For our trip we took the fastest and most comfortable route to reach Darjeeling. We took a flight from Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata. It costed us around 3,800/- per person. Within an hour we reached Bagdogra International Airport, Siliguri(a city in northern Bengal).
It would be wise to book a prepaid taxi from the counter in airport. Booking Ola cab services is not worth it as either they will cancel the ride or will ask for more money than it is mentioned in the app(we ourselves tried). So we took the smallest cab which can accommodate maximum 3 passengers and a driver that costed us 1,900/- to reach Darjeeling.
After almost 4 hours of drive we reached our hotel at 7pm in Darjeeling which we had booked over call earlier. We stayed at Golden Dolma & Spa hotel, the staff members were very polite and helpful, rooms were clean and comfortable and it is at a very good location as taxi stand, market, shops all were at a walking distance. We booked the hotel at very last moment so it costed us 1,800/- per night but an earlier reservation can save you some bucks. After relaxing for a while we went ahead for dinner in Chauk Bazaar(the main market area of the town) there was so much hustle-bustle in the street. It was filled with food vendor, restaurants and shops. We had the most amazing steamed momos and puchka(Bengali name of PaniPuri) from the food vendors on street. There is also an affordable and pure vegetarian restaurant that serves amazing food Hasty Tasty Pure Veg Restaurant. We had Dosa and fried momos which were delicious. Then we headed back to hotel to prepare for next day!
If you want to save more money then there are trains available to reach Bagdogra but one must book tickets in advance(3 to 4 weeks earlier).
We started next day at 9 a.m. for sightseeing, as we were tired after the yesterday's journey. We talked to both hotel staff and a taxi stand driver ,both demanded 3000/- for all the points in Darjeeling. So we took the hotel staff arranged taxi. But as we have started our day at 9a.m. so we missed the sunrise at Tiger Hill for which we must start our journey at 4:30 am. Hence we decided to see Tiger Hill next day which costed us extra 600/- but you can save it by starting early.
The first point we reached was Darjeeling's very famous ropeway. We can enjoy the breathtaking view of Darjeeling's beautiful waterfalls, tea garden, forest and mountains. Unfortunately when we reached, the queue of people waiting was quite long and we would have lost 3hrs of our day just by waiting for it, so with a bit disappointment we decided to head over our next destination. The ropeway starts at 10 a.m. so you can start early in order to not wait in queue.
It is one of the most famous tea estate in Darjeeling and one of tourists' favourite spots to visit. The scenic beauty of vast green tea estate is a treat to eyes. There is also one shop from where you can rent the Darjeeling traditional Gorkha dress and click memorable pictures because “When in the Rome, do as the Romans do”. There are also small shops where you can taste different types of hot tea and if you like it you can purchase tea leaves accordingly.
Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park
The zoo and HMI both have same entrance and we can see both simultaneously. The zoo is famous for its wide variety of animals found in high altitude and Himalayan region. We were astonished to see Red Panda, Snow Leopard, Black Bear, different animals, colorful birds and reptiles. The entry fee was 30/- per person.
Outside the zoo were local vendors selling snacks and beautiful shawls, muffler and woolen caps.
The Japanese Temple is built in traditional Japanese style. You can visit this place to feel the spiritual aura there. The Peace Pagoda is a beautiful Buddhist temple showing four avatars of Lord Buddha which is situated very close to the temple.
Our next point was Rock Garden, it is located 7 km away from the Mall market. It has been created by cutting the rocks to create terraced gardens. There are also small beautiful waterfalls. There are shops and restrooms nearby were you can relax for a while enjoying the beauty of the nature.
Note: There is majestic Buddhist Monastery named as Dali Monastery which is a home to many Tibetan Buddhists. One can visit this place and join them for prayer and to relax and enjoy the view. When we visited Darjeeling it was closed but you can definitely add to your list if its open to visit.
We reached back to hotel by 5 p.m.. We took rest for a while then headed back to Chauk Bazaar for our dinner and evening stroll and had tea from Tea Junction (they have a variety of teas). We then headed back to hotel and slept early as we have to wake up at 4 a.m. next day to see the sunrise.
Next day we left our hotel at 4:30 a.m. for Tiger Hill to watch the mesmerising sunrise. We reached at around 5:15 a.m. and had to walk for 15-20 mins to get to the top from where you can see the sunrise. The beautiful orangish yellow sky which we saw at that time is not possible to describe in words. One must visit in person to see the nature at its best because "Sometimes it's worth not pushing that snooze button".
Our next stop was Batasia Loop. To reach here one has two options either one can take a cab else a toy train ride. We chose the former option as Toy Train ride was expensive for us (1000/- per person for diesel train and 1600/- per person for steam train) if you wish to choose the Toy Train option then one can book its ticket on IRCTC in advance by searching Darjeeling to Darjeeling.
Batasia Loop known for its unique uphill train track, plus gardens & a monument to Indian soldiers.
After enjoying the Tiger Hill and Batasia Loop it was around 7 a.m.. The morning walk to reach the Tiger Hill and stroll in the Batasia loop will surely make one hungry. Good news, one will not have to worry as just outside of Batasia Loop there are vendors selling different types of most delicious pakoras and chai which will not only fulfill your hunger but will satisfy your taste buds on another level.
We went back to hotel took rest for some time and then we went out to look for taxi for Gangtok, after negotiating with number of drivers on the taxi stand finally we booked the cab for 2300/-. We checked out from hotel at 11 a.m. and journey for next destination started.
On our way from Darjeeling to Gangtok, we stopped by two very beautiful spots. One was Lamahatta Eco Park which is a little park on a hill slope that is maintained by locals. It a peaceful and pretty place where you can talk a walk or just relax and click beautiful pictures. Locals charge a small entry fee for the park.
The second location was Lovers Meet Viewpoint. The view of the confluence of river Rangeet and Teesta is amazing. The hills on the left side of the view are in Sikkim while right side hills belong to Kalimpong ,West Bengal.
Note: One can also visit Mangal Dham Pranami Temple on their way to Gangtok if one has extra time.
After a long hectic day we finally reached our hotel at 6 p.m., the hotel we stayed at was an average hotel as it was suggested by our driver. You can do your own investigation for hotel rather than depending on any 3rd party.
We had our dinner at Food Court which was on MG Marg, this street is full of variety of restaurants and other shops where you can do shopping. Finally our 3rd day ended here.
As we had only one day in hand to spend in Gangtok, so we decided to visit the snowy areas only. To visit Tsongmo Lake or Nathula Pass (where you will find yourself among the snow covered mountains) one needs special permission. You don't have to worry about the permission as the cab driver who will take you there will himself arrange it. One must have either a driving license or voter Id card as Aadhaar card will not be accepted and passport size photo either softcopy or hardcopy. Nathula Pass remains closed on Mondays and Tuesdays ,due to lack of prior knowledge we landed up there on Tuesday so we missed it.
We began our journey from our hotel at 8:30 a.m.. It takes about 2 hours to reach Tsongmo Lake and before reaching the lake the driver can stop some shop where you can borrow boots, jackets, gloves for convenience in snow and its better if you can have breakfast before starting the journey as there will be very few outlets for food.
It is a glacial lake surrounded by mountains. It remains frozen in winter. There are also some yaks there on which you can ride and click pictures.
It is a memorial and temple build in the honour of Indian army soldier, folk hero & saint Baba Harbhajan Singh.
It is a beautiful temple via water stream. We have to climb an easy rocky terrain to reach this temple.
After viewing these beautiful places we started descending back , on the way we returned our borrowed jackets and boots and clicked pics of snow covered mountains on both sides of the road.On our way back we visited two serene Hindu Temples .
It is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman and maintained by Indian Army.
It is a small Temple dedicated to Lord Ganesh ,offers pretty view of hills and has cafe and food stalls as well.
With this our fourth day of trip ended with a dinner at a restaurant on MG Marg in Gangtok.
Finally we left our hotel at 6:30 a.m. in morning and after almost four hours of drive we reached the Bagdogra Airport, Siliguri via road. The cab driver charged 2,500/- for that. Then we took the flight for Kolkata Airport.
This was indeed an incredible trip for us. We hope you enjoyed reading this. We tried our best to give you the most honest description of our trip and carefully mentioned all the importants things that you should keep in mind.
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