Sikkim & Darjeeling · 8 Days
Sikkim & Darjeeling — the Grand Circuit
The core circuit — two nights in Gangtok, a Ravangla night, two in Pelling, and two in Darjeeling.
Day by Day
8 Days, In Full
Sikkim and Darjeeling in one loop, both hill regions at a steady pace. Two nights in Gangtok for the monasteries and the ridge-top capital. A night in Ravangla on the way south. Two nights in Pelling for the monastery ruins and the Kanchenjunga views. The drive over the Teesta into West Bengal, and two nights in Darjeeling for the Tiger Hill sunrise and a tea garden. It is the route for travellers who want both regions without rushing either.
Gangtok
Arrive in Gangtok
The drive up from Bagdogra airport or the New Jalpaiguri railhead takes about four to five hours, climbing out of the Bengal tea plains and up the Teesta gorge into Sikkim. Foreign visitors have their Sikkim permit checked at Rangpo on the way in. You reach Gangtok in the afternoon. The evening is for MG Marg, the traffic-free central avenue, where the town comes out to walk and the cafes fill up.
Gangtok
Gangtok — the Monasteries, the Ropeway and MG Marg
A full day around the capital. Rumtek first, the largest monastery in Sikkim and the Karmapa's seat, on a hill facing the town. Then the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, with one of the best collections of Tibetan texts and art outside Tibet, and the nearby Do-drul chorten. The afternoon takes in the Enchey monastery above the town, the ropeway across the ridge, and time on MG Marg and in the Lal Bazar market.
Gangtok → Ravangla
Gangtok to Ravangla, via the Namchi Statues
A drive south and west of about four hours, crossing the Teesta and climbing into South Sikkim. The stop on the way is Namchi: the forty-five-metre statue of Guru Padmasambhava on Samdruptse hill, and the Char Dham complex at Solophok, where the four corner temples of India are rebuilt at full size around a statue of Shiva. Both sit on hilltops with wide views. You reach Ravangla, on its ridge facing Kanchenjunga, by evening.
Ravangla → Pelling
Ravangla to Pelling
A drive of about three hours west along the ridges, through forest and small villages, with Kanchenjunga ahead most of the way on a clear day. There is time to stop at a viewpoint or a roadside monastery. You reach Pelling, in the far west of the state, by early afternoon, and check in with the mountains filling the windows. If the sky is clear, the sunset light on the snow from the hotel lawn is worth waiting for.
Pelling
Pelling — Pemayangtse, Rabdentse, Khecheopalri and the Skywalk
A full day in west Sikkim. Pemayangtse first, one of the oldest monasteries in the state, with a seven-tiered wooden model of a celestial palace on its top floor. A short walk downhill reaches the forest ruins of Rabdentse, the old royal capital. The afternoon is the sacred Khecheopalri Lake, still and leaf-free in its ring of trees, and the glass skywalk on the ridge, which runs out over the valley to a large statue of Chenrezig.
Pelling → Darjeeling
Pelling to Darjeeling — Crossing into West Bengal
A drive of about four hours, dropping out of Sikkim through Jorethang and crossing the Teesta into West Bengal. The road climbs again on the far side, through tea gardens and pine forest, with Kanchenjunga still visible behind on a clear day. You reach Darjeeling by mid-afternoon, the ridge-top town busier and more built-up than the Sikkim hills just crossed. The evening is for the Mall and Chowrasta, Darjeeling's pedestrian square.
Darjeeling
Darjeeling — Tiger Hill Sunrise and a Tea Garden
A pre-dawn drive to Tiger Hill for sunrise over Kanchenjunga, with the convoy of jeeps that makes the same trip every clear morning. The return stops at Ghum monastery and the Batasia Loop war memorial. Back in town for a late breakfast, the rest of the morning is Happy Valley Tea Estate, a short walk from the Chowk Bazaar, for the factory tour and a tasting. The afternoon is free for the Mall.
Darjeeling
Darjeeling — Departure
A free morning, for a last walk on the Mall or a return trip to Chowrasta before the crowds build. Bagdogra airport is about three hours away by road, with wide connections to Kolkata, Delhi and beyond; New Jalpaiguri's rail junction is a similar distance. It suits a shorter trip that stays entirely in the Darjeeling hills.
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