|
Hi Raj,
Your information given in the site is mind-blowing and very helpful. I am from Kolkata, We have planned for a family tour to Darjeeling Kalimpong in the month of October. Me, my husband, my father and 2 kids.
I am sharing the Itinerary planned by me, request your guidance to see if it is ok or not.
1st October - we will reach NJP and transfer to Kalimpong,
2nd October - Sightseeing in Kalimpong
3rd October - Transfer to Rishop via Lolegaon (canopy walk), sunset in Tiffindara and night stay in Rishop
4th October - Rishop to Relli (night stay in Rucksack Relli)
5th October - Relli to Darjeeling (sightseeing in the 2ns half in Darjeeling)
6th October - Sunrise in Tiger hill and sightseeing
7th October - Darjeeling to NJP via Mirik Lake....train at 7.40pm
Please suggest changes required , also please let me know when I can include Ropeway and Toy Train ride in Darjeeling as my children will love it.
Thank you in advance
Anne Biswas (July 2022)
|
|
Hi, your itinerary is grossly okay. Check out if Canopy Walk in Lolegaon is open before you go, it was closed until recently for repairs. Otherwise, go to Rishop via Lava (visit the Lava monastery). Rishop road is steep and in a bad condition... small car will find it difficult to negotiate.
Rishop to Relli will be a long transfer (actually the place is called Relling in Bijanbari, Relli is a river in Kalimpong). You can do the ropeway and toy train ride on 6th Oct. Ride the toy train in the first half and ropeway in the second half.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) July 2022
|
|
Dear Mr Bhattacharya
First of all let me thank you for such a informative site ... I just tumbled upon while browsing ..I am going to Darjeeling on 9th Aug and shall be back on 12th Aug... though not a very good time to visit but just wanted to spend some quiet time with my daughter who is joining me from Pune. I needed one suggestion after spending 9th and 10th in Darjeeling shall i make a day trip to Kalimpong on 11th or stay in Kalimpong to catch my flight back home on 12th ..already booked hotel in Darjeeling for two days (ie 9th and 10th) and left 11th as open depending on weather...
Please suggest, thanks in advance
Nandini Sharma (July 2022)
|
|
Hello,
Ideally, it would be wise to stay back in Kalimpong instead of coming all the way back to Darjeeling only to catch a flight the next day. However, there could be a huge logistic issue trying to get to Bagdogra airport from Kalimpong these days... a stretch of the road on NH-10 (near Kalijhora) is extremely prone to landslides during the monsoon and several landslides have taken place on that stretch over the past several weeks. Many tourists returning from Kalimpong and Sikkim have missed their flights due to traffic getting stalled for 7-8 hours and even longer. So, either you get back to Darjeeling, or better, avoid Kalimpong altogether. If your objective is to spend some quiet time, you can consider coming down to Kurseong on the 11th morning and staying in a quiet place like Nirvana Retreat... you can google search to know about this beautiful retreat that also has a lovely tea lounge right across the street... it can't get more serene than this in the hills here.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) July 2022
|
|
Raj Sir,
Thanks for your travelogues.They are breathtakingly engaging, insightful and shows the amount of respect and love you preserve for the Queen of the Hills.
This is Mrs. Indrani Mukherjee from Pune, I am Planning for a 6-7days tour in mid October and prepared my own itinerary with the help of lots and lots of ideas,facts and anecdotes from your blogs.
Can you please review and give your valuable inputs regarding the same?
Day 1 (15th Oct)
Reaching NJP at 10.35pm by Shatabdi and staying in a hotel for that night.
Day 2 (16th Oct)
NJP to Darjeeling via Mirik(Lepchajagat, Ghum enroute) hotel stay
Day 3 (17th Oct)
Local sightseeing @Darjeeling(including toy train ride and cable car ride)
Day 4 (18th Oct)
Local sightseeing (tiger hill, HMI and Zoo)
Day 5(19th Oct)
En route Kalimpong via Tinchuley. Stay at Kalimpong and sightseeing.
Day 6(20th Oct)
NJP via Kurseong.
And return journey to Kolkata.
Now my questions-
1. 3 of us are travelling, 2adults and my 10 year old son, I have very strong and son has mild motion sickness, does the plan look feasible?
2. will it be better if we book a rented car from NJP for all 6days together, or we do it by parts? In both the cases can you provide me the details of a good car rental service?
Thanks and Regards-
Indrani Mukherjee (August 2022)
|
|
Hello, you have a near-perfect itinerary... well done! Here are my comments:
On day-5, instead of Tinchuley, I suggest you go via Lamahatta... Tinchuley would involve a detour, there is not much to see there on a day trip, and you can end up losing a good amount of time, as a result, Kalimpong sightseeing may not be possible in the second half. Lamahatta on the other hand will be on the way, and you can spend some time at the roadside Eco Park, have tea at a roadside stall and move ahead to Lovers Meet Viewpoint (10kms further down on Peshok road) and see the lovely confluence of Rivers Teesta and Rangeet. You can get all information about in this article Lamahatta and its attractions.
On day-6, the return via Kurseong would involve a long detour... you will again need to come back to Ghum/Jorebungalow area by taking Peshok road (the one you had taken to get to Kalimpong via Lamahatta) and then get onto Hill Cart Road (NH-110). The normal route to NJP from Kalimpong is much shorter along NH-10. This detour can result in a steep car fare. If you decide to do so, take a stop at Margaret's Deck located 9kms before the Kurseong town... it's a tea lounge run by Goodricke and the open deck here overlooks the sprawling tea gardens of Margaret's Hope. It can be very crowded during the season, if it is so, you can skip it.
In Kurseong, if you spend a short time, you can't do much sightseeing, but do try to visit the Hanuman Tok located on top of a hill... on a clear day, you can get an awesome view of Kurseong town and Kanchenjunga peaks from here.
You can get to know all about Kurseong attractions from this article link.
The roads in the hills here are serpentine, narrow and quite steep for most parts. So, that can potentially become a significant issue for a person with motion sickness. However, there are medications available along with some physical practices that can keep motion sickness under control. I suggest you consult a good medical practitioner to get advice on the matter before you embark on your journey.
Ideally, you should book a car end-to-end from pick up to drop off at NJP. You can contact a couple of operators that I have listed on this page link (Ashmita and Clubside are two of the most credible ones in Darjeeling) and take a comparative quote... but let them know the type of car you want and share a detailed itinerary with them so that they can make an accurate estimate of your tour plans... otherwise, they will make their own assumptions and the two quotes can be widely different.
Good luck!
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) August 2022
|
|
Hi Mr. Bhattacharya. Big fan of your blogs. I was planning a trip with my family of 10 people. I have a very entry level knowledge of north bengal geography. I was thinking Howrah> NJP> Darjeeling> Lamahatta> Daragaon> Kalimpong> NJP. Please suggest whether this is possible or not. Eagerly waiting for your tips. Thank you so much.
Jesmin Ray (October 2022)
|
|
Hello, yes it is quite possible. From Darjeeling you need to come to Jorebaunglow (near Ghum) and take Peshok road for Lamahatta. From here, continue on Peshok Road, cross Teesta river at Teesta Bazaar and reach Kalimpong. Daragaon is further 17kms ahead (45 minutes from Kalimpong).
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) October 2022
|
|
Hi Mr Raj,
Thanks a lot for clarifications earlier on my queries. Based on your valuable inputs I have further tweaked the itinerary and this is what it looks like.
Day 1 : land at Bagdogra Airport, overnight at Siliguri Hotel
Day 2 : start the day at Siliguri Hotel with early morning trip to Mahananda Wildlife Safari (private tour, have to still find suitable cab with driver, guide, permits arranged), and if the bus trip from NIC to Mandhodaya is still operating take that too!!
After this return to Siliguri hotel, lunch and proceed to Kalimpong hotel for overnight stay. On the route to Kalimpong cover following: Laltong watchtower, Gulma watchtower, Mahanadi Watchtower (if not done in the morning), Teesta River bank picnic spot
Day 3 :Kalimpong local sightseeing to Lepcha museum, Durpin monastery, Morgan House, etc. Followed by a drive to lava and loleygaon area. Overnight at kalimpong
Day 4 :drive from Kalimpong to Darjeeling hotel via Triveni and Teesta camp etc, 7th mile point. Overnight at Darjeeling Hotel
Day 5 - still iffy abt sunrise at Tiger Hill, But do Ghoom Monastery, Batasia loop and mixed points.
Hotel - Elgin or cedar Inn or Mayfair for best views of mountains and Kanchenjunga??
Day 6 : Darjeeling to Kurseong by toy train. Hotel at Kurseong
Day 7: Trip to Mirik from kurseong Hotel
Any other??? Over night to Siliguri hotel.
Day 8: travel to Bagdogra Airport
Appreciate if you could add your valuable insight & tips.
PS :if I could find availability and splurge on Glenburn, how would I tweak the itinerary? Cheers
Niti (December 2022)
|
|
Here are my comments:
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) December 2022
|
|
Happy New Year!! Unfortunately, our plans in 2022 January did not materialise due to sudden outburst of Covid. This time we have planned the following:
Jan 23: Reach NJP in morning; Take car to Morgan House, Kalimpong; on way stop at View Points
Afternoon, take a walk to Durpin Monastery, Jelepa La view point and coffee at Golf Course; Nightstay at Morgan house
Jan 24: Travel to Loleygaon & Lava; on way back stop over at Delo Park for view point
Jan 25: After Breakfast travel to Darjeeling via Lamahatta/Tukdah; on way stop at Ghum and Batasia
Afternoon leisure at Mall
Jan 26: Morning visit Tiger Hill; followed by Toy Train Joyride;
leisure at Mall
Jan 27: Tumling and back
Jan 28: 7-point tour though the main targets are HMI/Zoo/Ropeway
Jan 29: Drop down to NJP via Mirik
I have few questions:
1) Generally how is the climate during this period?
2) Is it possible to visit Delo on the way back from Loleygaon/Lava?
3) Is it possible at this time to have a Tumling tour, and how much time would it take?
4) How long will it generally take to reach NJP from Darjeeling via Mirik?
6) For the first 3 days NJP-Kalimpong-Lava/Loleygaon-Darjeeling part should I take a single reserved car from NJP?
Thanks & Congratulations once again for a great website.
Rajarshi (January 2023)
|
|
Hello,
January is usually very cold in Darjeeling as well as in Kalimpong... so, you need to choose your hotels wisely so that you get appropriate room heating systems. For more information on January weather, suggest you go through the appropriate section of the Article on month-wise weather of Darjeeling.
Visiting Delo on your way back from lava/Loleygaon isn't quite feasible... you won't have enough time left... Delo requires a minimum of 1 hour and it involves quite some walk from the gate where you need to leave your vehicle.
You can visit Tumling/Tonglu if you want (unless there is heavy snowing on the route). You will need to change your vehicle at Manebhanjan and take an old British Land Rover. Darjeeling to Manebhanjan takes about 1 hour 15 minutes and from there to Tumling about 45-50 minutes, plus the vehicle change-over time at Manebhanjan.
Darjeeling to NJP via Mirik takes about 4 hours plus the time you spend at Mirik.
It is not necessary to reserve a car for the first 3 days... however, it can be convenient that way.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) January 2023
|
|
Hello Mr. Raj.
I was searching the internet for tour related queries and stumbled on this website. I must say a big thank you to you, for maintaining such an organised and informative travelling related website. I am planning for a 5 to 7 days solo tour to Kalimpong - Lava - Lolegaon, in the coming month of May (middle of May). I have put up a rough itinerary as given below and request you to put your valuable suggestions to make the tour fruitful:
Day 1: Arrive to NJP and go to Kalimpong and stay at Morgan House.
Day 2: Kalimpong day tour covering Dello hill.
Day 3: Go to Lolegaon for Canopy walk and other sight seeing, and stay at Lolegaon.
Day 4: Go to Lava for sightseeing, and then to Charkhole, and then back to Lolegaon.
Day 5: From Lolegaon back to Kalimpong and visiting few other unvisited places of Kalimpong.
Day 6 : Kalimpong to NJP and back to Kolkata.
Thank you in advance,
Rahul Chakraborty (March 2023)
|
|
Hello, the itinerary is okay, but the Canopy Walk in Loley Gaon was closed until recently... the footbridge through the forest was in a dilapidated condition and was dangerous and slippery to walk on. So check it out with your hotel at Loleygaon before you plan a visit there.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) March 2023
|
|
Raj sir, I am an avid reader of your website scripts. I am planning to have a trip from 5th-9th May,2023 and wish to cover sightseeing of Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong with visit to Triveni and Lamahata enroute Kalimpong to Darjeeling and visit to Simana view point, Indo Nepal Border, Pashupati market and obviously Mirik while returning to NJP on the 9th. But since we're a couple, I think shared taxi/sumos are our most affordable options. So can you please comment on if this is an ambitious plans or if it can be improved further by your valued suggestions. Please!
Vincent (April 2023)
|
|
Hello,
Shared jeeps won't be a practical solution for your plans. They ply point-to-point and can drop you at places in between, but how will you do sightseeing or walk around with your luggage? Shared taxis won't wait for you either. Plus getting seats in shared taxis from an in-between place may not be easy. There is no shared taxi service up to Triveni. You will need reserved taxis for such plans. Additionally, from Darjeeling, the Mirik route is different from Kurseong. In such a short time, you can not cover Kurseong meaningfully... it requires almost a full day if you want to do proper sightseeing in Kurseong. It's better to drop Kurseong.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) April 2023
|
|
Thank you for your response. I have changed my plan accordingly. I am thinking of staying in Darjeeling from 5th to 9th and on 6th, 7th and 8th I planning to do Darjeeling sightseeing, kalimpong and Kurseong visit in shared taxi. On 9th I will check out from hotel enroute to NJP through mirik. Does it seem ok to you?
Vincent (April 2023)
|
|
This plan seems to be okay. You can do Darjeeling and Kurseong sightseeing in shared taxis (through specific operators that I have discussed on my web pages describing local tours & sightseeing in Darjeeling and Kurseong respectively). You can go down to Kalimpong from Darjeeling on a shared taxi, but you may not find shared taxis there for local sightseeing... you will need to check at the taxi stand and see if there are others willing to form a group. You can also visit Mirik and then proceed to NJP on a shared taxi, but local sightseeing of Mirik on a shared taxi is unlikely. Plus, you need to manage your luggage.
Raj (darjeeling-tourism.com) April 2023
|
|
|
Related Articles
PAGE 1 2
|
