Lets Travel Easy: Sikkim and Darjeeling

DARJEELING Queen of Eastern Himalayas

Darjeeling is known for its scenic natural beauty, snow clad Mountain View, green hill forest and sweet people. This marvelous hill station provides you a tremendous relief form stress, which forced you to go Darjeeling.One can enjoy seeing snow covered Kanchenjunga and Everest Peaks from Darjeeling.The tourist flow to this place has been increasing day by day.

Darjeeling has some of the lovely tea plantations (estates) in the country. Darjeeling is a place where one feels as if being in the lap of mother nature. Darjeeling is also a trekkers paradise and the Gorkha hill council has provided ample trekking facilities for the adventure loving people.

Location:

Situated in the Shivalik Hills, on the lower range of the Himalayas, . It is situated at the height of 2134 meter from the sea level.

Temperature
Summer : Max 14.89 °C, Min 8.59 °C.
Winter : Max 6.11 °C, Min 1.05 °C.

Best Time to Visit

The best time to visit Darjeeling is during the months of April to June and September to December. During this time, the weather conditions are at their best, for roaming around the place as well as for indulging in various adventure sports.

Route Map:
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Getting There:

By Air

Bagdogra is the nearest Airport with flights from Kolkata, Delhi and other major destination within

India

. Bagdogra Airport is a mere 2 hour drive from Darjeeling or from Kalimpong.

By Train

N.J.P. and Siliguri are two nearest Railway Stations. Trains for all the important cities of India can be availed from these stations. Tickets for Air and rail can be booked in advance from the out agencies in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong.

By Road

Darjeeling is well connected by all weather roads to all the parts of the state and the state of

Sikkim

Sight Seeing places In Darjeeling:

Chowrasta:

This one of the important shopping places in Darjeeling . Here the Nehru Road and the Mall Road Intersect each other. The snow capped peaks of Kanchenjunga are visible from this place. Near Chowrasta are several Hindu and Buddhists temples. This place is over flowing with foreign tourists. You can also enjoy a pony ride form this place.

Kanchenjunga View:

From Darjeeling one can have the best, uninterrupted view of the worlds third highest peak. Bhan Bhakta Sarani provides one of the enthralling views of these snow capped peaks. The Chowrasta also gives you a good sight to the Kanchenjunga peak

Tiger Hill:

Tiger hill is a highest peak in the town, with a 2590 meter height. From this height you can see the highest peak of the world Mount Everest and Kanchenjunga, with a majestic view of eastern Himalayas. From this height you can enjoy the miracle, that how sun merges in the snow covered mountains.

Batasia Loop:

This railway loop is an interesting example of engineering. At this loop the toy train takes a very unique turn. This loop is just five kilometer from the main town of Darjeeling. This place also has a very good market where you can buy the purses, bags and other decorative items made by the local women at very reasonable price.

Dhoom Gompa - About 8 kms from Darjeeling is the Dhoom Gompa. Here a very beautiful statue of the Maitrayie Buddha ( prospective Buddha) is established. The Monastery has also preserved some of the rare handwritten Buddhist manuscripts.

Ghoom:

Two kilometers from Darjeeling is the town of Ghoom which is the highest railway station in the world. It also has a monastery.

Bhutia Busty Gompa
With the back drop of the Kanchenjunga range stands a monastery called the Bhutia Busty Gompa. This monastery was shifted from the observatory hills to the present place. The Gompa is a branch of the Nyingmapa sect's Phodang Monastery in Sikkim. The monastery is not far from the chowrasta and is very tastefully decorated. It also has a library which has a copy of the Tibetan Book of the Dead.

Toy Train:
The toy train coming from Siliguri is some thing which is liked by the elders and the children equally. The real fun in coming to Darjeeling is on the toy train. It takes six to seven hours to cover a distance of 82 kms and the slow speed gives you enough time to watch and appreciate the beauty which nature has provided it. This train passes through the Forests, waterfalls, over deepvalleys and through the mountains and tunnels

Passenger Ropeway - Another tourist attraction in Darjeeling has been the ropeway. This was the first ropeway in India. It connects the North point (7000 ft) to the Singla Bazaar (800 ft). The rope covers a distance of 8 kms in 45 minutes. The seats in the rope way is limited and it is better to get the tickets in advance. The ropeway is exciting and unique for any one visiting Darjeeling.

Senchal Lake
A scenic place near the tiger hills. This place has popularly come up as a picnic spot among the tourists. The lake supplies drinking water to the town of Darjeeling.

Nearby Attractions from Darjeeling:

Mirik
Mirik is 52 kms from Siliguri and 55 kms from the nearest Airfield of Bagdogra. Mirik is being developed as a new hill station in the mountains. Mirik is surrounded by tea estates, orange orchards and cardamom plantations. It has all the facilities to fulfill the needs of a tourist.

Kalimpong : Kalimpong is within Darjeeling province and is a sub-division of Darjeeling. It is a small but bustling town in the Himalaya foothills of West Bengal- Kalimpong is at an altitude of 1250 meters. This bazaar town was originally a part of Bhutan but later it was taken over by the British and finally it settled down with West Bengal.

Kurseong:
Kurseong is mid-way between Siliguri and Darjeeling. The way from Darjeeling to Kurseong is generally open through out the year. So, the toy train is not coming to Siliguri then one can come up to Kurseong. This place is equally beautiful and is full of natural splendour.

Food & Accommodation:

Darjeeling Hotels