Eight nights, the complete west.

Our representatives meet you at Bagdogra and bring you to Phuentsholing, the border town where India ends and Bhutan begins. With permits arranged, we press on the same day to Thimphu, the mountain capital, arriving in the cool of the evening.

OvernightHotel Thimphu City

A full day among the capital's treasures. We visit the great Buddha Dordenma on his hilltop, the takin preserve — home to Bhutan's curious national animal — and the viewpoints that frame the whole valley. After a quick lunch we step into "Simply Bhutan," a living museum of custom and craft, before a gentle tour of the city.

OvernightHotel Thimphu City

We climb to the Dochula Pass, where 108 chortens built by the Queen Mother crown the ridge and the spring sky throws open the whole Himalayan range. Here stands Druk Wangyal Lhakhang, raised in honour of the Fourth King — a temple whose murals seem to hold both the past and the future at once.

Descending into warmth, we visit Chimi Lhakhang, the fertility temple of the beloved Divine Madman, and the mighty Punakha Dzong, built in 1637 at the confluence of the male and female rivers — the very place where Bhutan's first king was crowned.

OvernightPunatsangchhu Cottages, Punakha

After breakfast we travel up to the glacial valley of Phobjikha. At the Black-Necked Crane Centre we learn the story of these winter visitors from Tibet, and we visit Gangtey Monastery, one of the oldest seats of the Nyingma school. On the way back we pause at Nobding to walk among its villages beneath a clear Himalayan sky.

OvernightPunatsangchhu Cottages, Punakha

We recross the mountains toward Paro, stopping at Simtokha Dzong — built in 1629, the oldest fortress in the country. Arriving in Paro, we visit the National Museum in its round watchtower and the stately Rinpung Dzong, "the fortress on a heap of jewels," then walk down to the old cantilever bridge below. The evening is yours among the handicraft shops of Paro town.

OvernightGonju Boutique, Paro

A gentler day to draw breath before the big climb. We explore more of the Paro valley at an easy pace — its temples, its riverside paths, its shops and cafés — and, for those who wish, unwind in a traditional hot-stone bath, the river stones heated in a fire and dropped hissing into the water. It is the Bhutanese cure for tired legs and busy minds alike.

OvernightGonju Boutique, Paro

The day of the great pilgrimage. We climb toward Taktsang, the Tiger's Nest, where Guru Rinpoche is said to have meditated for three months in the eighth century. It is roughly an hour and a half to the viewpoint café, and as much again to the monastery itself, clinging to its cliff across a narrow gorge. We rest, we marvel, we descend — and reward ourselves that evening with a hot-stone bath.

OvernightGonju Boutique, Paro

Today we cross the Chele La, Bhutan's highest road pass, prayer flags streaming in the wind, and drop into the hidden Haa valley on the far side — quiet, green and far from the tourist trail. We spend the day exploring before returning over the pass to Paro, with the evening free for shopping and a last wander through town.

OvernightGonju Boutique, Paro

After breakfast our team drives you back down to Phuentsholing and on to Bagdogra airport for your onward flight. Tashi Delek — travel well, and come again.