Nine nights to the sacred heartland.

You are met at New Jalpaiguri, Bagdogra or Siliguri and driven the 165 kilometres to Phuentsholing — a four-hour road through the lush tea estates and forests of the Dooars. Set at the very edge of the plains, Phuentsholing is the business gateway of Bhutan, and the evening is free to stroll its lively market. Please have your ID and photographs ready for our agent.

OvernightHotel in Phuentsholing / Jaigaon

After an early breakfast we obtain your entry permit at the immigration office and begin the spectacular climb to Thimphu — some 172 kilometres and six to seven hours of waterfalls, forest and rising ridgelines. The capital, perhaps the smallest in the world, keeps its traditional skyline even as it grows: a lively meeting of old and new in the heart of the Himalaya.

OvernightUgyen Hotel, Thimphu

A full day among the capital's sights: the great Buddha Dordenma, the Memorial Chorten circled by pilgrims, Tashichho Dzong, the National Library and the Institute of Traditional Medicine, the farmers' market, and the studios of the arts-and-crafts school where the old skills are taught to a new generation. The evening is yours to wander.

OvernightUgyen Hotel, Thimphu

We cross the Dochula Pass, pausing for tea and the great sweep of Himalayan peaks, then descend through hairpin bends to the fertile valley of Punakha. We visit Druk Wangyal Lhakhang, the majestic Punakha Dzong at the river confluence, and — for those with the legs for it — the hilltop climb to Khamsum Yulley Namgyal Chorten, a temple of extraordinary craftsmanship with valley views to match.

OvernightPunatsangchhu Cottage, Punakha

A long and rewarding drive today carries us into central Bhutan. We stop at the roadside Chendebji Chorten and at Trongsa, where the vast dzong — ancestral seat of the royal family — straddles the ridge above a plunging gorge, its watchtower now a fine museum. By evening we reach Bumthang, the country's spiritual heartland.

OvernightTshomo Farmhouse, Bumthang

Bumthang is where Buddhism sank its deepest roots in Bhutan, and its valleys are dense with sacred places. We visit Jambay Lhakhang, said to date from the seventh century; Kurjey Lhakhang, where Guru Rinpoche left his body's imprint in the rock; the Jakar Dzong on its ridge; and Mebar Tsho, the "burning lake," where the treasure-finder Pema Lingpa is said to have plunged in holding a butter lamp and emerged with it still alight. For the willing, a walk across the suspension bridge leads to the fourteenth-century Tamshing temple.

OvernightTshomo Farmhouse, Bumthang

We begin the journey back, breaking the long drive at Phobjikha — the broad, U-shaped glacial valley, also called Gangteng after its handsome monastery, where the black-necked cranes come down from the Tibetan plateau each winter to roost. From there we continue to Punakha, once the nation's capital, for the night.

OvernightPunatsangchhu Cottage, Punakha

A scenic drive of four to five hours brings us, by way of Wangdue, to the wide green valley of Paro — one of Bhutan's most beautiful, and, with Punakha and Jakar, part of the country's "golden triangle." The evening is free to settle in and stroll the town.

OvernightPenchu Boutique / Gakiling Farmhouse, Paro

The climb every traveller anticipates. We ascend to Taktsang, the Tiger's Nest — roughly three hours up and two back down — the monastery revealing itself in glimpses through the pines before appearing whole across the gorge. Afterwards we visit the National Museum and leave time in the market for last souvenirs.

OvernightPenchu Boutique / Gakiling Farmhouse, Paro

After an early breakfast we begin the long, green descent — back through the Dooars, its tea estates and forested foothills, to New Jalpaiguri, Bagdogra or Siliguri for your onward journey. If time allows, we pause at the Coronation Bridge at Sevoke for a final photograph. Tashi Delek.