Bhutan Grand Tour Fifteen Nights

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Thimphu — a 170 km, six-hour climb from the plain into the hills. The capital, and the only one in the world without a traffic light — a valley of dzongs, weaving studios and a very large seated Buddha. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Buddha Dordenma statue over the valley. Overnight in Thimphu.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Thimphu — the Tashichho Dzong, seat of the government and the Je Khenpo; the National Memorial Chorten and its circumambulating crowd; and the Folk Heritage Museum and the National Textile Museum. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Thimphu.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Thimphu — the Takin preserve, the national animal; the Simply Bhutan living museum and the weekend market; and the Cheri and Tango monasteries up the valley. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Thimphu.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Punakha — a 75 km, three-hour drive over the Dochula pass and its 108 chortens. The old winter capital at 1,200 m, warm enough for rice and oranges, with the finest dzong in the country at the meeting of two rivers. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Punakha Dzong at the confluence of the Pho Chhu and Mo Chhu. Overnight in Punakha.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Punakha — the Chimi Lhakhang fertility temple across the rice fields; the Punakha suspension bridge, one of the longest in Bhutan; and the Khamsum Yulley Namgyal Chorten and its valley walk. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Punakha.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Phobjikha — a 75 km, three-hour drive over the Pele pass. A glacial valley at 3,000 m where the black-necked cranes come down from Tibet to winter, and where the Gangtey monastery looks over the whole bowl. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the black-necked cranes, from late October to mid-February. Overnight in Phobjikha.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Trongsa — a 120 km, three-hour drive east. The ancestral seat of the royal family, its dzong strung along a ridge above a gorge, commanding the only east-west road in the country. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Trongsa Dzong, the largest fortress in Bhutan. Overnight in Trongsa.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Bumthang — a 68 km, two-and-a-half-hour drive over the Yotong pass. Four valleys that hold the oldest temples in Bhutan, the country buckwheat and its only brewery. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Jambay Lhakhang and the Kurjey Lhakhang. Overnight in Bumthang.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Bumthang — the Jakar Dzong, the castle of the white bird; the Tamshing Lhakhang and the Mebar Tsho burning lake; and the Ura valley drive and a cheese and beer tasting at Swiss Farm. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Bumthang.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Bumthang — the Jambay Lhakhang and the Kurjey Lhakhang; the Jakar Dzong, the castle of the white bird; and the Tamshing Lhakhang and the Mebar Tsho burning lake. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Bumthang.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Mongar — a 190 km, seven-hour drive over the Thrumshingla pass. The first town of the east, on a hillside reached by one of the more spectacular road descents in the Himalaya. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Mongar Dzong, built in the 1930s in the old manner. Overnight in Mongar.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Trashigang — a 90 km, three-hour drive east. The largest town of the east, above the Drangme Chhu, and the junction for Merak, Sakteng and the Indian border. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Trashigang Dzong on its cliff above the river. Overnight in Trashigang.

Breakfast at the hotel. A full day in Trashigang — the Gom Kora temple and its sacred rock; the Rangjung monastery and the Radhi weaving village; and the Trashigang Dzong on its cliff above the river. The evening is free for dinner and a walk on your own. Overnight in Trashigang.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Leave for Samdrup Jongkhar — a 180 km, six-hour descent to the Assam plain. The south-eastern border town where the eastern road meets the Assam plain. Check in on arrival and, as the day allows, the Samdrup Jongkhar Dzong and the border bazaar. Overnight in Samdrup Jongkhar.

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. Time for any last shopping in Samdrup Jongkhar town before completing exit formalities and crossing into India by road at Darranga. The drive then continues across the Assam plains to Guwahati Airport for the onward flight. The tour ends here, and we hope it is not your last visit to Bhutan.