After we will begin our full day sightseeing of the capital city of Bhutan, THIMPHU. Your guide will take you various places of interest based on your discussion from the previous night. The places of interest include the following: the impressive Memorial Chorten – build in memory by the Queen Mother for her late husband, the third King of Bhutan. Here, the faithful circumambulate the shrine dedicated to the late king, Takin, the national animal of Bhutan, School of Arts and Crafts, national library, handicrafts emporiums, weekend markets (if in weekend), temples and probably archery, the national sport, Semtokha Dzong (probably not allowed due to renovation) and others.

Overnight at Hotel in standard hotel of Bhutan’s government

After breakfast you will drive to Gangety Gompa, with a stop at Dochu La (3,100 meters), where on a clear day you can get spectacular views of the Himalayas. Stop to visit the fortress of Wangdiphodrang and then continue your drive to Gangety following the Dang Chu River drainage up towards it's source. As we near the Pele La pass, we will take a detour onto a side road "completed" in the late 80's which leads us to the hidden valley of Phobjika. Considered one of the most beautiful valleys in Bhutan, it is encircled by pine covered mountains. In the center of the valley, rising from a small ridge stands one of the oldest and wealthiest private monasteries in Bhutan -- Ganteng Gompa. The head lama of Ganteng Gompa is the ninth incarnation of the body of Pemalingpa - the famous 14th century blacksmith from Bumthang who is one of Bhutan's most famous Buddhist saints and teachers. The Gompa is under renovation. Good opportunity to see the monastery under renovation since you can witness people at work in the Bhutanese style of painting, wood carving and others.

We will have the opportunity to visit the courtyard of the monastery. The area is equally famous as the winter home to the very rare Black-Necked Crane. Experts estimate that fewer than 800 cranes exist in the wild. The Cranes arrive in mid November and stay through March. So at this time, we will not be able to see the cranes.

Overnight at Hotel in standard hotel of Bhutan’s government.

We will proceed to the beautiful Punakha valley. On the way to Punakha, (if possible due to your child) you will stop at Metshina Village and take a 25 minute walk through the rice fields to Chimi Lakhang, a temple which is a famous for fertility blessing. This temple was built by famous Drukpa Kunley, popularly known to western world as the Divine Madman. After the hike, we will drive to visit Punakha dzong, the ancient capital of Bhutan, The massive dzong built at the confluence of the Po (male) and Mo (female) Rivers was built in 1647 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal and is the winter home of the central monk body. The monk body moves from Thimphu to Punakha during the winter months. If time permits, we can walk to visit some villages nearby the hotel.

Overnight at Hotel in standard hotel of Bhutan’s government

We will drive back to Paro with stop at Thimphu to see some of the places of interest that we missed during our previous visit. Late in the evening, we will drive back to Paro for night halt.

Overnight at Hotel in standard hotel of Bhutan’s government

This evening is at your leisure. If wanted to see anything more, your guide will take your around.

This morning we drive the winding road beside the Pa Chu (chu means river or water) to Satsam Chorten. From this point, we begin the challenging hike to Taktsang – “The Tiger's Nest.” A vantage point directly across a gorge from the temple can be reached in about 2 hours. This magical monastery clings to a vertical granite cliff 2, 000’ above the valley floor. Legend says that Guru Padmasambhava flew to a cave on this cliff riding a tiger - hence the name - to meditate. The tiger was actually his favorite consort, Yeshe Tsogyel, whom he transformed to a flying tiger for the purposes of this journey. They meditated in the cave and when the Guru left he instructed that the monastery be built. Nothing like a day hike to finish your wonderful stay in Bhutan.

This evening is at your leisure. If wanted to see anything more, your guide will take you around.

Option:

If you are not able to hike to Tiger’s nest then, you can discuss with your guide for some other sight seeing in and around Paro valley. So many short hikes, visit to some farm house or anything that you may wish to do, or you can just relax on your own.

After breakfast we return to the airport for our departure from the Land of the Thunder Dragon to Bangkok.

Central Thailand
· Bangkok
· Ayuthaya
· Kanchanaburi

Northern Thailand
· Chiang Mai
· Chiang Rai
· Mae Hong Son
· Lampang
· Lamphun
· Sukhothai
· Hilltribes People

East & West Coast
· Pattaya
· Rayong
· Hua Hin
· Koh Samed Island
· Koh Chang Island

Southern Thailand
· Phuket Island
· Samui Island
· Phi Phi Island
· Krabi
· Phang Nga
· Koh Tao
· Koh Phagnan
· Koh Lanta
· Khao Lak

North Easthern
· Khao Yai
· Khao Phra Viharn
· Ubon Ratchathani
· Nakhon Phanom