Tiger nest Monastery or Taktsang trekking is one of the most adventurous part of Bhutan trip. Almost 90 ‰ travellers who travels to Paro, try this trekking. In this post you will get to know all the information related to Tiger Nest Monastery trek. The very first view of the Taktshang, we had while entering the Paro was amazing. I felt a mysterious bonding (J don’t laugh please!). Though we were not certain whether it is possible to do the trekking with a toddler, I took the decision that at least we will try the trekking.
History:
It is believed that in the 8th century the Indian Guru Shri Padmashambha who started the Buddhism in Bhutan meditated here for 3 years 3 months 3 days. It is also said that he went there with the help of a flying tiger, hence the name Tiger monastery.
How to reach:
For the trekking, you need to come to the base of monastery. You can get there by private car. The car parking space is available there.
Best time to visit:
I thing other than rainy season (Jun July) and winter (Jan end to March beginning), the trekking is possible all year around. We went in the end December, that was the perfect time. Temperature was 10-12 degree at day time, so you will not feel much heat and would not get tired easily. However starting from October to December is considered the best time to visit Bhutan as well Taktshang.
Entry fees and timing of Tiger nest:
The entry fee was 500 Nu (Bhutanese currency which is also valued same as Indian currency INR.) 1 USD = 65 Nu (approx.). You need to buy the ticket while starting the trekking, ticket is not available at the entry gate of the Monastery (at 10200 feet) so even if you can not complete the journey, you need to buy ticket. So the decision of entry has to be taken at the very beginning of the trek.
How tough is the trekking:
For people who does not have flying tiger has to walk to the Monastery. J J The difference of elevation is 1700 feet which can be reached by walking 3-4 hours in one way. That means you need to have at least 6-7 hours time. The trekking is not very though for a person having regular fitness. You can take pony up to the view point (cafeteria), which is almost half of the total length. From the view point you shall take a good photo as inside the Monastery camera is not allowed.
Our experience:
We went Bhutan for 8 days. We started our journey from Paro (airport) to Thimphu to Punakha, to Phobjikha to Paro. Here is detailed 7 days Bhutan itinerary and things to consider while planning your Bhutan trip. We stayed 2 days in Paro. One day we went to visit Haa valley via chele la Pass and one full day we kept for this Tiger nest trekking. I was travelling with my husband and 3 year old daughter.
Read: Places to visit in Thimphu
Read More: Why Should you viist Punkaha
As mentioned earlier that after seeing this Monastery on the top of the hill which is beyond cloud in most of the time. I was very keen to try this trekking. Before going there I tried to search online views on tiger nest trekking with kids, but nowhere I get desired suggestion.
Initially we thought we will do the trekking separately keeping one of us with our daughter in hotel. But the day of trekking we thought let’s try the trekking all together along with our daughter. I would not say that that decision was wrong and because of this we could not reach to end but yes, the fact is that we could not reach till the top. However it is truly said that destination doesn’t matter, journey does. We tried whatever was possible for us. After reaching half distance carrying her, she doesn’t even let us walk. She started crying so hard and with that it became very difficult for us to proceed. So we took rest in between, interacted with the other passer by, watched many unique birds.
Things to consider:
From our experience these are the learning you can apply –
- Start early (8 am) of you want to buy ticket, else you can start even earlier. The ticket counter timing are 8 am to 1 pm and 2pm – 6pm. If you s start early you will have time to walk slowly and enjoy the breath-taking view. It will take at least 3 hours to return, so you need to start at least 3, 3-30pm to avoid walking in dark.
- If you consider yourself not very fit for trekking, you can hire pony to reach up to the cafeteria area. (Half of the distance) and then start walking. However riding pony also needs some kind of bravery. With the toddler it is very difficult to ride so we didn’t opt for this.
- Take at least 2 bottle water. Till you reach cafeteria, there is no shop in between, so you must carry water.
- Wear light clothes. In December morning the temperature s 5-6 degree so we wore heavy jackets, but after walking for some time, we were feeling hot and the weight of sweater and jackets increased out burden even more.
- Take (buy) a stick while starting the journey. It will help you to better balance.
- If you are travelling with kids and wants to do trekking, first think whether your kid can walk up to that limit as carrying them while trekking is not advisable. In my opinion kids more than 5-6 years old are ok to travel.
Have you finished the tiger nest hiking? Please let me know your experience. PIN the below image for future reference.
Bhutan is indeed a beautiful place to travel. While my visit there, I completed Tiger Nest Trekking and I really enjoyed it. Worth traveling place and worth completing Tiger Nest Trekking.
Yes Bhutan is very beautiful place. Its great that you completed the hiking! Thnaks for reading my post.
Thanks for sharing your Bhutan adventure with us. The food and the culture over there look great! Stay awesome! :D