Central Bhutan Tour Trip Overview
Discover the best places to visit in Bhutan with Nepal Trekking Routes’ 9-day Central Bhutan Tour. As one of the most popular tours in Bhutan, you’ll be able to explore all over the Central Valley including Bhutan’s capital city Thimpu, and the famous Tiger’s Nest Monastery! Possible to book the whole year around, this tour in Bhutan is suitable for young and old. Visit the country of the Thunder Dragon and book today the Central Bhutan tour of 9 days with Nepal Trekking Routes!
Central Bhutan Tour Trip highlights
- Visit the most famous places in Central Bhutan; Thimpu, Punakha/Wangdue, Bumthang & Paro
- Sightseeing at the most important landmarks, Dzongs & markets
- Explore ancient Buddhist Monasteries
- Sightsee at the world-famous Tiger’s Nest Monastery in Paro
- An All-Inclusive tour with private transportation (as per itinerary)
Sightseeing in Thimpu, Bhutan
The start of the Central Bhutan tour takes place after a scenic landing at Paro’s international airport. At the arrival section, our Nepal Trekking Routes guide as well as our local Bhutanese guide will be awaiting you. After a short meet & greet, we head to your private vehicle which is included in the Central Bhutan tour package, and prepare for a short drive to Thimpu. As the capital of Bhutan, Thimpu has a lot of sightseeing places. While you must be wary of a journey to Bhutan, we plan to go sightseeing for a full day in Thimpu the next day.
It’s your first morning on the Central Bhutan tour, and we have lots of places to visit! Our team will give an earlier wake-up call and make sure that your breakfast is ready by the time you are ready. For our first stop during the Thimpu sightseeing tour we visit the iconic and possibly most visible landmark the city has to offer, the Memorial Chorten! Followed by a visit to the over-fifty-year-old Zilukha Nunnery and a visit to the Takin Sanctuary. Here you get to see a one-of-a-kind animal and the national animal of Bhutan.
Now approaching midday we head over to the Institute of Medicinal Services and the Cultural Textile and Heritage Museum. After a full half-day of sightseeing at some of Thimpu’s best sightseeing places, you must be hungry! We have a delicious Bhutanese lunch before continuing on the tour of Bhutan’s capital city. In the afternoon we head on to the Traditional School of Arts & Crafts and lastly, we explore the old Tashichho Dzong monastery. What a day! In the evening a delicious Bhutanese dinner awaits us. The next day we depart Thimpu and head on with the Central Bhutan Tour.
Punakha, the old capital and Bumthang
It takes a few hours to drive to the old capital of Bhutan, Punakha. Along the way, we stop at the iconic and scenic Dochu La Mountain Pass. At an elevation of 3,150m/10,335ft, this Pass offers excellent vantage points over the surrounding mountains and valley. Continuing with our journey, we reach Punakha just about lunchtime.
Having checked into your hotel in Punakha and having enjoyed a delicious lunch, we go sightseeing around our second city during the tour around Central Bhutan. First, we visit the second largest and oldest Dzong in Bhutan. Located at the river, which is also used for rafting the Punakha Dzong is one of the most beautiful landmarks in Bhutan! Afterward, we visit the Temple of Fertility or the Chhimi Lhakhang. Depending on your interest we can also visit the evening markets of Wangdue before returning to the hotel in Punakha for dinner and overnight.
We leave Punakha in the morning after breakfast and head for Bumthang. The drive is incredibly scenic and we drive across our second Mountain Pass the Pele La (3,420m/11,221ft). Before reaching Bumthang we stop at Trongsa to visit the Nepal Swayambunath Stupa’s Chendebji Chorten and the Trongsa Dzong, another highlight of the Central Bhutan tour. It’ll be too late to go exploring once we reach Bumthang and after checking into the hotel we take dinner and prepare to overnight. Exploring around the four valleys of Bumthang is incredible! There are three important monasteries or Lhakangs spread around Bumthang. We take the whole day to explore the central valley of Bhutan and visit the Kurje, Jampay, and Tamshing Lhakangs. In the evening we head back to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
Journey back and sightseeing in Paro
It’ll take two days to reach back at Paro. We drive back the way we came from and make an overnight stop at Thimpu once more. During this day and night, we suggest going exploring around the markets for the last time you might find some nice souvenirs you must. On day 6 of the Central Bhutan tour, we drive back to Paro, after visiting the Tibetan Refugee Village of Honshu. We’’ reach back around lunch and take the rest of the day free for self-exploration or rest.
The next day morning, after breakfast we have another major highlight of the Central Bhutan tour. We go to visit the famous Taktsang Monastery, iconic and one of Bhutan’s most impressive monasteries. The Tiger’s Nest Monastery is located on top of a cave entrance on the side of the mountain! The hike up takes a few hours, and for those less fit, ponies can be hired to head up the ridge to the monastery. After taking our time exploring around this huge and most impressive Buddhist Monastery Complex we head back to the hotel for lunch. In the afternoon we go sightseeing at the old ruined fort called the Drukgyel Dzong and visit the Kyichu Monastery.
This is Bhutan’s oldest monastery said to guard various spiritual and cultural masterpieces! In the late afternoon, we head back to the hotel. As per your interest Nepal Trekking Routes does recommend taking the chance and visiting the old markets of Paro as well as it is your last night during the Central Bhutan tour. We have dinner and overnight at your hotel in Paro. The next day we head back to the airport and conclude the Central Bhutan tour of 9 days. See the best of Bhutan and book today with Nepal Trekking Routes!
