Nepal Tibet Bhutan Tour - 16 Days

You land at Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM), which is located in the Kathmandu Valley at about 1,350 m elevation. After going through border control, you and your bags are $(or meet) a clean car or SUV with light traffic on the way to downtown Thamel, where there are endless shops and colors in every direction coupled with the hope of perhaps 85% pollution-free skies and, if fortunate - when you arrive at your hotel -seeing through the window during your visit the green hills framing the city and the faint outline of snow-capped peaks across the valley (it is rare to have a visit without any pollution).

At about noon, you will enjoy your first meal in Nepal - breakfast will be a hotel buffet with hot tea and hope to taste various types of the local yak yogurt (some places have eight levels). For lunch, you will be able to eat beside Thamel in a basic Newari hut, eating dal-bhat, fresh salad, and steaming momos. By the time the evening arrives, you will probably wish to go back to the hotel and freshen up.

Dinner is conveniently located at a rooftop Nepali restaurant, with soft music playing in the background, and views over the old town.

Although it is not a trekking day yet, the walk from the airport to the hotel gave you a first glimpse of the city's maze of roofs and brick temples, along with the hills that gently rise at the west edge of Kathmandu. You are guests in the capital now, and it feels nice to be here.

By 8 a.m., you're back on the road and have made your way over to Pashupatinath Temple, the revered Hindu temple on the banks of the Bagmati River. All around you, saffron-clad priests and locals are beckoning energy as they perform rituals, while monkeys are frolicking around the ghats, as these places are alive and tranquil. It is daytime, you are outside, and you feel like you have been transported to another time.

By midday, you arrive at Boudhanath Stupa, one of the largest stupas in the world. You listen to your guide tell stories of Tibetan pilgrims, circling with their prayer wheels.

Next, you sit down to an incredible bowl of thukpa soup and momos at a delightful Tibetan teahouse just down the street. After your lunch, you take a short hike up a narrow path to Swayambhunath (the Monkey Temple), which is perched on a small hill. You are welcomed with expansive up-hill sunset views, with Kathmandu Durbar Square on one end and valleys beyond.

After a time out on break, you continue to Patan and Bhaktapur Durbar Squares, with their wood-carved palaces and pagodas everywhere. These ancient cities are rich in red brick and Newari art. It's now 5 p.m. and you're back in Thamel. Dinner is a fusion plate (rice, grilled vegetables, chicken) at a restaurant with a garden courtyard. You feel filled with the spirituality and history of this valley.

You have breakfast at the hotel, tea with your eggs, you check out with a 7 am departure, and are a passenger on the busy Tribhuvan Highway, driving west. After Naubise, the traffic eases. The road begins to climb through our first set of lush green hills and tidy terraced forests. After three hours, plus time to pass Mugling, you know you are on the Prithvi Highway, beside the Trishuli River, are again good and more mountain valleys. 

The lunch breaks at Dumre's roadside cafes have dal-bhat; I had seen noodles once, and locally grown fruits; you may see traders piling big sacks of lentils onto their bikes along the roadside. You arrive in Pokhara around 3 - 4 pm, check into your lakeside hotel in the Lakeside (Baidam) area. The foam-crested peaks of Annapurna reflect in the calm water of Phewa Lake - just a few hundred metres from your room.

For your dinner, you walk to a lakeside restaurant; with grilled trout or chicken, spicy vegetables, rice, and Nepali bread. Night falls on the lake, boat lights reflect into golden swirls. 

The day begins with breakfast on your hotel balcony, overlooking Phewa Lake: eggs, toast, bananas, and Nepali tea. Then a short taxi ride up to Sarangkot for sunrise—a clear view of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges creates a pink/salmon hue above the valley, reflected quietly on the lake below you.

Next, you descend— hike down and take a boat to Tal Barahi Temple, get off the boat at the small island temple. The morning light sparkles on the lake water. After leaving the temple and getting back to shore, you have lunch at a café: dal-bhat with stir-fried greens and pickles for lunch, and fruit juice. In the afternoon, you visit Davis Falls, viewing the underground waterfall that channels into Gupteshwor Mahadev Cave right next door to Davis Falls. The cave is deep and considered sacred.

Later in the afternoon, you walk to the World Peace Pagoda— more uphill through the stream of fluttering prayer flags to the peaceful white stupa. When you are at the stupa, looking down on the city and lake, surrounded by forested hills, it feels peaceful. By dinner, you are back at your lakeside Nepalese-Italian fusion restaurant—thin crust pizza and stir-fried greens.

Having likely enjoyed a good breakfast at the lakeside hotel that morning, you are ready to leave and load the car around 8 a.m. The road heads south into hilly farmland, meandering around the edges of some terraced cornfields, and eventually quickens as you descend onto the Terai Plains. You travel through Dumre, Sauraha, and Bharatpur; the traffic thickens, and the heat and humidity rise. 

Near Narayanghat and, in keeping with your 'road trip,' you stop for lunch at a roadside Dhaba. Trucks rush past while you scan the Rapti from a bridge. The road surfaces have some variety: welcome new smooth pavement with occasional uneven pavement. After approximately 4 to 5 hours, you are pulled into your lodge in beautiful Chitwan, among the sal and teak trees. 

The lodge is at the edge of Chitwan National Park. Dinner tonight is tharu-style dal-bhat, vegetable curry, and rice served in an open thatched dining hall.

You start your adventure with a breakfast of tea, omelette, and toast, setting you up for a full day of jungle activities. You walk with a guide into Chitwan National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, set in the middle of the Terai wilderness. 

The trail takes you underneath lush sal trees and across grassland flats. On an elephant-back safari, you can see one-horned rhinos and their young grazing down by the riverbank. 

Around noon, you climb onto a wooden canoe on the Rapti River. The slow glide on the river allows you to see over 500 species of birds, basking crocodiles, and monkeys eating reeds. You pull in at a shaded restaurant on the riverbank to enjoy lunch, consisting of plain rice, crispy fish, stir-fried veggies, and cold juice. It was all very rustic and very real.

This afternoon, you will visit a traditional Tharu village. When you arrive, you are greeted with some lively dancing, accompanied by seasonal songs, and take a tour of mud-walled homes, as well as their herbal gardens. 

After all of that, you go back to the lodge for dinner: chicken curry, fresh salad, and a platter of fruit, all while some Tharu drummers entertain you under the stars.

Following a breakfast at the jungle lodge (rice, tea, lentils), you board a vehicle by 7:30, retracing steps northward on the East-West Highway (back past Narayanghat and Mugling), picking up the Prithvi and Tribhuvan Highway back to Kathmandu. The sun is bright and sunny, albeit hazy over the valleys. 

Around 12:30, you stop for lunch at a small roadside diner near Mugling. It's simple rural surroundings, local dal-bhat and vegetable curry with fresh fruit salad and tea. You are able to stretch your legs under a fig tree, enjoying the warm air. 

You arrive at Kathmandu, north valley, around 3-4 p.m. dropped off at your hotel in the Thamel area. You have dinner at a hotel restaurant with a Nepali-Indian buffet with tandoori chicken, dal, vegetarian curries, and naan. The traffic and bustle of city life seem far away from the jungle you just left, but at least you have some comforts back in the city lights.

You wake up early in the morning. The hotel includes breakfast: porridge, some fruit, and hot tea. You check out of the hotel before 7:00 am and make your way to check in at Tribhuvan (TIA) for your direct flight to Lhasa Gonggar Airport (LXA) in Tibet. Give yourself 90 minutes to check in and go through security.

Himalaya Airlines departs at 08:30 am, the flight is a short 1 hour and 20 minutes to get to Lhasa, landing at 12:05 pm local time. You will be at least 3,650 m (12,000 ft) above sea level - the plane climbs fast - and if the day is clear, you may even see some of the tall mountain peaks of the Himalaya, like Everest and Annapurna, if you're lucky enough to sit on the left (west) side of the plane.

So once you arrive, you will move through passport control and Tibetan Travel Permit checks, then be transferred to your hotel for check-in in Lhasa. It will be a short walk from your hotel to have noodle soup, steamed buns, and local butter tea for lunch. You will have a free afternoon to rest and acclimatize to the altitude you are at. Outside, the prayer flags blow in the wind, and prayer wheels clack as religious Tibetan people walk or circumambulate around the city.

After breakfast at your centrally located hotel in Lhasa around 8 AM, you will get ready to climb up to Potala Palace, the red-and-white landmark atop Chakpori Hill at 3,650 m. You will be walking up easy stone steps toward the Palace, but move slowly as the altitude should be respected; you will be entering the Palace at 9:30 AM. Once inside, you will meander through beautiful golden choetens, chapels of the Buddha, throne rooms, and numerous spacious terraces with 360-degree views of Lhasa. 

At noon, enjoy a traditional Tibetan meal of momos, tsampa, and yak butter tea at the Tibetan Family Kitchen. 

At around 3 PM, you will be visiting Sera Monastery, 5 km to the west of Lhasa, which may allow you to witness in person the famous monks, in debate, clapping and stamping in the bright sunlight. 

Afterwards, in the evening, you will walk around the peaceful gardens of pines, lawns, and flowers at Norbulingka, the summer retreat of the Dalai Lama. 

You will end your day with dinner at Lhasa Summer restaurant and enjoy meals with tastes of yak under the cozy warmth of lantern light, and later return to your hotel room to relax and continue your acclimatization.

Begin your breakfast at the hotel. Next, your guide will take you to Jokhang Temple, the spiritual centre of Lhasa, where pilgrims turn prayer wheels and circuit the main hall with a gilded roof.

After visiting Jokhang temple, you will continue around the 640 m Barkhor Street loop, where you can observe these devotional circuits and busy traders before stopping, with your guide, to sample local snacks.

Around noon, you will stop to eat lunch at a tea house where you can try typical Tibetan noodles with butter tea and barley biscuits.

In the afternoon, you will continue roughly west, or about an hour, to Drepung Monastery. Drepung is a former monastery that once housed about 10,000 monks.

You will have this amazing opportunity to explore the immense assembly halls, frescoed chapels, long winding cloisters, and also have an incredible view of the Lhasa Valley from the hillside monastery.

After Drepung, around late afternoon, your guide will take you to Ramoche Temple. Ramoche is one of the oldest temples in Lhasa and is famous for its gilded Inner Sanctum and rooftop views.

After the visit to Ramoche Temple, you will go down to the Lhasa Hotel Dining Room for dinner, then you can overlook the illuminations of the rooftops before returning to the hotel around 7:30 PM to relax and acclimatize.

After your early breakfast at your hotel in Lhasa, your private taxi will arrive at your hotel at around 10 AM for the 60 km transfer down to Lhasa Gonggar International Airport (elevation ~3600m), with snow-capped peaks all around on the plateau. The fairly short flight will leave shortly after 13:15, and last approximately 1 hour and 35 minutes, as you fly over the Himalaya, including Mt. Everest, due in Kathmandu by early afternoon (consider requesting a window seat on the right side for the best views). 

You will arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu (elevation ~1400m) by about 14:50. During your flight descent, you will arrive at the basin that is the Kathmandu Valley, going over lush and rolling plains. After clearing customs, you will take a taxi to your hotel in Thamel for a local Nepali lunch at Roadhouse Café, with their pasta and local Newari snacks. 

In the later afternoon, you may wander the market streets and spiritual lanes of downtown Kathmandu, soaking in the biblical bustle of temples, the wafting incense, and the warmth of the mountain air, on your last evening in Nepal. 

The day will start with a hotel breakfast at 7:30 AM. After breakfast, you will be transferred to Tribhuvan International Airport for a one-hour flight to Bhutan on either Drukair or Bhutan Airlines. Once flying, you will look out the left side of the plane and see blue skies and possibly the Himalayas and Mt. Everest, depending on the flight.

This experience is fantastic. Landing at Paro International Airport (7,332 ft) just before 9 AM was in many ways the most memorable element of the trip. You are landing at an airport with a very small runway surrounded by 18,000 ft peaks in all directions (navigated ONLY by life-long trained pilots!). After landing, you will then take a private vehicle to Thimpu for the 54 kilometers (over winding mountains that include small pine forests and traditional villages) drive.

En route, there will be a stop at Bhutan Kitchen for a Bhutanese lunch around noon. You will be trying ema datshi for the first time (with red rice, of course).

After checking in at your hotel by the Wangchu River, you will be able to choose between a walk along the river or browsing through the local craft market stalls. You will have dinner at the hotel with traditional light Bhutanese curries, and you will be in bed no later than 8 PM in order to acclimatise to the crisp mountain environment.

After breakfast at your Thimphu hotel, you will visit the 54 m Buddha Dordenma Statue at Kuensel Phodrang. This is a great place for some views of the valley and the incredible mountains towering around you! After a stroll along the landscaped paths and prayer wheels, and forested lookouts, you will head back to the hotel for lunch. 

In the afternoon, after lunch, you will explore the Tashichho Dzong, a 13th-century fortress and the seat of the Bhutanese government and summer residence of Je Khenpo. There will be plenty of views from inside as you walk through some of the golden roofs and frescoed chapels, as well as overlooking the Wangchu River. 

After you visit the dzong, you can check out the local Handicrafts Market in Thimphu, where you will be surprised to see so many artisans making silk scarves, thankas, and incredible wooden souvenirs. 

At the end of your day, with the sun dropping behind the hills, you are in for a traditional dinner in a courtyard at Hotel Wangchuk. You will be having spiced buckwheat noodles with roasted vegetables.

You will start your day with a 7:00 AM breakfast before you speed off for 30 minutes to the Paro Taktsang trailhead. For three hours, you will ascend from 2,600 m to 3,120 m altitude, mostly through blue-pine forest past colorful prayer flags, and likely with a tea stop at the Tiger's Nest Café before you get your first views of the amazing cliffside.

After that, you will follow the last section of the trail, which goes over a bridge above a waterfall, until you arrive at the 17th-century monastery with a guide and without shoes or cameras. You will have the chance to view the sacred site, and after you will descend back to the trailhead in about 1.5 hours from your departure.

You will return to Paro that evening, and while you are in the area, you may want to walk down Rinpung Dzong along the Paro Chhu and wander in and see a lot of the murals before enjoying a family-style dinner in the Bhutanese manor.

Following an early breakfast at 7 AM, you have a 6 km drive from Paro town up through traditional houses to Paro International Airport now. Your 09:10 flight on Drukair or Bhutan Airlines will take 1 hour and 5 minutes approximately, and it will descend into Kathmandu Valley.

The left side of the aircraft grants a view of Paro valley and the highest peaks to the north when the wheels touch down in Kathmandu's bowl-like basin.

You land in Tribhuvan International Airport at 10:30 AM. After that, holiday conversations and barcode scanners are combined with light incense from the nearby temple rising beyond the runway windows inside the airport. You can get to Thamel in a short time for a late lunch at Garden of Dreams Café, which serves local dumplings and Newari specialties.

After lunch, take one last walk through the crowded Kathmandu narrow streets that are still filled with the scent of incense and that have many art shops. Tonight's dinner will be Momo Bar in Thamel; they have chili momo and apple dumpling desserts. At 8 PM, you reach your hotel to get ready for the last day of your trip.

After having an early breakfast at 6:30 AM, your driver will take you for a private car ride to Tribhuvan International Airport, which is a 20‑minute drive past Bouddhanath Stupa and Pashupatinath Temple, if time allows and depending on the traffic.

Here, the familiar sound of the city traffic is almost unnoticeable because of the incense and the smoke from the prayer hats that are going around in the morning light. You get there at 8:30 AM, check in for your last international flight, and have a relaxed hour of shopping in the airport duty‑free shops.

At about 10 AM, get on your plane and take your seat, leaving the window open for one last look at Kathmandu’s hills as you go up. While the plane is going higher, crossing the green valley, you are at the end of your journey through Nepal‑Tibet‑Bhutan. No food will be served on the flight going away, but you will have tea and some snacks.

This early ending, however, allows you to have some time to be alone with the memories of the spiritual and scenic you have gathered before you leave Kathmandu and the Himalayas.