Page Title

DARJEELING

Darjeeling perches among the clouds at 2,134 meters above sea level hugging the crests and slopes of a long ridge. The town's name shrouded in indistinct origins, is now generally accepted as being derived for Dorje Ling meaning Abode Of The Thunderbolt, which was the name of the monastery on the ridge. Around this hub grew a town, now a bustling beehive of color, culture, beauty and gaiety.

Driving up from the plains of Bengal into the lofty green hills, one enters a different domain altogether. Brilliant red rhododendrons, charming white magnolias, and majestic pine trees welcome you to the land of Darjeeling. And all the while, the slopes gently flow down in waves and waves of green tea bushes. All around you are lonely vales and dales, rushing streams and gasping gorges, and tiny lakes that reflect the turquoise hue of the sky. An intoxicating experience to be cherished forever.

You have the choice of traveling uphill by motor car or by the famous Toy Train . The train huffs and puffs its way up the steep incline without the aid of cogged wheels. Commissioned in 1881, the Lilliputian locomotives haul their cabins through sweeping scenes of the extensive plains way down below; perhaps the most romantic railroad in the world. The train exerts its way up to Ghoom, the highest point at 2,258 meters, and then glides down to Darjeeling town, traversing the Batasia Loop from where the visitors get the first enchanting view of Darjeeling town. Elegant, enduring, the Queen Of The Hills stands, her gaze fixed on the shimmering white countenance of Kanchenjunga which looms impressively on the horizon.

DARJEELING & SIKKIM

Fly Kathmandu/Bhadrapur- 1 hr domestic flight

Transfer via surface- 4 hours to Darjeeling/5 hours to Gangtok, Sikkim

Darjeeling offers sights of quaint relics of the British Empire- stone masonry and gabled houses, the famous narrow gauge toy trains, tea gardens and gorgeous mountain views. Pemayangtse is the premier monastery of the Nyingmapa sect of Sikkim. Gangtok, capital of a former Himalayan kingdom is situated on a hilltop overlooking the spectacular Kanchenjunga range.

SIKKIM

Small but beautiful, Sikkim is situated in the Eastern Himalayan region. Spread below Mt. Kanchenjunga 8,545 meters, the third highest peak in the world and revered by the Sikkimese as their protective deity, Sikkim shares her border with Tibet to the north, Bhutan to the East , Nepal to the west, and the district of Darjeeling to her south.

Amidst the grandeur of mountains peaks, lush valleys, fast flowing rivers, terraced hills, Sikkim offers her visitors a rare and singular experience. Within a matter of hours , one can move from the sub-tropical heat of the lower valleys to the cold rugged mountains slopes that reach up to the areas of perpetual snow.