The verdant rolling hills, cows grazing in the valleys and the plate overflowing with Emmental cheese at your homestay would lead you to believe you’re vacationing somewhere in the Swiss Alps. But this is a common scene here in Bumthang, Bhutan. It is the perfect place for farming, and the

Bhutan is a fascinatingly preserved frontier of culture. Restricted and protected, it offers a superbly enlightening experience even for travelers with much experience in the Himalaya. Although it’s a notoriously expensive place to visit because you must book an approved tour, you do not need to spend much time (and

Despite being a naturally and culturally very beautiful country, Bhutan does not yet have any UNESCO World Heritage Sites. However, eight sites appear on the ‘Tentative List’, which means that a number of criteria need to be met before they can become fully fledged World Heritage Sites. Here’s a look

The Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan is a world unto itself, and the food from the country is a strong part of that world. Though Bhutan serves a variety of cuisines–such as Indian, Tibetan, Nepali and Chinese–for travelers seeking somewhat familiar tastes, the country’s own food is as delicious as it

American student Liam Kelly spent last summer in Himachal Pradesh, India on a study abroad program administered by Tulane University, New Orleans. He completed his final semester in Thimphu, Bhutan. In order to inspire others to travel and study in the Himalayas, we asked Liam some questions about his experiences.

Cycling is my favourite way to explore a new city or country. Bike riding tours in Bhutan are still in their infancy, and cycling in this mountainous country is not for the faint-hearted. My partner and I, both competent cyclists who’ve done a few biking holidays, signed up for a

We hiked for five days in Bhutan and didn’t see another tourist. We had the mountains, the walking trails, the camp sites, the lakes, to ourselves. In a world where over-tourism is becoming a major concern for some countries, this was utter bliss. I’d wanted to visit Bhutan for many

Our trip around the Kingdom of Bhutan was marked by unusual cultural experiences, best described as ‘authentic’, despite this word being overused in the travel industry. The obscure, little-explored Kingdom nestled in the heart of the Himalayas, famous for giving priority to Gross National Happiness over Gross National Product, is

In her native Tibetan language, Her Eminence Jetsun Kushok Chimey Luding guided us to become the goddess at the ‘Uncommon White Tara Initiation’ taking place at the Ewan Choden Buddhist Center in California. With Lama Jay Goldberg translating for us, I envisioned the White Tara thangka painting I had acquired

The Himalayas are an enormous mountain chain that spread from Pakistan in the west, to Bhutan in the east, as well as encompassing Nepal, parts of Tibet and several states of India. So while there is some cultural similarity between the peoples living in this region, there are also lots