14 Days Bhutan Cultural Tour With 2-Day Trek in Bumthang Valley
Description
Travel to five western districts of Bhutan and delve in to discover why this tiny Kingdom chose to remain secluded for centuries. Visit magnificent fortresses and temples that dot hilltops and strategic locations against the backdrop of soaring mountains adorned with snows and forests. Marvel at the pristine environment and age-old traditions of the magical Kingdom of Bhutan so well preserved that the outside world calls it ‘Last Shangri-La’. This 14 Days and 13 Nights trip include a 2-Day trek in the central Bhutan district of Bumthang known as the ‘cultural heartland of Bhutan’. The 2-Day trek is fairly easy that takes you through rich forests, beautiful valleys and along crystal-clear rivers filled with trouts. There are plenty of ancient temples to visit and pass through a number of typical Bhutanese villages where you can stop and rest offering you an opportunity to understand the culture and traditions of Bhutan.
Tour Options
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Our guide and driver will receive you at Paro International Airport.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- This tour can be customized and run on a private basis just for you and your group.
- We highly recommend booking at least a few months before the departure date so that we have enough time to ensure the flights are available. If you already have flight tickets to and from Bhutan, we can take bookings up to a week before the departure date. To process visa, it only takes 4-5 business days.
- There are only two airlines that connect Bhutan with the outside world and so securing air tickets can be difficult especially during the months of high season. Currently, Bhutan is connected with these cities - Bagdogra, Bangkok, Delhi, Dhaka, Guwahati, Kathmandu, Kolkata, Singapore. We recommend you book your international flights a few months in advance especially if you plan to visit during the high season months of March to May and September to November. If you need help in arranging flights to/from Bhutan, please let us know much in advance.
- After you book the tour, kindly send us clear passports copies of all the participants. A biodata page including the machine-readable zone must be seen clearly. Passports should have a minimum of 6 MONTHS validity from the day you depart from Bhutan. You may also want to check the passport requirements by your next destination country after Bhutan. A copy of your e-Visa will be emailed to you once it is approved. It only takes 4-5 business days to get visa approval and it is 100 percent guaranteed as long as we receive clear passport copies of all the participants. Actual visa will be stamped on your passport upon arrival. Send the passport copies to the Local Supplier E-mail address.
- Participants below the age of 18 years old MUST be accompanied by at least one adult.
Reviews(4)
Acorn travel did an excellent job planning and executing our 15-day custom vacation in Bhutan. Our guide Pema and driver Gelson were a big part of the enjoyment of the trip and us feeling safe and well-looked after. The accommodations and restaurants chosen for us were authentic and interesting. Bhutan is well worth the trip with its intact culture from hundreds of years ago, natural beauty of mountains and rivers and forests. And very interesting history. You need to prepare to be at high altitudes. We would love to come back again and bring some family or friends.
One of the best tour operators I've ever worked with! From the moment I reached out, communication was incredibly easy and adaptive to my needs. I booked on very short notice, and Bhutan Acorn was able to help me through the process and give me multiple options that fit what I wanted (the itinerary doesn't have to be fixed - just tell them what you're interested in and they'll make it happen!). On the ground, my guide Sonam and driver Jigme were incredible, providing answers to all my questions, adjusting the trip to fit my wants each day, and being great travel companions. The trip itself covered tons of cultural locations and had beautiful hikes nearly every day, which is exactly what I wanted. I chose to take things relatively slow so that I could soak up each location and not feel like we were running from place to place, which I think is the best way to do Bhutan if you have the time. Additionally, since almost everything is included (besides admission fees and tips), I rarely had to think about money throughout the trip, which allowed me to focus on my experience and the beauty of where I was. Overall, absolutely incredible trip, and couldn't recommend booking with Bhutan Acorn enough! If I'm lucky enough to make it back, absolutely will use them again
We couldn't have hoped for a better Bhutan experience! Our guide and driver, Kelzang and Tashi, were great communicators and passed on their knowledge about the culture and history of Bhutan. Bravo Acorn Tours and Travel. I give them my highest recommendations.
We started in Paro, flying in from Kathmandu. We did not realize that you ought to sit on the correct side of the plane to see the Himalayas, a little hiccup we corrected on the way out. We started out in Paro with a substitute guide and driver, but they were both excellent. However, had quite a bit of trouble getting our atm cards to work while shopping in Paro, we should have brought more cash and converted it at the airport. The next day we flew to Bumthang Valley and met up the Llendrup, our guide the new driver. We quickly found out that our guide knew everyone and was constantly on his cellphone updating our arrangements and we think some work for his other clients. At the Jakar Tsechu Festival we found that the activities were there for the locals and they were kind enough to share them with us. This was true for all of our trip, we did not see any "staged" performances just for the tourist trade. Again the guide surpassed our expectations by getting us comfortable seats overlooking the event, VIP seating for sure, with the head monk (the guides uncle), the governor and head judge of the area making room for us. They fed us lunch, butter tea and coffee as well. Over the next few days we drove over bumpy roads and visited more monasteries and museums and of course shopping for local handicrafts. Ask you guide to help identify the local from the imported stuff, but after a few shop you will see the difference. We did get to the main post office in Thimpu? which was excellent if you love stamps. We shifted the trip a bit to try and include things of nature, and this was probably the one big disappointment of the trip, we had hoped to see local birds and animals but had limited success. I think a guide who is focused on nature and knows where to find local species would be needed to make this happen. We did get tired of the buffet breakfast and dinner routine and decided to buy meals ala carte. We did try the hot stone bath and I would take a hard pass on that, the water was not refreshed between customers and I felt quite ill afterwards, the tubs are not large enough for a 6' 2" 240lb man. We did have a nice local meal after and a bit of impromptu karaoke when one of the guide fired up his guitar. My thoughts: 2 temples and 2-3 museums are enough, it gets repetitive after that. More nature would have been great, easy hikes with wildlife were in short supply. The guide could not have been better and the driver was careful and all the mountain roads. I would go back in a minute and use Acorn again. But never through Kathmandu again, the clean air and scenery of Bhutan is sorely missing.
