe
- Thimphu — Le Meridien or Yarkay Seleqtion, 2 nights
- Punakha — Dhensa Boutique, 2 nights
- Paro — Le Meridien or Dawa at the Hill Top, 2 nights
Quoted on enquiry

Per person, twin share. Land only — international flights are not included. Rates move with the season, the number of you travelling and the hotel line you choose, so we confirm the final figure against your dates before anything is booked.

The detail

What is included

Included

Six nights — two in Thimphu, two in Punakha, two in Paro — on the hotel line you choose above.
Accommodation as set out in the hotel options above.
All transfers and sightseeing as set out in the day-by-day.
An accompanying English-speaking guide throughout.
Meals on a MAP basis: breakfast and dinner daily.
Two 500ml bottles of mineral water per person, per day.
Private vehicle sized to the party — an SUV for two travelling, a Toyota HiRoof for three to six, a Toyota Coaster for seven to fifteen.
Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Fee, included in the package. No amount is quoted for it separately; we confirm what applies to your party in writing with your quotation.

Not included

Airfare and airport taxes.
Entrance fees at the sights named in the day-by-day.
Lunch.
Tea and snacks.
Beverages, alcoholic and non-alcoholic.
Insurance of any kind, and medical expenses.
Expenses of a personal nature — tipping, laundry, telephone and fax calls, camera and video fees.

Meal upgrades

Half board as standard: Every programme is quoted on MAP: breakfast and dinner daily. Full board is not offered on any of the five.
Lunch, tea and snacks: Not included on any of the five programmes, including on the days where the itinerary names a lunch stop. There is no published add-on rate, so we quote them with the package.
Beverages: Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks sit outside the package price on every programme.

Entry rules, tourism taxes and health requirements change without notice and depend on your passport. Everything above is confirmed by our operations desk before your booking is finalised.

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