Festivals of Bhutan

Start in Kathmandu and transfer to our hotel. The evening is free to relax.

Today we fly to Paro. The flight is one of the most spectacular mountain
flights in the world and takes us over the eastern Himalayas. If the weather
is clear, we should get a fantastic view of much of the eastern half of the
Himalaya, including Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Makalu and Kanchenjunga. The
Paro Valley is considered to be one of the most beautiful valleys in Bhutan,
with blue pine-covered hills and attractive solidly built houses among the
paddy fields. If there is the time in the afternoon there will be a visit to
visit the museum, dzong or the Kyichu Lakang; one of the oldest temples in
Bhutan built by the 7th century Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo.

Today we have an hour’s drive to Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan. The
capital of Bhutan was Punakha until 1961 when the 3rd King changed it to
Thimpu. The rest of the day is spent exploring Thimpu, where there is plenty
to see and do. The main sights include the Memorial chorten, built in 1974 in
honour of the 3rd King, Kuensel Phodrang, known locally as Buddha Point,
where there is a huge statue of Buddha overlooking the whole of the valley.
Tashi Chho Dzong is the main dzong and seat of government and usually only
open after 5 pm. Other places of interest are Semthoka Dzong, the Takin
Reserve, the Folk Heritage Museum, an Arts and Crafts School, the textile
museum, the Post Office where you can get your own stamps made, plus the
market is interesting to explore. If we do not see everything today, we have
more time in Thimpu on our return.

We leave Thimphu in the morning and drive east to Punakha. The route climbs
its way steadily on a good road to the Dochula Pass, where there are 108
chortens. At 3050m (10,000ft) the views over the eastern Himalaya are
magnificent although this is most definitely weather dependent! We then
descend to the valley floor and continue to sub-tropical Punakha. En-route we
visit the Chimmi Lhakhang, built in 1499 to honour one of the more folkloric
saints of Bhutan, Drukpa Kuenley. Nicknamed the Divine Madman or Mad Saint,
he was a maverick lama, who subdued a demon who controlled the Dochu La. He
built a chorten where the monastery stands, and he was reputed to have
unorthodox ways of teaching Buddhism by suggesting outrageous behaviour and
he was a great womaniser! He advocated the use of the phallus as a symbol to
be painted on walls and houses, which were intended to drive away the evil
eye. Most of the houses in this area are decorated with highly ornate phallic
paintings. We walk through the village to the monastery with a chance to see
the traditional Bhutanese style of farmhouses.

We continue on to Punakha, which, at an altitude of 1200m is warmer than Paro
or Thimpu. Punakha was once the capital of Bhutan and it is still the winter
residence of the monastic body. We visit the dzong, one of the most beautiful
in Bhutan and the second one to be built in 1637. This remarkable fortress is
situated between the Mo and Po Chhu Rivers and it has survived many fires, an
earthquake and several floods. Over the years it has been repaired and added
to and has several interesting features to protect it against invasion.
Overnight in Punakha or Wangdi Phodrang. Today's drive is 72km and takes
about 3 hours.

Today we leave the main road and drive up to the Lawala Pass and into the
beautiful Gangtey Valley. If it is possible, we can visit the ruins of
Wangdue Dzong, en-route. After lunch, there is plenty of time to explore one
of the most beautiful valleys in Bhutan. Often called the Phobjikha Valley,
this U-shaped glacial valley is wide with hardly any trees and gives the
impression of a vast space. There is some of the best marshland in Bhutan and
the valley is rich in flora and fauna. Look out for barking deer, sambar deer
and wild boar. Himalayan Black bears have been spotted in the valley an there
is a wealth of birdlife. It is also where the graceful Black-necked cranes
come from Tibet during the winter season to roost. The cranes usually arrive
towards the end of October and upon arrival, they fly around the monastery
three times! They spend the winter in the valley and in spring they again fly
three times around the monastery and fly back to Tibet for the summer. We can
also visit the black crane information centre and the Gangteng
Monastery. Today's drive is approximately 84km and will take 2.5 to 3 hours,
although variable road conditions may mean we spend longer on the road.

This morning we will set off on foot from our hotel and go on a walk through
the Gangtey Valley (approx. 5km/2-3 hours) - the climb up to the monastery
involves around 500m ascent. This glacial valley is made up of farmlands,
pastures and blue-pine forests. We will encounter herders caring for their
herds, which graze on the dwarf bamboo of the area. After lunch, we drive for
about 2.5/3 hours back to Wangdue Phodrang.

In the morning we drive for about 2.5-3 hours back to Thimpu. We have time in
the afternoon to see any of the sights we did not see on day 3.

The 19th September 2020 and 9th September 2021 departures will spend all day
at Thimpu Festival and will drive to Paro in the early evening.

The 19th October 2020 departure will spend all day at Dechenphu or Genekha
Festival in Thimpu and will drive to Paro in the early evening.

The 17th March 2021 departure will drive to Paro (1hrs drive) early in the
morning and spend all day at the Paro Festival.

We spend the whole day experiencing one of the many vibrant festivals in
Bhutan. During the festivals the Bhutanese gather to see the monks and lay
dancers dressed in colourful brocade and silk costumes, wearing painted masks
re-enacting the stories of the religious and lay history of Bhutan through
music and dance. For several days there are masked dances and prayer
meetings, and a general carnival atmosphere prevails as many villagers arrive
to meet old friends. The Bhutanese all dress in their finest national dress
for the festival and one of the highlights is the riot of colours of the
magnificent silks on display. Paro and Thimpu are the most popular festivals
in Bhutan whereas the one at Decehenphu is much smaller.

Today we hike (approx. 9km in total for the round trip) to Takstang
Monastery, also known as the 'Tiger’s Nest'. This spectacular building is
perched on the ledge of a cliff high above the Paro Valley. Partly destroyed
by fire in 1998, it has now been completely restored to its former
magnificence. From the car park to the cafeteria viewpoint is about 2 hours
uphill walk through the forest. From here we have incredible views of the
monastic buildings which cling impossibly to the cliff wall. For the
energetic there is the chance to walk even higher to the actual monastery.
This will take another 2 hours and involves walking up and down stone steps.
We highly recommend a trekking pole or you can buy a wooden stick at the car
park. There are horses available up to the cafeteria for those who do not
want to do the hike but please note that this is an unregulated activity and
helmets are not available. We spend about an hour at the monastery looking
around the temples (photography is not allowed inside) before descending to
the cafeteria for lunch. After lunch we return to the car park and drive back
to our hotel. There should be some time to have a look round Paro before
dinner

We transfer to the airport to check in for our flight back to Kathmandu. The
rest of the day is free for individual sightseeing or shopping. You may want
to visit the famous Durbar Square in the heart of the old city, the monkey
temple at Swayambhunath, the largest Buddhist stupa on earth at Boudhanath or
the Hindu temple at Pashupathinath. Another option is to take a taxi to
Bhaktapur, the mediaeval city 17km east of the capital. Bhaktapur has its own
Durbar Square with many temples and statues and a maze of narrow streets,
which are generally quieter than the capital. Please be aware that due to the
2015 earthquake some of these places have still not been fully rebuilt. The
Exodus representative in Kathmandu will be able to give you more information
on what there is to see.

End Kathmandu after breakfast. For those on group flights, these depart in
the morning and will arrive in the UK the same day.