The holiday starts at the group hotel in Kathmandu. Transfers from Kathmandu Airport are provided. The rest of the day is free to relax or for independent sightseeing. We have also arranged for dinner in the hotel tonight, which you can take at your own leisure.

The group will meet in the lobby of the hotel. We transfer together back to airport in time to check in for the flight to Paro.

The flight from Kathmandu to Bhutan is one of the most spectacular of all mountain flights. From the left side of the plane Everest, Makalu and Kangchenjunga, three of the world's highest mountains, are clearly visible. The total flying time is only 45 minutes and soon we are descending into the Paro Valley, enjoying the splendid views of alpine forests, small monasteries, temples and flat-roofed farmhouses. On arrival we will be met by our Tour Leader who will accompany us to the hotel.

If the flight to Paro is in the morning, there may be time today to visit the National Museum housed in an ancient watchtower, high above the Paro Valley overlooking the Dzong.

This morning we make the stunning hike up to one of the most important religious site in the entire Himalaya, the Tiger's Nest. The monastery has a most stunning location, perched on the ledge of a cliff 900m above the Paro Valley. Not just a cultural experience, this hike up to over 3000m will provide some excellent acclimatisation ahead of our trek. Around half way up the trail there is a classic viewpoint for Taktsang, looking across the gorge to the monastic buildings clinging to the cliff wall opposite. There is a small teahouse located here where we can stop for a rest and a drink with a truly unforgettable view. The final approach to the monastery takes us down to a sacred waterfall, surrounded by a thousand fluttering prayer flags, where every crack in the rock is crammed with tsa-tsas (small caskets containing the ashes of the dead), before climbing back up towards the monastery. Leaving our bags and cameras at the gate we should hopefully be allowed to take a look around inside. As we explore amongst the chambers and altar rooms our guide will be on hand to explain all about the Buddhist rituals and iconography. After returning to Paro we make the 3hr drive to Punakha where we can expect warmer temperatures and a change of scenery towards fruit trees and rice paddies. In the late afternoon we will visit Punakha Dzong, one of Bhutan's most impressive buildings; it was here that the first king was crowned in 1907 and also where the current, and fifth, King first donned the Raven Crown. Particularly impressive is the pillared hall, which is decorated with art work depicting the most important scenes from the life of the Buddha and presided over by impressive giant gilded statues of Buddha, Guru Rinpoche and Zhabdrung Rinpoche (or Bluebeard). After visiting the dzong we will check into our hotel. If there is any luggage that do not require on the trek we can can leave a separate bag with the driver for delivery to our hotel in Thimphu to collect at the end of the trek.

After breakfast, we drive to Chorten Nyebu (1700m), the site of an ancient temple and here we meet our trek crew and horsemen who will accompany us over the next days. The trek today is a gradual ascent which begins through terraces of rice. We pass several villages and as we gain height we can look back over the valley below where we can also see the golden roofed Khamsum Yuley chorten, which was built by the Queen Mother. After crossing two streams and climbing steadily through forests of blue pine and rhododendrons, we reach a clearing, which is our camp for the night at the place known as Dupshipang (2440m).

We continue climbing steadily though mixed forest towards the Sinchu La. The view begins to open up and we can see Thinleygang village, Talo Monastery and the main road to Punakha. After approximately 4-5hours we reach the Sinchu La (3530m), marked with a small Stupa and many prayer flags. The trail across the top of the pass has been worn to a deep groove by generations of travellers between Punakha and the villages that now form Thimphu. These days most Bhutanese make the journey by road, thus bequeathing an excellent quiet trekking path to those who appreciate walking in the foothills of the Himalaya. From the top of the pass if the weather permits, we have extensive views over the Thimphu Valley and Phajoding Monastery and of distant Himalayan Mountain ranges. The old 'Winter' route between Punakha and Thimphu now aims directly for the capital, whereas we trend left heading towards our next pass to continue our adventure. From the top of the Sinchu La we descend to our camp in a meadow (3485m), surrounded by rhododendron and mixed conifer forest.

Today's trek, which leads us down towards the Dochu La on the Punakha/Thimpu road, is relatively gentle with some occasional uphill climbing through dense forests of oak and blue pine with frequent dramatic clearings where we have extensive views over Thimphu city. Much of the walk is along old and disused logging trails which makes for relatively easy underfoot conditions. We will also pass some semi-nomadic Yak herders' winter settlements. This is also another opportunity to enjoy the amazing panorama of snow-capped Himalayan peaks and admire the 108 'Druk Wangyal' chortens. We camp around an hour on from the main road at a camp that offers great views of the Himalayas.

From camp we should be treated to a stunning view of the sunrise. Today we begin with an uphill walk of around 2 hours to the remote Lungcheytsey Temple (3570m). From here we descend through the forest of pine and dwarf rhododendron, before heading up once more towards the Hele La (3225m). We will stop for lunch near the pass before descending down towards our camp, around an houraway from the small hamlet of Chamgang (2600m). Chamang is populated by highlanders who have relocated form the highlands of the Daga La to avoid the harsh winters.

Today we trek for around an hour to reach Chamgang village, from here our path first leads up through orchards of apples, before a long gradual climb takes us through forests of spruce, birch, juniper, oak and rhododendron. The forests are full of wild life with many species of birds and are also known for the many varieties of blue poppy found here. Our camp tonight is in a clearing known as Tsokam (3200m), which means 'dried lake'. This is a winter meadow used to graze the Yaks when the herders bring them down from the higher mountain slopes.

We have a steep climb for about an hour to start the day, after which we ascend more gradually beside the Dokka Chu, where we are likely to see the tents of semi-nomadic Yak herders. On this route Himalayan Monal Pheasants are a common sighting and we have fantastic views of the Himalaya as we climb over several ridges to reach the Tsari La (4190m). Eventually we reach a steep ravine and stream across which the locals have now built a concrete bridge. Crossing the bridge, we then ascend for around another hour to our camp site at Lhaba Chung (4300m). Tonights camp is just below a lake and has been used for centuries by the yak herders as their summer grazing grounds.

On today's hike we will have fantastic views of the Himalaya. One we reach the Laba Chung Lapsta, a classic saddle mountain at 4520m, the extensive panorama will include distant Kanchenjunga as well as the Bhutanese peaks of Masang Gang, Gangchhenta, Tsenda Gang and Jichu Drake. For an even better view those with energy to spare can climb a further 200 metres above the saddle to a small summit. From the saddle our path descends. We take a detour from the main path ascending to visit the lakes, the Chage Tsho, Sertsho and Yu Tsho (Tsho = lake). This is a beautiful area containing many alpine lakes and tarns in numerous valleys, although the epithet of a 'Thousand Lakes' is more poetry than arithmetic. From the lakes, we follow the emerging stream downhill for a while to the main Labatama Valley where there are scattered yak herders' huts. In the springtime this is a flower-strewn meadow with fragrant wild asparagus filling the air. Our next camp is nearby the herder's huts at Watachen (4100m).

We now traverse around the head of the valley to the Pangalabtsa, a pass at 4250m adorned with a huge cairn and prayer flags. Here there is an excellent view over the entire Dagala range and most of the Bhutanese Eastern Himalayan peaks. From the pass we make a long gradual descent, crossing several side valleys and their streams, to reach a rocky outcrop where the vegetation changes from spruce and larch to tall blue pine. We now follow a broad trail down the ridge to the Yak pastures of Gur (3290m), from where we have a gradual descent through forests alive with birdsong to a superb viewpoint in the form of a huge rock platform. The villages of this region derive significant income from the harvesting of matsutake and chanterelle mushrooms that grow wild in the forests. In the season mushrooms from this valley are sold all over Bhutan. Below the viewpoint our descent becomes steeper as we follow a well-crafted ancient trail with steps down to the Dolongu Chu, which we cross on a rustic bridge. Following the stream downhill we reach the Geynitsang Chu and continue following this river north to a suspension bridge. On the other side a short climb brings us to the village of Genekha where our vehicle will be waiting to drive us the 40kms to our hotel in Thimphu. After checking in and taking a welcome hot shower we will go out to explore Bhutan's capital city.

We have an early transfer to Paro Airport for the morning flight to Kathmandu. The flight takes only 45 minutes and on arrival we transfer to our comfortable hotel. The remainder of the day is free to explore the city or for shopping in the bazaars. An evening meal is included at the hotel, for those that wish to dine together, or you are free to head out into Thamel independently to a restaurant of your choice.

The holiday ends after breakfast. Transfers to Kathmandu airport are provided. If you would like to spend more time exploring Nepal, why not pre-book a full day-tour of the Kathmandu Valley, or a multi-day excursion to a wildlife reserve in Chitwan National Park. Contact the KE Team for more details.