Bhutan by the Mystical Trail of the Thunder Dragon (Private)

Our first day together is dedicated to arrivals. A member of your LHO Team will be waiting for you at the airport. After arriving in Bhutan, we’ll be leaving Paro to the west by road, and after driving through pine and rhododendron forest, we begin our climb to the Chele La pass (4,200 meters), the highest mountain pass in Bhutan. A 22km drive from the top of the pass brings us to the former restricted zone of Haa.

The drive will take us to the hotel to rest, shower and have our first dinner together. The welcome dinner, hosted by your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide, is the first opportunity for you to meet everyone, hear a detailed briefing about our adventure, and ask any questions you may have. We’ll also be checking your gear to make sure you have everything you need for all the activities we’ll be doing.

After breakfast, we’ll be checking out of our accommodation, loading up our private bus, and heading east in the direction of Punakha. The drive to Punakha heads up to the Dochula Pass, where we’ll disembark our bus to begin our first trek of this adventure to Tashigang Goemba (3,600 meters). The trail begins along the roadside before veering off and ascending through a deep forest. Although the ascent is substantial overall, the trail itself is very gradual and can easily be done when taken at a slow and steady pace. Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide will be there to help you find a sustainable pace for yourself. As we approach the high point, the trees begin to thin as they start opening up to large meadows. That’s a sign that we’ve almost reached our high point for this trek. Finally, we’ll reach a series of prayer flags that indicate the arrival to a holy place. At the top is a temple where we’ll stop for a break and to enjoy the spectacular views of the Bhutanese Himalayas. We’ll also have a snack at the top before beginning our descent back to the Dochula Pass where a hot lunch awaits. The total walking time for this hike tends to be close to 5 hours and can be cut shorter for those of us who prefer not to exert ourselves too much. After lunch, we’ll continue to Punakha by a private bus and check-in to our hotel. If time permits, we may be able to visit the fertility temple before dinner. Dinner will be at our hotel where we’ll also go over the plan for the next day.

There’s a lot to do today, so we’ll get an early start. After breakfast, we’ll head out for a short hike up to the Khamsum Yuelley Mamgyal Chorten, a temple built to overcome the negative forces in the changing world. The trail is a gradual incline that starts at the river and winds its way up through rice paddies to the beautiful temple at the top. Ascending this trail usually takes around one hour, and the descending trail is shorter. Once back at the bus, we’ll take a short ride to the riverside to the starting point of our river rafting journey! This marks the starting point of an entirely new and wild element of this adventure as we will be traveling down the river to spend the night along an extremely remote beach in the middle of the forest. We’ll begin this part of the adventure with a safety briefing led by our rafting expert. Once the team is satisfied that we are now able to board our raft, we’ll begin our journey down the river, past the incredible Punakha Zhong and onwards into the wilderness. After a series of rapids and relaxing flats, we’ll pause on the riverside for a picnic lunch before continuing onwards to our campsite further down the river. The scenery here is spectacular. Upon arrival at our campsite, we’ll check in to our tents and prepare to participate in the food making for the evening. Our stuff will be transported to the campsite so we’ll have access to warm clothes to change into. Dinner will be under the stars against one of the most beautiful backdrops of all our LHO adventures.

Today, we’ll exit Punakha to Wangdue Phodrang, located south of Punakha and the last town before central Bhutan. The higher reaches of the Wangduephodrang Valley provide rich pastoral land for cattle. The district is famous for its fine bamboo work, stone carvings, and slate, which is mined further up a valley. Stretched along the hilltop above the confluence of the Punakha Chu and Tang Chu rivers, the fire ravaged Wangduephodrang Dzong is the town’s most visible feature.

We’ll resume the drive towards Gangtey Region, passing by rhododendron and pine forests, and the winding narrow road leads to a serene bowl shaped valley. Flanked by the enigmatic yet untouched Black Mountains and the winter abode to the migratory Black Necked Cranes, the Phobjikha Valley has an unassuming charm about it. Reaching the valley, we head to one of the farmhouses to take our lunch and try out some local produce. We then take a circular walk along the Nature Trail (2 hrs approx,) to emerge out onto the ridge, the site of the 450-year-old Gangtey Monastery, which houses one of the largest prayer halls in Bhutan and gives shelter to about 100 resident monks.

Optional: Longtey Hike – If you are looking for a picturesque hike through some of the most beautiful parts of Gangtey, this is the one. The path will lead through bush bamboo towards a small cluster of village houses. There are beautifully colored rhododendron forests on both sides of the valley, and in the winter months, yaks graze in the area. We climb up gradually through the thickets of dwarf bamboos, birch, rhododendron, hemlock and fir, to Kayche La, marked with some prayer flags. The other side of the pass is mostly meadows, and from here it is all downhill through the long and beautiful stretch of meadows and farms.

We’ll be spending the night at our hotel in Gangtey.

Cycling Distance: 18 KM | Ascent: 400 M | Descent: 1,205 M | Max Altitude: 3,100 M

On this day, we’ll be driving back to Paro taking the same route. On the way, we’ll stop for lunch at Dochulla Pass. During lunch, we will hear a briefing about our upcoming biking adventure down to Paro from the pass. We’ll be met by our local experts who will explain to us how to efficiently and safely bike on the winding road that is predominantly descending the mountain. After we’ve digested, we’ll mount our bikes and begin the incredible ride. Our private bus will be following the team from the back, so anyone who may feel tired or would like to take a break can simply stop by the roadside and wait for the bus. Our cycling adventure leads us all the way to Thimphu where we’ll jump on our bus for the short ride to Paro, our home for our remaining nights together. Once we arrive we’ll have the option to visit Paro Dzong ‘The fortress of the mountain of jewels’ which was built in 1646 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal on a hill above the township. The approach to the Dzong is through a traditional covered bridge (called the Nemi Zam) and up a paved stone path running alongside the imposing outer walls.

After our visit, we’ll check in to our accommodation, enjoy our warm showers, and have dinner together.

The classic highlight of our experience in Bhutan is the iconic Tiger’s Nest monastery. The monastery is situated on the mountainside perched high above the valley floor and is one of the most well-known Buddhist religious sites on Earth. After breakfast, we’ll make our way by a private bus to the trailhead. Here, we will have the option to either ride mules or walk the entire trail. Those of us choosing to ride mules will have to disembark at the midpoint of the trail to continue the rest of the way on foot. The trail to the midpoint is inside a pine forest that quickly begins to thin as we gain a little bit of altitude. It is possible to gain glimpses of the monastery between the trees towering high above. At the midway point is a tea house where we’ll stop for a break. For any of us who may have overpacked, it is possible to leave some stuff here since we’ll be returning to the tea house for lunch. From here, we’ll follow a series of staircases that wind up the side of the mountain, leading first to the famous viewpoint of the monastery and then to the monastery itself. The trail takes about two hours to complete from the midpoint. Once we arrive, we’ll be taken on a guided tour. For those of us who’d like to just sit and meditate or enjoy the experience on our own, this is entirely possible. We’ll set up a meeting point and time for everyone to get together for the descent. Lunch will be at a tea house at the midpoint on the trail. From there, we’ll descend on foot back down through the forest until we reach the bus. In the afternoon, there is a tourist market at the exit of the trail. We’ll give everyone enough time to explore it before heading into the center of Paro for some free time to explore the shops and market streets of this vibrant Bhutanese town. The last leg of our adventure is a trip to The Farm, a cultural destination just outside Paro where we’ll be treated to traditional archery lessons, have a traditional hot stone bath, and enjoy a cultural show with our last team dinner. We’ll be taken back to our accommodation by a private bus after the gala dinner at Zhiwaling Heritage 5* hotel.

The last day is dedicated to airport transfers. Breakfast at the hotel is included. Please be sure to include the correct departure information when filling out your team details form before the trip start date. If any information has changed or may be incorrect, please inform your Team Leader as soon as possible for arrangements to be made.