The Trans Bhutan Trail: 11-Day Journey Through Authentic Bhutan with Kiera

Upon arrival at Paro Airport, you will be warmly greeted by your guide and driver and welcomed to Bhutan. Enjoy a scenic 1.5-hour drive to Thimphu, the capital city. En route, stop at the sacred Tachogang Lhakhang temple, founded by the revered Thankthong Gyelpo, to explore its spiritual significance.

After checking into your hotel, join your leader for an orientation walk to discover Thimphu’s highlights. The evening culminates with an included welcome dinner at a local restaurant, where you’ll savor a traditional Bhutanese feast, including the country’s signature red rice with chili cheese.

🏨 Accommodation

• Thimphu Central Hotel or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Arrival Transfer (Group Basis)
• Tachogang Lhakhang Temple Visit
• Thimphu Exploratory Evening Walk

ℹ️ Important Travel Information

To ensure your complimentary airport arrival transfer, you will need to provide your flight details at least 30 days before your trip. Travel in Bhutan is highly regulated. For this tour, we arrange a group visa, which requires all travelers to arrive and depart on the exact same dates as the tour program. Independent travel outside the group tour dates, or booking additional nights of accommodation, is not permitted due to strict visa controls.

After breakfast, embark on the Buddha Point Park Hike, starting from Debsi towards Buddha Point (Kuensel Phodrang), home to the country’s largest Buddha statue and offering panoramic views of the Thimphu Valley. Continue your hike inside the park to Changangkha.

Visit a local folk heritage restaurant for lunch owned by a lady entrepreneur to experience how women-led businesses work in Bhutan, allowing time to meet the local team.

After lunch, visit the Institute for Zorig Chusum (Arts & Crafts School) to observe students mastering traditional artistic skills. Conclude the day at the National Library, viewing ancient texts and prayer flag printing blocks.

🏨 Accommodation

• Thimphu Central Hotel or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Buddha Point (Kuensel Phodrang) Walk
• Lunch at Women-Owned Folk Heritage Restaurant
• Institute for Zorig Chusum Visit
• National Library Visit

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is approximately 9.5 km (3 hours, easy difficulty).

Following breakfast, travel approximately 2 hours to Dochula Pass, perched over 3000 meters above sea level, for a scenic hike with potential panoramic views of the Himalayas (weather permitting). You’ll visit Druk Wangyal Lhakhang, a temple honoring the fourth King Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuk. Afterward, descend to the valley and hike a section of the Divine Madman Trail, believed to be where Drukpa Kuenley subdued evil spirits.

Enjoy lunch in the charming village of Lumitsawa before continuing your walk to Thinleygang Lhakhang temple, which you will visit before driving to your hotel in Lobesa.

🏨 Accommodation

• Hotel Lobesa or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Dochula Pass Hike
• Druk Wangyal Lhakhang Visit
• Divine Madman Trail Hike

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is 10.5 km (up to 5 hours, moderate difficulty).

After a leisurely breakfast, drive about 4 hours to Pelela Pass, where you’ll rejoin the Trans Bhutan Trail at the boundary of western and central Bhutan to begin your hike. Along the way, visit Rukubji Lhakhang temple and enjoy a delicious hot lunch prepared by locals. Afterward, transfer by vehicle to the beautiful village of Chendebji, home to the Chendebji Chorten, a large white stupa resembling Nepal’s Bouddhanath Stupa.

From Chendebji, continue to Trongsa and visit the impressive Trongsa Dzong, Bhutan’s largest and most magnificent dzong, perched dramatically on a cliff overlooking the Mangde Chu river gorge.

🏨 Accommodation

• Norbu Linka Resort or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Trans Bhutan Trail Hike – Pelela Pass to Chendebji
• Chendebji Chorten Monument Visit
• Trongsa Dzong Visit

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is 9.5 km (up to 4 hours, easy difficulty).

Drive approximately 2.5 hours to Yotongla Pass to rejoin the Trans Bhutan Trail. Hike over the pass, descending through green meadows and open forests to the serene Gyaltsa River. After a rest, follow the river to Gyaltsa Village, where your private transfer to Bumthang awaits. A delicious lunch will be enjoyed along the trail.

Upon arrival in Bumthang, check into your hotel for the next two nights. In the afternoon, visit Bumthang Brewery, producers of Red Panda Beer, and Bhutan’s only commercial cheese factory, both legacies of a Swiss-run development project.

🏨 Accommodation

• Chumey Resort or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Trans Bhutan Trail Hike – Yotongla Pass to Gyaltsa Village
• Bumthang Brewery Visit
• Cheese Factory Visit

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is 9 km (3–4 hours, easy difficulty).

Spend the morning at the vibrant Jambay Lhakhang Drup Festival (October 26–29, 2026), immersing yourself in the cultural festivities. In the afternoon, enjoy an excursion to the luscious Tang Valley, a tranquil location dotted with sacred shrines and grazing yaks and sheep. After reaching Tang village, embark on a short hike across a suspension bridge to the century-old Ugyencholing Heritage Museum.

Drive to Pema Choling Nunnery, where women and girls study the Nyingma Peling Buddhist tradition, known for their unique “chod” drum ceremony.

Continue south along the Trans Bhutan Trail towards the sacred Mebar Tsho (Burning Lake), where Pema Lingpa is said to have discovered hidden treasures. Discover women-led craftsmanship at the Yathra Weaving Centre, where you’ll meet and interact with local women who have preserved this traditional skill for generations. The hike continues gently through the forest to the small village of Phomrong, where your vehicle will meet you.

In the evening, if permitted, you can visit a local farmhouse to participate in cooking and share a traditional dinner like “Jang Bali” with a local family.

🏨 Accommodation

• Chumey Resort or similar – Standard Room

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Jambay Lhakhang Drup Festival Visit
• Tang Valley Walk
• Ugyencholing Heritage Museum Visit
• Pema Choling Nunnery
• Hike – Nunnery to Mebar Tsho to Phomrong
• Yathra Weaving Centre Visit
• Optional Farmhouse Dinner Experience

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is about 6 km (3 hours, moderate difficulty).

Today, drive to Trongsa (approx. 6 hours) to walk along one of the most iconic sections of the Trans Bhutan Trail, recreating the ancient arrival into Trongsa on foot. Your hike starts from Trongsa Dzong, descending to the Mangde River, then a steep climb through the forest to the Trongsa viewpoint for rest and scenic time.

Afterward, relax on the drive to Gangtey and join the Gangtey Nature Trail, a two-hour trek through the remarkable Phobjikha Valley. Starting at the 17th-century Gangtey Monastery, you’ll pass grass plains, farmhouses, and dense pine forests, leading to the vast open valley. During winter (late Oct–mid Feb), you might observe endangered black-necked cranes feeding. On the way back to the hotel, visit the Crane Information Centre.

🏨 Accommodation

• Phuntsho Yangkhil Resort or similar

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Trans Bhutan Trail Hike – Trongsa Dzong to Viewpoint
• Gangtey Nature Trail Hike
• Crane Information Centre Visit

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is about 4.5 km (2 hours, moderate difficulty).

After breakfast, drive approximately 2 hours to Punakha, the old capital city. Before arrival, stop at a local village and take a short, easy 1-hour hike (4 km) to Chimi Lhakhang – the Temple of Fertility. Your leader will explain the temple’s significance and the story of the ‘Divine Madman’.

Then, take a short drive to the base of a hill for a moderately inclined 1.5-hour hike (3 km) to Khamsum Yulley Temple, a classic example of Bhutanese architecture offering sweeping valley views.

After lunch, visit the white-walled, red-roofed Punakha Dzong, followed by the Sangchhen Dorji Lhuendrup Temple and nunnery.

🏨 Accommodation

• Punakha River Valley or similar

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Chimi Lhakhang Visit
• Khamsum Yulley Temple Hike
• Punakha Dzong Visit
• Sangchhen Dorji Lhuendrup Nunnery
• Suspension Bridge (Part of Khamsum Hike)

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is about 7 km (3.5 hours, moderate difficulty)

Following breakfast, drive to Dochula Pass to begin one of the longest hikes of this trip to Simtokha. This scenic path runs alongside charming villages and meandering streams, offering unique glimpses into Bhutanese life and culture.

After reaching Simtokha, you will drive to Paro and check into your hotel for a relaxing evening.

🏨 Accommodation

• Khangkhu Resort or similar

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Dochula Pass to Simtokha Hike

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is up to 15 km (5–6 hours, moderate difficulty)

After breakfast, lace up your hiking boots for a challenging yet incredibly rewarding hike to the iconic Taktshang Monastery, famously known as the ‘Tiger’s Nest’. Perched dramatically on a cliff 900m above the Paro valley floor, this deeply sacred site is a must-visit. Along the way, you’ll also visit the 7th-century Kyichu Lhakhang, one of 108 temples built by Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo.

After returning to your hotel and freshening up, join your leader for a leisurely stroll around the vibrant streets and market area of Paro.

🏨 Accommodation

• Khangkhu Resort or similar

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner

✅ Activities

• Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest) Monastery Hike
• Kyichu Lhakhang Visit
• Paro Town Walk

🥾 Physical Activity

• Today’s walking distance is about 10 km (5–6 hours, challenging)

After a leisurely breakfast at your hotel, your unforgettable adventure in Bhutan comes to an end. Your driver will provide a group transfer to Paro International Airport for your flight out of Bhutan.

🍽️ Included Meals

• Breakfast

✅ Activities

• Group Departure Transfer

ℹ️ Important Travel Information

Due to group visa requirements, all travelers are required to leave Bhutan on the same day.