Thimphu Tshechu

The flight into Paro is itself one of the more memorable arrivals in aviation — only a small handful of pilots in the world are certified to land here, with the descent threading between mountain ridges that seem close enough to touch from the cabin window. Met on the tarmac with a traditional khadar (white silk scarf) and transferred to the hotel for check-in. After lunch, an unhurried introduction to the valley: visit Rinpung Dzong (the imposing 17th-century fortress-monastery on the riverbank) and the circular National Museum housed in the old watchtower above. Early dinner and an early night to settle from the journey.

Stay:

Hotel Olathang, Paro

Meals:

D

The signature day of any Bhutan trip — and done deliberately before the festival begins, while the dzong is not yet packed with pilgrims. Taktsang Monastery (the Tiger's Nest) clings to a vertical cliff face 900 metres above the Paro valley floor, where Guru Rinpoche is said to have meditated for three years, three months, three weeks, three days and three hours. The hike is a steady 5- to 6-hour round trip on a well-maintained trail of switchbacks through blue pine and prayer-flag-strung rest stops. Tea break at the halfway cafeteria where the iconic view first opens up across the gorge. Hot-stone bath at a traditional farmhouse in the late afternoon for tired legs.

Stay:

Hotel Olathang, Paro

Meals:

B/L/D

Distance:

7 km

Altitude:

3120 m

Easy 90-minute morning drive to the capital — the world's only capital city without traffic lights, with intersections still managed by white-gloved police. We aim to be at Tashichho Dzong (the seat of government and the central monastic body, set in the grounds of an enormous walled compound on the banks of the Wang Chhu) by late morning. The Tshechu opens with the traditional set of cham (masked dance) — the dance of the Lords of the Cremation Grounds, the Dance of the Black Hats, the Dance of the Heroes — each teaching a chapter of Buddhist cosmology in elaborate brocade costumes and hand-carved wooden masks that have been used in the same courtyard for centuries. The crowd is a sea of Bhutanese families in their finest gho and kira. Between the choreographed dances, atsaras (sacred clowns with bright red wooden masks) work the crowd with bawdy humour — a ritual role that breaks tension and is said to deflect misfortune.

Stay:

Hotel Druk, Thimphu

Meals:

B/L/D

A second full day in the dzong courtyard for the festival's middle act, when the most theatrical of the cham dances are performed. The day's repertoire typically includes the Dance of the Judgement of the Dead — a slow, masked enactment of a soul's progress through the bardo (the intermediate state after death) — and the Dance of the Sixteen Drukpa Yoginis, in which sixteen masked figures representing the female deities of Vajrayana Buddhism circle the courtyard in a tightly choreographed pattern. The crowd swells over the morning. Lunch from the festival food stalls or at a Thimphu restaurant. Most travellers find that wandering the small market that springs up outside the dzong walls is as much a part of the day as the dances themselves.

Stay:

Hotel Druk, Thimphu

Meals:

B/L/D

The festival's most moving day, and a pre-dawn start to be in the dzong courtyard for the unveiling of the giant Thongdrol — a vast silk appliqué of Guru Rinpoche surrounded by his eight manifestations, said to liberate viewers from their accumulated sins on first sight. The Thongdrol is unrolled before sunrise; by the time the first light hits the dzong walls, hundreds of pilgrims are already prostrating in front of it, and butter lamps line the courtyard. The image is rolled away by mid-morning so the sunlight does not damage the silk. Final cham dances continue through the day, ending with the blessing dance of Guru Tshengye (the eight manifestations of Guru Rinpoche) at sunset. A reflective evening — many travellers say this is the most moving day of any Bhutan trip.

Stay:

Hotel Druk, Thimphu

Meals:

B/L/D

Cross Dochula Pass at 3,100 metres — the saddle marked by 108 white chortens (the Druk Wangyal Chortens), with the eastern Himalaya from Jomolhari to Gangkar Puensum laid out across the northern horizon on a clear morning. Coffee and apple pie at the pass-side cafe is a tradition. The road then drops 1,800 metres through subtropical forest into the warm Punakha valley. Visit Punakha Dzong — arguably the most beautiful dzong in Bhutan — built in 1637 at the meeting of the Pho Chhu (father river) and Mo Chhu (mother river), the site of every royal wedding and coronation. Afternoon walk across the rice paddies to Chimi Lhakhang, the small fertility temple where the surrounding houses are decorated with painted phallic motifs. Drive back to Paro in the late afternoon for the farewell dinner.

Stay:

Hotel Olathang, Paro

Meals:

B/L/D

Altitude:

3100 m

Final breakfast at the hotel and transfer to Paro International Airport. Final khadars at the security gate and a last 'tashi delek' before you board. Most onward flights connect through Delhi, Kolkata, Bangkok or Singapore — your guide stays at the airport until your flight is wheels-up.

Stay:

—

Meals:

B