About this trip
The shortest of our motorbike tours and a great fit for a first taste of riding in Bhutan. Six days is enough to cover the western circuit including Chele La pass at 3,988 metres — the highest motorable road in the country — and the rarely visited Haa valley on the far side. Royal Enfield Himalayans provided, full back-up vehicle with luggage transfer, certified Bhutanese road guide.
Highlights
- Chele La pass (3,988 m) — Bhutan's highest motorable road
- Haa valley — closed to outsiders until 2002, still receives fewer than 5% of visitors
- Dochula Pass with its 108 chortens and the eastern Himalayan view
- Punakha Dzong at the meeting of two rivers
- Tashichho Dzong and the giant Buddha Dordenma in Thimphu
Best months: March–May and September–November. Bhutanese mountain roads are some of the best-surfaced in the Himalaya.
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 01 Arrive Paro · Bike fitting
Met at Paro International Airport with khadars and transferred to the hotel for lunch. After lunch, a short drive into Thimphu for bike fitting at our partner workshop — a hands-on hour where each rider is matched to a Royal Enfield Himalayan, the seat is adjusted, and luggage racks are checked. Full safety briefing covering Bhutanese road conventions, mountain riding etiquette, the support-vehicle protocol, and the radio system we use on remote stretches; helmets, gloves and rain shells are issued at this point. Drive back to Paro for an early dinner and an early night.
- Stay:
- Hotel Olathang, Paro
- Meals:
- D
Day 02 Paro to Haa · Chele La
One of the great mountain rides in the Himalaya. Climb out of Paro on a series of long, well-banked switchbacks to Chele La pass at 3,988 metres — the highest motorable road in Bhutan. From the pass, on a clear day, the view extends from Mount Jomolhari (7,326 m) and Jichu Drake (6,989 m) in the north to the densely forested ridges of Haa to the west. Photo stops are mandatory; the support vehicle brings hot tea and biscuits at the saddle. Drop down through wind-stunted oak and rhododendron into the rarely visited Haa valley. Visit Lhakhang Karpo (the White Temple) and Lhakhang Nagpo (the Black Temple), said to date to the 7th century.
- Stay:
- Hotel Lechuna Heritage Lodge, Haa
- Meals:
- B/L/D
- Distance:
- 65 km
- Altitude:
- 3988 m
Day 03 Haa to Thimphu
Recross Chele La pass — typically with even better visibility than yesterday, since dawn cloud lifts by mid-morning — and continue east to Thimphu. The descent off Chele La toward Paro is one of the most enjoyable downhill rides anywhere in Asia, with hairpin after hairpin of clean tarmac and pine forest on either side. Lunch in Paro, then continue to Thimphu (the world's only capital city without traffic lights). Afternoon visits to Tashichho Dzong, the National Memorial Chorten, and the giant gilded Buddha Dordenma watching over the valley from a hilltop. Evening free along Norzin Lam.
- Stay:
- Hotel Druk, Thimphu
- Meals:
- B/L/D
- Distance:
- 100 km
- Altitude:
- 3988 m
Day 04 Thimphu to Punakha · Dochula
Climb to 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 with motorbike groups. The road then drops a dramatic 1,800 metres through subtropical forest down into the warm Punakha valley, with hairpin after hairpin of glorious downhill riding. Afternoon visit to Punakha Dzong at the meeting of two rivers — arguably the most beautiful dzong in Bhutan.
- Stay:
- Dhensa Boutique, Punakha
- Meals:
- B/L/D
- Distance:
- 75 km
- Altitude:
- 3100 m
Day 05 Punakha to Paro
Recross Dochula Pass with one last view of the eastern Himalaya, if the morning is clear. The climb out of Punakha is one of the most enjoyable on the entire trip — the bike loves the consistent gradient. Lunch in Thimphu, then continue west to Paro along the Wang Chhu river road for the final 90-minute leg. Hot-stone bath at a traditional farmhouse in the late afternoon for tired riding muscles, followed by a celebratory farewell dinner at a Bhutanese restaurant.
- Stay:
- Hotel Olathang, Paro
- Meals:
- B/L/D
- Distance:
- 145 km
- Altitude:
- 3100 m
Day 06 Bike return · Departure
Bikes are handed back to our workshop partner first thing in the morning — the team checks each in for damage, refunds any unused fuel deposits, and gives each rider a small printed mileage certificate as a memento. 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.
- Stay:
- —
- Meals:
- B
