Autumn 2027 · Thimphu Tshechu 10–12 October · Punakha Tshechu 16–18 February · 
The rice turns
Late September · Punakha and Paro
The terraces go from green to gold in about a fortnight, and the whole valley floor changes colour more or less at once.
Licensed Bhutanese tour operator
The valleys are quietest in autumn.
We are a small Bhutanese company that takes a handful of travellers through our own country each season — slowly, on foot where it matters, and never more than one group at a time.
Where every journey becomes a memory.
- One all‑inclusive priceEverything in, including the Sustainable Development Fee and 5% GST. No extras on arrival.
- Visa handled for youWe apply on your behalf. A passport scan and a photograph is all we need.
- Licensed in BhutanRegistered with the Department of Tourism. Verify us at services.bhutan.travel
- Guides paid fairlyThe full licensed rate of Nu 3,000 a day. Many operators don't pay it.
Why book with us directly
Most people who sell you Bhutan have never lived a winter here.
Booking through an agent abroad costs you 20 to 30% more, and that money leaves the country. It does not reach the guide, the driver, the farmhouse that cooks your dinner, or the valley you came to see.
We are the operator. There is no one between us. When you write to us, you are writing to the person who will meet you at Paro — and when something needs changing at nine at night in Bumthang, you are calling someone who is forty minutes away, not in another time zone.
Autumn in Bhutan
This is what we are named for.
Autumn here is more than falling leaves. It is the harvest, the chillies, the peaks coming back and the cranes — four things that happen inside the same ten weeks and at no other point in the year.
Chillies on the roofs
October · the whole country
The year's chillies go up on the farmhouse roofs to dry. For a few weeks half the roofs in Bhutan are red.
The peaks come back
From mid-September
The monsoon clears and Jhomolhari and Jichu Drake are simply there again, after four months behind cloud.
The cranes arrive
Last week of October · Phobjikha
Black-necked cranes cross the Black Mountains into the valley. They are said to circle Gangtey Goenpa three times before they land.
The journeys
Four ways through the country
Each one is a starting point, not a fixed menu. Tell us what you want and we will rewrite it around you.
8 nights · Autumn
The Autumn Valleys
Thimphu · Punakha · Phobjikha
Paro, Thimphu, Punakha and Phobjikha, timed so that you are in Thimphu for the tshechu and in Phobjikha when the black-necked cranes return.
From USD 2,360 per person,
everything in
6 nights · Spring · Autumn
Haa and the Western Passes
Haa · Chele La
The valley that was closed to visitors until 2002, reached over Chele La at 3,988 metres. Few operators go. You will not queue for anything.
From USD 1,710 per person,
everything in
10 nights · All seasons
Bumthang, the Spiritual Heartland
Punakha · Trongsa · Bumthang
East to the four valleys where Buddhism entered Bhutan — Jakar, Chokhor, Tang and Ura — over Dochula and Pele La, sleeping in farmhouses.
From USD 3,100 per person,
everything in
7 nights · Spring · Autumn
The Druk Path Trek
Jele Dzong · Jimilang Tsho · Thimphu
Paro to Thimphu on foot over four days and three passes, past lakes that freeze by November. Moderate. Your trekking guide holds a TG Level III licence.
From USD 2,240 per person,
everything in
When to come
We are named after the season we think you should choose.
Bhutan has four quite different countries in it depending on the month. Here is the honest version, including the months we would talk you out of.
Mar – May
Spring
Rhododendron on the passes and the Paro Tshechu. Warm, busy, and the one season where flights sell out before hotels do.
Jun – Aug
Monsoon
Cloud sits in the valleys and the mountain views mostly go. Cheap, green, and genuinely lovely if you don't mind rain. Not for a first visit.
Sep – Nov
Autumn
Clear skies after the rain, the rice turning gold in Punakha, the Thimphu Tshechu, and the cranes arriving in Phobjikha at the end of October. This is the best month-for-month window in the country and it is what we are named for.
Dec – Feb
Winter
Cold and bright, almost no one about, and the valleys at their most still. High passes may close. The Punakha Tshechu falls in February.
Festival dates, 2027
16–18 February
Punakha Drubchen & Tshechu
Punakha Dzong
18–22 March
Paro Tshechu
Rinpung Dzong, Paro
18–22 April
Ura Yakchoe
Ura, Bumthang
12–14 June
Nimalung & Kurjey Tshechu
Bumthang
10–12 October
Thimphu Tshechu
Tashichho Dzong
Tshechu dates follow the Bhutanese lunar calendar and move each year. We reconfirm them before you book a flight, never after.
Who you travel with
The person who started this, and how we choose your guide.
Bhutanese law requires a licensed guide and a separate licensed driver on every vehicle. We hire both for your journey, and you will know who they are before you arrive.
Founder
Choeying Palmo
Autumn has always been my favourite season, and it's the best time to see Bhutan. I named the company after it because of what it teaches: slow down, notice things, and don't hold on too tightly. We take one group at a time, so there's always room for an extra hour in a farmhouse kitchen.
Talk to her before you book: +975 77262283
How we choose your guide
- Licensed, and you can check.Every guide we hire holds a Department of Tourism licence. We send you the licence number so you can look it up yourself.
- Matched to your journey.A cultural guide for the valleys and the festivals. On a trek, a guide with TG Level III, the highest grade, which requires a wilderness first responder qualification.
- Paid the full rate.Nu 3,000 a day, the licensed rate. A good deal of the industry pays less, and the difference shows.
- Named before you arrive.Your guide’s name, licence number and mobile number come with your final itinerary.
What it costs
One number, and here is what is inside it.
Bhutanese law requires that any price we quote you is the total price, including every tax and charge. We would publish it this way regardless. Hidden costs are how this market got into trouble.
Not included: international flights to Paro, travel insurance, alcohol, and anything you buy for yourself. We will tell you what the flights cost before you commit to anything.
25% deposit to confirm, balance 30 days before you arrive.How to payCancellation termsQuestions
- Sustainable Development FeeUSD 100 / night
- Hotels, all meals, transport, guide, driver, entriesUSD 176 / night
- Goods & Services Tax at 5%USD 9 / night
- Per person, per nightUSD 285
The visa is a separate one-off USD 40 per person, paid to the government when we apply on your behalf. It is not taxed and we do not mark it up.
Before you book
We are new, and we would rather say so.
We are opening in 2026, so there are no guest reviews here yet, and we will not invent any. Here is what you can check for yourself before you send us anything.
Talk to us first
Call or message +975 77262283, or ask for a video call with the founder. You will be speaking to the person who plans your journey.
Check our licence
Every licensed tour operator in Bhutan is listed by the Department of Tourism. Look us up at services.bhutan.travel before you pay anything.
Pay a quarter to begin
A 25% deposit holds your dates, and the balance is due 30 days before you arrive. If we ever cancel, you get all of it back. Cancellation terms
Before you ask
The things people ask us first.
Do I need a visa, and how do I get one?
Yes, and you do not apply yourself: we apply on your behalf, which is how it works for every visitor. We need a clear colour scan of your passport and a digital passport photograph, not the physical passport.
The fee is USD 40 per person, paid once, and it is not refundable. Approval usually comes back within five working days. Your visa clearance is issued before you fly and is checked on arrival at Paro or at the land border.
How far ahead should I book?
For autumn, six to nine months. For a festival, longer. For February or June, a few weeks is usually enough.
What is included in the price?
Everything for the days you are here: the Sustainable Development Fee, hotels, all meals, transport, a licensed guide and a licensed driver, entry fees, and 5% GST.
Not included: international flights to Paro, travel insurance, alcohol, and anything you buy for yourself. The visa is a separate USD 40 per person, paid to the government when we apply for it; we do not mark it up. See what it costs.
How and when do I pay?
A 25% deposit confirms your dates and lets us apply for your visa. The balance is due 30 days before you arrive. For bookings made inside 30 days, the full amount is due on confirmation.
You can pay by card, from an invoice we email you, by bank transfer to our account at Bhutan National Bank, or through Wise. Non-Indian visitors pay in US dollars; Indian nationals pay in Indian rupees. How to pay.
What happens if I cancel?
Tell us as early as you can: we will always try to move your dates rather than cancel them, and moving a booking costs nothing if you tell us more than 30 days out. If you do cancel:
- More than 60 days before arrival: full refund less USD 150 per person and the USD 40 visa fee, which the government does not return
- 60 to 30 days: 75% refunded
- 29 to 10 days: 50% refunded
- 9 to 2 days: 25% refunded
- Within 48 hours, or no-show: no refund
The Sustainable Development Fee is refunded in full by the government for any night you do not stay, at every stage, and we pass that straight back to you. The full terms are in our cancellation policy.
Do I need to be fit?
For the cultural journeys, no. The one walk people worry about is Taktsang, and there are horses for the first stretch. Tell us honestly what you can manage and we will build around it. The Druk Path Trek is different: four days of walking at altitude.
All questions: visas, fees, flights, paying and cancelling →
Plan your journey
Tell us roughly what you want. We will write back properly.
Not a booking form. A real person reads this and replies with a proper itinerary and a total price, usually within a day.
Thank you — that has reached us.
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