Tea time in Darjeeling

Travel time - from station/airport to Darjeeling: 3 hours by car.

On the first day of your Darjeeling tour package, you’ll arrive into Darjeeling by train (New Jalpaiguri) or by plane in (Bagdogra), and your transfer to the hotel will be organised in advance. During the 3-hour drive you’ll travel across Indian plains with mountain slopes in the background. Darjeeling radiates serenity and calm - it is an island city surrounded by fresh green tea fields. Lying at the foot of the Kanchenjunga range, the temperature in Darjeeling is very pleasant and Indians have been escaping the suffocating heat of Kolkata summers here for years. The town straddles a slope with a height difference of up to 600 metres. From almost every hotel you have sweeping views of the surrounding countryside. The streets are narrow, steep and typically busy as usual in India, with dozens of ramshackle stalls selling anything and everything. In the market square, at the very top of the hill, you’ll find yourself encircled by snow-capped mountains, some reaching heights exceeding 8000metres (over 26,000 feet).

You’re free to explore on your own for the rest of the day during your Darjeeling tour, ambling through the tea plantations where you’ll see the Indian pickers carrying large baskets on their backs. Darjeeling is renowned for its tea, which is still produced by hand here in small factories. You’ll stay in a peaceful, comfortable hotel with spacious rooms during your package tour.

On day two of your Darjeeling tour package, you’ll have an early start to make it to the top of Tiger Hill before sunrise, but weather permitting the views are definitely worth it! You’ll have a fantastic view of the first beams of sunshine appearing between the snow-capped Himalayas. As the morning mist disappears from the valley, the view will become even more amazing. It can be pretty cold and windy up here, so make sure you are warmly dressed. As soon as the sun rises higher and the valley begins to warm up, you’ll drive to the oldest Buddhist monastery in Darjeeling, the next stop on your Darjeeing tour. This monastery dates from 1875 and is home to many well-preserved books. An english-speaking guide will accompany you through the grounds and explain the history of the building.

In the afternoon, you can enjoy a typical Nepalese or Tibetan lunch in the centre of Darjeeling. You’ll visit a museum about the history of climbing in the Himalayas, accompanied again by a guide. Next on your Darjeeling tour, you’ll take a trip to the famous zoo with its rare red panda and snow leopard. You’ll finish off the day in the Tibetan refugee centre, where exiled Tibetans make clothes and carpets from local wool. You’ll spend another evening in the cosy hotel, drifting happily off to sleep after an action-packed day.

After breakfast on the last day of your darjeeling tour, the module comes to an end. Would you like to head deeper into Sikkim? If so, you could consider the Sikkim Tours module, which visits the towns of Gangtok and Kalimpong in the green foothills and the monasteries in the local area.

We can also offer you a 5-day trek through the lower slopes of the pristine Himalayas in our module Tibetan Temple Trek.

Alternatively, you can travel back to Kolkota (Calcutta) by train or plane. From Kolkata, you can take flights to other parts of Northern India or the South, and we are happy to arrange these on your behalf. Just let us know your requirements via our quote request form, and we’ll make you a personal Travel Plan.