14 Days Culture and Religion Tour to Nepal and Bhutan

Highlight: Meet your warm guide and get prepared for the wonderful journey.

Arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, you are welcomed by the hospitable meeting and then you will be transferred to your hotel. The rest of the day is for you to relax or stroll around your accommodation.

Stay overnight in Kathmandu. 

Highlight: Visit Kathmandu Durbar Square, Swayambhunath Stupa and Patan Durbar Square.

Today, we will enjoy a full day valley sightseeing in Kathmandu. Visit Kathmandu Durbar Square, the place of the Malla and then the Shah Kings of Nepal, visiting Kumari Temple, house of the virgin goddess, visiting Swayambhunath Stupa (Monkey Temple), a stupa on the top of hill - from here you can overlook the scenery of Kathmandu, Visiting Patan Durbar Square, the second largest town in the valley, with Krishna Mandir, Golden Temple etc.

Stay overnight in Kathmandu.

Visiting Kathmandu Durbar Square

Highlight: Visit Pashupatinath Temple, Boudhanath and Bhaktapur's Durbar Square.

In the morning, we will take you a glimpse of half day sightseeing tour in Kathmandu Valley. Visit the famous Pashupatinath Temple, one of the most important Hindu temples in Nepal. Then go for a walk to see the huge stupa of Buddha, also known as Boudhanath, the largest stupa in Nepal. Afterward taking a ride to Bhaktapur, a fascinating town, visit Bhaktapur's Durbar Square featuring the Victorian illustrations style with temples and temples complex.

After the sightseeing in Kathmandu, drive to Nagarkot.

Stay overnight in Nagarkot.

Highlight: Take in sunrise view over the Himalayas and enjoy cultural performances like bonfire.

In the early morning, we will enjoy the stunning sunrise view over the Himalayas (weather permitted) from the top of Nagarkot hill (2175m). The sunrise viewed from this hill will present you the ever-refreshing memory of the majestic panoramic view of the Himalayan ranges from Dhaulagiri in the west and Mt. Everest in the east. 

Then after breakfast, travel overland from Nagarkot to Chitwan National Park. It is a long drive of about 6 hours. Upon arrival, you can take a good rest. Once the night falls, you will enjoy cultural performances including bonfire provided by us before getting in bed.

Stay overnight in Chitwan.

Highlight: Enjoy safari in Royal Chitwan National Park and discover amazing creatures there.

Today you will get a full day safari activity in Royal Chitwan National Park. If you are lucky, you will see many amazing creatures that you spend most time to looking for, such as rhinoceroses, Chitwan's royal Bengal tigers, leopards, monkeys, many types of deer and reptiles. Check your camera gear, preferably with a telephoto lens and you will not miss any shots.

Stay overnight in Chitwan.

Highlight: Visit Buddha's birthplace - Lumbini Garden and the Buddhist monasteries inside.

Today, we will move to Lumbini. You will visit the Lumbini Garden, one of the world's most important spiritual sites and attracts Buddhist pilgrims from around the world. There are over 25 Buddhist monasteries built by diverse countries from Vietnam to France in this garden. Among them, Mayadevi Temple is the most sacred site where archaeologists have identified the exact spot where Lord Buddha was born.

Stay overnight in Lumbini.

Visit Buddha's birthplace - Lumbini Garden

Highlight: Enjoy relaxing boating on Phewa Lake.

Today we will travel overland from Lumbini to Pokhara. It will take about 3 hours on the way. Upon arrival, you will enjoy boating on Phewa Lake, the second largest lake in Nepal and lying at an altitude of 784 m. The lake is peaceful place to let you fully relax yourself.

Stay overnight in Pokhara.

Highlight: Sightseeing beside Phewa Lake and visit Seti River gorge.

After breakfast, we will first enjoy a half day sightseeing of Pokhara city, the most popular destination in Nepal after Kathmandu. Enjoy the morning trip along the bank of Phewa Lake, you can admire the stunning view of the Fish Tail's Peak reflected in the silver surface of the water. You can also see the wonderful Annapurna panorama forms a superb backdrop to Pokhara from the lake.

After sightseeing in Phewa Lake, we keep visiting the Seti River gorge - one of the best places to see, Mahendra Gufa, used to be well-known for its stalactites.

In the evening, you can walk around Lakeside Market.

Stay overnight in Pokhara.

Highlight: Appreciate beautiful landscape along the drive back to Kathmandu.

Today, we will drive back to Kathmandu, which takes about 6 hours in total. You can appreciate the stunning view along the way.

Stay overnight in Kathmandu. 

Highlight: Visit Paro Rinpung Dzong and Kyichu Lhakhang.

Upon your arrival in Paro by Druk Air, Bhutan’s national carrier, you will be picked up by your tour guide at the airport and then escorted to the hotel. After a short rest, you will go to tour the Paro city.

This first landmark in Paro you will visit is the Kyichu Lhakhang, which is one of 108 temples constructed by the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo. Built in a manner similar to the Jokhang in Lhasa, Tibet, the temple has the great golden image of Buddha Shakyamuni.

Then go to explore the famous Paro Rinpung Dzong. It is a large Dzong, Buddhist monastery and fortress built in 17th Century to protect Paro valley. Rinpung Dzong houses the district Monastic Body and government administrative offices of Paro Dzongkhag.

In the evening, we will head to Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan and spend the night there.

Stay overnight in Thimphu.

Kyichu Lhakhang

Highlight: Explore Thimphu’s cultural wonders like National Memorial Chorten, National Textile Museum and Traditional Paper Making Factory etc.

Today, it will be a full-day sightseeing tour in Thimphu. You will first visit the National Memorial Chorten, constructed in memorial of the third King of Bhutan, King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, in 1974. The King was generally regarded as the father of modern Bhutan and widely esteemed by the Bhutanese. Then head to National Textile Museum, which keeps the traditional art of waving preserved and exhibits a good collection of ancient colored textile in various forms. keeps the traditional art of waving preserved and exhibits a good collection of ancient colored textile in various forms.

After lunch, you will visit the National Institute of Traditional Medicine, to see the productive process of Bhutan’s traditional medicine, herbs mostly, and watch the medical practitioner training. Next, go to Traditional Paper Making Factory, which originated from the old tradition in the 8th century, Bhutan papermaking has been well preserved and listed as the valuable national heritage of Bhutanese culture.

Late in the afternoon, we will drive to Punakha from Thimphu.

Stay overnight in Punakha.

Thimphu National Memorial Chorten

Highlight: Visit Punakha Dzong, National Museum of Bhutan, and Drukgyel Dzong.

Get up in the morning to visit Punakha Dzong, widely believed to be the most beautiful Bhutanese Dzong, built at the confluence of Pho Chhu and Mo Chhu Rivers. Never miss the Punakha festival around mid-Feb if you come at the right time.

After touring Punakha, we are about to drive back to Paro. In the afternoon, we head to the National Museum of Bhutan, which looks like a round watchtower. You can trace back to the ancient Bhutan history and explore the diverse wild lives as well as splendid local culture and arts. Then we drive to visit Drukgyel Dzong, where you can enjoy the enchanting village lying at its foot.

Stay overnight in Paro.

Punakha Dzong tour

Highlight: Enjoy the wonderful trekking to Tiger’s Nest.

Today, we will leave for Paro to enjoy the exciting trek to the Taktshang Goemba, also known as Tiger's Nest. Standing incredibly on the side of a sheer cliff 900m above the Paro Valley, Taktshang Goemba (3210m) is the landmark of Bhutan and also the holiest temple of the country. Legend has it that Guru Padmasambhava (also known as Guru Rinpoche) had flied here on the back of a tigress and meditated in the caves on the cliffside for three months. The temple has therefore become the holy site worshipped by all Bhutanese devotees, and known as one of the world’s top ten temples. 

After the trek, we will head back to Paro.

Stay overnight in Paro.

Tiger’s Nest Monastery

Your tour guide will transfer you to Paro International Airport for your next destination. Tour service end.